Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin English Muffins

Learn how to make perfect Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin English Muffins with this delicious recipe!

These homemade cinnamon raisin English muffins are pillowy and soft, full of plump raisins, warm cinnamon, and only sweetened with honey. You can even make these naturally leavened English muffins overnight to griddle and bake the next day.

This recipe is packed with detailed, step-by-step instructions and plenty of photos to guide you through the process, whether you’re an experienced baker or new to sourdough.

You’ll also find helpful substitutions and tips for customizing the muffins to your taste, from swapping honey for another sweetener to adjusting spices or other dried fruit.

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👍 Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Soft and fluffy English muffins with nooks & crannies.
• Easy to griddle and bake.
• Can mix and do the first ferment overnight to make the next morning.
• Store really well so you can always have fresh sourdough English muffins on hand.
• Full of plump raisins and warm cinnamon flavor.

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🔍 Tips for Making Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin English Muffins

• For a softer English muffin, scald the milk! I do this for recipes like my Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls, my regular Sourdough English Muffins, or the tangzhong in my Sourdough Sweet Potato Dinner Rolls and Einkorn Sourdough Sandwich Bread. Scalding the milk denatures the proteins, leading to a softer bread.
• Griddle for a couple of minutes, then bake the English muffins. This ensures they don’t burn on the outside, but still fully cook through.
• Use an instant-read thermometer to check the interior temperature is 200ºF (93ºC) when done.
• Cornmeal or semolina flour will help prevent sticking.
• Cut open English muffins with a fork for more nooks & crannies.
• Cinnamon hinders fermentation, so be patient with this recipe, as it may take longer to proof.

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⏰ Sample Baking Schedule

The chart below is an overnight sample baking schedule for these English muffins to have in the morning. However, many steps are flexible, depending on your own day-to-day schedule and the temperature of your home.

For example, you can mix the dough in the morning, bulk ferment in the day, do a cold proof in the fridge, and then do the final proof and bake in the morning.

Not included in this recipe is a sourdough levain. However, if you want to make one, you certainly can 4-5 hours before mixing the dough by mixing 42g of sourdough starter, 42g of all-purpose flour, and 42g of water in a jar beforehand.

Steps	Time
1. Scald Milk and Mix Dough	9:00pm
2. Bulk Fermentation (overnight at room temperature)	9:30pm
3. Cut Out and Final Proof	6:00am
4. Griddle and Bake	9:00am-9:30am

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🛠 Tools Needed

You only need a few basic tools to make these sourdough cinnamon raisin English muffins.

• Baking scale:
  • Flour and sourdough starter can weigh differently from person to person, so weighing your ingredients is the best option! Weighing your ingredients by weight will make your baking more consistent and accurate.
• Cast-iron skillet
  • I like to griddle a few English muffins at a time first in my cast-iron skillet and then bake them. You can use a non-stick skillet as well, but they may not brown as well.
• Half-sheet pan
  • Do the final proof and bake the English muffins on a sheet pan. These sheet pan lids are really helpful for proofing!
• Rolling Pin
• 3 ½” Cookie Cutter or Biscuit Cutter
  • Can also use a floured glass cup to cut out the English muffins.
• Spatula
• Stand mixer (optional)
  • English muffin dough is a little sticky at first, so I prefer mixing in a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. However, you can mix and knead by hand as well.

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🛒 Ingredients Needed

See below for my ingredient recommendations and possible substitutions.

