Apple Cider Muffins

You guys. I got my behind kicked this week by a little bug called strep throat. I volunteered at school for the first time and two days later it feels like I’m swallowing glass. Coincidence?!?!

Anyway, I walked (yes, walked) myself to the doctor to get some antibiotics and on the way there I stepped in dog poop. If I hadn’t been looking at the sign that says “bin your poo,” I probably would have avoided that landmine. It really wasn’t my day, but I’m sure it could have been worse. By the way, never assume your doctor’s office is sterile.

The doctor prescribed penicillin to treat the strep and I can’t ever recall taking penicillin. I didn’t realize one of the side effects is nausea. In my case, bad nausea. Handy Husband was kind of enough to Google the side effects for me while we were laying in bed last night. Then he casually mentions it is common to develop a black, hairy tongue while taking penicillin too. Talk about burying the lead! I rolled over and asked him if he wanted to check that out for me. Funny thing is, he declined!

I’m calling in sick today so I can obsessively check my tongue in the mirror. The only thing that sounds good to my nauseated stomach and still not 100% throat is this apple cider muffin recipe I made last year. I’m eating one as I type and sharing the recipe again with you now.

I’m not sure there is an eloquent way to say that I stuffed my face with these apple cider muffins.

On the off chance there is, that clearly wasn’t the way to say it.

You’ll forgive me after you’ve tasted these muffins.

There is no way my pictures can convey how happy your mouth will be when you taste these apple cider muffins.

I also cannot adequately convey how crushed your willpower will be when you try to only eat one.

Am I making myself clear about how good these are? Okay. Let me brush the cinnamon sugar off my keyboard so we can move on…

I first made this recipe last October after finding it on the awesome site, Sally’s Baking Addiction.

This easy muffins recipe produced muffins that were extraordinarily delicious when I made them a year ago. However, this fall,  I wanted to see if I could punch the recipe up with more flavor and wholesome goodness.

This is the kind of challenge I can get behind.

And really, it didn’t take much.

I made sure to spice up my cider reduction with cloves.

I also grated an entire apple into the batter.

Adding actual fruit to the recipe is my way of justifying the assault on my willpower that these muffins created.

I’d feel much happier and less guilty about today’s muffin consumption and tomorrow’s muffin-top if you’d make these muffins too. If anyone needs me, I’ll be on the treadmill.

Apple Cider Muffins
(recipe adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction: Spiced Apple Cider Donut Holes)

Muffin Ingredients
1 1/4 cups apple cider
2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 generous teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, room temperature
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk (you can mix 2 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice with 1/2 cup milk and let it sit for 5 minutes to make your own buttermilk. I mixed mine right in the measuring cup.)
1 – 2 teaspoons vanilla (I accidentally splashed more in and liked the results. HA!)
1 large apple grated (Core the apple, but leave the peelings on when you grate it.)

Topping Ingredients
3/4 cup sugar
1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup melted butter

1. Simmer apple cider and 5 -10 cloves (or a sprinkling of ground cloves) on medium-low heat for 15 – 20 minutes or until the cider reduces to 1/2 cup. Let the cider cool slightly.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease mini-muffin pan and set aside.

3. Combine flour, baking power, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt together in a large bowl.

4. In a different bowl, whisk the egg, melted butter, and both types of sugar together until smooth. Then whisk in the buttermilk, vanilla and 1/2 cup of concentrated apple cider.

5. Gently mix the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients until combined. Don’t over mix.

6. Grate the apple into your batter and gently mix in.

7. Fill the muffin tins to about 3/4 of the way full.

8. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The added apple in this recipe gives the muffins more moisture, so mine took the full amount to bake – just watch yours closely as it approaches 10 minutes. Okay? Thanks.

9. For the topping, combine the sugar in cinnamon in one bowl. Melt the butter in a separate bowl. Dip your muffins in the butter first and then into the sugar mixture. I actually was a little heavy-handed with my dipping, so I did need more butter AND cinnamon sugar. The shame! 🙂

10. ENJOY!!