Heritage English Muffins

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl (preferably a stand mixer), combine milk, yeast, and sugar. Let sit for 10 minutes. Some small bubbles should form.

2. Weigh your flour (the most accurate measurement) or sift before measuring. Combine all of the ingredients (except the cornmeal) in a mixing bowl.

3. This is a very soft dough, so you'll need to treat it a bit differently than most yeast doughs. Using your stand mixer with the paddle attachment- beat the dough until it is smooth and comes away from the sides of the bowl. This will take about 4-5 minutes at medium-high speed. When you lift the beater, the dough will be very stretchy.

4. Using a plastic dough scraper or spatula, scrape the dough into a ball. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise until it’s nearly doubled in size; this will take about 1 to 2 hours.

5. Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 16 pieces. If you want to be more accurate, weigh your dough and divide the weight by 16. That is how much each dough ball should weigh.

6. Shape each piece into a smooth ball, then flatten the balls until they're about 3" to 3 1/2" in diameter. This dough is sticky so it may be challenging- do your best. Tip- try wetting your hands to help manage the dough.

7. Dust each ball with Organic Fine Cornmeal. Prepare your griddle(s) by wiping them with a paper towel dipped in olive oil. An electric griddle, stovetop griddle, frying pan, or electric frying pan will all work.

8. The easiest way to handle and cook these muffins is to lay them right on the cold surface you'll be frying them on. That way, you don't have to move them once they're risen; and they won't mind cooking very slowly as you fire the griddle up to its desired heat. If you don't have enough griddle space to do this, sprinkle a baking sheet heavily with flour or more cornmeal, and put your muffins on the sheet to rest. They can be fairly close together.

9. Cover the muffins, and let them rest for 20 minutes. They won't rise like crazy but will puff a bit.

10. Cook the muffins over low heat for 7 to 15 minutes per side, until their crust is golden brown, and their interior is cooked through. Resist the temptation to temp them too early- you don't want to poke unnecessary holes

11. When done, the center of a muffin should register about 200°F.

12. If you find the muffins have browned before the internal temp reaches 200°F, place them into an oven preheated 350°F until they're thoroughly cooked. Check every 5 minutes or so.

13. Remove the muffins from the griddle (or oven), and cool before serving.

14. Tip: Ignore the urge to cut these muffins with a knife. Split them with a fork to retain that open holy crumb.