Although they speak the same language, Americans and English do not really agree! For the same term, or muffin, the two peoples mean two quite different preparations.
Americans : Probably the most popular ones, or better, the classic muffins available in any motorway restaurant. Some "quick bread muffins" recipes have been mentioned in cookbooks since the 19th century. The recipes of "yeast-based muffins" instead, better known as "common muffins" or wheat muffins ", are visible on even more dated texts. In the "Boston Cooking-School Cook Book", Fannie Farmer quoted recipes for both types of muffins: leavened and fast ones.
English : They are focaccias. It is a type of leavened bread, generally having a circular shape with dimensions of 10cm in diameter and 3.8cm in thickness. The cooking is carried out on the plate or on the stove, on both sides (similar to large tigelle) and therefore they are completely different from the aforementioned American muffins.
Even more ancient, English muffins can be found on the texts since 1703, with the name of "moofin". The term probably derives from the southern German "mold" (which means small cake) or from the ancient French "moufflet" (adjective referred to bread: soft, tender).
