Apple Muffins
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These wholesome apple muffins are packed with spice and everything nice—just what you need for a cozy start to the day.
Adapted from King Arthur Flour, these delicious apple muffins are made partially with whole wheat flour, which gives them a wholesome, nutty flavor and toasty-brown color. They’re also chockfull of tart apples and enriched with yogurt, so no one could ever accuse them of being cupcakes pretending to be muffins. The recipe calls for a full tablespoon of cinnamon along with a hint of nutmeg and cloves, so your house will smell amazing while the muffins bake. But the best part of this apple muffin recipe might just be the muffin top; the brown sugar gives the lids an irresistible crunch. If you’d prefer something that you can slice and share, my apple bread has similar flavors and is equally crave-worthy.
Table of Contents
“I made these gorgeous muffins, they are easy to make, so very light and tasty. Perfect for the autumnal or winter season.”
What You’ll Need To Make Apple Muffins
- Butter: Provides richness and flavor to the muffins.
- Granulated Sugar and Brown Sugar: Sweeten the muffins while adding moisture and subtle caramel-like flavor.
- Egg: Binds the ingredients together and provides structure to the muffins.
- Plain Low-Fat Yogurt or Greek Yogurt: Adds moisture and richness to the muffins and interacts with the baking soda to help them rise.
- Whole Wheat Flour and All-purpose Flour: The foundation of the muffins. The use of whole wheat flour provides a wholesome, nutty flavor and lovely color.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: Leavening agents that help the muffins rise and give them a fluffy texture.
- Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Cloves: Infuse the muffins with warm, aromatic spices that complement the apples.
- Apples: Provide moisture, sweetness, and texture to the muffins. Make sure to use baking apples that are firm enough to hold their shape when baked. See the FAQ’s for what brands of apples are considered best for baking.
- Brown Sugar: Adds a crunchy, sweet topping to the muffins enhancing the flavor and texture.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
To begin, combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar.
Beat until light and fluffy.
Add the egg.
Then beat again.
Add the yogurt.
Beat again.
Add all the dry ingredients right to the bowl.
Mix until just combined. Note that the batter will be very thick.
Add the diced apples.
Then fold them in.
Use an ice cream scoop to transfer the batter to a muffin tin.
Sprinkle the tops generously with brown sugar.
Bake for about 25 minutes.
Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a rack to cool completely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Baking apples, such as Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Gala, Jonagold, Jonathan, and Golden Delicious varieties, are firm and tart, making them ideal for baking because they hold their shape and retain their texture during the baking process. Their tartness balances the sweetness of baked goods, and their firmness prevents them from turning mushy, ensuring a pleasing texture in baked treats. They’re also ideal in apple pie and apple crisp.
Using all whole wheat flour may make the muffins dry. If you have white whole wheat flour, that would work nicely. If not, I’d suggest using 1½ cups of whole wheat and ½ cup all-purpose flour.
Because the apples help to keep them moist, the muffins will keep nicely for several days. Store them at room temperature in an airtight container lined with a sheet of paper towels. Arrange the muffins in a single layer and cover them with another sheet of paper towels to absorb any excess moisture.
Absolutely! The muffins can be frozen in an airtight container or sealable plastic bag for up to 3 months. Thaw for 3 to 4 hours on the countertop before serving. To reheat, wrap individual muffins in aluminum foil and place in a preheated 350° oven until warm.
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Spiced Apple Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (packed) dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup plain low-fat yogurt or Greek yogurt
- 1 cup whole wheat flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled off
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled off
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 cups peeled cored, and finely chopped baking apples (you'll need 2 large apples)
For Topping
- 6 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease a 12-cup muffin pan with butter or spray with non-stick cooking spray.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Add the egg and mix well, stopping to scrape the bowl if necessary.
- Beat in the yogurt. The batter will look grainy.
- Add the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Beat on low speed until just combined. The batter will be very thick.
- Add the chopped apples and mix until just combined. Do not over-mix.
- Use an ice-cream scooper or large spoon to divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups. The cups should be full. Sprinkle the 6 tablespoons of brown sugar evenly over top.
- Bake the muffins for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
- Remove the muffins from the oven, cool them for 5 minutes in the pan, then turn them out onto a rack to finish cooling completely.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions:The muffins can be frozen in an airtight container or sealable plastic bag for up to 3 months. Thaw for 3 to 4 hours on the countertop before serving. To reheat, wrap individual muffins in aluminum foil and place in a preheated 350°F (175°C) oven until warm.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Comments
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These were delicious! I bought whole wheat flour for this which I typically don’t keep, Can I use it for other muffin or cake recipes (I’m specifically thinking of your strawberry muffins and cake) or should I save for when the recipe calls specifically for whole wheat flour?
Hi Sara, You have to be careful with whole wheat flour, as it can make baked goods very dry. I’d start by replacing just a 1/4 of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour in other recipes and see how you like the results.
Looking forward to trying this recipe! If I only use cinnamon rather than the nutmeg and cloves, how much do I add?
Hi Meghan, If you want to use all cinnamon, I’d just replace the nutmeg and cloves with equal amounts of cinnamon. Hope you enjoy!
Could I bake this as a loaf instead of muffins? If so, how should I adjust the temp/timing?
Hi Sarah, Sure that will work – bake until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, approximately 45 – 50 minutes. Enjoy!
I don’t have whole wheat flour. May I substitute it with all-purpose flour? Thanks.
Yep – hope you enjoy!
Very delicious muffins. Thanks for the recipe.
We had an unexpected early morning meeting happening at our house, so I wanted to make some apple and cinnamon muffins to go with coffee. Whose recipe could I trust when I hadn’t made it before? Jenn’s, of course! They turned out perfectly and were gobbled up. Thanks, Jenn, for such great and reliable recipes. I was worried they might stick in the pan, so I hedged my bets and put half in cupcake cases, but I needn’t have worried, they slipped out of the pan perfectly.
Hi There, I love your site and I have tried many of your recipes and they all come out great, you have very good instructions. I just made the apple spice muffins and i used 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup organic cane sugar and I sprinkled a bit of brown sugar and cinnamon on top. I got 18 muffins and baked them for 22 minutes and they are so delicious. Thanks so much. Hope you keep on posting recipes because I can’t wait to try more of them,
Delicious way to use up apples! I had some honeycrisp apples leftover and this recipe was absolutely perfect – they’re moist, spiced, with a delicious crispy layer of brown sugar on top. I have already been requested to make these again. I only had Greek yogurt, so I just used half the amount of Greek yogurt and thinned it with some milk until I reached the consistency of regular yogurt.
Are there “baking apples” that you prefer to use more over others? When baking, is there a mix (sweet and tart) that you prefer to use together?
Thanks!
Hi Patty, Any of these would be great choices: Fuji, Granny Smith, Jonagolds, Jonathans, Golden Delicious, Gala, or Honey Crisp (and it’s perfectly fine to use a combination of sweeter ones like Fujis and Granny Smiths. Hope you enjoy the muffins!
Just baked these muffins of yours for an Autumn Party….they turned out perfect and beautiful!
What is the best way to freeze these, for a couple of days?
Glad they turned out nicely! They can be frozen in an airtight container or sealable plastic bag. Thaw for 3 – 4 hours on the countertop before serving. To reheat, wrap individual muffins in aluminum foil and place in a preheated {350°F|175°C} oven until warm.
These muffins are fabulous! Moist, flavorful, not too sweet, and perfectly spiced. Easy and quick to put together as well. I didn’t have yogurt on hand when I wanted to make these, so I used an equivalent amount of sour cream. This recipe is a keeper!