Middle Of The Cinnamon Roll Muffins

Why we love this recipe

I love and adore this recipe, partly because it gives me the immediate gratification of getting to the center of the cinnamon roll immediately – these muffins are basically just the heart of the cinnamon roll in muffin form – but also because I wrote this recipe about 459,827 years ago when my baby girl was a baby.

Okay, she was actually a teenager, and she had to get up early one weekend morning for some reason that is now lost to the mists of time (and by early I mean before lunchtime…that is the teenager equivalent to the crack of dawn) and I figured that having warm muffins that tasted like the center of cinnamon rolls would soften the blow.

(Side note: now that she is a full-on married adult and we are all living harmoniously together in our multigenerational house, when she isn’t working she can still stay up until 4 am and sleep until 1pm and be fresh as a daisy.

For me, staying up past 10pm feels like I am pulling an all-nighter.  As a result, there is usually someone awake in my house 24 hours a day…we’re like a 7-11. )

At any rate, it felt like time to share this delectable recipe again, so away we go!

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities and nutritional information.

How to make this recipe

Line a muffin tin with 12 standard sized paper liners and preheat your oven to 350.

Mix together a cup and a quarter of flour, a teaspoon and a quarter of baking powder and a teaspoon of salt.  

In a separate bowl, mix together a quarter cup of brown sugar, 2 tablespoons of finely chopped walnuts or pecans, and a teaspoon of cinnamon.

Put a third of a cup of softened butter in a third mixing bowl and beat on high speed until it is nice and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Reduce speed to medium and slowly pour in a cup of sugar, scraping down the sides of the mixer as needed. Beat for about 2 minutes.

Add an egg, beat it up well, and then add a teaspoon of vanilla.

Next! Reduce your mixer speed to low and alternately add flour mixture and milk in about 3 stages.

Time to make the muffins happen!  Spoon one tablespoon batter into each muffin cup. Top with a generous teaspoon of cinnamon mixture. Spoon remaining batter on top of each muffin, and then sprinkle with a generous topping of cinnamon mixture.  Don’t worry if they don’t look perfect – they are going to TASTE perfect.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool in the muffin tin until the muffins are cool enough to take out, and then take them out of the tin and finish cooling on a rack.

While the muffins are cooling, make the glaze! Mix a cup of confectioner’s sugar with a half teaspoon of vanilla and one or two tablespoons milk in a small bowl until smooth – I find a fork or a small whisk works great for this..

Drizzle glaze over top of muffins, or if you want to be Totally Professional you can make your own disposable pastry bag by filling a zip-close sandwich bag with the glaze, snipping off one corner with a scissors and squeezing the glaze out through the opening.

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Middle Of The Cinnamon Roll Muffins

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These quick and easy middle of the cinnamon roll muffins give you that perfect center of the roll taste we all save for last!

• Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cooling Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 12
• Category: Breakfast
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

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For the muffins

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/8 cup finely chopped pecans (or walnuts)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2/3 cup milk

For the glaze

• 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1–2 tablespoons milk

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Instructions

1. Line a muffin tin with 12 standard sized paper liners and preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix together flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together brown sugar, nuts and cinnamon.
4. Put butter in a mixer and beat on high speed until fluffy, about 30 seconds. Reduce speed to medium and slowly pour in sugar, scraping down the sides of the mixer as needed. Beat for about 2 minutes.
5. Add egg, beating well, followed by vanilla.
6. Reduce speed to low and alternately add flour mixture and milk in about 3 stages.
7. Spoon one tablespoon batter into each muffin cup. Top with a generous teaspoon of cinnamon mixture. Spoon remaining batter on top of each muffin, and then sprinkle with a generous topping of cinnamon mixture.
8. Bake for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool in the muffin tin until the muffins are cool enough to take out, and then remove and finish cooling on a rack.
9. Mix sugar, vanilla and milk in a small bowl until smooth – use one tablespoon of milk to start, and then drizzle in more if you want a thinner consistency.
10. Drizzle glaze over top of muffins (or you can make your own disposable pastry bag by filling a zip-close sandwich bag with the glaze, snipping off one corner with a scissors and squeezing the glaze out through the opening).

Updated (and made even more delicious!) from a previously published Framed Cooks post!