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These apple cinnamon muffins are a fall favorite! Soft, tender muffins are loaded with chunks of sweet apple and warmly spiced with a homemade apple pie spice blend. Cinnamon sugar topping gives them a sweet, crisp, crackly finish. They’re ready in just 30 minutes and perfect for breakfast or an afternoon snack with a hot cup of coffee.
As soon as September hits my mind starts transitioning from corn tomato salad, peach blueberry cobbler, and zucchini muffins, to all things apple! I love using apples in salads, this cranberry apple quinoa salad is a longtime reader favorite. In savory dinner recipes like my apple cider chicken skillet. But baking with apples will always be my favorite!
The way these apple cinnamon muffins smell while they’re baking immediately makes you feel warm and cozy! The combination of the cinnamon, allspice, and ginger in the muffin batter reminds me of how my caramel apple crumb pie smells while it’s baking, INTOXICATING!
These apple muffins don’t require any special equipment to make, just a couple mixing bowls, a rubber spatula, and a good muffin pan. They have a delicious cinnamon sugar topping that has the best crackly texture when it’s bakes. I love to eat the muffins warm with a little salted butter on them to balance the sweetness. They’re the perfect addition to your fall breakfast or brunch!
Flour – All-purpose flour keeps the muffins light and fluffy. You can also use white whole wheat flour or a combination of both flours. If using whole wheat the texture will be slightly more dense and have a nuttier flavor. For a gluten-free version, try these gluten-free apple cinnamon muffins.
Sugar – Both granulated sugar and brown sugar are used for these apple muffins. The granulated sugar gives them structure and the brown sugar adds moisture and depth of flavor.
Spices – What makes these apple cinnamon muffins special is the apple pie spice blend. It’s made up of cinnamon, ginger, and allspice. You can also add in a 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg if you’d like. It gives the muffins the most delicious warm, spiced, fall flavor.
Butter and Oil – This muffin recipe uses both melted butter and oil. Oil gives the muffins their soft, tender texture. Butter adds moisture too, but also that rich butter flavor. I use avocado oil, but canola oil or vegetable oil can be used.
Milk – Milk adds moisture and gives the muffins a lighter texture and more tender crumb. I like to use either whole milk or low-fat milk. You can also use a dairy-free milk such as oat milk or unsweetened almond milk.
Eggs – Eggs act as a binder for the muffin batter. Room temperature eggs will mix together better with the other ingredients.
Vanilla – Vanilla adds depth of flavor and that undeniable vanilla sweetness. I prefer to use vanilla bean paste instead of vanilla extract for a more intense vanilla flavor, but either will work for these muffins.
Apples – The star of the muffins! Cut the apples into small 1/2 inch chunks so they get soft, but not mushy during baking. Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, SugarBee, or Cosmic Crisp are my top picks because they are firm, crisp, and sweet.
Tips for Making Soft and Moist Apple Muffins
- Measure the flour correctly. Use a spoon to scoop the flour into the measuring cup then level it off with the back of a knife. When you use the measuring cup to scoop the flour out of the container you’ll end up with too much flour, which results in dense, dry muffins.
- Cut the apples into equal size chunks. This ensures the apples bake evenly and you don’t have some raw chunks and others that are mushy.
- Don’t replace the oil or butter with a non-fat substitute. Replacing the oil with applesauce or extra milk will result in a drier muffin and compromise the texture and soft crumb of the muffin.
- Don’t overmix the muffin batter. Overmixing activates the gluten in the flour and results in a dense, rubbery muffin.
- Don’t overbake. Overbaking is the easiest way to dry out muffins. Use a toothpick and insert it into the center of the muffins. If it comes out with a few crumbs attached it’s done. Because all ovens are different, I like to test the muffins for doneness at the minimum baking time and adjust as needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are the Best Apples for Apple Cinnamon Muffins?
The best apples for apple cinnamon muffins are Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, SugarBee, or Cosmic Crisp. These are firm, sweet, crisp varieties of apples that won’t get mushy during baking and give the muffins a delicious apple flavor.
Do You Need to Peel Apples for Muffins?
No. I’ve made these muffins using peeled and unpeeled apples. It’s just a matter of preference whether you like the apple skin or not.
How to Keep Apples from Making Muffins Soggy
The key to making an apple muffin that doesn’t end up soggy is to use a variety of apple that is firm and crisp. Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Cosmic Crisp are all great options. Stay away from varieties such as Gala, Red Delicious, and McIntosh.
You can also toss the diced apples in a tablespoon of flour before adding them to the muffin batter.
How to Store and Freeze Apple Cinnamon Muffins
Storage – I think muffins taste best the day they are made, however you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Freezing – Let the muffins cool completely and then place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Freeze them for 1-2 hours, then transfer them to an airtight container or freezer bag and freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw a muffin on the countertop until it’s at room temperature, or reheat in the microwave for 30 seconds or until warm.
NOTE: The cinnamon sugar topping won’t be crisp and crackly once the muffins have been frozen.
Apple Cinnamon Muffins Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Apple Cinnamon Muffins
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1/4 cup avocado oil or canola oil, vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup milk
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups peeled and diced apples about 2 medium apples
Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with parchment paper liners or spray with cooking spray. In a small bowl stir together the cinnamon sugar topping.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and allspice in a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well combined.
- Pour the wet ingredients in with the dry and fold together with a rubber spatula just until you can no longer see streaks of flour. Add in the diced apples and fold them into the batter.
- Scoop the muffin batter evenly into the prepared muffin pan. Sprinkle a teaspoon of the cinnamon sugar onto the tops and then place it on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 5 minutes at 425° F. After 5 minutes lower the heat to 350° F. without removing the muffin pan from the oven, and continue to bake for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out with a few crumbs attached. Start checking the muffins at 12 minutes to ensure you don't overbake them.
- Cool the muffins for 5 minutes in the pan and then remove them onto a wire cooling rack. Serve warm or cool completely before freezing them.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Apple Cinnamon Muffins Variations
I love these apple muffins the way they are, but below are some add-in ideas and other variations you might enjoy.
- Add-ins. For a crunchy element add a 1/3-1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans or walnuts. You can also add a 1/2 cup of dried fruit, such as raisins or dried cranberries.
- Crumb topping. For a bakery-style crumb topping or streusel topping use the recipe that I used to make these pumpkin blueberry muffins.
- Dairy-free. To make the muffins dairy-free, substitute cows milk with unsweetened almond milk and replace the butter with either vegan butter or additional avocado oil.
More Apple Recipes
If you love to bake with apples, here are some of my favorite recipes to bake with them!
If you make these Apple Cinnamon Muffins, please leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I love hearing from you and do my best to respond to your comments. And if you’re on Instagram tag @reciperunner so I can see your beautiful creations!
