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Hello!
A few weeks ago, a thread in my Combi Steam Cooking with Steam & Bake Facebook group* caught my attention. Suddenly, thanks to a lively comment thread, I was down the rabbit hole of English muffins – specifically, steamed English muffins. They’re such a popular bread in many countries, and I know a lot of you will be as interested as I was to learn that they’re really easy to batch-bake at home. I don’t know why I didn’t think of them before given how many I buy for my kids!
I have played and tweaked and here we are, with a great English muffins recipe to make using the steam function in your oven, and the grill or broiler (or your toaster) to finish. I hope you’ll enjoy them as much as we are; I’m onto my fourth batch in 3 weeks and I’m not sure I’ll ever buy them again!
I’ve stuck with the English muffins theme through today’s journal, with ideas for what to do with them (beyond toast and butter, which is still a VERY valid serving suggestion), and a bit of kit that makes them more uniform like the storebought version.
Happy cooking, see you in a couple of weeks.
Emily
New to Cook
It might seem weird to make English muffins by steaming them, rather than the more traditional skillet/pan fry method. But I think you’ll see why we’re doing it after you’ve tried them.
First, it’s much easier to make a large quantity of muffins at once, without having to tend to them over a pan and make sure they don’t burn before they’re cooked through. But, even more enticingly, the texture of a steam-cooked muffin is just so plush and gorgeous.
The Recipe Flip
Less of a season flip today, and more of a ‘what to do with your English muffins’ recipe flip! Here are 3 of my favorite ideas for what to do with all those muffins you’re about to make.
Eggs Benedict
Possibly my favorite thing to do with an English muffin. This is an assembly job once you’ve got all your components organized. You’re going to need good quality sliced ham (or go all-in with combi steamed bacon), and a batch of steamed Hollandaise sauce. Poach 2 eggs per person (or follow the method in this article for slow cooked/sous vide eggs instead). Pile the ham onto warm, toasted and buttered English muffins. Top each with a cooked egg and spoon a generous amount of Hollandaise over the top. Bonus points for adding some wilted spinach as well as, or instead of, the ham.
Muffin Pizza
The adults love ‘Eggs Benny’ but the kids here think an English muffin pizza is the dream. Not so much a recipe as an idea, this is really just a ‘make it with what you have’ thing. A smear of tomato puree or marinara sauce onto the cut sides of a muffin, cheese and whatever pizza toppings you can muster from the fridge will do it. Pop your muffin pizzas under a hot broiler/grill until bubbling and melty, and enjoy what my middle son likes to call ‘cheats pizza dinner’.
My Favorite English Muffin Breakfast
Although I’m a sucker for a plain old warm, buttered muffin, I do try to add a little protein to my breakfasts. I love cottage cheese for this, so I smear a generous blob onto a split, toasted muffin, then top it with thinly sliced seasonal fruit. Strawberries, peaches or nectarines in summer, pears or (if I’m lucky) poached dried fruit in winter. That’s it. Honey if you need a little extra sweetness, though I usually don’t bother.
A Thing I'm Loving
If you plan to make English muffins regularly, and you like the idea of easily making consistently sized ones, can I recommend a set of muffin rings? I’ve made freehand muffins and ones using rings, and while both are fine, the rings do give them a nice uniform shape. These ones come in a pack of 16, which is more than enough for a batch.
Ask Me Anything (AMA)
Here’s your opportunity to ask me anything you like related to combi steam cooking!
Submit your questions, and I’ll do my best to answer as many as possible. Though I cannot get to every single question, I carefully curate ones which are relevant and represent a variety of topics. We all learn from each other, and I often learn new things based on questions from all of you!
If you have an AMA question, please email it to [email protected]. Make sure you include the phrase INSIDERS AMA in the subject line so I can collate and read all your submissions.
From Barbara
Q: I am wondering if you could advise the best method to bake a cheese soufflé in a steam oven. My recipe fits a 6 cup dish.
A: I would use the same temperature as given in the recipe (assuming your standard recipe is for a water-bath-bake), but add 50% (med) steam, and keep a very close eye on the time. I’ve had souffles take only about half of the regular oven time when baked using combi steam, depending on the type of dish they’re in (deeper will take a little longer, shallower a little shorter).