I haven’t baked any bread in a long time, mostly because I don’t eat bread very often lately. I do love to bake, though, so when I came across this recipe for No Knead English Muffin Bread on KitchenParade.com, I knew I had to make it, even if just for fun. If you’re a bread person and eat it often, making your own bread can be a huge money saver. An artisan loaf at the store will run you between $3-$4, but you can make it at home for less than a dollar. If you’re intimidated by baking bread, a “no knead” recipe like this is perfect to get you started and a little more comfortable with the bread making process.
What makes this bread “English Muffin” bread? I dunno, just the heavy coating of cornmeal and delicate crumb, I guess. To me English Muffins are a bit more “eggy”, but this bread is still great all the same. So, we’ll just call it English Muffin bread for fun, deal?
Want to try making regular English Muffins? Check out my Homemade English Muffins recipe!
No Knead English Muffin Bread
Servings 12 1 slice eachIngredients
- 2 1/4 cups flour (plus some for dusting) ($0.38)
- 2 tsp (or one 1/4 oz. packet) instant yeast ($0.19)
- 1 Tbsp sugar ($0.03)
- 3/4 tsp salt ($0.03)
- 1 cup warm water ($0.00)
- 2 Tbsp cornmeal ($0.08)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine 1 cup of the flour with the yeast, sugar, and salt. Add one cup of warm water and mix with a hand mixer on medium speed for three minutes. Use a timer to make sure it is mixed for a full three minutes.
- Begin to add the remaining 1 1/4 cups of flour, a small amount at a time, until you can no longer use the mixer. At that point, use a large wooden spoon to stir the rest of the flour into the dough. The amount of flour needed may be slightly more or less depending on the moisture content of your flour, but you should aim for a very soft, pliable, slightly sticky dough in the end.
- Coat a loaf pan with non-stick spray, then dust the inside heavily with cornmeal (about 2 Tbsp). Sprinkle a little extra flour onto the dough to keep it from sticking to your hands and mold it into a rough loaf shape. Place the loaf in the pan, cover with a damp paper towel, and let rise for one hour, or until the loaf has risen higher than the top of the loaf pan.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake the risen loaf for 30-45 minutes, or until it sounds hollow when tapped. If the top begins to brown too much before 30 minutes, cover with foil to reduce further browning (I covered mine after 20 minutes).
- Remove the loaf from the pan and let it cool completely before slicing.
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Nutrition
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How to Make No Knead English Muffin Bread – Step by Step Photos
Start by combining 1 cup of flour, 2 tsp instant yeast (or one 1/4 oz. packet), 1 Tbsp sugar, 3/4 tsp salt, and one cup of warm water in a large bowl. Mix the ingredients using a hand mixer set on medium speed for three full minutes. A word to the wise, start the mixer on low then increase to medium once it starts to come together, so you don’t spray flour all over your kitchen. ;) This mixing action partially develops the gluten, which is a substitute for the kneading process.
After mixing for three minutes, begin to add the remaining 1 1/4 cups flour, a little at a time. Once it becomes too thick to use the mixer, use a large wooden spoon to stir in the rest. The total amount of flour you need may be slightly more or less, depending on the moisture content of the flour. The end result should be a soft, pliable, slightly sticky dough (no piles of dry flour on the bottom of the bowl).
Prepare a loaf pan by coating it with non-stick spray, then using about 2 Tbsp of cornmeal to dust the inside. This creates a nice thick crust of crunchy cornmeal on the outside of the bread—just like an English Muffin!
Sprinkle a little flour on the dough and your hands to keep it from sticking, then shape it into a rough loaf. It doesn’t have to be perfect. If you *want* to knead it a couple times, it will make the dough a bit more even and pretty, but it’s not necessary. Place the loaf in the prepared pan.
