Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: The whole wheat flour is hearty and nutty and is perfectly complemented by the touch of honey and cinnamon. Texture: The muffins are slightly chewy and full of little nooks and crannies. They aren’t quite as light as the store-bought ones, but delicious nonetheless. Ease: Surprisingly quick and easy. You can have these on the table in about an hour! Appearance: Once buttered or dolloped with jam these look scrumptious. Pros: No strange artificial preservatives like the store-bought ones. Cons: These are a little more dense than the store-bought ones. You can use a higher ratio of white flour to add more lightness. Would I make this again? Yes!This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
Whole Wheat English Muffins are all-natural and sweetened with a touch of honey. Make them ahead of time, they’re perfect for breakfast any morning!
Yesterday was my 23rd birthday and I had such a fun birthday weekend (even though Jared missed it because he is on a different continent – boo). Thanks to everyone who sent along happy birthday wishes! The past few days have involved some crazy over-the-top food, all pretty rich and indulgent. I felt like making something a bit healthier to offset things a little, but had almost nothing in my fridge. I did have a big bag of whole wheat flour looking lonely in the freezer so I decided I needed to make something with that. Something quick, and I remembered seeing these whole wheat English muffins over at the wonderful blog Savory Simple.
Within an hour I was biting into a delicious, slightly sweet, cinnamon-scented whole wheat English muffin that was so much more satisfying than anything from the store. I made sure to take pictures along the way to show you just how simple these are to make!
The dough looked very sticky once kneaded and I was worried it would be hard to shape but as long as my counter was floured it was a breeze. Plus you can just use a regular circle cookie cutter, no special English muffin cutter needed. The muffins only need 20 minutes to “rise.” They rise the most while cooking.
After 20 minutes they’re puffy and ready for the griddle.
The best part about making your own English muffins, besides the fact that they won’t be laden with strange artificial ingredients, is that you can cook them to YOUR liking! If you like them super brown and crisp on the outside, add an extra minute on the griddle.
See how much they rise after just a few minutes? Once browned on both sides they’re ready to finish cooking in the oven. Once cooled they can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks! They’re great simply toasted with butter or jam, or even peanut butter or Nutella. I also love to use these for breakfast sandwich bread, or even to make little mini pizzas!
Whole Wheat English Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups (11 ounces or 312 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 cups (9.52 ounces or 270 grams) whole wheat flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoons fine salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (optional)
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 3/4 cups whole milk
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 2 tablespoons honey
- Cornmeal, for dusting
Instructions
- In a large bowl whisk together the flours, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and yeast to combine.
- In a small saucepan heat the milk and butter just until the butter has melted. Let the mixture cool until just warm, no hotter than 125°F.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the milk and butter with the egg and honey. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Increase speed to medium and knead for 1 minute. The dough will be sticky and wet but should form a cohesive ball.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and roll out to 3/4-inch thickness. Use a 3 1/2-inch round cutter to cut out English muffin shapes, re-rerolling the dough as needed. Place the dough rounds on a cornmeal dusted baking sheet. Cover with a towel and let rise for 20 to 30 minutes, or until puffy.
- Meanwhile preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat and cook the muffins for 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until crispy and brown. Return the browned muffins to the baking sheet and finish baking in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Cut in half, toast if desired, and butter the English muffins before serving. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Is the cornmeal to keep them from sticking or is it just a nice to have because store bought ones have cornmeal? I’m allergic to corn and would love to try these without the cornmeal.
Both! You can try just using flour to prevent sticking 🙂
I love how you placed all measurements such as grams, so hard to find on Pinterest. I look forward to trying these soon. X
I used these for my eggs benedict and it was perfect! THANK YOU!!
Sounds perfect!!
Happy belated birthday!! These guys look perfect! Homemade english muffins have been on my to-make list for a while now, but for some reason I thought they took forever to make! Glad to hear they were easy AND delicious!
Sounds like you had a great birthday with lots of great food! I adore English muffins and love that you made them with whole wheat.
I love English Muffins! And yours look so good…like legit little English Muffins! I’ve made English Muffin bread before and that is SO good. Especially toasted with some butter. I bet your recipe in loaf form would be good too!
Happy belated birthday! I have only made homemade english muffins once but I really need to get at it again. Enjoy that you used a griddle. I used a skillet and it wasn’t big enough for them all.
Happy (belated) birthday!
One note on English muffins – try buttermilk instead of whole milk – it gives them a little more traditional ‘tang’ and acidifies the dough, which makes the yeast happier. Also, increasing the hydration a bit and letting the dough rise a little more should help give you a lighter muffin.
Oh yum! English muffins are the best – and yours couldn’t have turned out any better. They look just like the real day. Will definitely have to try them sometime. Oh, and happy belated birthday :).
One of my favorite breakfast foods. I have to try these, Tessa! And happy belated birthday! When else can you eat tons and tons of indulgent foods? Glad it was a blast!
Happy belated birthday! These English muffins looks amazing 🙂
Wishing you a belated happy birthday! This whole-wheat version of English muffins looks fabulous.