{"id":1319,"date":"2015-01-13T00:26:37","date_gmt":"2015-01-13T00:26:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thecherryplumkitchen.com\/?p=1319"},"modified":"2015-01-13T00:33:43","modified_gmt":"2015-01-13T00:33:43","slug":"crumpets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thecherryplumkitchen.com\/?p=1319","title":{"rendered":"Crumpets"},"content":{"rendered":"
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It’s a grey day – and I’m still cooking in ‘real’ time – so it seemed to me it was a day made for the comfort of a crumpet. \u00a0The only kind of crumpet to eat is a warm one. \u00a0They are surprisingly light because of all the honeycomb-like holes and perfect when they’re oozing with butter. \u00a0Salted, is my preference but I’m prepared to be flexible.<\/p>\n

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Apparently, the American publishers of the early Harry Potter books ‘translated’ crumpet to ‘English muffin’ because they were nervous about the British-isms putting off readers. \u00a0It’s a shame because an English muffin is a different thing with a very different ‘cultural’ feel. \u00a0A crumpet is about ‘home and hearth’, open fires and toasting forks, a rose-tinted view of times gone by and a warmed Brown Betty teapot of English Breakfast tea …<\/p>\n

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You do need a bit of kit. \u00a0Crumpet rings<\/a>. \u00a0They force the crumpet upwards rather than let them splay out into something much flatter and un-crumpet-like. (For some reason I now have seven rings. \u00a0I suppose it’s the missing-sock-syndrome as I have absolutely no idea where the eighth has gone.)<\/p>\n

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They are not difficult to make – providing you have a recipe which works. A mix of strong bread flour and plain flour seems preferable, but it’s the bicarbonate of soda which is the magic ingredient.<\/p>\n

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Place the flours in a bowl. \u00a0Strong white bread flour has the gluten which will help the crumpet hold its honeycomb structure and the plain flour will encourage your crumpet to be soft and squidgy. \u00a0Add the yeast on one side of the bowl and the salt on the other. \u00a0(If the salt is placed on top of the yeast it will ‘kill’ it.)<\/p>\n

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A mix of milk and boiling water gives the perfect warm temperature.<\/p>\n

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A little bit of sugar gives the yeast a boost.<\/p>\n

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Pour the water\/milk mix into the flour and yeast and beat. \u00a0Hard. \u00a0I use the paddle beater on my mixer.<\/p>\n

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Until it’s smooth.<\/p>\n

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Time is magic. \u00a0How long it takes depends on the day, the weather, the flour \u2026 \u00a0Leave until it’s a mass of tiny bubbles. \u00a0In my warm kitchen it usually takes a hour or so.<\/p>\n

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Now it’s time for the bicarbonate of soda. \u00a0The bicarb is all about creating ‘holes’, but you need to be restrained as you don’t want to taste it in the finished crumpet. \u00a0Mix with 100ml of water. \u00a0This bit feels counter-intuitive to me but .. stir it in. \u00a0Yes, you are destroying all those lovely bubbles. \u00a0I have absolutely no idea why it works, but it does. \u00a0Then leave it for another half an hour to recover.<\/p>\n

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I like to pour it into a jug.<\/p>\n

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Melt a little butter and brush the rings with it so they are thoroughly greased. \u00a0There is little so annoying as your lovely crumpet getting stuck. \u00a0Traditionally you’d be baking on a griddle. \u00a0I use a piece of bake-o-glide on my Aga Simmering Plate, but a heavy cast iron frying pan would work well too. \u00a0Place the crumpet rings on the cooking surface and bring both to the same temperature. \u00a0Then pour in some of the gloopy mixture …<\/p>\n

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Aim for about two thirds up the side of the ring.<\/p>\n

It’s the cooking where you need to acquire a ‘knack’. \u00a0Too hot and you’ll burn the base of the crumpet. \u00a0Pour the mixture too high up the rings and you’ll end up with a muffin top and a burnt bottom before the top has ‘set’.<\/p>\n

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Get it right and it will climb to the top of the ring and you can smugly watch the holes appear.<\/p>\n

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Risking life and limb, lift the rings off when the top has almost set. \u00a0I use a clean tea towel. \u00a0If the rings were greased well and hot before you added the crumpet mixture they should release easily, but sometimes you’ll need to coax the crumpet out with the point of a knife.<\/p>\n

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Once free ..<\/p>\n

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\u2026 flip and cook the other side. \u00a0This does ‘flatten’ the holes a little so if you are super fussy you can pop them under a grill\/broiler until the top is golden.<\/p>\n

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And keep going.<\/p>\n

They are ready to eat now, but you can let them cool and pop them in the freezer ready to toast at a later date.<\/p>\n

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Eat.<\/p>\n

\"Crumpets<\/a>Crumpets<\/p>\n