Cinnamon muffins are so easy to make and full of pockets bursting with cinnamon flavor. Great for a snack or breakfast on the go, these muffins keep well and can be frozen for later.
It is no secret that we love muffins in our house, and this cinnamon muffin recipe is one of our favorite recipes (along with these easy blueberry muffins).
Cinnamon Muffins Recipe Ingredients
For the Muffins, you will need:
- Granulated sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Salt
- Cinnamon
- Milk
- Vinegar
- Vegetable oil
- Large eggs
- Vanilla extract
For the streusel topping, you will need:
- Brown sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Cinnamon
- Butter
For the exact amounts needed, please see the recipe card below.
How to make Cinnamon Muffins
For the Muffins
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F and grease a muffin tray well or line it with paper liners.
- In a bowl, combine your milk and vinegar and allow it to rest for a couple of minutes to thicken.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set it aside.
- After your dry ingredients are mixed up, make a well in the center with a spatula or spoon. Forming a well to put the wet ingredients (the milk mixture, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract) into makes it easier to incorporate them gradually, minimizing lumps in your batter.
- Mix to combine but do not overmix. This could definitely be done by hand with a whisk. I was just excited to use my new ice blue kitchen aid mixer. *affiliate link
- Divide the batter evenly between about 15 muffin cups, filling each one about ¾ of the way full.
For the Streusel
- After you have the batter ready, it’s time to make the streusel topping. This topping is what creates those delicious pockets of gooey cinnamon butter within the muffin.
- Combine the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a bowl.
- Add in the butter and then mix until combined. It should be sticky and lumpy.
- Drop the streusel in smaller portions over the top of the batter in the muffin tins, gently pressing it down into the batter to get it to adhere to the muffin tops.
- I just pinch off small portions and lay them on top of the portioned batter in the muffin tin. I push a few down deeper than others, you could even layer it halfway in the batter if you wanted.
- I like putting it all on top because I don’t want it to sink down in the bottom of the tin. I find that it burns easily when it reaches the bottom of the muffin tin. You can see in this picture how it melts pretty far down into the muffin just by being set on top anyways.
- Bake in the oven at 425 degrees F for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and come out clean or with just a few crumbs.
Cinnamon Muffin Recipe Substitutions
Buttermilk vs DIY buttermilk
- The secret to getting a nice soft crumb on these cinnamon muffins is using vinegar to make your milk into buttermilk. You can, of course, just use buttermilk. But I never have that on hand, and this is just so easy. As a general rule, replace 1 tablespoon from 1 cup of milk with vinegar for a good buttermilk substitute.
- If you wanted to you can easily omit the vinegar in this recipe and just use buttermilk in place of the milk. This will save you a few minutes of prep.
Oil vs Butter
- Using oil will give these muffins a lighter texture, especially if you keep them for a few days. Butter will be slightly denser and dry out more quickly over time.
Tips for Cinnamon Brown Sugar Muffins
- A word of caution – these cinnamon muffins come out of the oven looking MESSY. You’ll be able to see it in the video. If you want to avoid such a mess, only fill the muffin cups up 2/3 of the way. I like a bigger muffin though so I just go for it and the mess doesn’t bother me.
- I also like to swirl the cinnamon crumb mixture into the muffins by using a toothpick so that the cinnamon flavor gets deeper into every muffin but this is an optional step and isn’t really necessary.
Cinnamon Muffin Recipe FAQs
If you overmix your batter after the flour has been added you will overdevelop the glutens in the flour while releasing air from the batter which as a result will give you a more dense or rubbery textured muffin. To avoid this simply mix the batter just enough to incorporate the flour to the point where no more flour streaks remain.
Buttermilk helps to provide a depth of flavor thanks to the tangy creamy taste it brings to the table. It also helps to create a richer texture and thanks to the added fats it helps your cinnamon sugar muffins to stay moist for days.
While oil can help keep muffins moist, the way they are mixed and baked is more critical. Do not over mix muffins after the flour is added. Once the flour is added, mix the batter until it is just combined. When baking, bake them until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs on it.
Letting all the muffin ingredients come to room temperature before baking will make them fluffy. The balance of flour and the leavening agent will also impact how fluffy a muffin is.
Brown sugar can add richness to muffins. In this recipe, brown sugar is used in the cinnamon mixture.
Storing Brown Sugar Cinnamon Muffins
How long are cinnamon muffins good for?
These muffins can last about 3-5 days when stored in an airtight container at room temperature. This should give you plenty of time to enjoy them and if desired you can simply pop them into the microwave for 10-15 seconds to recreate that fresh from the oven taste.
Best way to store Cinnamon Muffins
The best way to store cinnamon muffins is in an air-tight container or zipper-top bag.
Can Cinnamon Brown Sugar Muffins be frozen?
Yes. Cinnamon brown sugar muffins can be frozen. Place them in a single layer in a zipper-top bag or airtight container and place in the freezer.
If you’re looking for another delicious cinnamon recipe, check out this recipe for Cinnamon Coffee Cake!
More favorites from Longbourn Farm
Cinnamon Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Muffins
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup milk less 1 tablespoon
- 1 tablespoon vinegar white or apple cider
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil or butter, see note
- 2 eggs large
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the Strussel
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons butter
Instructions
For the Muffins
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Combine milk and vinegar and let sit for a couple of minutes to thicken.
- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Create a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the thickened milk mixture, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract.
- Mix until just combined, do not over mix.
- Divide batter evenly among about 15 muffin cups, they will be 3/4 of the way full.
For the Streusel
- Combine brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon.
- Add the butter and mix until combined, it will be sticky and lumpy.
- Drop small portions of the streusel over the top of the batter in the muffin tins, gently pressing it down into the batter (see note).
- Bake at 425 degrees F for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
Ashley says
Every single one of my muffins burned on the bottom. I’m so sad! I am a very competent baker and I was so bummed because they are all ruined. I usually bake muffins at around 350 or 375 so maybe this was just way too hot. They also seem over-baked on the inside. Otherwise, the tops looked beautiful.
www.wonderfulcook.com says
My whole family loves muffins. Can’t wait to try it out next week! Look so tasty and I’m sure the kids will love these.
TK says
While the muffins did come out moist, the topping overflowed a little too much onto my pan, hardening it and also on the muffins, even though I did press down topping into the muffin. I was also hoping for a stronger cinnamon taste. Maybe mixing the topping into the muffin would do that.
Alli says
Hi, thank you for this feedback! I’ve updated the recipe card to be more clear on how much to push down the cinnamon sugar topping, the post outlines tips regarding this issue a few times in the text.
Lorraine says
Can I use becel instead of butter for these cinnamon muffins ? Thanks 😊
Alli says
Hi Lorraine, I’m not sure because I’ve never tested that in the recipe, but if it’s just for the streusel topping I think it should work out fine.
Ann says
Can I make this without vinegar?
Alli says
You can use buttermilk in place of the regular milk + vinegar combo.
Kim says
Made these for my birthday breakfast and they were delish! My topping didn’t really sink into the batter either, but they still tasted yummy.
Alli says
So glad you liked them, Kim!
Carol says
Wondering what I did wrong. Couldn’t get the topping to stick together like yours, so it just sat on top of muffins even though I tried to poke it down. .Thanks for sharing.
Alli says
Hi Carol, I just swirl mine in with a toothpick but it should be fine if it stays on top as well.
Alli says
My husbands favorite muffin recipe!