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36 Reviews
chilesincarne
March 6, 2021
A total shame that in 2021 you still publish recipes as when the USA was an island in the planet - 2001 or 1921....
In baking and in a global world, weight is really useful if you really want to share a recipe
In baking and in a global world, weight is really useful if you really want to share a recipe
Smaug
March 6, 2021
And knowing how to bake by volume measurements is very important if you want to be able to use recipes.
Cassie S.
January 11, 2021
Wondering what the actual measurement for yeast is supposed to be? The amount in two packets is less than the listed measurement in the ingredients. Can you clarify if it’s 2 1/3 tbsp OR two packets and fix the description?
chowter
January 10, 2021
These were fun to make! And so much tastier than grocery store English muffins!! Thank you for the detailed instructions, I found the remark on the slow griddle baking time especially helpful. Everyone's cast iron pieces and stoves have their idiosyncrasies- I wound up flipping them twice, for a total of about 8 minutes per side. They were well toasted after that. I baked them in the oven for 15 minutes at 250. I reduced the salt to 1 tablespoon and found that to be sufficient for my tastes. Thank you for the recipe, I will be making these again!!
Amy
April 26, 2020
I'm in the process (step 4) and my dough hasn't become a ball at all. It's crawled up the dough hook a bit, but is sticking to the edges at the bottom. I'm tempted to add more flour, but wonder if that will make them tough. Weight measurements for the flour would be helpful in this recipe.
Smaug
April 26, 2020
It won't clean the bowl or make a ball the way a bread dough would; It should be somewhere in the middle ground between a dough and a batter- not quite pourable but very wet and sticky- it's kind of weird stuff to work with. These proportions are pretty average; you could use 150g./c. for flour if you're more comfortable with that.
Valerie G.
April 14, 2020
Instructions for hand mixing would be great, and/or with a food processor, for those of us who don't have stand mixers.
Smaug
April 14, 2020
No reason you can't mix it by hand with a spoon or silicone scraper. You might want to melt the butter. It will be a little damp for hand kneading; you could try working it with the spoon, or treat it as no-knead by giving it a longer-4+ hours initial rise time. Or look up the Stella Parks recipe ("Old Fashioned English Muffins" best I remember, on seriouseats.com; I don't agree with everything on that recipe, but I can vouch for it as simple and producing good results.
J
April 24, 2020
I had just finished reading another F52 recipe & had this same thought. Not EVERYone owns a stand mixer.
Ellenw
April 7, 2020
Making these for the second time. They are delicious. A question for bakers out there however: 2 packets of yeast is 1.5 Tbsp. Should recipe say 1 1/3 tbsp? I have been guesstimating a little less than two packets.
Smaug
April 7, 2020
I wouldn't really worry about it, yeast measurements are always something of a guess anyway. Dried yeast always is partially dead- when it is manufactured the live yeast is coated with dead yeast, and more will slowly die off, depending on time, storage conditions etc. The actual action of the yeast is highly dependent on a plethora of environmental conditions, with temperature leading the way- you really just need to recognize when your dough or batter is ready, with any bread or yeasted dough; recipes can't be more than a general guideline.
Shine
April 2, 2020
Since I’m home following physical distancing during this COVID-19 pandemic, this was a great time to try to the recipe. I followed it exactly, except for mixing by hand because my kitchenaid mixer bowl has a become a collecting bowl and I couldn’t be bothered emptying and cleaning it. Lots of time to babysit the low heat/cast iron pan method. I was going to refrigerate some of the dough for next day but I was on a roll and as I say, I had lots of time and patience. These turned out wonderfully, if a bit misshapen. Maybe next time I’ll pat the dough out gently and use a biscuit cutter for uniformity. Nevertheless, they were tasty and awesome with butter and jam, made my hubby very happy! Oh, and I used reconstituted buttermilk powder and the same measurement of instant yeast
Shine
April 2, 2020
Since I’m home following physical distancing during this COVID-19 pandemic, this was a great time to try to the recipe. I followed it exactly, except for mixing by hand because my kitchenaid mixer bowl has a become a collecting bowl and I couldn’t be bothered emptying and cleaning it. Lots of time to babysit the low heat/cast iron pan method. I was going to refrigerate some of the dough for next day but I was on a roll and as I say, I had lots of time and patience. These turned out wonderfully, if a bit misshapen. Maybe next time I’ll pat the dough out gently and use a biscuit cutter for uniformity. Nevertheless, they were tasty and awesome with butter and jam, made my hubby very happy!
Smaug
April 26, 2019
For muffin fans out there, I recently came across a recipe by Stella Parks on Serious Eats that is definitely worth trying- I had some quibbles with the percentage of milk in the liquid, and she does them freeform (they really come out much better in muffin rings),, but much the best recipe I've come across on the internet.
ArielJoy
June 5, 2018
Thank you so much for explaining the eccentricities of the recipe so thoroughly. Especially your description of the "dough reaching up the dough hook" (#4). I would have been sure I had done something wrong and added waaay to much flour in order to "fix" it.
