By Summer Ison
Prior to testing this recipe I had never tasted a crumpet, let alone made them. If you are anything like me you may be suddenly realizing that despite a lifetime of tea and crumpet references you have no blithering idea what one even is!
Simple yet sophisticated, they are a glorious British invention spawned of yeast bread and griddle cakes designed precisely to be the world's most perfect vessel for honey.
The best part is that making crumpets is just as much fun as eating them! It is not too complicated but does take some planning ahead to alot for rising time. Begin the crumpet process at least 2 hours before you plan to eat them. But don't worry, there will be lots of time for multitasking while the yeast work their magic!
Here are the ingredients:
1 cup whole milk, heated to 110ºF – 115ºF
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
In the bowl of a stand mixer (or any large bowl) combine the milk, sugar and yeast. Let them sit until the yeast starts to bubble, about 5 minutes.
Add the flour and salt to the yeast mixture and beat on medium-high speed for 3 minutes with stand mixer or handheld mixer. Do this until the batter is smooth and it stretches when you lift out the beater. Remove the bowl from the mixer and cover tightly. Place in a warm, draft-free area until the mixture has doubled in size and is bubbly on top, about 1 hour.
*Get the kids for this part! If you don't have kids, then try your best to act like one.*
In a small bowl, stir together the water and baking soda. Pour this mixture into the batter and watch the inflated ball of dough implode to a tiny fraction of it's former self. Mix well until smooth then set aside for 30 minutes. It will rise again somewhat.
Heat a large skillet (I used a large cast iron griddle) over medium low heat. Spray the surface lightly with nonstick cooking spray, and spray 4- 2 1/2 -inch crumpet molds. (I brushed with olive oil and used canning rings for the molds- both sizes worked well, just adjust the amount of batter) Place the molds in the skillet.
Add approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons of the batter (more for the wide mouth rings) to the center of each mold and then cook until the bottoms are a deep golden brown and air bubbles have formed on the top, about 9 minutes. Use a pair of tongs to remove the molds, then turn the crumpets over to cook on the second side for about a minute.
Enjoy hot and fresh, with tea and honey of course! Or, they were just as delicious cut in half and toasted the next day (also smothered in honey).
*op
recipe source: Good Food, Good Life by Curtis Stone