• All-purpose flour
  • You can use bread flour as well, but I find that all-purpose flour is the perfect balance of chewy and soft in this recipe.
• Salt
• Whole Milk
  • I almost always bake with whole milk because the full-fat adds more richness and flavor to baked goods. Scaldning the milk helps denature the proteins so the dough is softer.
• Unsalted butter
  • I like using a little butter for the fat in this recipe, but you could substitute with a neutral oil like coconut oil or vegetable oil.
• Honey
  • The English muffins are lightly sweetened with honey, which pairs well with the cinnamon and raisins. The sugar also helps move the starter along due to the slower fermentation.
  • Substitute with agave syrup, maple syrup, granulated sugar, or leave out if you don’t want any sweetener.
• Sourdough Starter
  • If you don’t have an active sourdough starter, learn how to make one in a week following my how-to guide. See my top sourdough starter tips.
• Cinnamon
  • Warm cinnamon spice is anti-fungal and can slow down natural fermentation. If you need to speed up fermentation, use a pinch of instant yeast to help move the fermentation along faster.
  • Other popular sourdough recipes with cinnamon are my Sourdough Snickerdoodle Cookies, Sourdough Graham Crackers, and Sourdough Churros.
• Raisins
  • Cinnamon raisin is such a classic combination that I use in this Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread.
  • You can substitute with craisins or dried cranberries.
  • If youy love raisins, you may also like my Sourdough Irish Soda Bread (can use raisins or currants) or these Brown Butter Sourdough Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.
• Cornmeal, for dusting
  • To prevent sticking, use cornmeal or semolina flour when griddling and baking the English muffins.

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👨‍🍳 How to Make Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin English Muffins

Follow this detailed recipe guide as you make these sourdough English muffins.

This recipe makes about 11-12 English muffins.

1. Scald the Milk and Soak Raisins

In a small saucepan, add the whole milk and heat to scald it just before boiling.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the honey and unsalted butter. Let cool to warm or room temperature before mixing into your dough.

As the milk cools, soak the raisins in a bowl with warm water to make them plump and soft. You can also use black tea, rum, or add a teaspoon of vanilla extract for more flavor.

2. Mix the English Muffin Dough

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment (or a mixing bowl if mixing by hand), add the all-purpose flour, salt, cinnamon, and sourdough starter.

Then, pour in the warm or room temperature milk (not hot or it will kill the yeasts). Mix on medium speed for 5-7 minutes.

At first, the dough will be sticky and wet, but will come together more as you mix. At the end of mixing, the dough should be tacky, smoother, and mostly cling to the dough hook without sticking to the sides of the bowl.

3. Bulk Fermentation and Folds

Transfer the dough to a medium-size mixing bowl and keep at room temperature for bulk fermentation.

After one hour, drain your raisins (they should be plump and soft now).

Perform four stretch and folds on the dough and place a quarter of the raisins on top of the dough before each turn. This way, all the raisins will be incorporated into the dough.

I usually only do this one set of stretch and folds on the dough, but you can add more during bulk fermentation if the dough feel particularly loose or weak.

Rest for the remainder of bulk fermentation (another 7-8 hours at room temperature) until the dough almost doubles in size.

4. Cut Out and Final Proof

The next morning, lightly flour a work surface and prepare a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and dust with cornmeal.

Dump the English muffin dough out onto the counter, lightly flour, and use a rolling pin to roll it out into a slab about ¼” thick. Then, flour a 3.5″ cookie or biscuit cutter and cut out the English muffins. Re-roll and re-cut scraps.

Place the English muffins on the prepared sheet pan, cover with a lid or plastic wrap, and proof in a warm location for 2-3 hours until puffy.

5. Griddle and Bake

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC).

Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat until it’s warm enough that you can feel the heat with your hand over the skillet.

Transfer the English muffins to the cast-iron skillet and griddle for a couple of minutes until the bottoms are browned. Then, flip over and cook for another couple of minutes. They should puff up slightly from the heat, but not be cooked fully in the middle.

When done, transfer back to the sheet pan and repeat with the remaining English muffins.

Bake all of the English muffins on the sheet pan in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the interior temperature reads 200ºF (93ºC).

Finally, cool on a wire rack and cut open with a fork!

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How to Store and Serve

These sourdough cinnamon raisin English muffins store very well at room temperature, in the refrigerator, or frozen.

To store at room temperature, keep in an airtight container for 4-5 days. They will lose moisture over time, so heat up slightly before serving. Alternatively, store them in the refrigerator for a week.

Finally, for longer storage, you can freeze the English muffins for 3-4 months in a freezer-safe bag. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven or toaster oven at 350ºF until heated through.

Serve these English muffins with butter, a drizzle of honey, or jams like this Concord Grape Jam with Vanilla or Apple Butter for Canning. They’re also excellent with cream cheese, egg sandwiches, or peanut butter.

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❓ FAQs:

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Other Sourdough Breakfast Recipes You May Enjoy:

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