The term 'muffin' means soft bread or 'moufflet' in French; whereas in German it refers to a type of cake called 'muffe'. Typically, American style muffins are more popular than their English counterparts. So much so, that even some states in the US have an official muffin; the state of Minnesota has blueberry and the corn muffin is the official state muffin of Massachusetts, while New York's state muffin is apple.
A muffin can be best described as a cross between bread and a cake. American muffins can be further divided into two types, bread-like and cake-like. American style muffins use a chemical leavener like baking powder or baking soda, whereas the English Muffins are made from yeast dough. While less sugar and butter makes a bread-like muffin, a higher sugar and butter content makes a cake-like muffin.
A perfect American muffin is symmetrical with a domed top. The surface of the muffin is bumpy and the volume of the batter almost doubled during baking. The muffin is often light for its size; when cut into half, its interior is moist and tender with no tunnels.
American muffins can be either sweet or savory and are traditionally served warm for breakfast or as a lunch box treat. There are great many varieties and flavors of muffins such as blueberries, chocolate chips, cinnamon, pumpkin, date, nut, lemon, banana, orange, peach, strawberry, almond and carrot.
Muffin recipes
Blueberry muffins
Berries 2 cups
Eggs 2
Flour 2 cups
Milk ½ cup
Butter ¼ cup
Baking powder 2 teaspoon
Vanilla 1 teaspoon
Salt ½ teaspoon
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Grease muffin pan. Beat together the butter, eggs, salt, and sugar. Mix the flour with baking powder and sift into first mixture, alternating with milk, Blend in the vanilla and the blueberries. Pour into muffin pan and bake for about 30 minutes. Delicious muffins are ready to eat.
Apple muffins
Butter ½ cup
Granulate sugar 1 cup
Large eggs 2
Apples, ripe, cooked and mashed 2
Vanilla extract 1 teaspoon
All purpose flour 2 cups
Salt 1 teaspoon
Baking powder 1 teaspoon
12 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners. Cream butter and sugar with an electric hand held mixer light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, and beating after each addition. Add apples and vanilla and beat until smooth. Mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture, alternating with sour milk or buttermilk. Stir until dry ingredients are moistened and then gently stir in chopped nuts. Spoon banana muffin batter into prepared muffin cups or liners.
Simple English muffins
White flour 2 cups
Water warm 1 cup
Whole wheat flour 1 cup
Vegetable oil 2 tablespoon
Yeast dry 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste
Cornmeal
Mix warm water, vegetable oil, yeast and salt in a suitably sized bowl. Beat in the white flour followed by the whole wheat flour and mix thoroughly. Oil the surface of the dough and allow to rise for about 30-40 minutes. Knead the dough until soft, then cut into six pieces and roll each piece in cornmeal. Form each ball into muffins, for inches in diameter. Place on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degree F for about 15 minutes.
Healthy muffins recipe
Low fat milk ¾ cup
Yogurt 1 cup of low fat
Egg whites ½ kg 3 nos
¾ cup of apple sauce
2 cups of wheat meal flour
½ cup oats
1.2 oat bran
Baking powder 3 teaspoons
Cinnamon 2 teaspoons
Raisins ½ cup
Chopped apricots ½ cup
Beat the egg whites lightly and then add milk, yogurt and apple sauce. Combine the flour, oats, bran, baking powder, cinnamon, raisins and apricots in a separate bowl. Add the dry mix to the wet mix until combined. Spoon into muffin tins and bake at 350 degree F for about 20 minutes.
Bran muffins
Wheat bran 1 ½ cups
Buttermilk 1 cup
Vegetable oil 1/3 cup
Egg 1
Cup brown sugar 2/3
Vanilla extract ½ teaspoon
All purpose flour 1 cup
Baking soda 1 teaspoon
Baking powder 1 teaspoon
½ cup raisins
Salt to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and grease muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners. Mix together wheat bran and buttermilk and let it stand for about 10 minutes. Beat together oil, egg, sugar, and vanilla and add to buttermilk bran mixture. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into buttermilk mixture until blended. Fold in raisins and spoon batter into prepared muffin tins. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Enjoy cool.
Zucchini muffins
1 ½ cup shredded zucchini
2 cup whole grain pancake or biscuit mix
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
2 eggs
¾ cup brown sugar
¼ cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Powdered sugar
Wash zucchini and remove ends. Shred zucchini using largest holes on grater. Wrap grated zucchini in a couple of paper towels and squeeze to remove water. Measure 1 ½ cups of squeezed dry zucchini. Preheat oven to 375 degree F. Line a 12 cup muffin with paper liners. In a large bowl, mix whole grain pancake mix with spices.
In a separate bowl, whist together eggs, brown sugar, apple sauce and lemon juice. Fold the egg sugar mixture and shredded zucchini into the pancake spice mixture and do not over mix. Each muffin cup should be filled with 2/3 batter. Bake until golden and remove muffins from tin and cool in a wire rack. Sprinkle muffins with a dusting of powdered sugar.
Pumpkin muffin
All purpose flour 1.5 cups
Baking powder 1 teaspoon
Canned solid pack pumpkin 15 oz can 1 cup
Vegetable oil 1/3 cup
Eggs 2 large
Pumpkin pie spice 1 teaspoon
Baking soda ½ teaspoon
Salt ½ teaspoon
Cinnamon 1 teaspoon
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350 degree F. Put liners in muffin cups. Whisk together flour, baking powder, pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin-pie spice, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl until smooth. Stir together cinnamon and remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar in another bowl.
Divide batter among muffin cups and then sprinkle tops with cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake until puff and golden brown and insert a wooden toothpick into center and check if it comes out clean. Cool in a pan on a rack for about 5 minutes and then transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.
Oats muffin
Rolled oats 1 ½ cups
Sweetened condensed milk ¼ cup
Hot water ¾ cup
Corn stirrup 3 tablespoon
Eggs 2
Salt to taste
Flour ¾ cup
Baking powder 4 teaspoon
Cooking oil 2 tablespoon
Pour hot water and condensed milk over rolled oats and let stand for ½ hour. Add corn stirrup, cooking oil and beaten egg yolks. Silt flour, measure, and sift with baking powder and salt. Add the first mixture. Beat until smooth. Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Fill well-oiled muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake in hot oven 425 degree f for about 20 minutes and then cool for about 10 minutes.
Banana muffins
Bananas, large, mashed 3-4
White sugar ½ cup
Egg slightly beaten 1
Margarine or butter melted 1/3 cup
Baking soda 1 teaspoon
Baking powder 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Flour 1 ½ cup
Mix the mashed banana, sugar, egg and margarine together. Set aside in a separate bowl. Mix together baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour. Mix wet and dry ingredients all together, Pour into greased muffin tins, and bake in 350 degree F oven for approximately 20 minutes. Cool for about 10 minutes.
Apple cinnamon muffin
All purpose flour 1 ½ cup
Sugar ½ cup
Salt to taste
Baking powder 2 teaspoons
Cinnamon ground 2 teaspoons
Apple sauce unsweetened 1/3 cup
Cinnamon ground 1 ½ teaspoons
Oats rolled 1 cup
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and spray a 12 cup muffin pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together the ¾ cup all purpose flour, ¾ cup whole wheat flour, ¾ cup sweetener, salt, baking powder and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. In a separate bowl, mix 1/3 cup applesauce, egg and milk.
Stir the applesauce mixture into the flour mixture until just blended. Spoon into the prepared muffin cups filling about 2/3 full. Mix ½ cup applesauce, ½ teaspoons cinnamon and oats. Spread evenly over the muffin batter. Bake for about 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a tooth pick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.