Did you grow up with lots of muffins in your household? I didn’t. In fact, I don’t remember having them around at all. Cakes? Yes. Pies? Yes. Cupcakes? Yes. Muffins…no. Maybe that’s why I love them. I’m making up for lost time.
Now, my favorite muffin is hands down the Peanut Butter-Banana-Chocolate Chip Muffin I make often. It’s more labor intensive and fits the bill when I have ripe bananas available and want some chocolate in my breakfast. It’s really fantastic.
I do have one criteria for breakfast muffins. I don’t want them over the top sweet. These Streuseled Honey-Butter Breakfast Muffins fit that bill perfectly. And the streusel makes the perfect crunchy-crunch. Just look at it. This is so good with my black coffee, it’s “off the chain”…as someone said to me on Facebook the other day. I love that Triple-D saying.
Anyway, these are also one of those exceptional looking muffins. They pop up and rise into a perfect dome shape, don’t brown too much and stay moist. They are keepers forever, I hope you try them soon.
I filled my pans about 3/4 full with batter. You could probably go a bit smaller and squeeze out 12 muffins instead of the ten I got. It all depends on how big and robust you want your muffins to look. For me, bigger is better. However, more muffins might leave you a little short on topping.
Streuseled Honey-Butter Breakfast Muffins
Recipe from: Created by Cathy Pollak for NoblePig.com
Serves: Makes 10 muffins
Ingredients:
For the muffin batter:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, room temperature
1 cup whole milk, room temperature
1/4 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/4 cup honey
For the streusel:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 Tablespoons butter, softened
Directions:
To make the streusel, place all ingredients in a small bowl. With your fingers, mix together until a crumb-like texture occurs. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare a muffin pan with cooking spray. You could also use paper-liners if you choose.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In another smaller bowl combine egg, milk, butter and honey. (If your milk is very cold you are going to harden the melted butter when you mix them together. This is why I suggest room temps. However, if your wet ingredients seize up for any reason when you mix them together, you could warm them slightly until they are mixable again. One minute on the stove top over low heat and you should be fine.
Fill muffin cups 3/4 of the way full. Sprinkle each cup with streusel and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. Place pan on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Remove each muffin individually with a knife or fork inserted around the edge. Serve warm if you can and with extra honey.
Cathy owns a vineyard and winery in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. She is a food writer forDavis Life Magazine and blogs daily about wine, food and everyday living. She lives with her husband and two sons. You can visit her at noblepig.com.