BS: Crumpets - bought or made?

Subject: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 22 May 21 - 08:20 PM

Firstly, I'll come clean. This thread might just be click-bait for a lovely lady named Eliza. :-)

I first tried to make Crumpets over 10 years ago. They worked ok, tasted yummy, very moreish, nothing like the packet crumpets, and they didn't have proper holes in them. I made them again a few years ago. Same result, pretty much. Very time consuming because of the rising times between the two steps in the process.

Last weekend, out of the blue, I thought I might make crumpets for breakfast but I hadn't allowed enough time for the two rises so no-go. Meanwhile, a couple of days ago my sister emailed me and asked me what recipe I use for crumpets because her Hubby was making some. Spooky, huh?! Not really. It saves on telecom charges when you can communicate directly.

I emailed back and said I had found a Paul Hollywood recipe after watching him make them on a TV show I saw. I told her I would try it out this weekend.

Well, I did this morning. Yummy, nothing like a bought one, same two rise periods in the process, no holes in the final product, etc.

Two things I would change next time: Paul H uses fast-acting yeast and I just had packet yeast granules. I should have done the trick of putting the yeast and sugar in some warm milk and letting it froth up, as in the first recipe I posted. Secondly, I allowed enough time for the rises but forgot that the crumpets need to cook a bit slowly so next time I'll have to allow extra time at the start.

We didn't split them and toast them, just ate them warm with marmalade and cheese. (Sorry, that's my thing and now Hubby is hooked on it as well. The marmalade we had this morning is a ruby grapefruit marmalade he made using fruit from our tree.) I made the rest of the batch up and I'll freeze them for a quick crumpety fix next time.

One question I have is, why does the first recipe include cream of tartar? I'm not sure what that actually does?

Have you made your own crumpets? Any tips and tricks you'd like to share?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Rapparee
Date: 22 May 21 - 10:11 PM

Cream of tartar (tartaric acid, if I remember correctly) helps the rise.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 22 May 21 - 11:00 PM

Thanks Rapparee. I'm just wondering why Paul Hollywood didn't use it in his recipe but he uses fast-acting yeast so maybe it doesn't need extra help.

I'll try putting cream of tartar in the next batch and see if it helps.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: BobL
Date: 23 May 21 - 02:51 AM

Grapefruit marmalade and cheese? Sounds like one of those unlikely combinations that might just work. What sort of cheese?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 23 May 21 - 03:39 AM

Well, I like a mild nutty sort of cheese, like Swiss, Jarlsberg or a relatively recent discovery of mine, Maasdam, but Hubby has tasty cheese with a bit of bite to it.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 23 May 21 - 04:01 AM

Cream of tartar is acid. It is an ingredient of baking powder along with bicarbonate of soda, which is alkaline. when combined with liquid and heat the result is 'bubbles' - making the crumpets, cake, muffins, scones etc. rise, even without any yeast.
If your crumpets don't have holes in the top, you haven't cooked them long enough before lifting them, like making pancakes.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 23 May 21 - 04:14 AM

Helen, I have now looked at your first link. It says: 'The batter should not be too stiff or your crumpets will be “blind” - without holes – so it is best to test one before cooking the whole batch. ... As soon as the batter is poured into the ring, it should begin to form holes. If holes do not form, add a little more lukewarm water, a tablespoon at a time, to the batter in the bowl and try again. If the batter is too thin and runs out under the ring, gently work in a little more all-purpose flour and try again.'

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 23 May 21 - 05:13 AM

Yep, Jos, you're right. By the time I began cooking the test crumpet, time was getting away. It would have been brunch and not breakfast, so I didn't go back to read that bit of advice. The holes were forming, but not many. It seems counterintuitive to make the batter less stiff so that the holes would form better because the holes were forming and then filling up again with runny batter, but also I think I put too much batter in the first one so it was too thick.

I'll make some more soon and see if I can get it right. This might be my project for the rest of 2021.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 23 May 21 - 07:06 AM

I like crumpets hot enough to melt butter, but not overcooked so they are rock hard.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 23 May 21 - 07:34 AM

"Cream of tartar (tartaric acid, if I remember correctly)"

So far as I can see, Cream Of Tartar (apparently potassium bitartrate) is a salt of tartaric acid, not the same thing.

I've not used Cream of Tartar in any recipe (at least not directly, it can be part of baking powder) but did use tartaric acid in my childhood attempts to make acid drops...

