Jump to RecipeA light and quick muffin from scratch with a scrumptious cinnamon sugar topping.
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Who doesn’t love cinnamon and sugar?!?! That combo alone just brings a smile to my face, YUM! These deliciously quick muffins are great for any day of the week but I find them more of a weekend breakfast, mostly as a treat considering they aren’t a healthy start to your day. Although, they are still better for you considering they are homemade. I mean really who doesn’t love a good muffin from scratch!
What are French breakfast puffs?
French breakfast puffs are honestly just a muffin with a fancy name and no they aren’t French, they do however puff up when they bake, so I guess that’s where the name French breakfast puffs came from. I would say they remind me a little of a very light cake doughnut on the inside. When made right they are fluffy lightly sweet and moist. They aren’t a hard muffin at all but sometimes people tend to over mix and over bake which will dry them out. The trick to these babies is you need to bake them just till the toothpick comes out clean or you will end up with a dry muffin.
Is this your recipe?
No, this recipe is actually from Betty Crocker. When I was a kid my parents would make us a delicious breakfast once a weekend. When we weren’t having waffles or pancakes then it was some kind of muffin. One of the ones I recall the most is French Breakfast Puffs! These little puffs always stuck with me and I always loved them.
Have you changed anything in the recipe?
The original calls for shortening, I do not use shortening I used unsalted butter at room temperature, besides that, I have not changed a thing!
Are these very sweet?
Not really, they are a very lightly sweet muffin. I think the little bit of cinnamon sugar topping just makes them the perfect sweetness.
Do I have to add nutmeg to this recipe?
You don’t have to if you don’t like it. Personally, I love nutmeg and wouldn’t dream of skipping it as this is the way the recipe was intended but if you are not a fan you can completely skip it or lessen it.
Can these made as mini muffins?
Yes, if you did mini you would come out with 24 mini muffins.
Can I double the French breakfast puffs?
Sure, if you decide to double them be sure to rotate the pans in the oven for even baking.
Can these be rendered to be gluten-free, dairy-free, or vegan?
Sure! I personally haven’t tried it but I cannot imagine it not working. For gluten-free just replace the all-purpose flour with bobs red mill gluten-free baking flour on a 1 to 1 ratio. Replace all the butter in the recipe with Earth balance unsalted butter sticks if you are dairy or vegan. The milk can be replaced with your favorite dairy-free or vegan alternative! As for the egg you will need to replace it with a vegan one, 1 tbsp ground flax meal, and 3 tbsp water, let sit in your fridge for 15 minutes to set up and thicken. Since I have not tried these alterations I would keep an eye on them while baking.
French Breakfast Puffs
Equipment
- 12 cavity cupcake pan
- Hand mixer
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter or earth balance unsalted butter sticks
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Egg or vegan egg, see notes
- 1 1/2 cups All-purpose flour or bobs red mill gluten-free baking flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup 2% milk or dairy-free/vegan alternative
Topping
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter melted or earth balance unsalted butter sticks
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° and line a 12 cavity cupcake pan with cupcake liners (or spray with pam) set aside.
- in a small bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg and lightly mix with a fork, set aside.
- In a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream shortening, and sugar. Beat in egg (or vegan egg) . Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk (batter will be thick).
- Fill the 12 cavities evenly then bake at 350° between 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean, don’t wait for the tops of your muffins to brown or you may wind up with a dry product.
- While the muffins are in the oven combine sugar and cinnamon and melt your remaining butter.
- When they are done, gently remove puffs from pans; quickly and carefully dip tops in butter, then in cinnamon-sugar. Best served warm but they are great either way!
Notes
If you enjoyed this recipe you may also love The Best Blueberry Yogurt Muffins!
Hey there! I’m the owner & author of Life Is Homemade (the blog), as well as Mad About Madeleines. I hope you enjoyed some of the delicious recipes, how-to’s, DIYs, & product reviews I blogged about. Thank you for your previous support I hope you stick around on my new journey with Mad About Madeleines.
I’m game for anything with cinnamon and sugar!
Me too!
These look tasty!
Thank you!
These look delicious, and easier than flipping french toast all morning!
Most definitely!
These look delicious. I can’t wait to try the recipe.
They are so good!
This looks delish!!!!! Thanks for sharing! Yum
Anything with cinnamon and sugar has my attention! I’d dig into this with joy!
You and me both!
My pleasure!
These puffs sound so good , and sound deceptively simple. Worth a try! I’m a disastrous cook. 😂
They are simple!
Very tasting and delicious looking! Thank you for sharing.
My pleasure!
These look delicious! I’m a sucker for anything with cinnamon sugar! LOL
Me too!
These look delicious, and the recipe doesn’t seem difficult! I was going to make muffins this week- I may have to do these!
Awesome, I hope you and your family enjoy them!
These look delicious! I am excited to try this recipe!
Thank you!