–Deb said...
January 25, 2009 at 4:09 pm

The one and only time (so far) that I’ve made English Muffins were on a stovetop grill and I swore never again would I do that! It took FOREVER, not least because I only had a round griddle and could only do three at a time, and only had that many converted tuna cans anyway … Yours look MUCH easier!

Still, at least I DID bake bread today. Two kinds, if you count the banana bread!

caren said...
January 25, 2009 at 4:46 pm

Thank you Zoe! I will do the traditional way on the griddle and use WW flour and let you know how it goes.
Caren

Ellen said...
January 25, 2009 at 5:00 pm

What is the measurement of the molds? Can you use tuna cans or are they too small?

Thanks

Judy said...
January 25, 2009 at 5:13 pm

I’ve been making these for about six months – mostly with the light wheat recipe. I’ve found that making them into balls then flattening with my palms and allowing to rise. I cook them in a 12″ nonstick skillet. 5 minutes on each side. They are incredible!!

Sandy S said...
January 25, 2009 at 5:39 pm

Hi, it’s me, Sandy, from At the Baker’s Bench! Thanks so much for the shout-out here.

I’m so excited to see your English muffins, because they’re right at the top of my BYOB list! As soon as my English muffin rings come in, I’m so making these!

Since I first opened my copy of Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day, months ago, I don’t think I’ve been without a tub of dough rising in my fridge, even when I’m working with other types of dough. It’s become my go-to staple for sandwich bread because there is no way to beat the convenience of this formula! (Just today, for example, I baked a double batch of light wheat boules ~ school lunch bread for Monday and Tuesday, if it lasts that long.)

I’m in debt to you guys ~ this is a truly phenomenal development in bread baking.

Cheers,
Sandy

Ellen said...
January 25, 2009 at 5:46 pm

I haven’t been able to find muffin rings after calling numerous places in San Francisco, Wm. Sonoma etc.. All I can find is graduated sets cutters, only 1 of each size, and I also found individual muffin cutters, very cheap, $1.00 each, but they are cutters, not molds and are very thin like cookie cutters. The store said that they would probably melt in the oven – is that true? If so, where can I buy molds that will go into the oven?

Cutting the bottoms from the tuna cans sounds like an awful lot of trouble in order to get smooth edges.

Nina said...
January 25, 2009 at 6:02 pm

FOR JUDY … I saw the muffins on your site and want to try the ASAP. When you ‘pop’ them into the oven for five minutes, what is the oven temp?

Thanks

Barbara said...
January 25, 2009 at 7:03 pm

King Arthur sells them at $10.95 for a set of eight (http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/detail.jsp?id=4651)

Saundra Shaver said...
January 25, 2009 at 7:46 pm

Oh! I didn’t know people had made a resolution like that!!!

I haven’t purchased one bit of bread since buying this book. I have made hot dog buns, hamburger buns, scones, pizza, brioche, sticky buns, cinnamon sticks, bagels and churros… all with the recipes in that fabulous book!
It’s my 7th month of not having to purchase a loaf of bread… at all!

zoe said...
January 25, 2009 at 8:10 pm

Hi Deb, I promise these are much easier than what you described!

Hi Caren, I’m doing WWW version tomorrow for breakfast too! Let me know how yours come out.

Hi Ellen, The tuna cans will be a bit smaller, but I think it will work just fine! Great idea!

Hi Judy, I just checked out your website and saw the muffins, they look fantastic! I may just try the stove top version yet. But these were SO easy!!!

Hi Sandy, Thanks so much for the great BYOB idea, I bet you’ll get a lot more people inspired to do the same!!!

Hi Ellen, Amazon carries them (at http://tinyurl.com/ckqpkh), as does Sur La Table. They are not that expensive. I paid $5 for a set of four rings.

Hi Barbara, Thanks for the link!

Hi Saundra, That is fantastic!!!

Thanks everyone! Zoë

Ellen said...
January 25, 2009 at 8:24 pm

Are your rings thin like the bisquit/muffin cutters? Thin like regular cookie cutters?

zoe said...
January 25, 2009 at 8:51 pm

Hi Ellen,

Yes they are pretty thin. They are the same gauge metal as many cookie cutters, but the tops and bottoms are rolled over so as to make them more stable and sturdy.

There are some available that are really heavy duty, but these seemed to get the job done nicely. I’ll let you know if they break after the second use!

Zoë

gina at My Skinny Garden said...
January 25, 2009 at 8:52 pm

Zoe – oh thank goodness you posted this! I have a huge container of dough and I’m just looking for stuff to make. Now, if I can just find these muffin molds in the next day or so I’ll be set.

ps got my copy of the book today and loving it.

zoe said...
January 25, 2009 at 9:02 pm

Hi Gina,

So many options for that bucket of dough!

You may find the muffin ring molds at any cooking store, but also I wonder if Target or a store like that might have them as well. We’ve attached a link to Amazon, but that may not be fast enough!?

Zoë

Elra said...
January 25, 2009 at 10:25 pm

I never made English muffin before, this recipe is certainly tempting.
Cheers,
Elra

Frank said...
January 25, 2009 at 10:56 pm

What is the approx. diameter of your rings Zoe?

Lu said...
January 26, 2009 at 4:36 am

Perfect timing! Since I have been making the bagels regularly, I just thought this weekend that I should make English muffins. This is just the post I needed to see.

Today, I’m making the oat flour batter for the first time and am eager to taste that bread.

Judy said...
January 26, 2009 at 5:36 am

Nina – I think it was 350 – to tell the truth, I’ve made them complete on the stovetop and not put them in the oven and they were still great. Just lightly oil the pan, but them over medium heat and set the timer for 5 min per side. Delish!! You really DON’T need the rings – honest!!

zoe said...
January 26, 2009 at 6:26 am

Hi Frank,

I’d say they are 4-inch diameter.

Hi Lu, Let me know what you think of the oat dough. It will make great English muffins as well!

Thanks Judy, I’m going to try the muffins sans rings and see how it goes!