Both appear to have several uses and my be interchangeable for some things but I've found information on the web a bit confusing...

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mrrzy
Date: 23 May 21 - 09:16 AM

Where is Senoufou?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 23 May 21 - 09:58 AM

she doesn't post daily, but surely wafts of hot buttery crumpet will find her nostrils ....

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 23 May 21 - 11:25 AM

I'm sure I once read that the longest one-word palindrome in the English language is "detartrated."

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jack Campin
Date: 23 May 21 - 12:04 PM

UK gluten-free ones: Genius are great. Warburtons are utterly foul.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 23 May 21 - 05:52 PM

I get confused between cream of tartar and tartaric acid, and one page I looked at said that they are the same but c-of-t is the crystalline form.

Our leftover crumpets are toasting nicely. The supply is dwindling. They smell and taste good. Worth the effort. I might be repeating the experiment reasonably soon.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 24 May 21 - 07:30 AM

When I was a child, in a large family, we made cakes every day. There was never baking powder in our house - it was years before I learnt of its existence. We used a teaspoonful of cream of tartar and half a teaspoonful of bicarb. If we had any sour milk (our milk wasn't pasteurised when I was a child), we made scones using just bicarb in the flour before rubbing in the butter, with the sour milk acting as the acid to react with it and make the mixture rise.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Charmion
Date: 24 May 21 - 11:45 AM

Jos, that's how scones were made in my family, too. They were somewhat stiffer than the cake-like items sold in the fancy coffee shops these days, and they had a very faint sour tang that I loved as a child and still do.

A proper strawberry shortcake consists of a large scone (made the old-fashioned way) split horizontally and filled with sweetened whipped cream and sliced raw fruit. I don't eat it any more because people use white cake made from a mix, and it's overpoweringly sweet.

I tried to make crumpets once and the result was inedible. As with Hollandaise sauce and pita bread, I decided to leave the manufacture of crumpets to the professionals.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jack Campin
Date: 24 May 21 - 03:17 PM

TV chefs use a lot of sleight of hand. You didn't notice Paul Hollywod surreptitiously dropping in a packet of dehydrated holes.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 24 May 21 - 04:20 PM

Ah, Jack, there's my problem right there (as they say on Mythbusters).

I forgot to mention that I had run out of plain flour so I used bread flour only. That might have influenced the outcome of the crumpets. When I made them the first time, from the other recipe, I seem to remember that when mixing the batter it was like two different batters combined, one thick and hard to mix and one runny, so that might be part of the trick too.

Scones, now that's another favourite of mine. About 20 years ago my sister gave me a recipe for lemonade scones. Simple, easy, quick. You can use soda water if you want to limit the sugar, or the other day I saw the tail end of a show on TV and they used ginger beer - non-alcoholic.

Lemonade Scones
(Note: this was the link but it is extinct now - http://www.geocities.com/pumbo99/recipe4.html) so try this one:

Lemonade Scones

If you like scones try out this recipe using lemonade as one of the ingredients.

4 cups SR flour
Good pinch salt
300ml bottle of cream
300ml bottle of lemonade.

Sift flour into a large bowl. Mix in the salt. Make a hole in the centre and add the cream and mix with the flour forming a stiff dough . Add the lemonade until a soft dough forms.(You probably won't need all of the 300mls of Lemonade). Turn out on to floured board, gently knead, then pat or roll out to a 2cm thickness(approx). Cut out the scones and brush tops with a little milk. Place on a greased oven tray. Cook in a very hot pre-heated oven (220 deg Celsius) - should be ready in 12 to 15 minutes. Makes about a dozen and a half scones.

Note: I do it differently: I put the lemonade, cream & pinch of salt in first. Stir lightly. Mix in 4 or 5 cups of flour, one cup at a time, but fairly quickly. It will make a batter like pancake batter and then suddenly puff up into scone dough consistency. Don't over-knead it. A quick pat into shape will do. It usually looks a bit wet and sticky but it sorts itself out in the oven.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 25 May 21 - 03:09 AM


Cream of tartar (tartaric acid, if I remember correctly) helps the rise.

Don't cream of tartar & baking soda (same thing plus bicard of soda) produce CO₂ as it breaks down? Which is what the holes were formed with. Yeast produces CO₂ as it ferments. Maybe a little sugar would accelerate the process.

