Crumpet Recipe

Look, Rome wasn't built in a day, right? So chef and food writer Laura Sampson of Little House Big Alaska wants you to be okay with crumpets that look merely okay. "Don't assume that you'll make a batch and they'll be perfect," she says. "It takes time and practice to make a good crumpet," one that's an even disc with that lovely browning across the top.

The good news? Even crumpets that may not look perfect will taste great. And with a few rounds here, you'll have Instagram-ready crumpets in no time. Just keep at it! Sampson says: "Bakers will figure out what works for them, their rings, and their pan as they make them." And your friends or family will be only too happy to gobble up your "practice rounds," so to speak, especially as Sampson advises: "They are best eaten right away!" 

"If you're going to store them," she says, "you want to wrap them up airtight and then reheat before eating."

As for the way to enjoy a crumpet? Butter is the classic, but Sampson says: "You can serve them with all the breakfast foods and make big fat open-faced sandwiches out of them. Or pour on the maple syrup for more of a sweet breakfast."

The ingredients needed to make a crumpet are decidedly everyday stuff — it's all about the technique here, as well as the hardware. Sampson says: "You need a stand mixer and crumpet rings for this recipe." The stand mixer you likely already have, while a good set of crumpet rings can be had for pretty cheap! (Also, you can use round cookie cutters in a pinch).

As for the ingredients, you'll need two cups of all-purpose flour, yeast, sugar, salt, warm milk, warm water, and some baking soda. Already have that in your kitchen? Great, let's get cooking!

As with so many pastry and bread recipes, this first steps of this crumpets recipe involve a lot of waiting. To start out, put the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer, and then put the yeast, sugar, and salt on top of it. Now, pour the warm milk over the top of those dry ingredients.

Mix everything on low with the dough hook for about three minutes or until a soft, even dough is formed. Now. put said dough in a clean bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and a tea towel, and put it somewhere room temperature (or a bit warmer) and let it rise until it has doubled in size, which takes roughly an hour or so.

Check to make sure the dough for your crumpets has risen, then fit your mixer with the paddle attachment and put the dough back in the bowl. Of course, make sure you clean out the bowl of your mixer in between uses.

In a small cup or bowl, mix the baking soda in the warm water and stir to combine them. Now, pour that mixture over the dough in the mixing bowl and mix on low for a minute or two until you have a batter. There will be chunks of dough in the mix, and that's okay. Cover the doughy batter again and let it rise and get bubbly for another hour.

When it's time cook your crumpets, preheat a frying pan over medium-low heat, and lightly grease the pan as it warms. Also grease the crumpet rings and place them in the pan to preheat plenty too.

When the pan and rings are good and hot, carefully fill each of the crumpet rings about a third to a half of the way full using a ladle or spoon. You can also pour the batter out if that works better for you. Let the crumpets cook until the bottoms are set and the batter is bubbly with bubbles rising to the top.

Once the dough is bubbling at the top, if said tops are decently firm and set, you can take the crumpets out of the pan and remove the rings, then plop them face down back into the pan to finish. Or, if the tops are still a bit runny, you can flip them over ring and all and let the tops lightly brown too.

Repeat the process making crumpets until the batter is done, and be sure you wipe out the crumpet rings and re-grease them between uses, or the dough will start to stick and make a mess.

Serve the crumpets hot, and note that Sampson says: "Crumpets are made to be eaten whole and not split open."