Zoë

Stefan Bert said...
January 26, 2009 at 6:28 am

Great idea Zoe; they turned out fantastic, ideal for a Monday morning breakfast.
Stefan

david stong said...
January 26, 2009 at 8:05 am

Zoe, what would happen if you placed another, weighted sheet pan on top of the tins as they bake? The concept is similar to pullman loaves, giving you a more traditional flat top. You could even grease and dust the bottom of the second sheet with corn meal. I’ve used top sheets ( across the sheet pan edge) to control the rise on puff dough vol-au-vent shells and it worked beautifully.

Anne said...
January 26, 2009 at 8:06 am

I have not made these, but to those who asked about using tuna cans: yes, you can, with seemingly good results. I saw Alton Brown do it on his show. In fact, he seems to prefer recycling tuna cans to buying new molds.

zoe said...
January 26, 2009 at 8:21 am

Hi Stephan, more ideas for all those buckets of dough!

Hi David, I LOVE the idea and will try it. Today I flipped them at 10 minutes in the oven and got a nice color on both sides. Your idea may save the trouble of flipping?

Thanks! Zoë

Hi Anne, I’ll come check out what Alton does with his muffins. I like the idea of recycling!

Zoë

prov31wannabe said...
January 26, 2009 at 9:52 am

I first saw the ABin5 article in Mother Earth News, made some bread and loved it. I am waiting for a copy of the book from the library. My friend told me about the web site. I love everything about this concept, however I struggle with all the specialized equipment one seems to need for some of the recipes. Can you suggest alternatives occasionally? We live in a small town (pop. 1200) in the Middle of Nowhere, Illinois, and we do not have access to all the fine and fancy kitchen supply stores. Although one can purchase anything on the internet, our family is trying to shop locally, and in addition, it was our New Year’s Resolution to buy less this year, not more. I do not have a pizza peel, bread stone, or now, English muffin molds. I don’t mean to sound like a whiner, but a lot of us could do with some suggestions for substitute tools and/or methods. Did our grandmothers have a bread stone and English muffin molds? Looking forward to many more recipes . . .

zoe said...
January 26, 2009 at 10:11 am

Hi prov31wannabe,

Thanks for giving the bread a try! Read through the comments and you will see lots of great suggestions for alternatives to the English muffin molds!

You don’t have to have a stone, but it does improve the crust. Try it on a cookie sheet first and you can always get a stone later if you want. Another option is to use unglazed terra cotta garden tiles (big ones!) and bake on those in place of the stone. They are much less expensive and work well. Just be sure to use unglazed.

Thanks! Zoë

Kate said...
January 26, 2009 at 10:54 am

I hope I’m not the only party pooper on here, who has a question. If this is the same master dough which is used for various types of bread, and you’ve baked the dough in rings instead of on a grill, havn’t you essentially just made a batch of buns? I thought english muffins had both a characteristic flavor and chewyness which only came about from a specific recipe and a specific method. If we just bake master bread dough in rings, how is this any different than say, a perfectly formed hamburger bun? I’m confused!

zoe said...
January 26, 2009 at 11:11 am

Hi Kate,

It is true that English muffins are generally made with a more enriched dough. In fact it is very similar to the buttermilk dough or challah.

I was more trying to show a variation of how to form and bake the muffins, rather than the stove top method, which can be more labor intensive.

I actually found the texture and taste of these muffins to be close to what I buy. The characteristic cornmeal adds a lot to the flavor.

The truth is that you use the same method for hamburger buns, but eliminate the mold, so they will spread, rather than have flat sides and don’t use the cornmeal.

Thanks! Zoë

Kate said...
January 26, 2009 at 11:42 am

That’s great to know they are similar to the real thing… thank you very much. Just bought this book and can’t wait to crack it!

yabatil said...
January 26, 2009 at 2:52 pm

hi zoe this is off the muffin subject but i just wanted to ask about kaiser rolls? i tried making some with the master dough it came out nice and crisp but i didn’t get the exact shaping i was after. (i shaped according to the method in the book “the village baker”) im always looking for creative and fancy ways to shape dinner rolls. if you could post some examples that would be lovely.thanks

Banzai said...
January 26, 2009 at 3:48 pm

For years I’ve used Alton Brown’s English Muffin recipe (and loved it). It’s a great hit with all my friends. But since your bread recipe is so easy I’m going to have to try this one.

Sarah Jackson said...
January 26, 2009 at 7:08 pm

Ooo, just back from a shoot in Miami. So buying my proofing bucket this weekend;-)

Pat said...
January 26, 2009 at 11:06 pm

Dear Zoe,

I made a pizza tonight like those we bought in France. It was
sooooooo good! I used the last of the Vermont Cheddar cheese dough I
made last week and used all the rest to make a slurry for the next
batch which was a version of sour dough. I’m not sure it will be
good, but I made it with 4 oz beer and 2 T. of white vinegar. It
grew like normal and I refrigerated and will check tomorrow. It
smelled like the vinegar which I won’t like if it ends up smelling
that way. The English muffins came out good, but didn’t rise as much
as I expected. The inside was good and full of crumbs.

Onward and upward. I have decided that I do as well using a basic
mix and adding things like spices and cheese to make specialty breads
as I want. It’s not sensible for me to add those ingredients to a
whole batch as I make only small loaves. It’s so easy to add and the
cheddar cheese had such a mild taste. I had to tell people it was
included.

The brioche made wonderful bread and rolls. It is worth a batch.
There are so many uses for it. I also have an empty container ready
for something in it. It calls to me, so I must figure out a dough
for it. I may make the olive oil dough, but it will be used so much
like the master recipe, so I’m not sure.

Any suggestions?

Pat

zoe said...
January 26, 2009 at 11:18 pm

Hi Pat,

Your pizza sounds amazing!

I’d suggest you try the rye bread if you haven’t made it yet. I love to roll lots of raisins and walnuts into the dough before I bake it.

I also love the olive oil dough. It will behave very much like the master, but it has that extra flavor and richness from the olive oil. it makes great pizza!

