Traditional Tea and Crumpets Recipe Made Easy

Tea and crumpets have been accompanying us with our television time, evening gatherings, and late-night snacking. Crumpets prove to be an influential part of British culture. The history of crumpets rules back from the Victorian era. Today, tea and crumpets complement the traditional tea gathering culture of the country.

There has been a lot of fuss around the nutritional and health index of crumpets. The article digs into the origin of tea and crumpets British, its health check and the perfect recipe from London!

What is the Meaning of Crumpets?

Little round-shaped, strained cakes made with flour, water, milk, and east are called crumpets. They are spongy and toasted and are often layered with butter. Popular in Britain, Australia, and Canada, they form an important part of British Culinary culture. They are also famous in Scotland by the name pikelets. However, there can be a little difference between the two. 

The British Origin of Crumpets

John Wickliffe, a theologist, made the first reference to Crumpets in the year 1382. However, his reference is very much in contrast to what the crumpets today look like. The reason for the same lies in evolution. Modern British crumpets have evolved in size, shape, recipe, and flavours from what their ancestors have been.

In the Victorian era, the modern crumpets made their presence for the first time. Though the snack is popular throughout Britain, no particular town, individual, or bakery has asserted to itself the credit for the snack. 

The other essential story of crumpets is that they have been misunderstood to be muffins in countries outside Britain. It is because of their hard and fast resemblance to it. The truth is, Muffins and crumpets are completely two different food items. Muffins are made with dough while crumpets are batter in origin. 

Is Tea and Crumpets Healthy?

Tea and crumpets are one of the dearest mid-afternoon snacks in London. Its subtle flavours go best with the afternoon tea. This points out the question, of whether crumpets are healthy or not.  To your surprise, crumpets can prove to be healthier than many other snacks you prefer, even bread.

Ingredients in Crumpets:

• Water
• Flour
• Milk
• Salt
• Yeast

The ingredients clearly point out that health is the other name of crumpets. They are low in calories and fat but high in the number of carbs. In addition, crumpets are heavy which gives you a feeling of being full!

Halt! There is a catch. There are two elements in crumpets that can be a point of concern for your health. Readymade crumpets may have high salt constituents.  Make sure that the salt does not go up than your daily requirements. The butter is another issue. Crumpets are often loaded with butter which is high in calories and fats. Try to reduce the amounts as per your diet plan. Use a healthy pure and herbal tea for the combination of tea and crumpets

Note: A 40gm of crumpet will give you around 100 calories, o.6gm fat, 18 gm of carbohydrate and around 4gms of protein. Plan the intake of crumpet, accordingly.

Step-by-Step British Crumpets Recipe

Ingredients needed:

• 1 ½ cup of milk.
• 3 ½ cup of flour.
• 1 teaspoon of salt.
• 1 teaspoon of dried yeast.
• 1 ½ cup of warm water.
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
• Served with jam or butter.

Instructions

Step 1 

Pick out all the ingredients and gather them on the table. Take milk in a pan and heat it but do not let it boil. Boiling the milk will kill the yeast. Make sure that you skim off the layer, if any, forms on the surface of the milk. 

Step 2

Pour the warm milk into a bowl. Add the yeast and sugar to it and whisk it. Slowly add flour, salt and baking soda to the yeast mixture. Keep whisking the mixture until everything is smoothly combined. Once, completed, leave the mixture in a warm place for around an hour. You will notice that the dough has doubled in size. 

Step 3

Take a skillet and grease it with butter or oil. Take a cookie cutter or muffin moulder and grease it with butter as well. Place the moulder or cutter in the skillet. 

Step 4

Take tablespoons of dough and spoon it to make rings and fill them in the moulder. Do not try to stir the batter in the process of spooning it. Heat the skillet for about 15 minutes. The batter will now burst bubbles.

Step 5

The bubble bursting will create holes in the batter. The edges of the batter too will shrink away and will not touch the mould. You can now remove the moulds. Use a knife if some batter is still stuck with the edges.

Step 6

Flip the crumpet with the help of a spatula. Let it heat for a minute until the other side is brown. Your crumpets are now ready! They can be stored in sealed containers for up to 3 days. Whenever it is snack time just them to enjoy tea and crumpets.

📝Tips: If bubbles do not form, it can be because the yeast or the soda you are using is not fresh or enough in quantity. Always use fresh ingredients. We recommend making one crumpet first to understand the temperature, technique and quantities better. If the batter falls out of the moulds on heating it can be because the batter is too thin. Whisk it more and slowly add more flour to it. If the bubbles do not form or the sides do not shrink on heating one reason can be a too thick batter. Add more water to develop the right consistency.

Closing Thoughts

Tea and crumpets can make your afternoon a happy one. A quintessential part of the British culture, they prove to be a healthy snack that makes you feel full for the rest of the evening. The origin and traces of crumpets set roots hundreds of years ago and since then have been an everyday homemade part of the kitchen. Try the crumpets recipe and experience the delicious tea and crumpets!