Crumpets

Before we left our study of England Dancer wanted to be sure to try crumpets.  We looked up and selected a recipe at Allrecipes that is as follows.

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water (105 degrees to 115 degrees)

1 teaspoon sugar

1/3 cup warm milk (110 to 115 degrees F)

4 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted, divided

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water.  Add sugar; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the milk, 1 T. butter and egg; mix well.  Add flour and salt; beat until smooth.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes.  Brush griddle and 3-in. metal rings or open-topped metal cookie cutter with remaining butter.  Place the rings on the griddle; heat over low heat.  Pour 3 T. of batter into each ring.  Cook for 7 minutes or until bubbles begin to pop and the top appears dry.  Remove rings.  Turn crumpets; cook 1-2 minutes longer or until the second side is golden brown.  Serve warm or let cool on a wire rack and toast before serving.            

We couldn't find the cord for the griddle, I am sure it is the cupboard with the griddle but Dancer dug around in there and came up empty handed, so we made them in a pan on the stove.  We used canning jar rings for our rings and learned that yes, you really do need to grease the rings too and between each crumpet.

A done crumpet with a dolop of grape jelly.  The kids were all over these and snarfed the whole batch while standing at the counter but I think it had to do with the fact that we don't eat bread very often and these are a bread product.  I thought they were pretty much a fat pancake.  Our crumpets did not have the little holes all over the tops but that could have been because we had to run out to do an errand while they were rising and they rose about three times as long as the recipe called for.  Perhaps our yeast was worn out by the time we got around to scooping the batter into the rings and they fell making them denser than they should have been.