The Peasant bread is also a fantastic all-purpose dough and adds a bit of whole wheat and rye to the flavor.

I’ll stop there!

Have fun, Zoë

rho said...
January 27, 2009 at 9:50 am

Hi – another thing to try – we are loving this whole concept – I’ve done pizza, round bread, long bread, cheddar cheese bread to go with pea soup (I didn’t have it mixed in – just flattened the dough into a rectangle and sprinkled with cheddar cheese – rolled into a jelly roll then rolled in on itself so it was a circle and let rise – it did volcano out a bit but yummy ) and now look forward to the EM — one question — is there one of the recipes that you could put into a pullman loaf pan to have nice square pieces of bread for sandwiches…

thanks a million times

The Food Hunter said...
January 27, 2009 at 10:03 am

I never thought to make my own English muffins. What a great idea.

Pat said...
January 27, 2009 at 5:47 pm

Zoe,

I took your suggestion and made the rye and will give it a go. I have a plain loaf of it rising and will be prepared to review it soon!

The ’sourdough’ taste wasn’t much using the beer and vinegar. I may try again using an ale. And, it’s incorporating dough as slurry since I started 3 or more weeks ago.

But, it is good as ever,

Pat

zoe said...
January 27, 2009 at 6:52 pm

Hi Rho,

I think the buttermilk loaf would do really well in a pullman loaf pan. I’d treat it just as you do other doughs, but let it rise longer, to compensate for the chilled dough.

I’ve not made the pullman loaf with this dough yet so please report back when you’ve tried it! I’ll get a pullman pan and try it also.

Thanks, Zoë

zoe said...
January 27, 2009 at 6:54 pm

Hi Pat,

I think you will love the rye!

I’ll be interested to see what you think of the ale. You didn’t find the flavor any different with the beer?

Zoë

i said...
January 27, 2009 at 7:46 pm

I just want to understand if I should be expecting a different taste from these english muffins vs a piece of bread – are we talking just about the different shape here or actually a different taste?

zoe said...
January 27, 2009 at 7:57 pm

Okay, I know this doesn’t make a lot of sense, but yes they did taste different from the master dough baked as a boule. And just like an English muffin should. Perhaps it is just the psychological impact of the shape and the distinct cornmeal on the bottom. It is also that they are formed very thin and so they have the classic open crumb.

You can certainly make this with a dough that is slightly enriched, such as the Buttermilk dough and have something that is even closer to the traditional English muffin.

More than anything I wanted to show a variation on how to prepare the traditional muffin in a way that is much faster and amazingly tasty!

Try it and let me know what you think!

Thanks! Zoë

Kevin said...
January 27, 2009 at 8:16 pm

Those English muffins look nice and light and fluffy and good!

yabatil said...
January 27, 2009 at 8:59 pm

yes! yes! yes! finally my book arrived can’t wait to try some new doughs especially the chocolate ive been waiting for that one. if i don’t have chocolate can i substitute some cocoa powder i’d like to try it right away and i don’t always have cooking choc on hand the eating choc never lasts long either.

zoe said...
January 27, 2009 at 9:52 pm

Hi Yabatil,

So glad you got your book. I’m afraid that the chocolate bread would be a bit dry without the bittersweet chocolate ganache.

Enjoy! Zoë

Pat said...
January 27, 2009 at 10:04 pm

I found the English muffins with a larger hole structure when I made them from an older dough, and they tasted a bit different, but it could have been my expectations. In any case they were good!

Now, the Deli rye…it is much milder than what I expected and a good bread. I made muffins from it since that is what makes me a good tasting. I then made a small boule of it. It was good, mild and I can hardly wait to play with it as Zoe mentions. The taste is so mild that I will try mixing various fruits in it.

Stay tuned!

Pat

Tacey said...
January 28, 2009 at 3:18 pm

Well, I’ve managed to convert a large portion of Whidbey Island, Washington to making fresh bread! Yippee! My latest yummy loaf was based on the Challah raisin turban. I chopped up apricots and craisins with cardomom and almonds and rolled them all into the turban. It was gone before it was cold!

Jacquie said...
January 29, 2009 at 8:38 pm

I have made English muffin loaf bread…it is fantastic. Slice it up to 1″ thick and toast on a griddle….yum!

jeff said...
January 30, 2009 at 9:30 am

We’ve got to get out to Washington State at some point, so many bakers!

Mary said...
January 30, 2009 at 4:16 pm

I made the english muffins with the oat flour dough. I made my own oat flour by putting 1 1/4 cups rolled oats in a blender till fine and that yielded 1 cup oat flour. Half way through the baking I flipped each muffin with its’ ring over so that they could brown on each side. They were delicious. Thanks Zoe!!!!!

Pat said...
February 1, 2009 at 2:39 am

Love the book, and the basic recipe is my favorite!

Can’t wait to try these muffins. I don’t have a silpat, so instead, should I use a silicone baking sheet or just line a regular metal baking sheet with parchment paper?

Thanks for any help.

jeff said...
February 1, 2009 at 6:55 am

Sure, those options sound great, result will be the same.

Nina said...
February 2, 2009 at 2:49 am

I just made some tonight. Excellent and I especially loved the ‘nooks and crannies’.

My only problem was that it took about an hour and a half for them to raise to about 3/4 of the muffin ring. I covered them with plastic wrap and ended up putting them next to my wall heat vent. Even though they didn’t rise to the top of the muffin ring, they were still thick enough. Other than that, I will be making them again and again.

Thanks.

Jenny said...
February 2, 2009 at 1:45 pm

Hi,
Quick question, I just can’t quite tell from your book if you are supposed so slash the tops of the loaves 20 minutes before you put them in the oven and just the second before you put them in the oven.

jeff said...
February 2, 2009 at 2:53 pm

Just before the oven…

Michelle said...
February 3, 2009 at 7:14 pm

I inadvertently made these tonight for dinner, and they were excellent. I decided to make my 1 day old Master Dough into rolls to go with soup. Let them rise for probably an hour and a half. Brushed tops with water. Slid them on the stone with cornmeal and baked as usual. As we were eating them we looked at each other – “These are just like toasted English muffins” (I did use steam to get a crust, which gave them the toasty flavor). Then I remembered this article…we weren’t crazy.

