We're continuing our quest to convert some of our favorite recipes to a whole grain version, and this family favorite turned out very well. I started with the Meyers family English muffin bread recipe and substituted whole wheat flour for part of the all-purpose flour, and honey for the sugar. The boys could hardly contain their excitement as I sliced it up for photos and their little hands reached out eagerly for a piece. Top Gun and Monkey Boy wanted jam on theirs and Builder Guy wanted butter, also my choice. For the rest of the afternoon they followed me from room to room, begging for more and to save my sanity I promised more slices with dinner. They finished off the first loaf for breakfast the following morning and enjoyed every bite.
It’s an easy yeast bread to start with if you haven’t made yeast breads before, just mix and plop the stiff batter into prepared loaf pans and let the loaves rise in the pan, no shaping or kneading required. You could say English muffin bread is the original no-knead bread.
[Updated September 2014.]
Honey Wheat English Muffin Bread
Equipment
- stand mixer with paddle attachment
- 2 loaf pans, 9-inch x 5-inch, greased and sprinkled with coarse cornmeal
- sauce pan or microwave-safe bowl
Ingredients
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur All-Purpose Flour.)
- 2 cups whole wheat flour (or white whole wheat flour - I use King Arthur Whole Wheat Flours.)
- 4½ teaspoons instant yeast ( or 2 packages active dry yeast)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ cup water
Preparation
- In the bowl of the stand mixer, stir 1 cup of all-purpose flour, all of the whole wheat flour, yeast, salt, and baking soda.
- Combine milk, honey, and water in the sauce pan or microwave safe bowl and heat until warm (105-115° F/41-46° C). Add to the dry ingredients and mix well. Continue stirring and adding all-purpose flour until the dough is stiff. You may not need all of the remaining all-purpose flour.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pans. The dough will be sticky and won’t necessarily look pretty in the pans, but that’s ok. Sprinkle more cornmeal on top of each loaf.
- Lightly spray plastic wrap with cooking spray and lay sprayed side down over the loaf pans. Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm draft-free location for 60 minutes.
- During the last 15 minutes of rising, preheat oven to 375° F/190° C.
- Bake for 25 minutes, until golden and the crust sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pans immediately and let cool on a wire rack. Serve warm or toast the slices.
Interesting. Does it really have the texture of English Muffins?
Hi Alisa. Most English muffin breads are not exactly like their namesake, because true English muffins are cooked on a griddle and have bigger holes, but we still enjoy it.
MMMMM...it looks really great & delicious! Yum Yum Yum!!
I just came across your blog from Photograzing, and I just adore it! This bread looks so yummy, and with very little effort. I have a fear of baking bread at home, but this one looks easy enough. But, I only own ONE loaf pan. Do you think I could cut the recipe in half and use one loaf pan? Also, does the loaf pan have to be greased? Thank you!
Hi Christina. Yes, I've divided the recipe and made just one loaf. The dough/batter is pretty sticky, so greasing the pan definitely helps.
Andrea, I just made and blogged about this bread. It turned out SO great! It was so easy, and so delicious, I really could eat the whole loaf in one sitting. Thank you so much for the inspiration!! http://deglazeme.blogspot.com/2009/04/honey-wheat-english-muffin-bread-yum.html
How about with butter and jam?! This looks so hearty. It reminds me of a simple spelt bread I made a while back. I'm bookmarking this.
Quick Question.... this bread recipe looks amazing, but I dont have a stand mixer... is there anyway that I can make it without the stand mixer??
Hi Lindsay. The batter is easy to mix up with a wooden spoon and a strong arm. 🙂
Sweet!! I might try that this weekend then!! I really want to stop buying store bread and this looks amazing!! 🙂