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bread baking

BBA Challenge #12 – English Muffins

by Ivete on September 10, 2009

in BBA Challenge, bread

English Muffins

Do you have some food items that you’ve not only never considered making from scratch but that you don’t even think of as something that gets made at all? As in, “this food item just exists”? Like take Eggo’s for example. Or better yet: Twinkies. Same with English Muffins. I’m pretty sure I’d never before seen an “english muffin” that didn’t come out of a package with an orange logo on it. And I’d certainly never heard of anyone making them, let alone considered making them myself! I’m reasonably sure that I’m not alone in this belief given how surprised Adam was when I told him what the next BBA bread was: he’d never thought of them being homemade before, either!

But let me tell you, these are so worth making. The really-flat things full of holes that come from that orange-labeled package? They don’t even come close. When you compare them to these scrumptious little bread cakes, the packaged kind seem rubbery and just plain sad. I wish my word association weren’t so strong for the term “English Muffin,” because what I made really doesn’t seem to fit that term at all. In fact, I’m struggling not to rename them every time I write it out! I like the name “scrumptious little bread cakes” maybe . . . although that doesn’t roll off the tongue quite as well.

In any case, hangups over names aside, read on for step-by-step photos of my first (but certainly not last!) attempt at making scrumptious little bread cakes English Muffins from scratch.

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Peppered Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

September 3, 2009
Thumbnail image for Peppered Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

I’ve had a crazy week at work getting ready for next week, which is full of even more craziness . . . so something had to be sacrificed, and frankly I’d still rather cook (and eat!) than blog. I did make these fabulous buttermilk drop biscuits this week when we [...]

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BBA Challenge #11 – Cranberry Walnut Celebration Bread

August 20, 2009
Cranberry Walnut Celebration Bread

Doesn’t this picture just take your breath away?
The 11th bread in Bread Baker’s Apprentice is the Cranberry Walnut Celebration Bread. When I read “celebration bread” I expected it to be another foreign recipe, but then Peter Reinhart mentions that it’s perfect for Thanksgiving and I got so excited to learn [...]

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BBA Challenge Bread #9 – Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread

August 4, 2009
Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread

When I saw that this week’s bread was another sweet one, and one with raisins in it (raisins are #2 on Adam’s most-hated list, #1 being licorice), I knew immediately that my coworkers or neighbors were going to be enjoying the fruits of this week’s labor. Luckily it turned out [...]

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Casatiello Bread Done Right: DE-licious!

July 1, 2009
Casatiello Thumbnail

Moving right along in my apparent quest to bake all breads at least twice, I tackled Casatiello for the second time this weekend. You may remember that I pretty much hated this bread the first time, but this time, done right? It was amazing. The texture was exactly what you’d [...]

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BBA Challenge Week #7: Ciabatta

June 29, 2009
Mushroom ciabatta thumbnail

Success! Holey Ciabatta!
For the “officially-scheduled” Ciabatta week for the Bread Baker’s Apprentice Challenge (I just squeaked in under the wire by making this yesterday!), I decided to go with the mushroom variation. I’d actually already made the regular Ciabatta recipe during the Artos week because Artos required the same poolish [...]

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BBA Challenge: Anadama Bread Redo

June 25, 2009
Anadame bread thumbnail

SUCCESS!
I’m sure you all remember (you do hang on my ever word, right?!) that my first try at the Anadama bread for week 1 of the BBA Challenge was a complete failure. What I haven’t told you yet is that I actually tried again only a week later and on [...]

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BBA Challenge Bread #6: Challah!

June 16, 2009
Challah thumbnail

Before I go into my usual rambling description of the bread, let me first summarize: WOW!
This week’s BBA bread was Challah and my husband was so excited when he found out! I, on the other hand, was nervous. My previous attempts at making challah left a lot to be desired, [...]

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BBA Challenge Bread #5: Casatiello

June 11, 2009
Casatiello Thumbnail

When I signed up for the BBA Challenge I expected that there would be some recipes I liked better than others, but I love pretty much all bread so I thought that the “bad” weeks would be few and far between. This week’s Casatiello bread seemed to be doomed from [...]

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