A food technologist/chemist would tell us, but doesn't some of the starch in the flour have to be converted to "a" sugar for the yeast to do the yeasty thing?

I could ask my food tech niece, but she has made fruit juice drinks etc lately. I kid you not, one of her product was garlic & ginger. Some whizz kid marketing guy's idea, her formula. My idea of hell!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 25 May 21 - 03:15 AM

I forgot to mention that I had run out of plain flour so I used bread flour only.

Isn't bread flour also called "hard flour" - that would make a difference. Clue's in the name!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 25 May 21 - 03:23 AM

Potassium Bitartrate aka Cream of Soda Wiki

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 25 May 21 - 05:22 AM

Hard flour. Yes, but I had already started the process so I couldn't turn back at that stage. I had to use the flour that was available. I blame it on Hubby. He used the last of the plain flour to make pancakes and didn't tell me that I needed to get some more. That's my excuse. :-D

When I split the crumpets to toast them I can see the holes inside but they were a bit too shy to poke their heads above the parapet.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 25 May 21 - 06:42 AM

I have never split crumpets to toast them. I just toast them whole and put the butter on top.
I might split and toast muffins though.
NOTE: That does NOT mean American muffins, which I would call cakes - like cup cakes but without the heap of fat, sugar and artificial colouring piled on top.
Small cup cakes with much less of the fat/sugar mixture would be 'fairy cakes', or with just simple icing or maybe containing dried fruit they would be what my grandmother called 'buns'.
Confusion on confusion. To me a bun is made with yeast and like a very small loaf of bread (with currants in).
And then there are scotch pancakes, and pikelets, and we are coming back to crumpet territory.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 25 May 21 - 07:19 AM

When I watched the Paul Hollywood TV show he talked about how different his crumpets are from the flat, dry bought ones. He says in the last section of his recipe that they can be served split or whole. When I make the next lot, with the proper ingredients, I'll report back on the results.

I wouldn't split the bought ones. They are completely different to the Paul H ones.

Jos, where do you live? Not the U.S.?

Here in Oz we can buy packets of "English muffins" which are split and toasted and topped with butter etc. They are sort of a cross between bread and cake, with a fairly dry texture. Muffins are little cake-like things, a bit softer than the usual cakes, often with blueberries or some other sweet or savoury inclusions. They have the muffin top where the batter has broken free of the cup or muffin case and expanded outwards, hence the "muffin-top" name applied to people whose pants or trousers are tight at the waist so that the excess fat spills out over the top. (Too graphic? Sorry!) Cup cakes are as you describe - too sweet for my taste even without the icing on top. Buns are made with yeast. Pikelets are commonly made at home, but can be bought in a packet - shock, horror! (How difficult is it to make pikelets, seriously??!!) Pancakes are made at home as well.

I don't know anyone apart from my brother-in-law who has tried making crumpets. The home made ones have a good flavour as well as an interesting texture so I will persevere with the project.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 25 May 21 - 08:20 AM

I am in southern England but my grandmother (the one who called small cakes 'buns') was from the Sheffield/Chesterfield area.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 25 May 21 - 04:24 PM

I had a clue that you were not in America when you referred to American muffins.

I live in Newcastle, 100 miles north of Sydney.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: BobL
Date: 26 May 21 - 02:23 AM

In my English universe, buns are just cake made in individual portions. With or without fruit, iced or plain, in a paper case or not. Usually light - I don't think a rich fruit cake recipe would adapt. Yeast is not normally used (Chelsea buns being an exception).

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 26 May 21 - 05:18 AM

Bath buns? Hot cross buns?

Which bit of England is your English universe?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 26 May 21 - 05:50 AM

Buns have always been small cakes to me. "Cup cake" is a relatively new term to me which I had thought was American. The difference between these and buns seemed to be to be that the "Cup cake" was slightly larger. I was about to say that the cases in the cupboard agreed with this but on checking now, I see the smaller ones are described as "Fairy cake".

Some people, including my mother use "pikelet" to include what I call "crumpets". Going by this page, this usage is found in the Midlands and Yorkshire in England. Mum is Shropshire (West Midlands).

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 26 May 21 - 05:52 AM

We had cup cakes in my childhood in the 60s.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 26 May 21 - 05:54 AM

The Sally Lunn is a thing of great beauty.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 26 May 21 - 06:12 AM

We called today's crumpets 'pikelets' when I was a child - again the Sheffield/Chesterfield origin. We also didn't call scones 'sconns'. That fits with the map someone posted recently that showed Sheffield as a strongly 'scone' area.
I have seen 'pikelets' for sale in a shop - they looked like crumpets but wider and thinner.

