The Simplest Muffins
Add whatever fruit or nuts (or chocolate chips?) you like to this tasty whole-grain muffin. Read our blog about these muffins, with additional photos, at Bakers' Banter.
- 2 cups King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour or Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats or Hi-maize®: Natural Fiber
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon, optional
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups dried fruit, nuts, or chips
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla, optional
- 1/4 cup melted butter or vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs
Directions
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6) Remove the muffins from the oven, and let rest in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out to cool completely on a rack. Serve warm. |
Recipe summary
- Hands-on time:
- 7 mins. to 12 mins.
- Baking time:
- 15 mins. to 18 mins.
- Total time:
- 22 mins. to 30 mins.
- Yield:
- 12 muffins
- Recipe comments (14) »
Reviews
10/07/2009
05/30/2009
These muffins were very easy to make & all ingredients were easily on hand. They make a great breakfast treat, after-school or on-the-go snack because of the whole wheat, oats, and small amount of sugar. To ensure a moist muffin, watch it closely at the end so you can take them out as they just set. I added a few drops of orange oil and about 1 cup of cranberries (soaked in water for 15 minutes, then drained). These muffins would be rather plain without the addition of fruit, nuts, or some type of flavor like maple, citrus, almond, or vanilla. Though plain isn't always bad. A crumbly topping of 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon (optional), and 3 tablespoons of very soft butter would really liven them up too - crumble this on the top just before baking. The recipe yielded 14 muffins.
05/08/2009
I made these strictly according to the recipe, using dried cranberries. I am sad to say they will not be on my ‘keeper’ list.
They were 1) too dense, and dry, 2) taste bland. Perhaps orange or lemon zest would liven them up, but still, they rise only slightly and are too heavy for my taste.
I have seen King Arthur bakers demonstrations and know about ‘fluffling’ the flour prior to measuring, and all the other basics, so I am not sure how I went wrong on these, if I did. I baked them in an almost-new Wilton muffin pan (but without paper liners). Every other recipe I have used from this site has been just wonderful. But, sorry, not these.
Sorry this recipe did not work for you. If you'd like to troubleshoot it, call the Baker's Hotline at 800-827-6836. We will try to work out the glitches with you! Irene at KAF
04/07/2009
These are so simple I make at least one batch of these every weekend. My son loves them with cinnamon chips ( I add nutmeg) or choclate chips. I love them loaded with blueberries or cranberries and walnuts. I alter spices and vanilla depending on the fruit or chip added. They are not overly sweet, much to my liking, which allows the 'add-ins' to stand out.
02/01/2009
I made these muffins tonight and they were fabulous. I used 1.5 cups whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup AP flour, because that's what I had on hand. I also added blueberries and a touch of orange flavoring to the batter. I got 18 muffins out of this recipe.
01/22/2009
Preparation was straightforward - dry ingredients into wet ingredients. Spoon into muffin tins -- definitely use no-stick spray with paper lines! Using 1 1/2 C. 'add-ins', this recipe made 14 tasty muffins. The sparkling sugar gave them a 'bakery' style look that was visually appealing. And the taste was terrific! Store-bought muffins rank low after eating these fresh-from-the oven, 'I made them myself' gems. Use a cloth-lined basket and gently fill with muffins to serve -- everyone will be glad to see that you made plenty!
11/13/2008
The simplest muffins quite often are not the best tasting muffins.
I found these to be lacking in taste & quite heavy textured. This is definitely not a keeper....will move on to test another muffin recipe hopefully will find a great taster!
Thanks for giving these a test and sharing your experience. When you find that perfect muffin, please share it with us. Frank from KAF.
11/05/2008
Thanks for the recipe! I made these yesterday - they were quick, fast, and tasty, if a little dry. The recipe says it makes 12 muffins, and to fill the cups 3/4 full. However, in order to make 12, I had to fill the cups to heaping - and then I wasn't sure how long to bake them (which may be why they were dry? I baked them for 17 m inutes). Are these supposed to be baked in large muffin tins? Are you measuring your flour correctly? You need to fluff it in your canister then spoon it lightly into your measure, then level off. This will give a cup weighing 4.25 oz all-purpose or 4 oz whole wheat flour. If you measure differently you may have more flour then the recipe says-therefore more batter and a drier muffin. Joan @ baker's hot line < / i >
11/05/2008
These are easy and taste great. I used plumped craisins as my add-in.
11/05/2008
These may be the best muffins I've ever made. I substituted 1 teaspoon of maple flavor (Lorann brand) for the vanilla, and used a combination of cinnamon chips, walnuts, and the "fruitcake fruit blend" that King Arthur sells. I also used 1-1/2 teaspoons of Penzey's "Baking Spice." Someone on the blog that discusses this recipe mentioned using Quaker old-fashioned oats, and I also used them and ground them up in the food processor. I used melter butter rather than oil. I weighed all the ingredients (the only way to go), and everything turned out perfectly. The muffins were done at about 16 minutes for me. I did not let them sit in the pan for 5 minutes - more like 2 minutes. (I used muffin/cupcake papers and didn't spray them, and they were fine). My only complaint - and it's not really a complaint - is that it made 15 muffins instead of a dozen, so that took extra time baking 3 muffins. This got me wondering why Chicago Metallic or some other company does not make muffin pans that have 15 to 18 cavities, because it seems with just about every muffin recipe I have ever used, I always have leftover batter. Next time I might substitute maple sugar for the granulated sugar. How can you beat a combination of oatmeal-maple-cinnamon?!!
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