English Watercress Muffins | Watercress Company X Lizzie the Baking Bird

The Watercress Company has collaborated with popular local Dorset baker and blogger, Lizzie Crow who has successfully, and mouth-wateringly, incorporated watercress into a range of bakes, both sweet and savoury, and always unexpectedly!

Find more of Lizzie’s Watercress recipes here. 

Fat and fluffy, these traditional English muffins contain a surprising savoury twist of iron-rich watercress. Serve them split and toasted with butter or topped with eggs and ham for lunch.
This recipe makes around 8 muffins, prep time: 30 mins (plus proving), cook time: 50 mins.

Ingredients:

325ml milk
7.5g dried yeast
1/2 tsp caster sugar
450g strong white bread flour
1 tsp salt
200g watercress
1 tbsp melted butter

Method:

1. Heat the milk until it’s lukewarm then add the yeast and sugar. Stir together and set aside to froth for 10 minutes. Meanwhile chop the watercress very fine, ideally in a blender.
2. Put the flour, watercress and salt in a large bowl. Mix the yeasty milk into the flour along with the melted butter and stir for a minute. In the mixer or by hand, knead it for 4 or 5 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic but still soft. Put it in a bowl and place it somewhere warm, covered with a cloth or cling film. Leave to prove for 45-60 minutes or until one and a half times its original size.
3. Lay baking parchment on a baking sheet. Very lightly grease a frying pan or griddle.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll to about 2.5cms thick. Cut this into 8 pieces with a round (or square) 10cm pastry cutter. Dust with more flour and place on the prepared baking sheet and leave for about 30 minutes.
5. Warm the frying pan or griddle over a medium heat. Once it is hot, put two muffins on the griddle and leave to cook for approximately 7 minutes each side. When you flip them, they should be gently browned on the outside – turn the temperature down if they are browning too quickly. You will know when they are cooked by tapping them – they will sound hollow when done.
6. Transfer to a cooling rack while you finish cooking the remaining muffins.