# Olympic Chocolate Muffins

Pillowy, yeast-risen English muffins with a deep cocoa twist — griddle-baked to a golden crust and best pulled apart warm with butter.

_Breakfast · British_

Prep: 25 min · Cook: 30 min · Total: 55 min · Yields: 12 servings

## Ingredients

- 2 cups whole milk
- ¼ oz instant dry yeast (one standard sachet)
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp fine salt
- ¼ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder (sifted)
- 4 cups bread flour (plus extra for dusting)
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter (softened, for finishing)

## Instructions

1. Warm the 2 cups whole milk in a small saucepan over low heat until it reaches about 38 °C (100 °F) — comfortably warm to the wrist, not hot.
2. Whisk the ¼ oz instant dry yeast and 1 tsp granulated sugar into the warm milk. Let stand 5 minutes until slightly foamy.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the 4 cups bread flour, ¼ cup cocoa powder, and 1 tsp fine salt.
4. Pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms — it should be looser than bread dough but hold its shape.
5. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5–6 minutes until smooth and elastic. The cocoa will deepen in color as you work it.
6. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel, and set in a warm spot (e.g. an oven with just the light on) for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
7. Punch down the risen dough and turn it out onto a surface dusted generously with bread flour — about a 1 cm layer. Divide into 12 equal pieces and shape each into a smooth round ball.
8. Place the rounds onto flour-dusted baking trays, spacing them well apart. Dust the tops with a little extra flour, cover loosely, and let rise again for 30–40 minutes until puffed and semi-domed.
9. Heat a cast-iron skillet or flat griddle over medium-low heat. Do not grease it — the flour coating on the muffins provides the characteristic dry crust.
10. Carefully transfer 3–4 muffins at a time to the dry skillet. Cook for 8–10 minutes per side, turning once, until each side is lightly browned and the muffins sound hollow when tapped on the base.
11. Transfer cooked muffins to a wire rack. Repeat with remaining muffins, adjusting heat as needed to prevent scorching.
12. To serve, pull each muffin apart around its equator with your fingers rather than cutting — this preserves the nooks that hold butter. Toast the open halves cut-side down in the skillet or under a broiler until golden.
13. Spread the 2 tbsp unsalted butter across both halves while hot, press back together briefly, then pull apart and serve immediately on a warmed plate.

## Tip

> Resist the urge to raise the heat to speed up cooking — a medium-low griddle lets the interior fully cook through before the crust over-browns. If the outside colors in under 6 minutes, your heat is too high and the center will be doughy.

Tags: breakfast, bread, yeast, griddle, chocolate, comfort-food

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Canonical: https://just-recipes.io/recipes/olympic-chocolate-muffins
Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10136