Cover the loaf pan with a damp paper towel and let it rise for one hour or until it rises up out of the top of the loaf pan. I let mine go for about 1 hour and 15 minutes because it was a tad chilly in my house. Again, the lumpy shape of the top can be eliminated by working the dough just a bit before shaping it into a loaf.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, then bake the English muffin bread for 30-45 minutes, or until it’s golden brown and sounds hollow when you tap the crust. If the top begins to brown too fast (it needs to be in the oven for at least 30 minutes), you can cover it with foil to slow the browning process. I ended up adding foil at about the 20-minute mark and baked for 30 minutes total.
Letting the loaf cool completely before slicing it is one of the hardest things to do, but one of the most important. The english muffin bread is soft and squishy when warm and trying to slice it in that state will tear it apart or flatten it completely. Neither is good. So, let that bread cool!
Once it’s cool, slice it, toast it, and slather it up with some butter and jam!
Homemade bread with no fancy machines and no fancy skills needed!
Could you make some spicy, maybe sriracha, deviled eggs? I’ve been craving something like that! :D <3 LOVE YOUR SITE! :)
I agree Gina that does sound good.
Sounds like a good use for leftover Easter eggs!
Does it have to be instant yeast or can I use active dry?
I just got a comment from the original recipe poster and she said they have used rapid rise yeast with good results as well.
Hi Beth, I’m thrilled to see a fellow “math oriented” bread-baker making the English Muffin Bread. The woman who gave me the recipe will be thrilled to see it too!
FYI she tells me she’s started to use a full tablespoon of yeast now (and she and I both use Rapid Rise and regular yeast quite interchangeably). Also I now make this bread with half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose flour. Some of your readers might appreciate knowing about these variations.
Good luck with your future bread baking!
Awesome! It’s good to know that it can be rapid rise yeast… I’ve had quite a few questions about that already! :)
Great recipe. I bake bread quite often and will definitely try it out. One question though, the dough is ready to be baked after the first rising, no proofing/second rising necessary? Thanks.
Nope, not for this bread. :)
Yum! I just recently started making my own bread consistently and it is saving me so much money! Plus, the smell of freshly baked bread in the kitchen is better than any candle I can find.
Thank you for taking the time to make blog posts. I know it can be time consuming and sometimes feel like work rather than fun. I really appreciate your inspiration to make more from scratch foods. xoxo
Looks great! I love home made bread
Nothing beats the smell of homemade bread wafting out of the oven. Nothing! I’m so impressed with how cheap it is to make this per slice. For a family of 4, we are spending (I just checked) roughly $800 a month on groceries so any way I can save, I try to! Even bread is not that cheap anymore, often costing $3.50 a loaf. Insane. Thanks for a $$ saving, practical solution.
Ooh, this looks divine!
English muffin bread french toast, d’ya think?
I make a version of this bread for my husband, who calls it “Crumpet Bread.” And he’s right, the texture is much more like a crumpet than an English Muffin, but whatever you call it, it’s a great bread. I sometimes substitute 1 cup of wholewheat flour and it’s equally as good, if not better.
This recipe looks great. Would it be possible to make this using a bread machine? What changes would I need to make?
Unfortunately I’ve never used a bread machine before, so I don’t know. :(
cheryl, i used a bread machine for many years. what i remember best is that you just throw all the ingredients in the mixer/pan, close the lid, and turn it on. why not just try it with this recipe and see what happens? i bet it will taste good! (probably delete the corn meal)
Delicious and was easy to make. Great texture too! I didn’t read the recipe all the way through and had to start over the first time though.
Did you use bread flour or all purpose for this?
I used all purpose, but bread flour would probably work even better.
How necessary is the corn meal? I really hate that :P on English muffins and try to get it all off.
Hahaha, if you hate it you can leave it out and just use the non-stick spray. :)
I have made this recipe several times and it is easy and delicious! Which reminds me, I need to make it again soon! LaTrice-I am sure it could be frozen just like any other bread. It’s really too easy not to try.
I’m a HUGE fan of fresh baked bread, and this recipe does look simple! Is it possible that this bread can be frozen? Thanks, Beth! :-)
Yep! I’ve yet to come across a loaf of bread that didn’t freeze well. :)