English Muffins

I have been sitting, working with the pictures I took of these beauties for the last ten minutes and the pictures are so incredibly appetizing, I feel like I can smell them just by looking at them! These english muffins are, without fail, gorgeous. That golden brown color, the springy texture. It's irresistible. And all you need to make them are the basic ingredients, a little extra flour and water, a baking sheet, and an oven.

I also love this recipe because one of the difficulties of living gluten free is that it's really hard to have food on the go. I find it extremely difficult to find food for pack lunches, something that doesn't require a microwave to heat up. This is perfect. As of now I have one of these goodies in a plastic bag, a jar of peanut butter, and a butter knife in my book bag.

What you will need:

• 3 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/3 cup apple juice
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1/3 cup, plus 2 tablespoons rice flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a baking sheet.

-Place the egg whites in a medium-size bowl. Beat until very frothy, with big and little bubbles. Add the remaining ingredients except the 2 tablespoons of rice flour. Mix well until the batter thickens. (Caution, the corn starch WILL clump once left to set on the eggs and oil. Mix the corn starch in early if you are using a fork and don't want to wrestle with many frustrating clumps).

-Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the remaining rice flour on the prepared baking sheet.

- Drop the dough by 1/3 cupfuls onto the sheet. Gently shape the dough with wet fingertips into a flat disk approximately 1/2 inch thick and 3 inches in diameter. Easier said than done I know. Here's my process: Drop the dough on the sheet. Keep a cup of water nearby and dip your fingers in often. The dough should be slippery to touch. Flatten the cup of dough into a roughly circular shape. Mend any large gaps with your fingers. Then, smooth the edges with your pointer fingers and thumb. Flatten the disc again, evenly, and add a small depression in the center of each muffin to avoid a dome shape when baked. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining tablespoon of rice flour.

- Bake for approximately 15 minutes, until just golden brown. Test with a toothpick if you are uncertain of doneness. Let cool well before splitting each muffin in half.

Yum!

Notes: In a slightly hotter oven, I have seen these muffins finish in less than 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on them just in case. They are very easy to identify as done. This recipe makes 5 muffins, so keep your cupfuls of dough relatively small. They will rise while baking.

Also, I believe this recipe could use some improvement. I have two ideas of where that improvement might lie: Firstly, I consistently use a fork instead of an electric mixer. When maximizing the number of bubbles in a recipe is important, a fork is not the best tool to use, and I tend to spend a lot of time just working out the lumps. My muffins often come out a bit dense, and I have a feeling the lack of a mixer has to do with this. Secondly, this may be a recipe where you'll want to use real apple juice, rather than juice from concentrate. I think it might produce more bubbles.

And lastly, I typically freeze these muffins over night and toast them in the oven before eating. Toasting for a short time helps renew their texture.

(This recipe was the Corn and rice-based version of English Muffins from Roben Ryberg's "You Won't Believe It's Gluten Free!" Thanks to her for developing the recipe. A Potato and sorghum flour based version of this recipe also exists. )