Hankering for English Muffins

I have a strong recollection of family vacations from childhood where we would occasionally check in to a local motel for a few days. My sister and I would head straight for the double queen beds to do our room inspection ritual of bouncing on and between beds before settling down to a quieter activity. Given our typically demure track records our parents would humor us a few bounces at the expense of our neighboring guests, even if we arrived in the late evening. For me, part of the excitement of staying away from home was the complimentary continental breakfasts awaiting us in the lobby in the morning. Somehow the combination of being on vacation and the buffet display of breakfast items made english muffins, in particular, a rare treat. I would always enjoy them split and toasted with a thin layer of butter and blackberry jam. These muffins trump bagels and toast any day.

A few days ago I developed a hankering for english muffins again (I had rediscovered the joy of english muffin mornings during my previous semester abroad) and was set on using my (neglected) sourdough starter to satisfy my craving. After browsing through a handful of recipes and english muffin commentary [sourdough / not sourdough / sourdough] I summarized my findings into a few main steps:

- basic ingredients: sponge (bread flour, sourdough starter, milk or water), additional bread flour, a leavener (baking soda), flavor (salt and a sweetener - sugar or honey)
- a long rise to develop flavor and texture
- rolling and cutting the muffins
- griddle cooking
* I ended up mainly sticking with the Sourdough recipe from The Fresh Loaf



Homemade english muffins are considerably easier to make than other yeasted breads but equally enjoyable to consume. Some recipes result in a sticky but stiff dough that is floured and cut into rounds with a round cookie-cutter, while others are soft and wet enough to require ring molds on the griddle. I followed the cookie-cutter version which yielded a slightly dense muffin filled with good nooks & crannies when fork-split. Adding the sourdough achieved a subtle, nearly sweet flavor that wasn't reminiscent of a hardy sourdough whatsoever, but hey it was delicious.



I savored my first english muffin hot off the griddle, spread with butter and a light sprinkle of sugar. As my friends abroad pointed out to me this is apparently not a common combination, but I grew up on it and find nothing else quite so satisfying. Next time I'll aim for a fluffier texture and a stronger sourdough flavor.