These apple cinnamon muffins start with an easy muffin batter that’s flavored with cinnamon, brown sugar, and plenty of juicy apples. We use the same base recipe when making blueberry muffins because the simple batter produces moist, soft, and cakey muffins with tall muffin tops. They’re always a favorite! Enjoy the muffins plain or top them with crumb topping before baking and smooth vanilla icing before serving. If you love apple cinnamon bread, you’ll enjoy these apple muffins!
I originally published this recipe in 2014 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more success tips.
These crumb-topped apple muffins have been a personal and reader favorite for many years. When you crave a big slice of apple pie for breakfast, these apple-studded muffins fill the gap 🙂
Tell Me About These Apple Cinnamon Muffins
- Flavor: These are buttery muffins where apple and cinnamon flavors take over. It’s always disappointing when you bite into a muffin and there’s hardly any “stuff” like blueberries, chocolate chips, etc. Today we’re using extra apples so you get the delicious fruit in nearly each bite. If you’re looking for a fall baking recipe where apples shine, this recipe fits the bill!
- Texture: The apple cinnamon muffins are moist because we add yogurt or sour cream to the batter. just like we do when making sour cream coffee cake. And because we start with creamed butter and sugars, the muffins are soft, light, and cakey like a cupcake. We don’t overload the batter with milk (use only 1/4 cup (60ml)), so you still have a slightly dense texture. I like to describe these muffins as having the perfect harmonious balance between soft and dense!
- Ease: I categorize this recipe as a beginner baking recipe because you use simple ingredients and easy mixing methods. An electric mixer is key for creaming the butter and sugars together and if you decide to add the icing, you just need a whisk. Some crumb toppings require cold butter and a pastry cutter to mix, but we’re using melted butter here so you just need a fork. Easy! All of the ingredients used are baking staples, so there’s nothing new or difficult. I love easygoing recipes that produce consistently delicious results and know you appreciate that too!
One reader, Katrina, commented: “This is the best apple cinnamon muffin recipe I’ve tried, and at 67-years-young, I have tried many. ★★★★★”
One reader, Caroline, commented: “The perfect apple muffins! These are a hit every time. Don’t skip the crumb! ★★★★★”
One reader, Kaley, commented: “This is my new favorite muffin recipe. It’s PERFECT! First apple treat I’ve found where I can taste the actual apples, not just cinnamon or sugar. It was SO easy, and now I’ve applied the baking trick to other muffins. I love them! ★★★★★”
Why This Apple Cinnamon Muffin Recipe Works
Today’s muffin recipe uses my all-star muffin batter. This batter can be used to create endless muffin varieties and you’ll see it again in my blueberry muffins, peach muffins, lemon poppy seed muffins, cranberry orange muffins, and more. In fact, this “Master Muffin Batter” has become such a hit with readers that I created a separate page dedicated to all its possibilities: Best Muffin Recipe. It starts with basic dry ingredients like flour, baking powder + soda, and salt. More often than not, I add ground cinnamon and you’ll see its addition in today’s apple cinnamon version. The wet ingredients are just as straightforward—creamed butter with sugars, plus 2 eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream/plain yogurt, and milk. I use either plain Greek yogurt or sour cream based on what I have and the same goes for the milk. Use whole milk, 1%, almond milk, buttermilk, oat milk, etc. I’ve made these muffins what seems like 1,000x with various milks and trust me, they all work!
- By the way, if you’re a muffin aficionado, you might also love my bakery-style muffins, which are denser, jumbo in size, and have a distinctively tight crumb.
Overview: How to Make Apple Cinnamon Muffins
I like to make the crumb topping first so it’s ready as soon as the batter comes together. The crumb topping, while certainly optional, comes together with ingredients you use in the muffin batter—very convenient. (It’s the same crumb topping we use on peach muffins.) After that, you can peel and chop the apples into roughly 1/2-inch pieces. Pictured below is 1 cup plus several chunks on the side. You need 1 and 1/2 cups (about 180g), which is about 2 medium apples. Fold the apples into the batter.
How to Create the Perfect Tall Muffin Tops
Press crumb topping into the tops of each muffin before baking. For tall muffin tops, there are 3 directions to follow closely:
- Make sure your muffin batter is THICK. (This one is!)
- Fill your muffin tins/liners all the way to the top with batter.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at an initial high temperature, and then lower the temperature.
This initial high oven temperature quickly lifts up the muffin top. Once the temperature is lowered, the centers of the muffins bake. I recommend this in nearly all of these muffin recipes.
