English muffins are one of those thing I make because they sudley make life better. I made them weekly when I worked at King Estate Winery for weekend brunch in 2018 and 2019, and somewhere along the way they became one of those bakes that just stuck. They’re not flashy, they don’t ask for a lot of attention. They just work.

I’ve always liked English muffins the same way my dad does: toasted, buttered, and topped with strawberry jam. As I’ve gotten older (and a little more bakery-brained), I’ve realized I also really love them with apple butter in the fall. It sounds fancy, it absolutely is not. This is a recipe that fits well into real life. Make them over the weekend, let them cool completely, toss them in a Ziplock bag, and freeze them. All week long you can grab one, pop it straight into the toaster, and move one with your day like you really have things together.

A note on cutting (and why I am being annoying about it) - When cutting your English muffins, press the cutter straight down into the dough. Don’t twist. Twisting seals the edges of the dough, which keeps the muffins from rising properly during their second proof and while cooking. A clean strait cut keeps those layers open so the muffin can puff and cook evenly. I’m someone who needs why a rule exsits rather than blindly following. This is one of those small things that makes a HUGE difference.

Cornmeal matters - cornmeal isn’t just there so the muffins don’t stick. It adds texture, subtle sweetness, and that classic English muffin flavor. If you’ve ever had a muffin that tasted a little flat, this is usually why. Don’t skip it.

Let’s talk cast iron (briefly, I promise), cooking English muffins in a cast iron skillet makes a noticeable difference. You get better color, better flavor, and that lightly crisp exterior before finishing them in the oven, so they’re baked all the way through.

Cast iron doesn’t have to be expensive either. My dad has unreal luck finding great cast iron pans at St. Vincent De Paul in Eugene and Springfield - often in good shape and around $10. If you want to try this recipe without dropping a lot of money, that’s genuinely a great place to look.

(And yes, a cast iron care post is coming soon.)

Why I keep making these - they are dependable, they’re good toasted, they’re good buttered, jammed, with apple butter, and turned into a sandwich you eat standing at the counter. They’re the kind of bake that earns a permanent spot in your rotation.

English Muffins

Yields: 25 muffins

Ingredients:

1,104g Bread Flour

49g Full Fat Dry Milk Powder

751g Water at 110 Degrees or slightly warm to the touch

19g Salt

66g Unsalted Butter, Room Temp

11g Instant Yeast

Instructions:

Note: Think about when you take your temperature when you are sick and how it should be around 98 degrees, if water feels warm on your hands it is going to be around 100 degrees. So, you can use that to figure out where your water should be if you do not have a thermometer, however if you run warm make sure to adjust accordingly because water that is too hot will kill your yeast.

Prep: In a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add your water and yeast and let bloom for five mins or until foamy.

Step 1: Add flour, dry milk powder, sugar and salt. Start mixing on speed 1 until combine.

Step 2: One shaggy dough is formed, increase speed and knead until passes the windowpane test.

‍ ‍Note: The windowpane test is when you take a small piece of the dough and stretch it between your fingers, then hold it up to the light and if you a see through it without it tearing you pass. If it tears and there are holes, throw it back in the mixer and let it keep going until those gluten strands get stronger.

Step 3: Once you pass the windowpane test, on speed 1 slowly add the butter until combine.

‍ ‍Note: It is important to add the butter after the windowpane test has been passed, butter is a fat so it will coat all the gluten strands like it would your hands. If you add butter too soon it will prevent the gluten strands from forming because the butter has incorporated around everything.

Step 4: Remove from bowl and place in a bowl lightly coated with oil and covered for it’s first proof. Approximately an hour.

Step 5: Preheat oven to 325 and prepare a sheet pan with cornmeal

Step 6: On a floured surface, roll out dough to half an inch thick, cut out muffins without twisting and doing your best to push straight down.

Step 7: On a floured surface, roll out dough to half an inch thick, cut out muffins without twisting and doing your best to push straight down.

Step 8: You can re-roll dough once being careful not to over work it, just knead scraps together until it forms a ball and place back in bowl and let rest otherwise when you roll it out it will snap back, will cut and rise at an angle, then will be tough when eating them.

Step 9: Heat cast iron, using a spatula, careful transfer proofed muffins making sure to not drop them and knock all the air out of them. At this point we are just coloring both sides then moving to a sheet pan, once the sheet pan is full, add it to the oven even if you have more to go. Bake for 12 mins and repeat the process with the remainer of the muffins.

Step 10: Let cool and then eat all the muffins that make your heart happy! Add that butter, jam, and apple butter or make into a breakfast sandwich!

Step 11: Once completely cool, add you a Ziplock bag and toss them in the freezer to enjoy…well for the next day or two because they are kind of hard to stop eating.

Quick Apple Butter (the unfancy kind):

Apples (any kind you like) peeled and chopped

A splash of apple cider vinegar

Brown Sugar to taste

Cinnamon

Pinch of Salt

Instructions:

Step 1: Add everything to a pot or slow cooker

Step 2: Cook low and slow until the apples are completely soft

Step 3: Blend until smooth; keep cooking uncovered until thick and spreadable. Taste and adjust as you go.

Note: Taste and adjust as you go, you can also add a touch of vanilla bean and it is, chef’s kiss! Store in fridge.