They really were English muffins, same crumb, same flavor. It must come down to the bread:cornmeal ratio. They did taste different from the loaves I usually make.

Anyway, really excellent, and the Master Dough really can taste like good English muffins. Awesome!

zoe said...
February 3, 2009 at 9:50 pm

Thanks Michelle,

I know it seems crazy to think that it would take different form the boule, but it really does. Thanks for backing me up on this!

Zoë

raquel said...
February 4, 2009 at 9:43 am

I made these English muffins using the Master Dough recipe. I am now experimenting with adding grains, something similar to the bread I had in Sweden last year (will post when successful!) Oh..and I used mini spring form pans I got from Amazon.com (removing the bottoms) instead of muffin pans to make a bigger muffin!
I, too, am baking all the bread I can this year!!!

Karyl said...
February 6, 2009 at 5:10 pm

hihi, as a rookie baker.. never used the mixer till I got this book ! The bread is good….. but OH sticky mess to the fingers! worse than mud pies!paper mache`!….. is this normal? how would you shape all these yummy things with stuff this sticky and messy. So far Im lucky to plop it on the pan for a peasant loaf. Then wash 1/2 of it down the sink from my hands. Its good…. but messy… What am I doing wrong? ~K

Amy K said...
February 6, 2009 at 9:42 pm

Got Eng Muff rings from Amazon – very reasonably priced: 8 rings for less than $8. Made english muffins this morning from bran-enriched master recipe – tasty, but did not really taste like english muffins although sliced open and toasted, with butter and raspberry preserves, what could be bad! I am definitely not complaining, but will try a softer more enriched dough nex time. I keep baking up a storm and have not bought a loaf since mid-Dec!

jeff said...
February 7, 2009 at 9:11 am

Raquel: thanks for doing the experiments, keep us posted.

Karyl: Yes, this is normal, but maybe use a little more flour for dusting as you work with the dough. Try not to incorporate it… most will fall off. You don’t want lumps of flour encased into the dough mass.

Any chance you’re using bleached flour? That doesn’t absorb enough water. If no explanation, just use about a quarter-cup more flour in the recipe next time.

Amy K: Thanks for trying all this stuff. Lots of difference of opinion on the flavor of these muffins, but as you say, most people are liking them, whatever they are!

Jeff

Lola LB said...
February 8, 2009 at 4:42 am

You don’t need to buy the set of ring molds. It’s cheaper to just repurpose an empty metal coffee can (which has about the same dimension as those ring molds) and cut out both bottoms.

Lola LB said...
February 8, 2009 at 4:46 am

Forgot to add that I just use the coffee can to cut out the muffins. And, check out the recipe that uses the cider vinegar at thefreshloaf.com. This tastes almost exactly the same as the Thomas english muffins that you find in the bread section at the grocery store. If you look at the ingredients list, you’ll see that vinegar is listed there.

jeff said...
February 8, 2009 at 12:16 pm

Thanks for the tips Lola. I can’t vouch for the food safety of the coffee cans when heated– some cans have an odd synthetic inner layer. Anyone have any experience or resources on this? Jeff

Elle said...
February 14, 2009 at 11:42 am

We love homemade english muffins! My husband has been making them for me for years, but they’ve never been this easy. Things are about to change…thanks!

Judith said...
February 14, 2009 at 6:26 pm

Jeff, I was trying to figure out the coffee can, too. Then I read Lola’s next post. She’s just using the coffee can as a cutter for the muffins, not to cook in.

jeff said...
February 14, 2009 at 8:47 pm

Oh, duh!

Ezzie said...
February 16, 2009 at 9:29 am

I made English muffins a few months ago and free-formed them. They came out great but really didn’t look like English muffins. After trying many cans including tuna cans (they now have rounded bottoms that you can not get off without cutting), I gave up and ordered them from KA Flour site. Can’t wait to try your recipe for them!

I just bought the book yesterday after making several loaves based on your video…great sales tool!

jeff said...
February 16, 2009 at 7:25 pm

Thanks Ezzie!

Nina said...
February 21, 2009 at 5:42 pm

I have made the English muffins three times now with exactly the same results.

They come out fairly thin and flat, like a deflated hucky puck. They do taste good.

My molds are the same size as your’s, 4″, and I have let them rise from 30 -45 min, but they only rise to a less 3/4 of the mold. They do puff up a little during baking, but are still not to the top of the mod. I like to toast the muffins, but the two sides are too thin to do that. What am I doing wrong???

The Crone said...
February 21, 2009 at 11:14 pm

I am so going to try these! English muffins with eggs and hollandaise sauce here I come

Nina said...
February 22, 2009 at 2:27 am

P.S. I weigh my dough and each one is 3.5 ozs.

Holly Gates said...
February 23, 2009 at 11:18 am

I’ve been making english muffins with the boule dough for about a year. I just form them as for rolls and let them rise on a floured silpat with no mold. Then I cook them five at a time in a big Lodge cast iron pan (~$15). Normally I would make 2/3 of the dough into loaves, then the rest into muffins for the week. So it wasn’t really that bad to cook them in the pan, and then you get a form that is closer to the standard one. Another thing I did was to use a bit higher heat on the stovetop, flip them sooner, but then finish them off in the oven on the stone with the loaves, which would already be in there.

JeanC said...
February 23, 2009 at 12:27 pm

I can’t wait to give this a try. Both hubby and I adore English muffins, but I have been reluctant to try a traditional recipe. This looks to be easy and should give us plenty of muffins for the weekend.

jeff said...
February 23, 2009 at 12:59 pm

Nina: You’re getting decent rise, why don’t you just fill them a little higher? That will mean more than the amount we called for. Are you using a whole grain dough (that will take a longer resting time, more like 60 to 90 minutes).

Holly: Thanks for the tips.