By the way, if you want to skip the mixer, try these applesauce muffins, pumpkin muffins, & healthy apple muffins.
Best Apples to Use in Apple Muffins
Firmer apples are ideal for baking so avoid soft, mealy, and mushy apples. If you’re baking a recipe that calls for many apples such as apple crisp, apple cobbler, or apple crumble pie, use a mix of tart apples and sweet apples. These apple cinnamon muffins only need 1 or 2 apples (just like apple cupcakes), so it’s fine to use tart apples like Granny Smith or sweet apples like Honeycrisp, Fuji, and Pink Lady.
For a detailed list of my favorite apple varieties, and when to use each, you can visit my post The Best Apples for Baking.
More Apple Breakfast Recipes
- Apple Cinnamon Scones with Salted Caramel
- Baked Apple Cider French Toast
- Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal Cups
- Apple Cinnamon Rolls
- Apple Crumb Cake
Apple Cinnamon Crumb Muffins
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 14 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These apple cinnamon muffins start with an easy muffin batter that’s flavored with cinnamon, brown sugar, and plenty of juicy apples. Enjoy the muffins plain or top them with crumb topping before baking and smooth vanilla icing before serving.
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
- 1/3 cup (67g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (15g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, melted
- 2/3 cup (84g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
Muffins
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120g) yogurt or sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup (60ml) milk (any kind), at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups (180g) peeled & chopped apples (1/2-inch chunks; you need about 2 medium apples)
Vanilla Icing (Optional)
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar
- 3 Tablespoons (45ml) heavy cream (or milk for a thinner consistency)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. You may need a 2nd pan as this recipe makes up to 14 muffins, though you can always bake in batches using 1 pan. Set aside. *See note about jumbo size & mini muffins.*
- Make the crumb topping: Mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Stir in the melted butter, and then gently mix in the flour using a fork. Keep the mixture as large crumbles and do not over-mix. If over-mixed, this will turn into a thick paste. Set topping aside.
- Make the muffins: Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and both sugars together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, yogurt, and vanilla extract. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute, then turn up to high speed until the mixture is combined and mostly creamy. (It’s ok if it appears somewhat curdled.) Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients and milk into the wet ingredients and beat until no flour pockets remain. Fold in the apples.
- Spoon the batter evenly into each cup or liner, filling each all the way to the top. Spoon crumb topping on each, gently pressing it down so it sticks.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15–18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20–23 minutes. Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
- Make the icing: Whisk all of the icing ingredients together and drizzle over warm or cooled muffins.
- Iced or plain muffins stay fresh covered at room temperature for a few days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze baked & cooled muffins for up to 3 months. It’s best to freeze the muffins without the icing and add the icing after thawing and before serving. (Freezing them with the icing on is completely fine, but the muffins taste better with fresh icing.) Thaw muffins in the refrigerator or at room temperature before icing/serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack | Peeler
- Yogurt or Sour Cream: You can use either regular or Greek plain yogurt in this recipe (any fat content) or sour cream. The same amount of unsweetened applesauce or mashed banana may also be used if needed.
- Milk: You can use any milk, dairy or nondairy.
- For a jumbo muffin pan: Bake at 425°F for 5 minutes, then reduce to 350°F for 22–25 minutes, for a total of 27–30 minutes. Makes about 6. For mini muffins: Bake at 350°F for 12–14 minutes. Makes about 36–40.
- Quick Bread: Here is apple cinnamon bread, which is close to the same recipe and baked in a loaf pan.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read here for more information.
Reader Comments and Reviews
These are soft and delicious! Not too sweet, either. They are very easy to make.
Hi Sally. My grandson asked if I could make these muffins using bananas instead of the apples (have made this recipe three times so far). I think if I use the same amount of bananas it would be fine. What do you think?
Hi Ann! Chopped banana chunks should be fine to use instead of apples. I would reduce down the amount as you don’t want too many bananas in the batter– they could begin to mash up. I also have this banana muffins recipe, it’s one of my favorites.
I’m new to baking and these are so easy to make! Absolutely delicious and will make again soon!
Sally, I made these muffins yesterday and they were a huge hit. I could not believe how moist they were. I would love to make this recipe in a 13 x 9 dish. Should I just double the recipe? Thanks again for another great recipe. BTW, I ate two although not at one time.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! I haven’t tested it in a 9X13 pan but it should work. Let me know if you try it!