Didn't 'cup cakes' originate with people cooking the cake mixture in cups?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 26 May 21 - 06:32 AM

We call them "sconns" here, not "scoanes".

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 26 May 21 - 08:48 AM

In contrast to the Chelsea buns and hot cross buns - buns made with yeast - there are barm cakes and lardy cakes - 'cakes' made with yeast.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 26 May 21 - 05:55 PM

My niece thinks bread flour and yeast are right for the crumpet recipe. Though baking was not her career path.

So what is the difference between a bun and a bap?

In the 60's, when it was easier to test these things, TV reporters could make a statistical analysis that it depended which side of the A5 the question was asked. And I have seen similar treaties on phrases such as differing salutations - and the A5 being the divide. Makes sense, the road was important for a long time and people were more likely to travel along rather than across it.
I bet there were enough differences across the Pennines - their roses were a different colour!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: keberoxu
Date: 27 May 21 - 04:22 PM

Where, oh where, has Senoufou / Eliza gone,
O! where, oh where can she beeeee . . .


P.S.
My own experience:
Croissants, yes;
scones, yes;

crumpets ... not yet. I've lived a while, too.
I ought to hurry up before it's too late.
But where do you find crumpets in the Berkshires/Appalachians?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 28 May 21 - 02:51 AM

Meanwhile - keberoxu - Crumpets, the bread kind, they don't have too long a shelf life so mail ordering from the UK is not a solution.

And Appalachia is a big place, are these near enough? -
In MA & also Weston, Vermont, Rockingham, Vermont, Mildred's Dairy Bar, & Mildred's Grill (mail order available)

Though if you were referring to the English (English) alternative definitions - I think there should be plenty up in thar them hills.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: keberoxu
Date: 07 Jun 21 - 08:08 PM

I guess you have said
all there is to say about crumpets?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Rapparee
Date: 08 Jun 21 - 09:48 AM

I wonder about this thread. Bought or made? Gracious me, doesn't the cook make them for you?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 08 Jun 21 - 04:23 PM

Oh my goodness, I forgot the cook! I left the cook in the kitchen and forgot to let him/her out again. No wonder I had to make my own crumpets.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 09 Jun 21 - 04:11 PM

Surely you need a crumpetmaker. Cooks are for making cookies.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 09 Jun 21 - 05:40 PM

Good point, Mr Red.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: leeneia
Date: 10 Jun 21 - 12:31 PM

Back to the OP: "Have you made your own crumpets? "

Yes, I did, once. Here in the U.S. a crumpet is sold as an English muffin. One day, intrigued by the name, I made crumpets from a cookbook. After all the work, they were just English muffins - rather tough, kind of sour, and full of holes. Mine were not different from the supermarket variety.

The best thing about a crumpet is the butter that fills up the holes and the jam or jelly on the top. Years ago we made green-tomato jam from the Nero Wolfe Cookbook, and it was great on toasted crumpets. But I don't eat that kind of food anymore. Sigh.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 10 Jun 21 - 03:47 PM

I thought green tomatoes were not the best thing to eat. Bit like raw potatoes, they are very close cousins.

Because of an alkaloid. Maybe the cooking, or the sugar mollifies it.

They also contain small amounts of solanine, a toxic alkaloid found in potato leaves and other plants in the nightshade family - Wiki

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: leeneia
Date: 11 Jun 21 - 01:24 PM

I have read that it's good to grow tomatoes near roses, as the solanine exuded by the leaves inhibits the black-spot fungus. As for Nero Wolfe's jam, we never noticed any problems.

AND, we have never contracted Black Spot.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 05:22 AM

Black Spot on roses is usually found only in areas with low air pollution. In bad cases in my garden, the rose drops almost all its leaves. One thing I'd be disinclined to do is have tomatoes as companion plants for roses. Any gain via the warding off of Black Spot (I have my doubts...) would, for me, be far outweighed by the aesthetic degradation resulting from the juxtaposition of rose bushes and tomato plants. I simply don't see them as belonging together. Assiduous removal of affected rose leaves can help to reduce the infection. Otherwise, you must go inorganic and use a systemic fungicide, or choose roses with at least some resistance, or just not grow roses, which would be a pity. In my experience, the disease doesn't kill the rose bushes and they always seem to try again next year...