Jean: Let us know how it goes!

Nina said...
February 23, 2009 at 2:52 pm

II am using the Master Recipe for the Englsh Muffins. I guess I could use more, but than I am cutting into the dough for another full sized loaf.

Mine are maybe 1/2″ or less. I guess I’ll just keep trying. Thanks

sue said...
February 23, 2009 at 7:55 pm

Any changes for the stovetop method ? Where do you let them rise? In the pan? then how do you preheat the pan?Cornmeal on bottom of pan before preheating….lots of little questions. Did baking with a second tray on top work? Sounds easier!Love the book!-Sue

zoe said...
February 23, 2009 at 10:30 pm

Hi Sue,

Checkout this wonderful post that a reader did on using our recipe on the stove top. I think this will answer many of your questions! http://www.whats-cooking.ca/2009/02/artisan-bread-english-muffins.html

Let me know if you try them!

Thanks, Zoë

Geoff said...
February 24, 2009 at 10:21 am

In reading about your English muffins I noted that several people mentioned making hot dog or hamburger buns. I was planning to try making them, but wanted a softer crust. I was thinking about not using steam and perhaps baking at a lower temperature. Any thoughts?

jeff said...
February 24, 2009 at 11:33 am

Geoff– both are good suggestions, but also consider brushing with butter or oil just before baking. That can’t miss to keep a soft crust.

Peggy said...
February 25, 2009 at 11:37 am

I just stumbled across your website after buying the book this weekend. We grind our own wheat as we live 65 miles from the closest grocery store and it is easier to store whole grains in quantity. Do you think this recipe will work well using freshly ground Prairie Gold wheat (high protein/hard spring red/good for bread baking)? We’ve made English muffins in the past but quite as I couldn’t keep up with the demand with 3 growing boys (2 teens and one 9 yr old.) I love the book by the way even though I haven’t made any bread as of yet. We just finished the last loaf in the freezer so today needs to be a bread baking day. We are going to try out the German brotchen recipe to see how it compares to childhood memories!

jeff said...
February 25, 2009 at 1:25 pm

Peggy: Welcome to the site. Sounds like it’s whole wheat, which can’t be substituted 1 for 1 with the unbleached all-purpose we specify throughout the book. You have a higher-protein (hard) flour that I assume is 100% whole wheat. You certainly can make the 100% WW recipe that we have in the book, as well as using your flour wherever we specify commercial WW. But if you try to substitute it 1 for 1 for unbleached AP, your result will be too dry. You’d need to increase the liquid. Another thing you might like is to start using vital wheat gluten. Tips on this at http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=142. Also check out http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=140.

Bill S. said...
March 2, 2009 at 4:46 pm

Hi Jeff & Zoe!

Immediately upon purchasing the book, I found the English muffin recipe on the website. We made our first batch over the weekend, and they’re wonderful!

I wanted to share a suggestion. In an effort to replicate the look of English muffins prepared on the stove top. We’re huge sandwich fans, so I have a hand-held cast-iron sandwich iron. When the muffins went into the oven, I put the iron on top of one of the muffins as an experiment. To my delight, while the other three muffins had a dome top like the prior batch, the muffin under the sandwich iron filled in the ring, and when removed from the oven, had a perfectly flat and slightly browned top, just like the bottom! Since we only have the one sandwich press, I’m going to experiment by placing a cast-iron pan or perhaps another cookie sheet on top of all the muffins while cooking, and perhaps with the sandwich iron on top for weight. We’ll see!

Thanks again for an amazing resource!

zoe said...
March 2, 2009 at 8:28 pm

Hi Bill,

Thank you for the suggestion! Did you preheat the iron or just put it in cold? I want to try it.

Thanks so much! Zoë

Marilyn said...
March 5, 2009 at 1:05 pm

As a several notches below a bread-baking neophyte, I was excited by your video and decided to try the master recipe. It is rising now in prep for molding and baking…I can’t wait to see how it comes out. My husband used to bake (sourdough, dill bread) but physical illness and ennui put a stop to that. I hope he will get interested again, as he is the master baker (or was) in our house. I am ordering your book today.

Marilyn said...
March 5, 2009 at 1:07 pm

I will have more substantive questions later, but for now…what’s a silpat? Also, any idea of the calories in the peasant bread?

jeff said...
March 5, 2009 at 1:36 pm

Marilyn: The silpat is a flexible silicone mat that you can bake on. We like one rated to 450 degrees F: http://www.amazon.com/Silpat-2-Inch-Nonstick-Silicone-Baking/dp/B00008T960?&camp=212361&linkCode=wey&tag=arbrinfimiada-20&creative=380725

The peasant bread is mostly white flour so it’s going to be close to the caloric content of white bread. Whole grains don’t have a calorie advantage over white flour, but they contain nutrients that are helpful.

Barbara said...
March 8, 2009 at 8:36 am

I just mixed up the WW sandwich bread fdor the first time. It is not nearly as wet as the other breads I have tried (and loved!). Did I do something wrong (followed the recipe exactly) or it supposed to be stiffer–almost like dough that you knead?

jeff said...
March 8, 2009 at 7:17 pm

It’s a little stiffer, so bake it up and see what you think.

Lindsey Meyer said...
March 9, 2009 at 6:17 pm

I made it about halfway through these comments before I ran into the kitchen to roll out some dough for some english muffins! I used the master recipe (replacing 2 1/2 cups AP flour with WW). Rolled it out to about 1/4 inch and cut with a large glass. I let it rise for 1 hour, coated with corn meal then placed on a lightly oiled skillet for about 5-7 minutes each side. Turned out perfect. Last night my boyfriend told me I have “ruined him for life” for store bought bread

zoe said...
March 9, 2009 at 9:14 pm

Hi Lindsey,

Thanks for writing! Your muffins sound great and your boyfriend is one lucky guy!!!

