For clarified butter:
For the biga:
For the dough:
This recipe was graciously shared by Sarah Hansen, owner of The Model Bakery. Recognized on Oprah’s Favorite Things list three times, these English muffins are a force to be reckoned with.
From the words of Sarah Hansen, reprinted with permission —
Makes 8 large muffins
Even though the bakery’s doors have been open for over eighty years, these muffins put us on the national radar when featured on The Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate.” We used to make these the old-fashioned way, shaped in ring molds (actually, we made ours from old tuna cans, which you cannot do anymore because the sizes have changed). When we realized we could make them free-form, it changed our lives—literally. Our English muffins are quite large when compared to the supermarket variety, which makes them wonderful sandwich rolls as well as breakfast treats. A couple of notes: You will need a heavy skillet or griddle (preferably cast iron) to make these, and be sure to make the biga at least 24 hours before making the dough. And because you will probably be toasting the muffins, they won’t have to be fresh from the griddle, so make them a day or two ahead if you wish.
Our (in)famous English muffins are cooked in butter, a great cooking medium, with one major drawback—the milk solids in burn easily. Clarifying the butter is an easy process that removes the milk solids. Leftover clarified butter can be used as oil for sautéing food and keeps for a few weeks in a refrigerated covered container.