Description
Made with pure pumpkin, whole wheat flour, and extra cinnamon spice, these mini cinnamon sugar pumpkin muffins are a cross between a muffin and a dense cake-style donut. No need for an electric mixer or muffin liners, and no messy frying in oil.
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (220g) whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour, or mix of both*
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice*
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (170g) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1/2 cup (120ml) milk (any kind)
Cinnamon-Sugar Coating
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray a 24-count mini muffin pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt together. In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter and brown sugar together. Add the egg, vanilla extract, pumpkin puree, and milk and whisk to combine. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then whisk until just combined. Avoid over-mixing. Batter is thick.
- Using a small spoon, spoon the batter into the muffin tins, filling each about 2/3 full.
- Bake for 12-14 or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or when lightly poked, the muffin bounces back. Remove from the oven and cool in the muffin pan for 10 minutes.
- For the coating: In a small bowl, mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon together. Use a spoon to help remove the warm muffins from the pan. Lightly dunk a muffin (they can still be a bit warm) in the melted butter. Submerge in the cinnamon-sugar to coat the surface generously. Set upright on cooling rack and repeat with remaining mini muffins.
- Muffins taste best eaten on the same day. Cover and store leftover muffins at room temperature for up to 1 day, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To help prevent the coating from turning mushy and wet, only loosely cover them, which will allow a little airflow.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: It’s best to freeze the mini muffins before coating in butter and cinnamon-sugar. After cooling completely, place muffins in a freezer-friendly container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before coating. If needed, you can freeze after coating the muffins but the coating gets a little moist as they thaw.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Mini Muffin Pan (like this one or this one) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Flour: You can use whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, or a mix of both. I usually make these with 1 cup (125g) all-purpose and 3/4 cup (95g) whole wheat flour.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: You can find pumpkin pie spice in the baking aisle of most grocery stores or make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice. If you don’t have either and want to use individual spices, use 1/2 teaspoon each: ground allspice and ground ginger AND 1/4 teaspoon each: ground nutmeg and ground cloves. This is in addition to the 1 teaspoon of cinnamon—you will still add that.
- Regular Size Muffins: Makes 12 regular size muffins. Line a 12-count muffin pan with liners or spray with nonstick spray. Fill muffin cups all the way to the top with batter. Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C), then keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce temperature to 350°F (177°C) and bake for an additional 16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total times these muffins take in the oven is about 20-21 minutes. The initial high temperature helps create tall muffin tops. You’ll love it!
- Donut Pan: To make these in a donut pan, grease a donut pan generously. Spoon the batter into the donut cavities—for ease, I highly recommend using a large zipped-top bag. Cut a corner off the bottom of the bag and pipe the batter into each donut cup, filling about halfway. Bake for 10-11 minutes or until the edges and tops are lightly browned. To test, poke your finger into the top of the donut. If the donut bounces back, they’re done. Cool donuts for 2 minutes then transfer to a wire rack. Re-grease the pan and bake the remaining donut batter. Continue with step 5 above.