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 05:39 AM

”The best thing about a crumpet is the butter that fills up the holes and the jam or jelly on the top.”

Yuck! Sorry Leeneia, only butter and Marmite will do, anything else is treason! ;-) :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 05:42 AM

I've just read that you can make a spray for roses by mushing up tomato leaves in water and straining them. I probably won't bother.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 06:03 AM

Spraying roses with a tomato leaf solution suggests Leeneia may be right.
I never grow tomatoes near potatoes as they are both susceptible to the same kinds ofblight, so might infect each other.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: keberoxu
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 04:37 PM

. . . but what has become of Eliza/Senoufou?
Haven't heard from her since May . . .

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 04:52 PM

Keb, I’ve PM’d her. Hopefully all is well in her corner of Norfolk.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Senoufou
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 05:49 PM

Aw, how very kind you all are! I feel rather ashamed that I haven't posted for a while, but hubby and I are quite well and so is my dear sister up in Scotland. I have to confess I haven't eaten a crumpet in ages, and have lost a fair bit of weight. Husband and I have had our jabs with no bad side effects.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 12 Jun 21 - 08:39 PM

She's Ba-a-a-a-ack!

We were concerned that not even the lure of a thread about crumpets could bring you out of hiding.

I'm very happy that all is well with you and yours.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Jun 21 - 12:44 AM

I’m relieved too - great to hear from you again, Sen! <3

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Charmion
Date: 13 Jun 21 - 10:40 AM

Any new cats in your life, Eliza?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: keberoxu
Date: 13 Jun 21 - 10:43 PM

Have you always bought crumpets, Senoufou/Eliza,
or did anyone in your life
make them home-made?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Senoufou
Date: 12 Jul 21 - 06:38 AM

No, we always bought them keberoxu. Warburtons ones are very good. Husband is now addicted to them and has a bit of a pot-belly! But as this means his sporty clothes are getting rather tight, he says he'll cut down somewhat on the crumpets. Imagine the calories in the thick butter on the top!
Warburtons have now introduced packets of GIANT crumpets the size of dinner plates. Oh dear, can we resist them? (possibly not!)

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 12 Jul 21 - 06:44 AM

The actual crumpet is much lower in calories than bread.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 12 Jul 21 - 07:25 AM

”Warburtons have now introduced packets of GIANT crumpets the size of dinner plates. Oh dear, can we resist them? (possibly not!)”

Don’t even try to resist, Sen - we don’t! Yum!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 12 Jul 21 - 04:25 PM

I have it on great authority that one giant crumpet will hold a small tin of beans. Sounds a good snack to me.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 12 Jul 21 - 07:31 PM

wot a shame I'm living in a different country.

However, as I recently opened a tin of baked beans & have crumpets in my freezer, I just might have some for lunch - maybe one drowned in butter, the other with butter & baked beans - yum!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 12 Jul 21 - 08:24 PM

A fried egg on a buttered crumpet (times two or three) is a thing of beauty. As is grilled cheese on crumpet, in which case you leave out the butter. I only eat health foods...

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 06:18 AM

Crumpet with butter is healthy!

Crumpet with cheese is healthy!

Having one of each is obviously twice as healthy.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 12:26 PM

Others may disagree but, once in a while, I find St Agur melts in nicely. Not for me, but mum likes a Seville Orange marmalde topping.

Maybe all sorts of ways for different people? One thing I think is a given though is that is it's a plain buttered one, it's supposed to be dripping with the stuff.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Senoufou
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 12:57 PM

Sandra, I absolutely love you!!!!! :)

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 03:16 PM

Saw this in a shop in Marple, Cheshire (Yes I now, G Manchester but not in my book, OK?)

Sliced Crumpet Loaf

The best thing since sliced bread?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 05:46 PM

Mr Red, that crumpet loaf texture looks a lot like the crumpets I made.

I keep saying I'm going to make them again but it means getting up a couple of hours before breakfast. Maybe I could make them in the middle of the day instead. Arvo tea, anyone?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 07:42 PM

love & hugs back, Eliza.