Hi Sally. I doubled the cake recipe, tripled the crumb mixture and baked it in a 9X13 pan. I was a little nervous but it turned out tasting just like the muffins according to my 16 year old grandson (he rules). I baked the cake at 425 for 5 minutes and 350 for 55 minutes. I put aluminum foil around the edges halfway through to insure they did not burn. I’m cutting and freezing pieces for my grandchildren when they want them. Thank you for all your great recipes. I love when I put a smile on my grandchildren’s faces. Have a wonderful Mother’s Day.
Sally, these muffins…oh these muffins…they are honestly one of the best things I’ve ever made! My father loved them, as did we all! The muffins are incredibly soft, tender, and moist, with wonderful flavor. I followed your advice and did eat some of the crumb topping off of the muffins before devouring the rest 😉 Definitely worth it. Instead of doing a vanilla glaze, I took some leftover caramel (your recipe) and made a caramel glaze. It pairs SO well with the apple! I will definitely be making these again sometime soon! Thank you for the fabulous recipe, Sally!
These are super delicious muffins! We had them for breakfast today and my kids ate them up so fast :). Thanks for the great recipes!
Hi Sally. My 8 year-old twin nephews LOVE these muffins. Request them all the time for school snack (I do all their baking). Can I make a bread (versus muffins) with this recipe without changes?
I’m so happy they love them! You can bake this in a loaf pan but I’m unsure the exact bake time.
Sally, could I incorporate different fruits into this batter? Maybe some peaches/apricots or raspberries? I feel like either of those would be sooooo tasty with the crumb topping.
Absolutely! Any fruit goes. I like making these with chopped peaches.
A couple months ago I visited a local coffee shop, had an apple muffin with really chunky apples and wanted to recreate it. I found the recipe on your site and made them over Christmas. They are exactly what I was looking for.! Next time though I will add a little more apple to them. In case anyone is wondering they freeze very well too. They make so many that I ended up freezing half and I’m still enjoying them in late January.
These are SUPER good! Followed instructions exactly & it made perfectly fat muffins with those nice muffin tops just how I like them. I only had a difficult time with the glaze being so thick I couldn’t drizzle them nicely over the tops. Instead it glopped even if I added extra cream to thin it out. So I just let it glop over the tops & let it cool that way. It was a huge mess but I honestly didn’t care because it was so worth how good it tastes! Next time I’ll try get my crumb topping to be more chunk…think I made mine too fine. I definitely recommend this recipe!! So glad I found it!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these so much! Next time for the glaze start with less sugar and add just enough to get the consistency you want.
Do you think I could use the crumb topping on an apple pie? It was so insanely good on the muffins when I made them!
Yes yes yes of course! Or try my apple crumble pie. 🙂
To freeze, should they be wrapped individually? Thanks!
Hi Kristen! I don’t wrap muffins individually when I freeze them, but you certainly could. I usually freeze muffins in a freezer-friendly container.
Hey Sally,
I made these muffins today, and they taste delicious! I only had a problem with the bottoms being too oily – could it be due to so much butter in the recipe?
Great muffins!
Cool mornings are for baking! I decided to try making these this morning! Excellent recipe! They are awesome! Thank you! I will be looking around at your other recipes to find my next baking project…
These muffins are amazing, thank you!! I did use sour cream instead of yogurt, because that’s what I had. They were instantly a family favorite.
Could I use the white whole wheat flour, instead of the white flour?
Absolutely!
Sally, I love your blog and have baked countless recipes from it. I baked these today for thanksgiving and a few times before and I have to say that these especially are amazing and turn out perfect everytime!
Sally I tried this recipe and my family and coworkers lost their minds! I’m wondering if this recipe would work in a loaf pan? I really want to make apple bread, but I’m unsure whether any changes to the recipe would be required (other than turning down the heat and cooking it for a bit longer). Can you please put apple bread on your list of things to make and share with us?!?!?
Hi Audrey! Actually, my favorite apple bread recipe is in my first cookbook, Sally’s Baking Addiction, if you have a copy 🙂 So glad everyone enjoyed these apple muffins!
Hi Susan! You can freeze the muffins with or without the glaze. If freezing with the glaze, you can still freeze the muffins for up to 3 months. The glaze will still be great! No need to unwrap with thawing, but if your muffins have a lot of glaze on top– definitely unwrap so nothing gets too sticky.
Hi Gina! You are so sweet! My favorite apples to bake with, no matter what I’m baking, are actually Granny Smith. Especially in these muffins.