English Muffin Throwdown

I feel very fortunate to live in a place where there is an emphasis on local businesses and products.

Because of this, I have quite a few wonderful local bakeries that I can visit all within a couple blocks of each other.  A favorite, simple activity of mine is walking to a bakery on the weekend and standing in an oversized line (sometimes much too big for the store, but hey it's cozy).  It is there I slow down and take in the aroma of fresh pastries, bread, and coffee.  Everyone is happy and smiling.. sometimes dogs are in the store with their owners.. little kids stare excitedly at the goodies behind the counter.. and of course there are samples <<< always a plus.  These are the moments in life that make me happy.

Since living in Maine I have gotten really into homemade bread.  Gone are the days where I used to go to the grocery store to get a loaf of bread.  It just doesn't taste the same and its not nearly as satisfying! Especially if we are talking about english muffins.  You see, I used to be content with the Thomas brand english muffin or any equivalent.  It never occurred to me there could be an astronomical difference in the taste of a processed english muffin vs. a homemade one.

But that all changed last summer.

HOLY COW so many bakeries make their own english muffins here. And I love 'em. They are the perfect vessel on which to serve a breakfast sandwich. Swoon. 

Suffice to say, I have probably eaten my weight in english muffins and because of my love for them I decided a good ol' fashioned throwdown was needed.

Though there are plenty of bakeries here, I only picked three for this challenge.  They happen to be the three I visit the most.

1.  Standard Baking Co
2.  Big Sky Bread Company
3.  Rosemont Market and Bakery 

Expert tasters/judges included me, Emily and my boyfriend, Chris

First up is Standard Baking Co.


 Presentation wise, I think the little indented edges around the english muffin are adorable and you can tell it is homemade.  There aren't many "nooks and crannies" like one would expect with an english muffin and it has honey wheat taste.  It doesn't taste like an english muffin and if I was blind folded I would have guessed I was eating a piece of (tasty!) bread. It is moist, soft, and the thinnest of the three.


Next up is Big Sky...

This has the most traditional english muffin look.  It is the only one out of the three that is not whole wheat as well.  I really love this english muffin because it is so light, airy, and fluffy.  It  has a nice volume (which I know is hard to tell in the picture) and it is dusted with semolina/cornmeal, like traditional english muffins are.  Like the Standard Baking Co muffin, it does not have the usual nooks and crannies.  However, it definitely has that sourdough-y taste one would expect.


And last, but certainly not least, we have Rosemont Market and Bakery...

I love love love the look of this english muffin.  Again, I know the picture is not doing it any justice size wise, but just know it is big! When I hold it in the palm of my hand, it takes it over both width and height wise.  Like the first english muffin, this is one made with whole wheat and it has yellow seeds dispersed throughout that gives it a nice, wholesome texture.  I also love how rustic these ones are-- a lot of times they're slightly misshapen and some are bigger and/or smaller than others.  I love those imperfect details. Out of all three it has the most nooks and crannies.  It also has a sourdough-y taste to it as well, but perhaps not as pronounced as Big Sky's.   One downside (or upside) is that they are best and only worth eating the day of purchase.  The next day they are pretty hard and really give your chompers a workout.


So.. Which one is English Muffin King?!


Drumroll please....

Ahem... Based on two wise foodies who may or may not be known for walking around town with a coffee in one hand and breakfast sandwich in the other on any given weekend {And who may or may not spend way too much time in grocery stores} the winner is:

Confession: Even before I did this contest my boyfriend and I pretty much knew Big Sky would be the winner.  Nothing truly can compare.  And if you wanna know what I mean, come get your butt up to Maine and experience it yourself :)

My suggestions on what to get at the other two places:

Standard Baking Company: Morning bun with nuts and I have a friend who is particularly smitten with their scones, so I suggest you try that too!

Rosemont Market and Bakery: Slice of the pizza of the day and/or their rugelach cookie. I also want to try, but never have, their homemade almond joy bar.  

Even if you don't come to Maine to check out any of these places mentioned, I suggest you do some exploring in your own neck of the woods! There are bound to be some real gems that just might become your favorite. #LocalLove