English Muffin Bread
Upgrade your morning breakfast routine with this quick and easy English Muffin bread! Get all the flavor plus the nooks and crannies of an English muffin in an easy to bake loaf. With no kneading, one rise time, and less than 30 minutes to bake, this bread is the perfect way to start your day!
English muffins have long been one of my favorite breakfast foods. My dad loved them, and so we always had them in the house growing up. He enjoyed his toasted and slathered with butter and his favorite jelly while I preferred mine toasted with peanut butter and jelly.
During college, I got away from eating English muffins for breakfast, but a few years back my husband and I went on an English muffin kick. I tackled homemade English muffins and stumbled across a recipe for English muffin bread. It has all the flavor and texture of English muffins, in an easy-to-make bread. Win-win!
What is English Muffin Bread?
English muffin bread is the loaf version of English muffins. The traditional English muffin we know today was invented in the 1800’s by Samuel Bath Thomas. These round savory muffins are soft and chewy with nooks and crannies that are perfect for pockets of butter and jam to pool into.
Also called English toasting bread, this easy English muffin bread takes everything you love about English muffins and turns it into a soft loaf perfect for your morning breakfast, sandwich bread, or an afternoon snack!
What Makes English Muffins Different from English Muffin Bread?
Some of the most notable differences between English muffins and English muffin bread include:
- Shape – Traditional English muffins are round, fluffy discs of bread while English Muffin bread is a loaf.
- Kneading – English muffins require kneading to activate the gluten while this bread is a no-knead masterpiece.
- Rising – It takes two rise times for English muffins while the English muffin bread requires only one.
- Baking – You cook English muffins on a griddle and this loaf bakes in the oven.
While they may have a few differences there is one huge similarity – those craggily nooks and crannies!
How to Make English Muffin Bread
This bread takes less than 30 minutes to bake, so you can easily have it completely done, start to finish, in less than 2 hours. You pretty much can't beat that for a loaf of homemade, yeast-based bread.
Gather Your Ingredients
With just a few pantry staple ingredients you can have a loaf of this bread on your table in no time!
- Flour – Use all-purpose flour for this bread recipe.
- Sugar + Salt – The sugar feeds the yeast to help the dough rise and the salt gives a little flavor to the loaf.
- Instant Yeast – This acts as the leavening agent in the bread which allows the loaf to rise and creates air pockets that bake into the nooks and crannies.
- Baking soda – A small amount of baking soda helps brown the crust in this bread recipe.
- Milk, water, oil – Warmed together to activate the yeast and provides a liquid that turns the dry ingredients into a soft dough.
- Cornmeal – For sprinkling in the pan and giving the bread the same finish as a traditional English muffin.
How to Make the Bread
The best part about this bread is how relatively quick and easy it is to throw together. Here’s how you make it:
- Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and instant dry yeast in a large mixing bowl.
- Combine milk, water, and oil in a separate microwave-safe bowl.
- Heat the liquid mixture to between 120°F and 130°F. Stir together well before measuring the temperature to get an accurate reading.
- Pour the hot liquid over the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl.
- Beat at a high speed for 1 minute. The dough will be very soft.
- Lightly grease an 8½” x 4½” loaf pan, and sprinkle the bottom and sides with cornmeal.
- Scoop the soft dough into the pan, leveling it in the pan as much as possible.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap sprayed with nonstick spray and let the dough rise until just barely crowned over the rim. This will take about 45 minutes to 1 hour, if the liquid was heated to the correct temperature and the kitchen isn’t very cold.
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- Preheat the oven to 400°F, while the dough rises.
- Once risen, remove the plastic wrap and bake the bread for 22-27 minutes, until it’s golden brown and the interior temperature is 190°F.
- Remove from the oven, and after 5 minutes, turn the pan onto a cooling rack. Allow bread to cool completely before slicing.
What are the benefits of English Muffin Bread?
While I have learned over the years it’s not as difficult as I once thought it was to make a batch of English Muffins, this English Muffin bread might have them beat.
- It takes half the time to make this loaf of bread.
- The nooks and crannies that are perfect for butter, jam, or peanut butter are still there.
- An easy to slice loaf allows you to slice thicker or thinner pieces based on your preference.
- No kneading or multiple rises makes it the perfect beginner bread!
Spread, Slather, and Serve
While you can’t beat a warm, fresh-from-the-oven slice slathered with butter, these nooks can carry so much more! Here are a few of my favorite ways to eat English muffin bread:
- Top with peanut butter and jelly for an elevated PB&J.
- Use it as the bread for your favorite sandwich.
- Toast with butter and some fresh jam.
Recipe notes
If you don’t have a thermometer to measure the temperature of the liquid, use your index finger. The liquid will feel quite hot (hotter than lukewarm), but not so hot that you would need to pull your finger away immediately.
The best pan to use for this English muffin bread is an 8½” x 4½” loaf pan. I like to use this one.
Some bread can be more forgiving when they are sliced while they are still warm, but this is not one of them. Allow the loaf to cool entirely before slicing with a serrated bread knife and enjoying to ensure your bread sets up correctly.
Storing, Freezing, and Reheating
Once your bread cools completely, you have a few options for storing depending on what you plan to do with the bread after it’s made.
