Spelt Sourdough English Muffins
These Spelt English Muffins have a deliciously soft interior, with nooks and crannies galore to hold butter, jam, or sandwich toppings. They come together easily, and are richly flavored by a slow overnight ferment in the fridge. They freeze perfectly for easy, quick breakfasts. Use the weight measurements for the best results.
Equipment
- 1 cast iron skillet
Ingredients
Levain
- 30g (2 Tbsp) sourdough starter
- 100g (1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp) all-purpose flour
- 100g (3 1/2 Tbsp) water room temperature
Dough
- 40g (2 Tbsp) honey *you can sub maple syrup or sugar if preferred
- 480g (2 cups) whole milk
- 360g (2 3/4 cups + 2 Tbsp) whole spelt flour *preferably fresh milled - the volume measurement here is for fresh milled. It may vary if using purchased flour.
- 360g (3 cups) all purpose flour
- 2 tsp fine sea salt
For Proofing
- 80g 1/2 cup cornmeal or semolina flour *for dusting the baking parchment
Instructions
8PM Prepare Your Levain (or feed your starter)
- About 12 hours before you want to mix up your dough, prepare your levain by mixing up the ingredients in a clean jar, and setting them aside at room temperature, with a loosely fitting lid. The levain is ready to use when active, bubbly, and doubled in size. Note: If you prefer, instead of mixing up a separate levain, you can instead feed your 100% hydration starter in the morning and directly use 230g as your levain once it peaks.
8AM Mix Your Dough
- Once your levain is ready, mix up your levain and all of the dough ingredients by hand until well combined. Cover your dough, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and knead by hand for 5 minutes (you may also knead in the stand mixer with the dough hook at the lowest setting for 5 minutes).
- Place the dough back in your bowl. Cover, and let it ferment at room temperature (70 deg F, 21 deg C) for 6-8 hours.
- Optionally, move dough to your fridge overnight for a slow ferment to deepen its flavor. Otherwise, allow another 2 hours of fermentation on the counter at room temperature.
7AM Final Proof and Bake
- Turn your dough out (gently) onto a floured surface. Gently pat it down (be careful not to degas it) until it is 1 inch (2.5cm) thick.
- Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, and sprinkle on your cornmeal or semolina flour generously.
- Shaping Method 1 (Our preference): Divide your dough into 16 pieces, working gently so as not to degas (each ball will be 90-95g). Form each piece into a teardrop shape, cup your hand over it, and gently move in a circular motion on your counter for 5-10 seconds. Use the gentle tension against the counter to help form into a ball and seal the bottom edge. Place each ball on a little mound of cornmeal or semolina.Shaping Method 2 (A little easier if your dough is warm): Using a 2 3/4 inch (7cm) round biscuit cutter, cut out rounds from your dough, and place them on your parchment. To use up your scrap dough, you can push the dough together and pinch to seal gently, and then cut out more muffins. The scrap muffins may look less beautiful, but they will still bake up delicious!
- Cover your muffins with a tea towel or lightly laid plastic wrap, and allow them to rise 1-4 hours at room temperature. If your dough is cold from the fridge, it will be 3-4 hours. Dough balls will nearly double in size. They will grow even more when you bake them (see video for reference). *Do not rush this part. The muffins need to be well-risen so they bake up perfectly. Depending on how long your first rise was, the heat and humidity in your environment, your dough may need more or less time.
- Preheat your cast iron skillet at the lowest heat for at least 10 minutes. *On my gas stove, the low heat setting is perfect. You may need to adjust on your stove.
- Gently lift the edge of a ball of dough, slide a little spatula under. Gently turn over onto your preheated pan. Place 3 total muffins in your pan, cover, and bake for 4 minutes. Note: You "can" fit 4 muffins in a pan, but it may keep them from rising well, and will likely be difficult to turn over.
- Turn your muffins over. If they have cooked perfectly (golden brown on the cooked side), keep the heat where it is - if not, adjust accordingly. Cover, and bake 4 additional minutes. Both sides should now be golden brown. The muffins should be 205 deg F (96 deg C) at their center when done. Keep it in the pan if you need to until it's done. Do your best to adjust your pan's heat so that your muffins are browning on each side in 4 minutes - this will make sure your muffins rise optimally. Note: Your muffins should be significantly risen, pillowy and light when you pick them up. Dense muffins can result if they are underproofed or overhandled.
- Set the muffins on a cooling rack to cool.
- Cut, serve with butter, jam, or as a sandwich or eggs benedict, and enjoy!
- If freezing: wait until the muffins have cooled completely, then place them in an airtight container, and freeze. When ready to use, you can let them thaw on the counter, or pop them in the microwave for 20 seconds, before cutting and toasting as you would normally.