WHAT TO EXPECT:
Prep Time: 1 hour | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
The perfect fall apple cider muffin! Flavored with green apples, an apple cider reduction, and cinnamon. Topped with an oat streusel.
*For helpful tips and how-to’s, make sure you read the whole post.
Don’t be intimidated by the various components of these apple cider muffins. While they may look a bit overwhelming, I guarantee these muffins come together easier than you think.
The trick, in my opinion, is to make your apple cider reduction ahead of time. In my case, I did it a night or two beforehand, which worked out perfectly.
What You’ll Find in This Post
- What You Will Need (Ingredients)
- Helpful Tip: Making an Apple Cider Reduction
- Helpful Tip: Don’t Over-Mix
What You’ll Need to Make Apple Cider Muffins
Ingredients for Apple Cider Muffins
- Apple Cider
- Unsalted Butter
- Brown Sugar
- Granulated Sugar
- Ground Cinnamon
- Granny Smith Apples
- Old-Fashioned Oats
- All-Purpose Flour
- Kosher Salt
- Baking Powder
- Eggs
Apple Cider Reduction – The Key to Flavorful Apple Cider Muffins
Apple is quite the elusive flavor when it comes to baked goods. After a conversation with my coworker about some apple cider donuts she had made, I decided to go the route of using an apple cider reduction as the liquid component of the recipe as opposed to milk. This turned out to make all the difference in these apple cider muffins!
This apple cider reduction is really quite simple. To make it, you’ll do the following:
- Bring the apple cider to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer
- Allow to simmer until you have 1 cup of liquid left
The liquid remaining after completing the above steps will be a concentrated apple cider that’s stronger in flavor and lower in volume to match what we need for the recipe.
Tip: to figure out what 1 cup of liquid looks like in the saucepan you’re using, I recommend pouring 1 cup of water into the empty saucepan and noticing where it comes to on the sides of the pan (empty it of water before starting to make your reduction. This will help you determine when our reduction is finished.
For more information on boiling down apple cider (and ideas for what to use it for, other than apple cider muffins), you can check out this article on King Arthur Baking! It might be making a little more than what you need for the recipe…just in case you want to keep some on hand 😊
Don’t Over-Mix if You Want Fluffy Apple Cider Muffins
An essential tip to keep in mind to ensure a fluffy and tender apple cider muffin crumb: do not over-mix your batter.
If you over-mix the batter (as I had done at one point during recipe testing), the apple cider muffins will have an unappealing and rubbery texture.
You want to mix your batter by gently folding the ingredients together until just combined. It’s okay if the batter is still a little lumpy. Think of wet/loose pancake batter as your guide.
If you make these apple cider muffins, let me know your thoughts by leaving a review! And don’t hesitate to tag me at @ficklebea on Instagram so that I can see your amazing creations.
New to baking or nervous about spending more time in the kitchen? Check out My Kitchen Commandments for some helpful tips!
PrintApple Cider Muffins
The perfect fall apple cider muffins! Flavored with green apples, an apple cider reduction, and cinnamon. Topped with an oat streusel.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Breakfast
Ingredients
Apple Cider Reduction
- 4 cups Apple Cider
Buttered Granny Smith Apples
- 4 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
- 2 Tbsp. Brown Sugar (packed)
- 1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- 2 cups Granny Smith Apples (peeled, cored, and diced)
Oat Streusel Topping
- 1/4 cup Brown Sugar (packed)
- 1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1/4 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- 1/3 cup Old-Fashioned Oats
- 1/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter (melted)
Apple Cider Muffins
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp. Kosher Salt
- 1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp. Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- 1 batch Buttered Granny Smith Apples (see above)
- 1 batch Apple Cider Reduction (see above)
- 2 Eggs (whisked)
Instructions
- Prepare the Apple Cider Reduction. In a medium sauce pan, bring four cups of apple cider to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until 1 cup of liquid remains. Set aside to cool. (* see Notes)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and grease your muffin tin.
- Prepare the Buttered Granny Smith Apples. In a skillet over medium heat, melt the 4 Tbsp. of unsalted butter. Once melted, stir in the 2 Tbsp. of brown sugar and 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon until combined. Add the diced apples and stir to coat the apple pieces. Bring to a simmer and gently stir until the butter mixture reaches a syrupy consistency. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- Prepare the Oat Streusel Topping. In a small mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, old-fashioned oats, and all-purpose flour with a fork. Pour the melted butter over top and stir with the fork until a crumbly texture is reached. Set aside.
- To make the Apple Cider Muffins, whisk together the all-purpose flour, salt, granulated sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl until combined.
- Add the cooled Buttered Granny Smith Apples to your dry mix and gently stir to combine with a spatula or wooden spoon until all apple pieces are evenly coated with the dry mix.
- Add the whisked eggs and Apple Cider Reduction to the dry mix and apples in two portions and gently fold to combine between additions, being careful not to over-mix. The batter will be very wet.
- Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup as your guide, carefully fill the muffin molds until they are each about 2/3 full (this ensures your muffins won’t spill out of the tins).
- Top each muffin with a generous portion of the Oat Streusel Topping.
- Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted into the center of a muffin and come out clean. Allow to cool completely before removing from muffin tins.
Notes
* You can prepare the apple cider reduction in advance. I prefer to make mine the night before I plan to make the muffins and keep it in the fridge overnight.
To help with your shopping list, here are the ingredients based on where they’re located in the grocery store and the total quantity you will need for the recipe.
Produce:
- Granny Smith Apples (3-4)
Dairy:
- Unsalted Butter (6 Tablespoons, just shy of a stick)
- 2 Eggs
Pantry:
- Apple Cider (4 cups)
- Old-Fashioned Oats (1/3 cup)
- All-Purpose Flour (2 and 1/3 cups)
- Brown Sugar (just over 1/3 cup)
- Granulated Sugar (1/2 cup)
- Kosher Salt (1 teaspoon)
- Baking Powder (2 and 1/4 teaspoons)
- Ground Cinnamon (1 and 1/4 teaspoons)
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