Easy Homemade High Altitude English Muffins

www.wildflourrecipes.com

Soft, chewy, and filled with those signature nooks and air pockets, these high altitude English muffins are a game-changer for breakfast lovers.

Prep Time30

Cook Time20

Total Time7 50

Course: Breakfast

Keyword: english muffins, high altitude bread

Yield: muffins

Prepare the ingredients: melt the butter, set the egg out to reach room temperature, and warm the milk to 100-110° F.
Mix the warm milk and yeast together in the medium bowl and let it sit for several minutes until the yeast starts dissolving and creating a foam (blooming).
Add the egg into the yeast mixture and mix well. Add in the honey, salt, melted butter, and flour. Mix well until all the ingredients are combined and a dough forms. The dough will be sticky and shiny. The sticky dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl when mixing.
NOTE: A quick reminder that the amount of flour required to make yeast doughs always depends on the warmth and humidity in your kitchen. If the dough appears too wet and clings to the side of the bowl then sprinkle a small amount of flour in and mix again. Just be careful to not add too much flour.

Spray a large bowl with nonstick spray. Gently scrape all the dough into the greased bowl. Tightly cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Place the covered bowl into the refrigerator for a minimum of 6 hours or preferably overnight to slowly let the dough rise. The extended chill time allows the classic English muffin flavor to develop.
QUICK RISE OPTION: If you want to skip the overnight rise then place the dough in the covered bowl in a warm place to rise until doubled, usually 40-60 minutes at high altitude. The warm dough will be stickier and harder to work with and may require extra flour when rolling it out.

Line the large baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle half of the cornmeal over the parchment paper in an even layer, making sure the entire area is covered. The cornmeal ensure the bottom of the dough won't stick.

Place the cold dough onto a clean, lightly floured surface. Lightly sprinkle flour onto the top of the dough. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to an even thickness of 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch.
For the classic English muffin round look use a biscuit cutter or 3 inch circle cookie cutter. Or use a knife to cut 3 inch squares to avoid wasting scraps. Place the cut muffins right on top of the cornmeal in the prepared baking sheet.
TIP: dust the cutter in flour between each muffin to prevent it from sticking to the dough
OPTIONAL: the remaining scraps of dough can be clumped together and re-rolled out to make additional muffins. This dough will be more dense and take a longer time to cook (usually about double the time), so keep track of the different muffins when cooking.
Sprinkle the top of the dough muffins with the remaining cornmeal or until the tops are completely covered.

Cover the pan and muffins loosely with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Rest the dough for 30-50 minutes until the dough starts to slightly rise.
NOTE: this time will be dependent on how warm your kitchen is. To speed up the process place the pan in a warm spot.

**PLEASE NOTE*** - the cooking time will be different for everyone since it will be dependent on the thickness of the dough, the temperature of the dough, the type of cooking device, the temperature you cook the muffins at, and your elevation.
The numbers provided below are based on the amount of time it took me while using a non-stick electric griddle at 8,000 ft.
Preheat an electric griddle to 300-325° F or a large skillet to medium-low heat.
NOTE: do not grease the griddle or skillet, the cornmeal will help the muffins not stick.
Place the unbaked muffins onto the ungreased griddle or skillet, allow enough space between the muffins to flip them. Depending on how large your griddle or skillet is, the muffins may have to be cooked in batches.
TIP: it is difficult to fully cook the middle of the muffin at high altitudes. To help speed up the cooking process to ensure the middle cooks before the outside burns cover the English muffins with a pan or cover.
Cook the muffins for 8-10 minutes on the first side. The muffins will start to puff up while cooking and the bottom turn a dark golden brown. Keep a close eye on the cooking temperature and the bottom of the muffin. The cooking temperature needs to be hot enough to cook the muffin but low enough that the outside doesn't burn before the middle is fully cooked.
Flip the muffin to cook the other side for another 8-10 minutes. Again keep an eye on the bottom of the muffin incase the temperature needs to adjusted.

There are 2 ways to check if the middle is fully cooked:
1: sacrifice a muffin and split it open and check the middle to ensure it is fully cooked through
2: check the internal temperature of the muffin, which should be 195-200° F. At 8,000 ft of elevation the muffins are fully cooked at 196° F, higher elevations will be 195° F and lower altitudes will be 198-200° F.
If the muffins are being cooked in batches make sure to brush off the excess cornmeal in between cooking.
For the classic English muffin look, split the muffins by using a fork. Poke the fork into the side of the muffin and repeat as you go around the edge and then pull apart.

STORAGE - store in an airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months

NOTE: for detailed pictures of each step see pictures above in the post