Recipe - Basic English Muffins

YEASTFLOUR MIXTURE
2 cup Allpurpose flour
2 tablespoon Sugar
2 teaspoon Salt
1 Envelope active dry yeast

LIQUID MIXTURE
1 Three fourths cup Milk
One fourth cup Water
1 tablespoon Butter

REMAINING INGREDS
1 Egg
4 cup All purpose flour, divided
One half cup Cornmeal

Yeastflour Mixture: In large bowl of mixer stir together 2 cup flour, the
sugar, salt and dry yeast; set aside.

Liquid Mixture: Heat milk, water and butter until very warm (120 to 130
degrees F). Add gradually to yeastflour mixture and beat at medium speed
2 minutes. Add egg and 1 cup flour; beat at high speed 2 minutes. Stir in
just enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured
surface until smooth and elastic, adding more remaining flour if dough is
sticky. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm, draftfree place
until double, about one hour. Punch down. Cover and let rise again until
double, about 45 minutes. Punch down. On lightly floured surface roll out
One half inch thick. With a 3 One fourth inch round cutter cut out muffins. Sprinkle
cookie sheets lightly with cornmeal. Add muffins, about 1 inch apart.
Sprinkle with additional cornmeal. Cover; let rise until double, about 45
minutes. Heat lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet. With wide spatula
carefully remove muffins (do not compress or puncture or they will
collapse) to griddle. Bake over very low heat 8 to 10 minutes on each side
until light brown. (Muffins should sound hollow when tapped) Cool on racks.
To serve, split with fork tines; toast.

VARIATIONS ONION: Add 1 envelope onion soup mix and 3 T nonfat dry milk
to yeastflour mixture and decrease salt to 1 t. Increase butter to 2 T.
Substitute 1 Three fourths cup water for the milk in liquid mixture (total 2 cup water).

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini