Rye Sourdough English Muffins, with recipe

 

Most often, when I make bread without a recipe, I assemble ingredients entirely by the look and feel of the dough and however the spirit moves me. Something told me in advance that English muffins leavened with a rye sourdough starter might be good so I measured as went along.

The recipe can be found here. Please send me photos and suggestions, if you decide to give it a try.

Frying the muffins in a buttered, cast iron skillet made both sides crisp, crackly, and already slightly buttery. The muffins are much heavier than the aerated versions produced by Thomas's, but the sweet rye, creaminess imparted by buttermilk-enriched dough, and the sour notes unique to rye starters combined to make a perfect base for everything from a schmear of butter to more complicated sandwiches with multiple toppings. They could also serve as buns for vegetables or meat coming from a barbecue.

One side.

And the other.