1cupSoy Milk, plainYou can use any milk of choice.
1tspDry active Yeast
2tbspsugar
2tbspolive oilYou can use melted butter.
1tspsalt
1.5cupWholewheat flour
1.5cupAll purpose flourYo may need another 1/2 cup flour while kneading.
3-4tbspCornmeal/Sooji/SemolinaFor the baking tray
1-2tbspOil/butterFor the skillet
Instructions
Starter
Mix the water, flour and yeast in a small bowl, till smooth.
Cover the bowl and put in a warm corner for 1 -12 hours. The starter will get bubbly and double in volume. The longer you let the starter sit, the better the flavour of the English muffins. **
Dough
In the bowl of your stand mixer or large bowl, combine the milk and yeast. Scrape in the starter and whisk well to combine it all.
Stir in sugar, olive oil/butter, salt and 3 cups of flour, till you get a rough scraggy dough.
With a dough hook on your stand mixer, knead the dough till it comes together. This took me about 10 minutes. Add extra flour if the dough is very sticky. I needed to add about 1/2 cup more. The dough is ready when it comes together in a smooth, soft ball. It will be tacky to touch but not too sticky.
You can knead this dough by hand as well, on a well floured surface. The dough is very sticky to begin with, but it does come together nicely while kneading.
Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight. This dough can stay in the refrigerator for upto 4 days,according to the original recipe. ***
Turn the dough out on a well floured surface and cut into 12 equal pieces. Roll into balls. And place on a baking tray sprinkled with cornmeal /sooji/semolina. Sprinkle the tops with some more cornmeal/sooji/semolina.
Place the tray in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, typically 1 - 1.5 hours. Mine were really puffy in 30 minutes.
Heat a skillet/ saute pan to medium heat. Brush with oil/ butter and gently place the rolls 3-4 at a time onto the pan. Cook till the bottom of the muffins are golden brown 6-7 minutes. Flip carefully and cook on the other side for another 6-7 minutes.
Please adjust the heat if your muffins are browning too much or too fast. You can also finish these muffins in a preheated oven at 180C.
Cut the muffin horizontally, eat warm and fresh, slathered with butter. These are EXCELLENT toasted and keep well in the refrigerator for 5-6 days. Enjoy!!
Notes
This recipe has been adapted fromTHE KITCHN.** You can use the starter for making the dough after an hour, as longs as its gotten bubbly and has doubled in bulk.*** You can use the dough the same day, after its doubled, in about 1 - 1.5 hours.