A crumpet in some form has been around in England for centuries. In 1382 John Wycliffe, a theologian, translated a word in the Latin Old Testament as ‘crompid’, ‘a cake of a loaf, a crusted cake spreynde with oyle, a crompid cake’ that was cooked on a hot stone.

The earliest recipe is from the late 17th century but after the discovery in the 1790s of chemical leaveners to make dough rise, the crumpet took on a new form with the characteristic holes. No-one knows from where the crumpet originates but it is known they were for sale in the English Midlands and London during the 19th century and were eaten by all classes; dirty urchins would hawk crumpets on the streets of the growing cities and ladies and gentlemen would feast on crumpets in their ivory towers.

They say, ‘Crumpets are from Venus, Muffins are from Mars’. A crumpet is much misunderstood in other countries, where it is often referred to as an English muffin but a crumpet is made from batter, while a muffin is made from dough resulting in a completely different product.

A pikelet uses a crumpet-type batter but it is not cooked in a ring and is therefore thinner and more freeform in shape. It features the same bubble surface but doesn’t have the sponge-like texture. It is often called the ‘poor man’s crumpet’ as it was made by those who could not afford rings to make crumpets and so would drop the batter freely into the pan.

Lovely topped with a poached egg or drizzled with honey with a cuppa tea. #March2027