Question: You suggest using a cast iron skillet or a griddle. I have neither. Is there another type of pan you would suggest?
Thank you.
Question: You suggest using a cast iron skillet or a griddle. I have neither. Is there another type of pan you would suggest?
Thank you.
Änneken
August 9, 2016
These are heavenly! However, if you don't happen to have three large cast-iron pans at home it will be incredibly time-intensive. After they were done proofing it took me 2.5 hours to finish them - most of which included babysitting them while they were cooking in the pan. As previous commentators have pointed out: Regulating heat of a cast-iron does not happen fast. I lost patience after I had cooked the first batch and increased the heat after I had flipped them for the first time.
Also, I kneaded the dough by hand for as long as the instructions said to do so in the food processor. Worked out fine!
Also, I kneaded the dough by hand for as long as the instructions said to do so in the food processor. Worked out fine!
Helen S.
June 12, 2016
If you go to http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/english-muffins-recipe you will find almost the exact recipe. She just changed a few things, usually increasing them to make it hers. Sure wish people would credit the original source. The instructions are easy and if you search English Muffins there is a wide variety on this site.
Smaug
January 11, 2021
OK, looked it up- I don't see that much resemblance between the recipes- they are, after all, making essentially the same thing. The proportions and cooking instructions are both different; the big difference is that King Arthur uses regular milk, but the flour/liquid ratio is different and KA uses instant yeast. Both cook them without rings, which I consider a mistake.
btglenn
June 10, 2016
The overly complex instructions makes it seem like this is hard to do. And, 1 1/2 cups of butter is far more than the traditional English Muffin uses, according to Elizabeth David, in her English Bread and Yeast Cookery, a compendium of recipes and their history, along with comments on flour and other ingredients used in many diverse versions of breads and muffins. While Tosi is exceedingly detailed in her instructions, they are all based on use of an electric mixer -- no separate instructions for those of us who depend on our hands for bread bakery. Bernard Clayton's books on bread baking also include recipes for English muffins, using far less butter. He gives instructions for both manual and electric mixer versions.
This may be a delicious version of the muffin, but far more complicated than it needs to be.
This may be a delicious version of the muffin, but far more complicated than it needs to be.
Smaug
August 7, 2015
I may try this, though not crazy about the idea of buttermilk. I make muffins from a batter- type recipe- I've learned over time to get them to come out on a cast iron griddle, but an electric griddle is much easier to control and heats more evenly, and they're frequently available very cheap- I paid $20 for a pretty good one.
Devon G.
August 9, 2015
I would agree with this! The cast iron pan holds heat for a long time and makes it difficult to go from the super-low heat required of the first step to the higher heat required for toasting.
Smaug
April 26, 2019
These cooking instructions are kind of weird- I cook them at 350 on the elec. griddle (and try for that on cast iron) without changing the temperature, but I give them some rise time on the griddle (and in their rings- really works much better in rings) before turning on the heat. They will then be fully cooked (about 8 min. per side), but I do like to give them 20 min. or so in a 250 oven to dry them out some- I haven't tried this recipe, but with a batter they will come out pretty wet in the middle.
Smaug
January 10, 2021
I've since gone to a sourdough recipe, which seems to cook better at 300 on the electric griddle for 10min./side (though I can't swear to the accuracy of the temperature) or a lowish flame under cast iron- the flame may take some adjusting- hard to duplicate that exactly- but the electric griddle never does. I dry them (they're already cooked)by simply leaving them out in warm weather; in winter I use a 200 deg. oven for 20 min. I use 75g. batter/ring; they will generally rise out of the ring and end up about 1 1/4" high; in that case- or if you're making them freeform (not recommended) turning them early can result in a flatter muffin.
Bunnee B.
May 9, 2015
This was a lot of effort/time and I found the recipe a little imprecise. I baked the muffins for 5-6 minutes, not 3. I think I'll stick with Ruhlman's recipe.
RoseRover
March 22, 2015
So... in step 10 it says "Grab the proofed muffins..." but there doesn't appear to be any exact proofing time specified. Step 8 mentions "You can proceed with the recipe directly, or you can wrap the baking sheets of proofing dough in plastic wrap and put them in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes..." Do I proceed directly to baking on the skillet after forming them, or proof the dough for 30 minutes to an hour (not the optional 'in the fridge' step) before baking? Step 8 also mentions " ...giving them enough space to stretch and rise as they may need" leading me to guess that I should not proceed directly to baking but should let them proof. Am I missing something in the instructions or is something missing from the instructions? Thanks.
sweetE
January 31, 2015
I had SUCH a hard time with these! The griddle portion, on lowest of low heat in my cast iron skillet took almost 30 minutes, and then I put them in the oven for 10 minutes, and they are still doughy and wet inside when they cool. Don't know what happened, but now I understand why our local bakery, Blue Oven, charges 2.00 a piece for their muffin masterpieces!
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