Homemade Crumpets

It has rained pretty much all weekend here. In the morning we wake up, it looks beautiful, we get dressed, we head out and it's dark and gloomy and within minutes the rain comes and it settles in for the day. Sometimes it does have it's perks though because yesterday when Mr B headed off to a BBQ, I opted to stay home where it was dry and warm, turn the stereo up and bake my little heart out.

Several batches of brownies, a batch of pikelets and some homemade paneer cheese later I was running out of room in the fridge so I had to assess my next move carefully.

Option a) was eat a whole batch of fresh triple chocolate jersey caramel brownies to make room for something else in the fridge

 or Option b) was make homemade crumpets and store them in the freezer.

Option B won out because whilst option a was tempting it did have the potential to leave me writhing on the floor in a chocolate coma and well there was no reason I couldn't eat brownies and make crumpets at the same time. Win Win.

I have been meaning to try homemade crumpets for ages now and last week I finally remembered to borrow Mum and Dad's egg rings so I was all out of excuses and given it was starting to get dark and Mr B still wasn't home, apparently I had plenty of time!

I was so pleased with the way these came out, I think the only thing I would change next time is to make sure the egg rings are full to the brim with the batter because our crumpets were a little thin, not that it mattered though, they still tasted like the real thing, only better! No more shop brought crumpets in this house!

This photo shows the various stages of the cooking, the back row are done, the middle row are nearly done and the bottom row shows the batter once it's been poured into the egg rings.

Homemade Crumpets

250ml warm water
7g dried yeast
2 teaspoons caster sugar
125 ml warm milk
225g plain flour
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon bicarbonate soda

In a small bowl or jug, combine half the warm water with the yeast, sugar and milk. Make sure the liquid ingredients are not too hot or they could kill the yeast. Set the bowl aside in a warm place until foamy (about 10 minutes).

In a large bowl combine the sifted flour and salt. Make a well in the centre and slowly pour in the yeast mixture. Stir until combined with a wooden spoon. The dough will be quite runny at this stage. Set aside somewhere warm until doubled in size. This could take one to two hours depending on the temperature.

Combine the remaining water and bicarb soda. Use a whisk to deflate the dough and slowly work in the bicarb mixture until smooth. Set aside for 30 mins to rest.

Lightly grease a non-stick fry pan and four egg rings. Place the egg rings into the pan and heat to medium-low.

Fill the egg rings with the crumpet mixture. Allow the crumpets to cook until bubbles come to the surface and the egg rings are easily removed. Once the base is golden brown and the top is set, flip them over for just a few seconds to crisp up the top side. Repeat with remaining batter.

Serve toasted with butter, jam and honey and a hot cuppa!

Enjoy!

Mrs B xx