Annie’s Eats

Mmmmm, these are very nice to wake up to in the morning. I had some buttermilk leftover from making the pumpkin scones and decided to make these for breakfast this week. Both the look and the taste of these remind me a lot of the kind of donuts that are covered with cinnamon and sugar, except that I like these muffins even better (I’m not much of a donut person). The buttermilk helps give these a lighter, more fluffy texture.

If I could, I would rename these “Sugar and Spice Muffins” because that sounds better I could definitely see these being great for a baby shower brunch for a baby girl (you know, “Sugar and spice and everything nice, etc. etc.”) My only comments as far as the recipe goes is that you definitely don’t need as much melted butter or cinnamon/sugar mixture for the topping as they recommend. Also, I got 10 muffins out of the batch as opposed to the 9 that the recipe is supposed to yield.

Cinnamon Buttermilk Muffins
Ingredients:
7 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the topping:
2/3 cup sugar
1 Tbs. ground cinnamon
6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Directions:
Preheat an oven to 350°F. Grease 9 standard muffin cups with butter or butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray; fill the unused cups one-third full with water to prevent warping.

To make the muffins, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, combine the butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well until pale and smooth.

In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. Add to the butter mixture in 2 additions, alternating with the buttermilk and vanilla. Stir just until evenly moistened. The batter will be slightly lumpy.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each three-fourths full. Bake until the muffins are golden, dry and springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Unmold the muffins and let stand until cool enough to handle.

To make the topping, in a small, shallow bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Put the melted butter in another small bowl. Holding the bottom of a muffin, dip the top into the melted butter, turning to coat it evenly. Immediately dip the top in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, coating it evenly, then tap it to remove excess sugar. Transfer the muffin, right side up, to the rack. Repeat with the remaining muffins. Let cool completely before serving. Makes 9 muffins.

Source: Williams Sonoma