Cheers, Zoë

Bill S. said...
March 10, 2009 at 10:26 am

Hi Zoe:

Thanks so much for your response. We didn’t warm the pie iron beforehand. However, my girlfriend tried a new method. We made a batch of eight English muffins, put them in the oven to bake, and then my girlfriend put another baking sheet on top of the rings, and then put the pie iron on top of that, but only for the weight. All eight muffins came out flat and nicely brown on top and bottom.

Thanks so much!

Best regards,

Bill (also from Vermont)

jeff said...
March 10, 2009 at 12:36 pm

Thanks Bill, great suggestions! Have to try that.

Pat said...
March 14, 2009 at 12:58 pm

I tried English Muffins again last night and they were wonderful, but I have a question about their crumb. They had a good open holed crumb near the edges, but the center was dense. Does that mean they were allowed to rise for too short a time, or does it mean they didn’t bake long enough?

I’m also trying some made from the granola dough. How will that work?

jeff said...
March 15, 2009 at 9:33 am

Pat: My guess is that a slightly longer rising time might help.

I’m also guessing that the granola will be too dense for this kind of preparation, but I could be wrong!

Barbara said...
March 16, 2009 at 7:53 am

Could the English muffins be made w/ the recipe for the Kaiser rolls? I’m anxious to try both and don’t have a lot of room in the fridge!

Pat said...
March 16, 2009 at 4:26 pm

I did make the granola muffins and they were dense, but tasted great. My friend, the caterer had a fit about their flavor and declared they needed nothing but a bit of butter, so she was most pleased.

I’ve quit using the rings as I find them not critical if I make a small roll and flatten it.

zoe said...
March 16, 2009 at 8:24 pm

Hi Barbara,

That is exactly the dough that I used, it works beautifully!

Hi Pat, they sound great! I’m with your friend, add butter to everything!

Thanks, Zoë

Pat said...
March 16, 2009 at 11:34 pm

Well, she runs a B&B too, and she declared they would please those who want a cereal based b’fast and those who wanted to avoid the Jam or Jelly calories. And, get a fruit to boot!

Y’all have brought a new age to all of us! Thanks!

Pat said...
March 17, 2009 at 9:10 pm

I was made crazy today…

I didn’t have enough AP flour to make a basic dough, so I took a flying chance and made one instead doing some things I’d thought about. I took 4 c. AP, 2 c. whole wheat, 2 c. Guiness draught beer and 1 c. Hot water, dissolved 1 1/2 T yeast, 1 T. salt, and about a cup of old basic dough and forgot that I’d decided to use 1 c. rye flour. Mixed the whole thing up after making a flurry of the old dough and the first six ingredients and poured that into the Kitchen Aid bowl and added flours. Mixed as usual and let it rise. It didn’t seem as lively as usual, so figured I’d gone too far with my experiment, but kept the faith. What did I have to lose? After the initial 2 hours, I was impatient to see the result, so I took a small boule’s worth and let it rise about 40 minutes (used rye flour to work it) and then slashed it and baked it 35 minutes.

I thought it was a bit dry, so I added about 2 T. beer and now I think it’s a bit wet, but forms great with a bit of flour to make out.

It is amazingly good! I like the taste (still not true sour dough enough) but the crumb is amazing! It’s taste is good, but a bit different as you’d expect. But, IT WORKED so far. I’ll keep testing it as time goes on. I had no idea if I’d messed too much with the chemistry, but apparently not.

I emailed Cheryl who immediately pointed out to me how funny I was to have picked today to try the Guiness. I’d totally missed that point, but maybe St. Pat helped me.

I’m amazed at how flexible this recipe is. I truly expected this to be a failure, but I don’t think it is. Rolls should be great from it. I’ll update as the week or so go along and let you know if it keeps okay.

Happy St. Pat’s day, all,

Pat

jeff said...
March 18, 2009 at 4:19 am

Guinness! Why didn’t I think of that for St. Pat’s day! Thanks for the recipe.

Pat said...
March 18, 2009 at 10:03 am

Jeff, let me know what you think if you try it?

lisa m said...
March 21, 2009 at 8:27 am

These were great! I tried Bill S’s method above with a cookie sheet on top of the muffins with the lid of my cast iron dutch oven on top as a weight. I used peasant dough and sprinkled cornmeal on top of the muffins as well as under the muffins before the resting period (I let them rest about 1 hour before baking. Next time I will try removing the second cookie sheet for the last 5 minutes of baking. They were fabulous, but a little under-browned on the top this time.

I know I will make these frequently – I love english muffins, but am always a bit disappointed with the texture of store-bought muffins (I often find them gummy). These had a far superior flavor, the texture was great, and they were amazingly easy. Can’t wait to try them with other doughs.

Zoe and Jeff – Thank you for writing this book –my husband checked it out of the library for me last fall on a whim and I’ve had dough on hand in my fridge ever since. I gave several copies as Christmas gifts and my brother is now making your bread routinely too. I’m looking forward to the next book.

zoe said...
March 21, 2009 at 3:49 pm

Hi lisa,

Thank you so much for the note. We are glad you are enjoying the bread you bake!

Zoë

ODina said...
March 29, 2009 at 3:48 pm

WOW! I used the master recipe, and I don’t have the molds, so I just quickly shaped them into circles and dusted with cornmeal,They are fabulous!! Thanks for posting all of the tips on the website, my first two attempts were a little dissapointing, but then I realized that not only was I overhandling the dough, I didn’t let it rest long enough. I am trying the American Soft Sandwich bread next to try and win over my picky husband.
I can’t beleive I’m this excited about bread
Thank you Thank you for this wonderful book!

zoe said...
March 29, 2009 at 4:03 pm

Hi ODina,

Thanks for trying the breads, so glad you are enjoying them!

Good luck winning over your husband!

Zoë

Pat said...
April 14, 2009 at 8:34 am

If I do them on the stove top, do I keep them in the rings?

zoe said...
April 14, 2009 at 12:12 pm

Hi Pat,

Yes, you would cook them in the rings to keep the shape!

Enjoy, Zoë

Ezzie said...
April 19, 2009 at 4:18 pm

Had to tell you of my English muffin adventure today. I made the light wheat recipe and used my muffin rings. So far so good. But I wanted to cook mine on the stove on a big griddle I have. All went well, until I tried to move the muffins to the griddle.

I realized I would have to use a spatula to get them to the griddle and then wanted to remove the rings. Even though I had greased the rings the dough clung to the ring and I had these sheets of dough stringing down. It really was funny looking! So my English muffins came out funny shaped…but the flavor was good!

Next time though I will just bake them in the oven as your recipe states! The 81 yr old I made them for started eating them before they were even transferred to his plate. It was the best birthday present I could think of to give him. He loves them!

zoe said...
April 19, 2009 at 7:17 pm

Hi Ezzie,

What a wonderful gift! I’m sure he loved them no matter what the shape. I certainly would have too.

The nice thing about doing them in the oven is you can leave them to rise on the tray and not have to move them.

Enjoy and thank you for writing.

Zoë

Rebecca said...
May 7, 2009 at 4:22 am

I can vouch for the flavor even though I haven’t tried the recipe, because we made the pita bread and I rolled it a little too thick and I thought, hmm, this kind of reminds me of English muffins, wonder if they have a recipe for that. I think part of it is the bread texture.

Re: baking in coffee cans, my mom and I used to make Easter bread in coffee cans, I am not sure about the coating on some cans.

Mary said...
May 31, 2009 at 1:55 pm

I tried the English Muffin yesterday. I used the light WW bread recipe.

#1 : do I work the dough? or just roll it into a ball?

#2 : if I wait the entire 30 min for cooling, then I miss out on the melted butter trick. We warmed them up in the toaster and they just got hard. ;-(

#3: my tops and bottoms got hard…as if they were overcooked. OR? I followed the recipe 5 min each side. Is there something else I should do?

Otherwise, the texture was fine. Looks perfect. I don’t have my forms so I just free handed them. Husband wanted more flavor like store brand. Will have to experiment.

BTW – Jeff and Zoe, this is the first time that I have enjoyed making bread. No preservatives. The loaves last longer than store bought. I also found the book at the library, fell in love and bought it! Thanks!!

jeff said...
June 1, 2009 at 6:13 am

Mary: Never work this dough, just form quickly into a ball.

OK, don’t let them cool, you convinced me!

Maybe try for a lower temp (check your oven temp)? for a softer result?

Thanks! Jeff

Thriftyredhead said...
June 14, 2009 at 9:45 am

I made Laura’s citrus/orange marmalade and it did not set up. I read somewhere in my research of marmalade recipes that it could take up to two weeks for it to set. But no such luck. Does anyone have any suggestions or am I going to have to remake it adding a tad more pectin?

Thriftyredhead

jeff said...
June 15, 2009 at 8:45 am

ThriftyRedHead: OK, Laura says…

… if you’ve waited two full weeks, there was a probably too much liquid in the mix. Sometimes the fruit differs from batch to batch. Don’t add more pectin. Just take one jar, dump it into a pan and bring to a rolling boil and keep it there for a minute or two— you’re trying to boil off some of the liquid. See what the consistency looks like, and then refrigerate over night. If it looks about right, you can do this to the whole batch (and re-can, following USDA instructions for safe canning), or do this for each jar before you use it, then refrigerating. Jeff

Ernie said...
August 10, 2009 at 9:24 am

I prefer to do them on the grill, you get better nooks an crannies.
Ernie

Kathy said...
December 28, 2009 at 10:04 am

I have 2 tweens and a toddler. Speed and convenience is of the utmost. I paired the master whole grain recipe with the cooking technique for Eng. muffins from another popular flour site. Now I can have a small batch of whole grain muffins in pinch. I rolled out enough whole grain dough for inverting 4, 3″ diameter plastic drinking glass impressions. Returned unused dough to bucket. Let circles sit on cornmeal under a damp dish towel for 30 min, to settle/rise. Cooked in a cast iron skillet on cornmeal, stove top. 6 minutes aside. A little more work than using molds I don’t have, however much less effort than having to make 16 muffins at a time when following a traditional English Muffin recipe. Thumbs up! Soon I’ll try the tuna fish can idea to see if I can make more uniform shape muffins.

jeff said...
December 28, 2009 at 10:55 am

Kathy: This sounds like a great adaptation! Thanks for the suggestion, and so nice to hear that this works for you even though you sound very, very busy…

Jeff

Jennifer said...
January 6, 2010 at 8:34 am

Could these be made in a Le Creuset dutch oven?

zoe said...
January 6, 2010 at 2:43 pm

Hi Jennifer,

It would be hard to maneuver in a Dutch oven but I suppose they could. You will end up with a harder crust on them if you use the lid.

Thanks, Zoë

Jennifer said...
January 7, 2010 at 11:56 am

I just made my first batch. I let them rest in a warm oven (warm setting on my oven) for 30 minutes. They did not rise to the top, but that didn’t really bother me. I placed a cookie sheet on top and then the lid of my dutch oven. Not sure it was neccesary since they didn’t rice to the top. Next time I will try it with nothing on top and see what happens. I let them cool on the baking sheet in case they didn’t cook all the way through. when they were less than lukewarm, I cut one open and saw a perfectly cooked muffin!!!! I love Alton Brown, but his recipe isn’t as good. I’m eating one right now. They are very chewy. I can’t wait till my husband gets home and he tries one. I wish there was a way we could post pics and show Zoe and Jeff our creations! Thanks for a great recipe! I LOVE your blog and your books.

jeff said...
January 7, 2010 at 1:48 pm

Jennifer: So glad the recipe worked well for you, and thanks for all the kind words. Jeff

Nancy Courser said...
February 4, 2010 at 9:25 am

Hello,
Your master recipe I make all the time……..have both of your books….LOVE THEM…one thing I can not figure out is how to used your dough in my pullman pan and it is 9″ pan for sandwich bread. Thank you.

jeff said...
February 4, 2010 at 1:05 pm

Nancy: You just need more dough… Maybe a lot more. Jeff

Elizabeth said...
February 12, 2010 at 7:48 am

THANK YOU for all this help after introducing this great bread.
I am hooked. I have forwarded your recipe and website to family and friends.
Many blessings back to you.

zoe said...
February 12, 2010 at 3:50 pm

Thank you Elizabeth! Enjoy, Zoë

Tara said...
March 10, 2010 at 11:07 am

Oooh, I am making English muffins for the first time today. I had just enough of the Whole Wheat with Olive Oil dough left to make four muffins. They are resting on the counter right now and I will pop them in the oven in about 30 minutes…yum.

