It is possible to make Homemade Whole Wheat Crumpets, without any special equipment! All you need are simple ingredients and a little bit of time.
My daughter has always loved crumpets. She ate them for breakfast regularly when she was younger, but recently went through a period of forgetting about them, or not eating them for some other reason.
When she asked me to buy some recently, I was surprised to find out my regular grocery store no longer carries them. Rather than trying to hunt them down, I decided to make some for her.
I'm not new to making crumpets. I've made them in the past, even publishing this recipe before. I've also made crumpet pancakes, which are similar, but larger, thinner, and more free-formed.
However, I've refined the recipe a little bit, which resulted in crumpets which are more tender (thanks to the addition of cornstarch), have more defined holes on the top, and are just easier to make. With batter that's a little thicker than my previous attempts, it stays in place in the pan a little better, which eliminates the need to use crumpet rings.
If you're a crumpet lover like my family, keep reading to learn how to make them.
What are crumpets?
A crumpet is a soft, spongy, unsweetened cake-like breakfast bread made on a griddle or skillet. Crumpets are somewhat similar to pancakes but are raised with a mixture of yeast and baking powder.
Most crumpets have large holes on the top and may be cooked only on one side, or only lightly cooked on the top.
Crumpets are traditionally served with butter and/or jam, but I love them with peanut butter. The peanut butter gets all melty and gooey and delicious!
How to make Homemade Whole Wheat Crumpets
When you're ready to make your crumpets, start with making the batter. This simply involves stirring together the dry ingredients (all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, cornstarch, instant yeast, baking powder, and salt).
Stir in some warm water, then cover the batter and let it rise for 40 minutes (it will rise quite a bit, so make sure you save some room in the bowl).
After 40 minutes, stir in a little more water, and it's time to get cooking. You'll want to be using a non-stick or well-seasoned cast iron pan. If you're using crumpet or egg rings, try to choose a pan in which they all fit. If you're not, choose the largest pan you have to help the cooking process go a little faster.
Spread a little canola or other neutral-flavored cooking oil in the pan and heat it over medium-high heat. Carefully wipe off any excess oil.
Do you need to use crumpet rings to make crumpets?
For this recipe, using crumpet rings is not necessary. The batter is thick enough here that it will mostly stay put when cooking, not running to cover the whole pan.
However, if you do want crumpets that are perfectly round, you can use them if you wish. I have tried both metal (stainless steel) crumpet rings and silicone rings that are made more for eggs. I found the silicone rings easier to work with as the batter didn't stick to them as much, and they didn't get as hot which makes them easier to handle.
Scoop ¼ cup of the batter into the pan and place it in one of the egg rings (if using) or directly into the pan. Quickly add additional ¼ cup scoops of batter, each 2-3 inches apart until the pan is full. Cover the pan and cook for 45 seconds on medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 3-4 more minutes.
Remove the lid and use an offset spatula or butter knife to dab, or "twirl" any excess, uncooked batter from the tops of the crumpets, placing it back into the bowl to use again. This should expose the bubbles underneath, which will become the holes you see on the tops of crumpets. Flip the crumpets, return the heat to medium-high, and cook for about a minute.
Remove the crumpets from the pan and either serve immediately, keep warm on a wire rack in a 200°F oven, or cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Repeat the process with all of the remaining batter.
Store remaining crumpets in an air-tight container or zipper bag (cool to room temperature first) the the fridge or freezer. Toast the crumpets (I recommend thawing before toasting) before eating.
Homemade Whole Wheat Crumpets Ingredients
- All-purpose flour - I combined all-purpose flour with cornstarch to replicate the texture of cake flour. However, if you happen to have cake flour on hand, you can use that instead.
- Whole wheat flour - I prefer to add some whole wheat flour to most of my baked goods, but if you want to make these crumpets white instead of whole wheat, replace whole wheat flour with an equal amount of all-purpose flour
- Cornstarch - adding cornstarch to baked goods that use all-purpose flour replicates the texture of cake flour.
- Instant or quick-rise yeast
- Baking powder
- Table salt - if you use kosher salt instead, increase the amount to ¾ teaspoon.
- Warm water - warm cold tap water in a saucepan or microwave to approximately 100°F.
- Canola or other neutral-flavored oil - No oil is added to the batter, but it is used to prevent the crumpets from sticking to the pan.
Want more yeasted breakfast recipes?
Homemade Whole Wheat Crumpets Nutrition Notes
The nutrition information in the recipe below is for one crumpet if you use the recipe provided to make 12 crumpets.
Note that the nutrition information is for a plain crumpet only, and doesn't include any toppings that you might add to it.
Homemade Whole Wheat Crumpets
Equipment
- Large non-stick or cast iron skillet
- Silicone egg rings optional, use if you want your crumpets to be perfectly round
- Offset spatula or butter knife
Ingredients
- 1 ⅛ cups all-purpose flour see note
- ¾ cups whole wheat flour If you want to make these crumpets white instead of whole wheat, replace whole wheat flour with an equal amount of all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch see note
- 2 teaspoons instant or quick-rise yeast
- ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- ½ teaspoon canola or other neutral-flavored oil plus more as needed
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together 1 ⅛ cups all-purpose flour, ¾ cups whole wheat flour, 2 Tbsp cornstarch, 2 teaspoons instant or quick-rise yeast, ¾ teaspoons baking powder, and ½ teaspoon table salt. Stir in 1 ¼ cups of the warm water.
- Cover the bowl (use a lid, a damp towel, or a plate) and let rise for 40 minutes. Whisk in the remaining ¼ cup of warm water.
- Heat a medium to large non-stick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Brush ½ teaspoon canola or other neutral-flavored oil over the skillet, and carefully wipe off any excess with a dry paper towel.
- Place the egg rings into the skillet (if using) and scoop ¼ cup of batter into each ring. If you're not using rings, place ¼ cup dollops of batter directly into the skillet at 2-3 inches apart from each other. Cook for 30-45 seconds on medium-high, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes until the bottoms are browned, but the batter on the tops of the crumpets is not yet set. Remove the skillet from the heat.
- Use an offset spatula or butter knife to dab the excess, un-cooked batter from the top of the crumpets (I found that it worked best to dab the spatula into the batter, then "twirl" the spatula as if you were twirling spaghetti around it. Don't use a scraping or smearing motion, as this will close the holes of the batter, when we want to open them). Spread the excess batter back into the bowl, to be used for the remaining crumpets.
- Flip the crumpets, bubble-side down and return the skillet to medium-high heat. Cook for 1-2 minutes until very lightly browned. Eat immediately, or place in a 200°F oven to keep warm, or place on a wire rack to cool.
- Repeat steps 4-6 until all of the remaining batter has been used up, re-oiling the pan as needed if you notice that the crumpets are not releasing easily.
To Store
- Cool crumpets to room temperature before storing in an airtight container or zipper bag. Keep crumpets in the fridge if you're going to use them in the next couple of days, or in the freezer if you want to keep them for longer.
To Serve
- If you're not serving the crumpets immediately (from the skillet, or from a warm oven), lightly toast the crumpets (I recommend thawing first - it only takes 30 seconds in the microwave) before serving. Serve with butter, jam, or anything else you would prefer (it could be peanut butter, honey, Nutella, or whatever you like).
Notes
Nutrition
Nick says
Crumpets are no doubt best served with butter and Vegemite! I'll have to try out this recipe 🙂 thanks for sharing