Huge Muffin Top Muffins

Mom! Mom! Mom! I want muffins!

Of course you do. So do I. Muffins are epic and like a pancake, you can put anything into it. These muffins are quick to make and give a nice muffin top, the edible kind. These are moist (thanks to the buttermilk) and super fluffy (so much leavening) and a little crunch on the outside which just makes them absolutely perfect. Let’s just dive in and we can get these done in time for an afternoon snack.

Preheat the oven to 425° F and prep your muffin pan. I really love to use silicone pans or liners. I really hate to clean them. You CAN throw them in the dishwasher, but it’s really not recommended. They will break down much faster, so you really should handwash. I handwash all my baking dishes (except the glass ones) just to make sure they don’t get scratched or rusty. I’m just weird that way, but muffin tins are a pain to clean. So, my go to is to just use paper liners. You still have to clean the pan, but it’s easier than with silicone. Alternatively, you can skip the liners and spray the pan with a floured baking spray. While you can grease it and flour it, I wouldn’t recommend it as you’re gonna get flour literally everywhere except where you want it.

Make sure everything is at room temperature (this is recommended, but not imperative). Throw all the dry stuff (flour, baking powder/soda and salt, not the sugar) in a bowl along with your mix-ins. I like to add my mix-ins with the dry ingredients, so they get coated in flour and stuff. It helps them disperse better in the muffin and keep their shape during baking.

Note on Mix-ins: You can use whatever you have on hand. Sometimes I use butterscotch or white chocolate chips. Since these are super sweet you may want to decrease the sugar added, otherwise your gremlins will become the spawn of Lilith.  Some great ideas are:

• orange zest, craisins and white chocolate chips
• lemon zest, chopped blueberries and poppy seeds
• peanut butter chips and chocolate chips
• chocolate chips and chocolate chips (no that wasn’t a typo, the mini ones are the best)

Next, mix all your wet stuff and the sugar. If your ingredients are at room temperature, then your butter won’t muck all up. If it does, that’s fine, it will melt when it bakes, but it just disperses through the muffin better. Feel free to mix this wet stuff as much as you want, the kids like that part. If you do not have buttermilk, don’t fret. You can either hunt through the rooms for a cup a kid left behind (maybe not) or you can make it. 1 tablespoon of white vinegar (or lemon juice) 

Now slowly, add the wet to the dry and mix gently. Scrape the bottom and sides to make sure all the ingredients get just mixed. Do not overmix or your muffins will be like a 4-day old biscuit.

Fill’er up! Yup. To the top. I promise that 12 cup muffin pan will hold all this batter. The trick to getting those fluffy muffin tops and the little bit of crunch is to bake these at the higher 425° F for 5 minutes and then turn it down to 375° F for the remaining 12-15 minutes. If your oven seals really well, you may be looking at 10 minutes so keep that in mind. Check with a toothpick in the middle of the muffin and if it comes out with dry crumbs they are done! If it’s still a little goopy, then bake them a little longer. You don’t want to overbake these because they will be super crumbly and dry.

Walk away. At least for 5 minutes, 10 if you can hold out. If you try to take these out of the pan (or liners) too early they will put up a fight. Letting them cool slightly will allow them to release much easier and they are super amazing while still warm.

Huge Muffin Top Muffins

Course: Dessert

Servings

12

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Total time

40

minutes

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups flour

• 1 Tbsp baking powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup butter, melted

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup buttermilk

• 1 Tbsp vanilla

• 1 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Line your muffin tins with paper liners
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, sugar, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla.
• Gently add the wet mix to the dry mix and slowly stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
• Fill the cups evenly and bake at 425°F for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F and continue to bake another 12-15 minutes. Muffins are done when golden brown and toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle. Do not overbake.
• Let cool 5-10 minutes and enjoy them warm!

Notes

• Mix-ins: You can literally put anything into these muffins. Keep the total amount to about 1 1/2 cup. If you want to add fruit, fold that in at the end when you’re combining the wet and dry. If you are using super sweet chips like milk or white chocolate you should reduce the sugar.