Do you think it would work to turn the muffins over (keeping them in the ring) half way through the baking time to brown them on both sides?

Thanks!
Tara

jeff said...
March 10, 2010 at 1:10 pm

Tara: Sure, it won’t harm anything, go for it. Jeff

Pat said...
March 11, 2010 at 9:33 pm

I ran across this site… and when I found the recipe.. 3 cups water to 6 cups flour.. had me intrigued.. so I made the bread today….. WOW was it great…… no eggs or milk. or oil ….. or sugar… amazing.. like sour dough bread. I could not resist adding a tablespoon sugar, for the yeast. Ha probably did not need it. I will buy the book now to expand the different varieties. Thanks for the very simple recipe. I had one I got over 50 years ago from a powdered milk hand out in a Home Ecomomics class in High School .. no boiling milk just use powdered milk. but this recipe is amazing….I had to rush off to an appointment .. made it left it in the sink with warm water on the bottom of the mixing bowl and a wet towel over the top…..When I got home 3 1/3 hrs later made up some clover leaf rolls and wow husband said make these again. Thank you thank you. Pat

Linda Donaldson said...
March 12, 2010 at 11:12 am

I just ordered a set of 8 english muffin rings from King Arthur and cant wait to make these english muffins. I remember years ago making them the old fashioned way for my sons and now with 8 grand-children I’m baking again on a daily basis.
I also intend to try some of the healthy bread reciepes for making the english muffins..especially the carrot bread ones..they just sound yummy..I cant wait. Thank you Thank you

zoe said...
March 12, 2010 at 6:58 pm

Hi Linda,

I recently made the English muffins from the Chocolate dough and it was a huge hit!

Enjoy, Zoë

Linda Donaldson said...
March 18, 2010 at 8:58 pm

The english muffin rings arrived yesterday and so far I have baked 22 muffins!!! The grandsons ate the first batch ( along with their dad aand mom) after school yesterday..I did manage to get 1/2 of a toasted one..absolutely wonderful..The oldest grandson came down today and said he wasnt allowed to go home till he got muffins..he left with 11..all we could fit in a bag..So I managed to hide 5 for me before he got here. They are wonderful and everyone loves them I never thought to use the rings for baking.
I am so into BYOB this year!! Thank you both so much for this wonderful experience.

jeff said...
March 19, 2010 at 7:30 am

Linda: Wierd coincidence, my muffin rings arrived last week– I never did try Zoe’s recipe. This is the week… Jeff

Linda Donaldson said...
March 19, 2010 at 7:48 am

This morning I made a muffin for breakfast and I have so enjoyed the fact that I made it!! They taste so much better than the store bought ones. I think the possibilities are endless..I am so hooked on this way of baking breads..I bought a 25 lb bag of bread flour from Sam’s club..
BYOB!!!!

jeff said...
March 19, 2010 at 10:32 am

Linda: FYI, re: Sam’s Club flour. Be sure you have unbleached white flour for the recipes that call for white flour. Otherwise the result will be too wet. Or, if you have bread flour, too dry. Adjust the water if needed, see the FAQ about that— click above. Jeff

Elise said...
April 1, 2010 at 11:31 am

I am absolutely in love with the entire book. I’ve made several batches with the master recipe and I recently did my first rye (so good!). I’ve recommended the book to everyone I know, and a good friend of mine is also now hooked. I just got English muffin rings and will be making them as soon as I can. I am also excited to conquer brioche for the first time. I just can’t say enough about how much I love this method. I have become completely bread-obsessed and I will never buy bread again!

zoe said...
April 1, 2010 at 7:43 pm

Thank you Elise!

We are so thrilled that you are baking so much bread! I can’t wait for you to try the brioche and all of the wonderful breads you can make with it!

Enjoy and happy baking! Zoë

Susan said...
April 16, 2010 at 6:33 am

I made the English muffins last night for the first time, with HBin5 master recipe. We ate them this morning as breakfast sandwiches, toasted with egg, turkey & cheddar (we have one of those all-in-one toasters… since we don’t make a lot of plain toast). Yum! I had to let mine rise a lot longer as suggested… I think the yeast in this batch may have been older as well. Even the next day, cold, they split easily with a fork. Thank you for posting the recipe!!!

suzy said...
May 25, 2010 at 10:10 am

just made these with the boule dough master recipe, using a frying pan (because i only needed 2 and didn’t want to turn on the oven). didn’t even bother using english muffin rounds, just shaped them before letting the dough rest and put them in a pan on low for about 7 minutes per side.

beautiful, amazingly good and almost as easy as the naan recipe!

zoe said...
May 25, 2010 at 7:54 pm

Hi Suzy,

What a brilliant idea, I know what I’ll be making the boys for breakfast.

Thanks, Zoë

James said...
July 18, 2010 at 8:09 pm

You don’t need molds to make english muffins, you just need a cutter to make them into rounds, or be skilled with a knife. The dough holds its shape just fine after being shaped. Those molds you are buying are not for english muffins, they are for crumpets, which use a batter and would go all over the place.

I make english muffins all the time, and I’ve never used a mold. They turn out looking just like the ones in the store. Just roll out to 1/2″ thick, cut, let rise, and toss them in a skillet at medium heat for 6 mins on the first side, and 4 on the other.

zoe said...
July 18, 2010 at 8:48 pm

Hi James,

Thanks, I’m sure lots of folks will be interested in trying this method. I like the molds because mine tend to come out looking more like rounded buns without them, although the flavor is just as delicious.

Enjoy! Zoë