- Storing – Place the cooled English muffin bread in an airtight container or wrap tightly in plastic wrap for up to 5 days.
- Freezing – I recommend pre-slicing the bread before freezing to make it easier to thaw. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in a freezer-safe container or resealable bag for up to 3 months.
- Reheating – Microwave the frozen slices for about 20 seconds to defrost, then toast according to your preference.
Try These Bread Recipes Next
Give your morning routine an upgrade with this English muffin bread! Make a warm toasted slice slathered with melted butter and jelly or try my favorite, toasted with peanut butter and jelly – you really can’t go wrong!
If you make this English Muffin Bread and love it, remember to stop back and give it a 5-star rating - it helps others find the recipe! ❤️️
English Muffin Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) salt
- ¼ teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) baking soda
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 1 cup (240 ml) milk
- ¼ cup (60 ml) water
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or olive oil
- Cornmeal, to sprinkle in pan
Instructions
- Whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and instant yeast in a large mixing bowl.
- Combine the milk, water, and oil in a separate, microwave-safe bowl, and heat to between 120°F and 130°F. Be sure to stir the liquid well before measuring its temperature; you want an accurate reading. If you don’t have a thermometer, the liquid will feel quite hot (hotter than lukewarm), but not so hot that it would be uncomfortable as bath water.
- Pour the hot liquid over the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl. Beat at high speed for 1 minute. The dough will be very soft.
- Lightly grease an 8½” x 4½” loaf pan, and sprinkle the bottom and sides with cornmeal. Scoop the soft dough into the pan, leveling it in the pan as much as possible.
- Spray a piece of plastic wrap with nonstick cooking spray, cover the dough, and let the dough rise until it’s just barely crowned over the rim of the pan. When you look at the rim of the pan from eye level, you should see the dough, but it shouldn’t be more than ¼-inch over the rim. This will take about 45 minutes to 1 hour, if the liquid was heated to the correct temperature and the kitchen isn’t very cold.
- While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Remove the plastic wrap, and bake the bread for 22 to 27 minutes, until it’s golden brown and its interior temperature is 190°F.
- Remove the bread from the oven, and after 5 minutes, turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool. Let the bread cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- Equipment: 8½” x 4½” loaf pan.
- Sugar: You can substitute honey for the sugar.
- Milk: If you need a dairy-free alternative, you can use unsweetened almond, cashew, or oat milk.
- Oil: You can substitute canola oil or olive oil for the vegetable oil.
- Storing: Place the cooled English muffin bread in an airtight container (or wrap tightly in plastic wrap) for up to 5 days.
- Freezing: I recommend slicing the bread into slices before freezing to make it easier to thaw. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Microwave frozen slices for about 20 seconds to defrost, then toast according to your preference.
- Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Photography by Dee Frances
This bread is delicious and easy. I didn’t have a loaf pan the right size, so I formed a loaf from the dough and baked it on a sheet pan lined with oiled parchment and dusted with cornmeal. I dusted a little cornmeal on the top, too. It came out great!
Michelle,
This is definitely a winner in my book. I just make a batch (it’s rising now) for later tonight and I mixed it in a large mixing bowl with my gloved hand. Definitely easier than using the mixer and only one bowl to wash. Came together in just a few minutes. Couldn’t be easier. Looking forward to later tonight…
I made this English Muffin Bread for dinner tonight after going to the bagel store and finding that they were out of the bagels that I like. I came home around 4:00 and looked on your website for a bread that would come together quickly and this was it. We like the commercially made English Muffins so I wanted to try this bread. I am a very experienced baker and I had all of the familiar ingredients in my pantry. It was so quick to mix up and get into the oven and it was ready to eat by 6:30. I sliced the loaf (it was still slightly warm) and we ate it with softened butter and with homemade scallion cream cheese and lox – instead of the store bought bagels.
As soon as I told my family that it was called English Muffin Bread, they noticed the nooks and crannies in the slices. Everyone loved it and I will be making some for the freezer very shortly.
The only issue I had was that the 1 minute mix with the electric mixer ended up with the batter rising up into the shaft of the beaters which was a bit of a mess to clean up with toothpicks and cotton swabs while the bread was rising. I think that next time, and there will be a next time very shortly, I will mix the dough by hand in a large bowl.
Even experienced bakers may improve outcomes by reading comments before preparing online recipes. Sometimes I’ll see the same comment or question over and over, because due diligence is lacking.
All the way back in 2019, but only the ninth comment below this one, I mentioned the electric mixer mess. I’m still making English Muffin Bread to this day… it’s really good!
way to dry, i do not think it will rise, too crumbly 3/17/23
Oh WOW!!! I made this bread EXACTLY as the recipe stated for the first time today and it turned out so good. Perfect for sandwiches. I made buttered toast and it was great. This will be our favorite yeast bread recipe. It was so easy to follow the techniques. It sliced beautifully. Thank you!
I found a recipe for English Muffin Loaf back in the 70s that included a microwave version, but it was using a 700 watt microwave. Loved the loaf, but now microwaves are much more powerful as mine is 1250. Any suggestions on how to covert your recipe for microwave?