Whole Wheat English Muffin Loaf: Soft, Toast-Ready Bread

Recreating the flavor and texture of an English muffin in a loaf is surprisingly simple. This Whole Wheat & Honey English Muffin Bread captures that familiar chewy, nubbly crumb in an easy, loaf-sized format.

This month I joined the #Baketogether challenge with Abby Dodge. The holidays made everything feel busy, with birthdays and gift preparations filling our days, but baking is my way of slowing down and enjoying the season. My daughter and I ended up spending a wonderfully impromptu day in the kitchen, making treats for gifts and testing recipes. This whole wheat English muffin bread quickly became one of my favorites.

We made a few other things that day: Emily prepared a delicious eggnog bread for the blog, and I spent hours reducing goat milk into cajeta—dulce de leche made with goat milk—to package as gifts. Between stirring and testing, I focused on the #Baketogether challenge and experimented with turning the texture of an English muffin into a loaf.

I initially tried a cinnamon swirl variation and learned a few lessons. Flattening the dough to create a uniform swirl disturbed some of the air pockets that give English muffins their characteristic texture. I also omitted the baking powder, assuming the yeast alone would provide enough lift at altitude. In this case, a small amount of baking powder helps maintain those tiny crumb pockets, so I added it back for the next version.

Another detail that mattered: how the pans are greased and dusted. I tried using spray oil one day and found the cornmeal stuck unevenly where the spray had pooled. I switched to spreading butter with a paper towel, then dusting the pan with cornmeal. The result was a much more even crust and consistent texture. If you use cooking spray, wipe the pan with a paper towel to avoid clumped areas.

When the loaf is baked and sliced, it shines when warmed on a griddle with a pat of butter—skip the toaster oven and pan-fry the slices until they’re golden and crisp. The little nooks of the bread hold melted butter and toppings beautifully.

One of my favorite accompaniments to this bread is a smooth cranberry-apple butter I made recently. The sweet-tart spread complements the hearty whole wheat flavor and makes for a lovely gift paired with a freshly baked loaf. If you prefer something simpler, a drizzle of honey and a bit of butter pan-fried into the nooks is equally delicious.

Below is the tested recipe I now use. It balances whole wheat flavor with honey and yields a loaf that toasts up crisp while maintaining the pleasing, slightly chewy texture of an English muffin.