Scrumptious Crumpets

Combine both of the flours and the yeast in a large bowl.

Warm the milk and water until tepid then stir in the sugar and salt to dissolve.

Pour on to the flour and beat with a wooden spoon to combine well.

Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for about 1 hour or until the batter has risen and the surface is covered with tiny bubbles.

Dissolve the baking soda in the 3 tablespoons of warm water then stir into the batter.

Cover again and set aside for 30 minutes.

To cook: Heat a sauté pan over a low heat and brush lightly with butter.

Sit crumpet rings (see Cook's Note) in the pan and spoon in enough batter to half fill. If using blini pans, grease lightly and also half fill. 

Cook until the crumpets have risen and the tops have bubbled and burst to form holes and they look dry on the surface. This will take at least 6–7 minutes if the heat is at the right temperature and longer depending on how deep the rings are. If too hot, the bottoms will burn before the centres are cooked. 

The crumpets can be cooled then toasted to serve or, if eating immediately, turn them over in the pan and cook until golden. Makes 6–10 (depending on their size, I used 12cm blini pans which made six generous-sized crumpets)

Cook's note: Unless the crumpet rings are non-stick, I found the stainless steel rings very difficult to work with and couldn’t easily remove the crumpets. For a great result, I greased the insides of the rings and lined them with strips of baking paper to fit neatly before I filled them with batter.