Mr Red, that crumpet loaf is definitely the best thing since sliced bread.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: BobL
Date: 14 Jul 21 - 03:19 AM

Wonder if crumpet loaf would work in a breadmaker? Set up the previous evening with its timer running.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 14 Jul 21 - 04:38 PM

Well BobL, you definitely couldn't set-and-forget the crumpets in the breadmaker because you have to add the tepid water, bicarb soda and salt after the batter has been left to rise for an hour, and then leave it for another 20 minutes. You could do the first part of the process, i.e. make the dough and let it rise by setting the breadmaker timer to start maybe two or three hours before you plan to eat breakfast and then add the bicarb etc and wait 20 minutes for it to do its magic, then cook the bread either in the machine or in the oven - or just use the batter to cook the crumpets in a pan.

The only advantage that I can see is that when the first batter has to be stirred the breadmaker could do the hard work of stirring the batter. Paul Hollywood's recipe instructions say:

"Using a wooden spoon, beat the mixture until you have a smooth batter. This will take 3–4 minutes and is **hard work** [my asterixes added] because the mixture is stiff, but it is essential to develop the protein strength in the batter and will ensure the crumpets develop their characteristic holes as they cook."

Note: I posted the link to Paul H's recipe in this thread on 22 May 21 - 08:20 PM.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: JHW
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 05:36 AM

Never considered making any. Once in a while am tempted by and buy a pack.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 06:02 AM

Warburtons for me every time (even though the company is or was a Tory party donor...). Warburtons has been around all my life. When I were a little lad my mum regularly sent me to the corner shop for a thin-sliced loaf (for butties), a Warburton's "Toastie Loaf" and a packet of "towels" (it took me a couple of decades to work out why I'd always seemed to have dried meself with the same old towels and never saw the new ones...). An extremely annoying thing about Warburtons crumpets is that the numbers in the packs (six or nine) are never right for me and Mrs Steve, as she has two crumpets to my three. So a nine-pack is one crumpet short for two doses of crumpets and a six-pack has one too many for a single dose. I've been known to buy both a nine-pack AND a six-pack, which gives us three correct doses of crumpets, but that has two disadvantages, first, it's rarely an economical way of buying crumpets and second, it commits you to a lot of crumpet-eating in a short time. Or is that not a disadvantage...

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 06:31 AM

Steve, living on my own, I keep crumpets in the freezer. I defrost them a bit in microwave, then toast them. YUM

Must be time for dinner, to start veggies boiling to make my normal soupy stew = veggies + some protein - salmon/crumbed fish/vegi-burgers/lamb/chicken/other, depending on what I find in the freezer

Protein is either in the soup or on a plate. Served in a bowl & eaten with a spoon.

Plus crumpets!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Senoufou
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 08:35 AM

Hahaaagh Steve, my mother often sent me for a packet of 'Doctor White's'. I used to wonder who this mysterious doctor might be, and why he couldn't do his own shopping.
I'm rather chuffed you and I like the same make of crumpets. I had no idea about the Tory link. Political crumpets eh?
We get a packet of ten, and it's a bit of a competition, "Who can eat the most?" before the thing is empty.
I love cream, butter and whole milk as well as crumpets. A little idea has started to form in my head. Could this be why I'm rather ... er...plump(ish)?

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 09:35 AM

Eliza, there was something on the radio a couple of days ago about diet and "UPF", which means "ultra-processed food".

They said there was an experiment where one group of people was fed a diet of supermarket packet food and the other group a diet with the same amount of fat and sugar and salt and suchlike, but freshly made with proper fresh ingredients. The ones on a proper diet didn't get fat and some even lost a bit of weight but the ones eating supermarket packet food all put on weight.

The way to tell the difference is to read the labels on the food packets and if there is a long list of chemicals and things you've never heard of, that means it is UPF and IT WILL MAKE YOU FAT.

I will look at the crumpet packet next time and read the ingredients, but meanwhile you can carry on with the butter and cream and milk.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 09:39 AM

Sandra in Sydney, when I see or hear 'veg' (pronounced 'vedge') I know it means vegetables.
But in my world, 'veggies' are vegetarians. Some soup!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 02:56 PM

Jos, here in Oz I hear vegetarians referred to as 'vegos', but 'veggies' are vegetables. I live a couple of hours north of Sandra.

