Maple Apple Muffins

This recipe is similar to my Banana Muffins and just as easy to make. It ticks all the boxes for my favorite type of recipe: no mixer required, no exotic ingredients, and freezes beautifully. Apples with stronger, more distinct flavors work better in this recipe. Granny Smiths do nicely.

Printable PDF: Maple Apple Muffins

SERVINGS per recipe: 12 muffins

INGREDIENTS

3 eggs

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup avocado oil

1 tsp vanilla

3 oz plain Greek yogurt (I use nonfat)

2 cups flour

1 tsp cinnamon plus more for sprinkling

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 medium (on the large side) apples peeled and diced into 1/4 inch cubes – should have a total of three cups of apple cubes (two for the mixture and one for the topping)

12 pinches of brown, demerara, or turbinado sugar for sprinkling (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

2. In a medium bowl or 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup (my preference), whisk the eggs until the yolks are broken. Add the maple syrup and whisk until just blended. Add the avocado oil plus vanilla and whisk. Add the yogurt and whisk until blended. Take care not to over-whisk the eggs.

3. Whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl until well incorporated.

4. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to combine.

5. Fold in 2 cups of diced apples. Reserve remaining apples.

6. Distribute the batter evenly between 12 lined muffin cups. Distribute the remaining cup of apple cubes to the top of each muffin. Sprinkle an additional bit of cinnamon and a pinch of sugar (I used turbinado).

7. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes and test centers with a wooden cake tester. If still gooey and wet in middle, raise the temperature to 375 degrees and bake an additional 5 minutes. Otherwise, bake at 350 degrees for 5 more minutes or until a wooden cake tester comes out clean.

8. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

I find these muffins are best with a bit of jam or marmalade since the flavor is quite mild. Bakers can experiment with other spices – anything that goes into an apple pie. If you want zero processed sugar, leave off the pinch of turbinado.

What the Maple Apple Muffins look like after baking: