Whole Wheat Sourdough English Muffins

Justin is a big fan of english muffins, but I stopped buying them a while ago since they aren't healthy.  Since then I've been looking for good recipes for healthy english muffins.  I've made a couple kinds in the past.  One turned out very well...but it was made with white flour.  A couple weeks ago when I was searching for new sourdough recipes I found a lot of sourdough english muffin recipes.  I'd never thought of that.  So I did a search for whole wheat sourdough english muffins.  And the first good one I came across was from GNOWFGLINS.  I tried it yesterday.  The verdict...awesome!!!  Rebecca and I shared one with dinner last night, and we had them for breakfast this morning.  Yum!!  If you don't like sourdough, you won't like these.  But if you do (like I do...can't believe how much I love it now), you will definitely like these.  And they are quite simple to make.  When I first read the directions it seemed like a long process.  But really each step goes very quickly.  The first day you just mix a few ingredients together.  The second day you add a few more ingredients, shape the muffins, let them rest a bit and cook them.  Not much hands on time at all.  This is a keeper recipe for sure!  They are light and moist.  Perfect.  I used bulgur flour for this batch.  Any flour will do...and will produce a slightly different texture.  I also added a little ground flax seed.  And I used kefir for my liquid...made them even healthier!  If you're looking for a way to use your sourdough starter (or use up some kefir :), give these a try!

Whole Wheat Sourdough English Muffins

1/2 cup sourdough starter (thick or thin)
1 cup liquid (water*, milk, fermented dairy, coconut milk…) (I used dairy kefir)
2 cups flour (your choice) (I used bulgur flour)
Add-ins like seeds, dried fruit, or chopped nuts… (optional) (I used flax seeds)
1 Tbsp. raw honey (or any other sweetener)
3/4 to 1 tsp. sea salt of choice
1 tsp. baking soda

*Note: The English muffins will turn out if you use water instead of full fat or fermented dairy and if you add more flour initially for easier kneading. However, the results will not be as soft on the outside or as tender on the inside once you’ve finished the cooking.

Day 1:

Place 1/2 cup sourdough starter (thick or thin) into a medium size bowl. Pour onto that the 1 cup of liquid. This is the first place where the recipe is very flexible. Your liquid could be water, milk, any fermented dairy, coconut milk… Stir to combine starter and liquid.  If your sourdough starter is very stiff, you might need an extra 1/4 cup of liquid.

Once combined, add 2 cups of flour to the mixture. This is the second place where the recipe is very flexible. Use any combination of flours. I have used white wheat, whole wheat, and rye. I know there are a lot of spelt users out there and sprouted flour users, too. It’ll all work! The only flour I question is rice flour, but if used in combination with another flour, it might even work.  Stir well to combine. Along with the flour, I often add in a couple Tbsp. of ground flax seed or poppy and caraway seeds (when I make delicious rye sourdough english muffins). The soaking affects the seeds as well as the flour. So, great! Cover and let your dough sit overnight, even up to 24 hours (mine soaked about 24 hours).
 
Day 2:
 
On top of your soaked dough, sprinkle 1 tsp. celtic sea salt, 1 tsp. baking soda, and 1 Tbsp. honey. Use a wooden spoon to push/cut/stir in your newly added ingredients. Don’t worry about incorporating it perfectly; you will be kneading it in just a moment.

This next part of the directions might feel a little strange, because you are kneading something that could be quite wet. I pour about 1 tablespoon of olive oil onto my counter and spread it around with my hand and then rub my hands together. I then dump out my dough onto the oiled spot and knead the dough for 2 to 3 minutes. The purpose of this kneading is to incorporate the honey, baking soda, and salt. After this, I take a pizza cutter and separate my dough into 8 equal portions. (Be sure you use plenty of oil...the dough is wet and sticky.)

The dough is quite wet. Up until this point we have not added any new flour. At this time, I do find it helpful to dust my hands with flour before I shape each muffin. You might prefer to use all-purpose flour for this dusting, or sprouted flour where the sprouting has done the work of soaking. I usually use what is on hand… whole wheat. Whatever. (I just added extra oil to my hands as needed so I didn't have to add extra flour to the muffins.)

With dusted hands, pick up a portion and gently shape it into your muffin. My muffins are usually about 1 finger thick and maybe 2-1/2 inches wide. Sometimes they are nice and round. Sometimes not. Size and shape are not important here. Place your muffins on a lightly floured or cornmealed (greased might work if you want to stay away from newly added flour) sheet of wax paper or parchment paper. Cover with a dish towel and let rest for 45 minutes to 1 hour (mine rested for a little over an hour.).

About 5 minutes before you want to griddle/skillet your muffins, set the heat to mediumish. I usually set my cast iron to 4, the front of my stovetop griddle to 5 1/2, and the back of the griddle to 4 1/2. Each place distributes heat differently. You will figure out what works best for your situation. You don’t want the muffins to brown too quickly because the insides need a chance to cook. I also have found that I do not need to grease my skillet/griddle. Do what you think is best here as well (I did not add any grease.)

Carefully transfer the muffins onto your heat source. Cook the muffins for about five minutes on each side. You can take a little peek every now and again to make sure the bottoms are not getting too brown. When it is time to flip, do this carefully. Your muffins will plump up beautifully, and you do not want to deflate them by being too rough. Cook for the second five minutes. Now, if you find that the outside edge of your muffin is not as done as you like, feel free to pop these into a 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes. I do not bother doing this (I did not do this.).

They last (if you can get them to last) for at least a week. I keep mine in a sealed container on the counter. They also freeze beautifully. Might want to slice them first. And it most definitely works to double or triple the recipe. Enjoy!
 
These are great with butter or any kind of nut butter!  Rebecca liked hers with peanut butter and jam.  I even ate one with egg salad on it.  Yum!!