The UPF experiment doesn't surprise me. Another good reason to make my own crumpets??!!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 05:57 PM

You may be on a different planet out there in East Anglia, Eliza, but yer in Cornwall there is no Warburtons "packet of ten." It's six or it's nine!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: BobL
Date: 16 Jul 21 - 04:06 AM

The Protein Leverage Hypothesis puts forward a possible reason why UPF is fattening. Although it suggests to me that crumpets will be less fattening if cheese-topped.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: JHW
Date: 16 Jul 21 - 05:45 AM

I note above a lament over crumpet shortage. Always a problem

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Senoufou
Date: 16 Jul 21 - 06:30 AM

Oh dear Steve, you're quite right! They're packed in little groups of three, so six or nine is correct. (Wishful thinking - maybe an extra one after husband has eaten the last?)

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: JHW
Date: 18 Jul 21 - 06:05 AM

Freezing crumpets good idea. Never thought. Slice new loaf of bread and in freezer so crumpets would be fine.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 18 Jul 21 - 06:10 AM

”Freezing crumpets good idea. Never thought. Slice new loaf of bread and in freezer so crumpets would be fine.”

Confirmed!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 18 Jul 21 - 07:10 AM

I use my freezer a lot, & sometimes find interesting stuff at the bottom when looking for dinner protein - a recent find was a yummy lamb chop - use by 2017! It was delicious in my soup.

With lunch I had some cherries I'd frozen at the end of cherry season. YUM. I also froze the last lot of grapes I bought. Now our supermarkets have have USA grapes & Mexican cherries, but I don't buy them.

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 18 Jul 21 - 07:46 AM

Sandra, a couple of years ago I bought an appliance from Aldi called a frozen treat maker. It looks a bit like a juicer but the mechanism is different. I freeze chopped up bits of fruit and push it through the treat maker and it makes the fruit into something resembling ice cream but a hundred times better. Frozen cherries or blueberries or strawberries are my favourite but I've used lemon or grapefruit or rockmelon or banana.

I've been craving some lately but this darned cold weather is not conducive for eating ice cream-ish treats. Any day with a temperature less than 10 deg C/50 deg F is too cold for me. Ahh, the joy of living in a temperate zone!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 01:37 AM

For Helen, on the meaning of "veggies":

"Subject: RE: Did Elvis ever sing any folk songs?
From: GUEST,Rossey - PM
Date: 18 Jul 21 - 03:55 PM

One you may not here very often, Elvis did also record a completely tasteless version of 'Old Macdonald'. The king talks meat, or rather sings about it. Probably the worst song of his film career. Truly awful. Veggies beware."

I don't know where in the world Rossey lives, but I con't think the "Veggies beware" is directed at carrots and onions.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 05:06 AM

Yes Jos, I think you could be right.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: JHW
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 05:49 AM

No temperate zone in the UK just now. Far too hot and claggy.
If I had some grapes I'd eat them unfrozen.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 06:43 AM

frozen grapes really need to be eaten frozen, they get soggy when they melt, tho as frozen cherries have pips, I needed to wait a bit to eat them.

When it's grape season, you could trying freezing some for next year, if you have a large enough freezer.

keep cool if at all possible

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 07:30 AM

You can get a simple gadget for removing stones from cherries and olives, so you could de-stone the cherries before freezing them.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 07:38 AM

Jos, I have one of those gadgets. Mine is the absolute basic cheap version, bottom of the range but it works well.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Helen
Date: 19 Jul 21 - 07:40 AM

JHW, I suspect that what you might call hot and claggy weather is just a balmy day here and what I would call extremely chilly weather here is just a balmy day for you.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Mr Red
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 03:35 AM

Well the UK ain't barmy right now. Just the politicians

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 05:44 AM

well said!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: JHW
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 05:46 AM

Bread Buns as I'd call them are called Barm Cakes (in Lancashire I think) Never known why.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Jos
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 07:29 AM

My dictionary says that 'barm' is the froth on fermenting beer.
So it's yeast - presumably the yeast is used to make the barm cakes.

(And it says 'barmy' originally meant frothy.)

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Donuel
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 03:17 PM

Americans don't eat frozen grapes. Frozen fruit yes, but not grapes?
I'm gonna try it.

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 07:16 PM

enjoy having grapes all year long without a heavy carbon footprint

Get then out of the freezer just before you are planning to eat them, let them soften a bit, then yum!

Subject: RE: BS: Crumpets - bought or made?
From: robomatic
Date: 20 Jul 21 - 10:35 PM

Can you use buttermilk in crumpets?

How about cornmeal?