Cinnamon Muffins

11/20/2011

Thanksgiving is fast approaching, which is hard to believe with our temperature gauge reading almost 81 degrees Fahrenheit.

I don't think I'll grow accustomed to these warm holiday months. Despite being born in Houston, I spent my adolescence in Colorado, and I quickly adjusted evenings by the fireplace and Christmas Eves that brought Santa and snow.

However, I do enjoy wearing brown lace tights and a green cotton sheath a week before Thanksgiving. Even now, as I sip on soup in a too-hot apartment, I'm grateful I can look forward to a long walk without mittens or scarves.

Where do you live? Do you enjoy seasonal weather? Or like me, do you live in a place that stays warm longer than most?

But wherever you are, the holidays are so much more than weather. Despite the warmer temperature here in Texas, I still find myself feeling festive as I bake those seasonal classics. My spice jars have been recently refilled and my pantry is bursting with bags of flour and sugar.

This fall has been the season of cinnamon.

Cinnamon Rolls.

Cinnamon Bread.

And now...cinnamon muffins (by far the easiest recipe of the bunch).

I made these cinnamon muffins for a friend's baby shower, and they were perfect snacks to munch on as we oohed and ahhed over the onesies, rattles and baby toys. They would also be an ideal breakfast treat for visiting family or friends...and to be honest, they were even more popular than the cinnamon rolls. Wow!

I made this batch in a mini-muffin pan, but a regular sized pan would work just as well. The muffin is studded with cinnamon chips and a simple sprinkle of brown sugar on top lends an extra crunch. If you don't have access to cinnamon chips, don't worry...these muffins taste great with or without them. Just add an extra dash of cinnamon to the batter and you'll be fine.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week of feasting, family and friends. We'll be traveling down to Houston to spend Thanksgiving with my aunt, uncle, cousins and grandparents. I'm looking forward to my Grammi's pies and baked treats. She's truly been my baking inspiration, and so many of my recipes are in honor of her.

Cinnamon Muffins
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup whole milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup cinnamon chips
Brown sugar (a small handful)

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a standard 12-tin muffin pan or a 24-tin mini muffin pan.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. In a small bowl, whisk together your milk, vegetable oil, egg and vanilla. Using a large spoon or rubber spatula, fold your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients. Be careful to not overmix! Gently fold in cinnamon chips.

3. Divide evenly amongst muffins tins (I like using an ice-cream scoop for regular sized muffins). Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes (mini-muffins) or 15 minutes (regular muffins). Test with a toothpick before removing to cool. Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack.

Always,
Monet
Anecdotes and Apple Cores

Leah @ Why Deprive? link

11/20/2011 09:09:18 am

These muffins look amazing Monet. I love all things cinnamon - the smell definitely feels like fall/winter to me.

Jenn from Much to My Delight link

11/20/2011 09:12:40 am

No matter what the weather, seasonal baked goods always make it feel like a holiday! I can just imagine the smell these create in your 80-degree apartment! Heaven!

Have a wonderful holiday in Houston--I'll be sweating there myself a week after you!

Mary link

11/20/2011 09:45:42 am

These look delicious, Monet! I have been keeping my eyes open for the elusive cinnamon chips, but I still haven't found them. Maybe tomorrow will be my lucky day!

I'm in Phoenix, so as I write this, I sit in a house with the windows and doors open, enjoying the first few weeks of lovely weather this fall. I'm guessing that our highs today were about the same as yours.

I can hardly wait to head for the cabin (four hours from here) at Christmas time and enjoy some much colder weather and maybe even SNOW!! I'm from NM, so I really do miss having four seasons.

Baking Serendipity link

11/20/2011 11:37:58 am

I love your season of cinnamon :) I live in Phoenix, where the temperatures are still warm, and rely on food and scents to create the seasons now that the changing weather patterns I used to associate with them (when I lived in Ohio) are gone. These muffins are a perfectly holiday treat :) Wishing you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving!

Priscilla-ShesCookin link

11/20/2011 02:54:42 pm

Wow, more popular than the cinnamon rolls! Your mini muffins are adorable - I've never seen cinnamon chips (course I'm not quite the baker you are). We're having some wintry weather here in So Cal - rain! And, its nice for a change - really we are so spoiled with year-round pleasant weather that it's tough to adjust to really hot or cold climates once you've lived her for awhile. But I do miss fall colors. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, Monet!

Lynne @ CookandBeMerry link

11/20/2011 03:05:42 pm

I love cinnamon in sweet and savory dishes. There is just something so exotic about it. And satisfying. Your little mini muffins are just darn cute!

Los Angeles is cold and rainy. Winter has definitely arrived. Turned on the heat in the house this week for the first time. I grew up in Minnesota, though, so I know really cold. And snow. And ice. And shoveling.

Hope you have a great Thanksgiving!

penny aka jeroxie link

11/20/2011 05:22:43 pm

I prefer luke warm weather... warm in the day and chilly in the evenings so that I can rug up and be comfy

Kristen link

11/20/2011 07:37:01 pm

This year will be my first warm Thanksgiving ever. Even northern Arizona was cold compared to the 80 degree weather that we are expecting in Florida this year. How weird it will be to have to turn on the AC because I am baking pies and a turkey!!

Those muffins are gorgeous. I love how cinnamon baked goods lift my mood just smelling them in the oven. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, Monet.

Beth link

11/20/2011 09:20:19 pm

Have a wonderful time in Houston, and happy Thanksgiving to your whole extended family. These muffins must be truly amazing if they were more popular than the cinnamon rolls!

Nuts about food link

11/20/2011 10:41:41 pm

In Milan it gets pretty cold in the winter and pretty hot in the summer. Damp winters, humid summers. But I love changing seasons so I am not complaining. Hope you have a lovely thanksgiving with your grandma and aunts and uncles and cousins.

Vegan Thyme (Kelly) link

11/20/2011 10:44:52 pm

Hi Monet! Oh dear, I don't think I'd do very well in 80s in November! I can barely stand 60s. Here's hoping you get snow! The muffins look and sound divine. Have a lovely day and thank you as always for your kind note!

Sommer@ASP link

11/20/2011 10:50:54 pm

YES! Cinnamon EVErYthING! These muffins look fantastic--I'm bookmarking for later this week. :)

Kiri W. link

11/20/2011 11:08:38 pm

I enjoy few things more than a simply cinnamon pastry item. Lovely recipe!

Belinda @zomppa link

11/20/2011 11:39:47 pm

The weather is crazy, I can't figure it out! These would be such a perfect holiday brunch.

The Mom Chef: Taking on Magazines One Recipe at a Time link

11/20/2011 11:49:44 pm

I moved from a place where the seasons were too marked (Chicago) to a place where they're all there, but more moderate (North Carolina). I enjoy moving from one to the other and all the changes that each makes. I just can't stand being very, very cold. :)

These look delicious, Monet. I think they'd be a perfect item on the Thankgsiving brunch table (if I can find cinnamon chips). Many thanks for sharing.

April link

11/21/2011 12:19:47 am

These look delicious, I love cinnamon things...and I am jealous, I would love for warm weather year round instead of being stuck in this cold

Rita link

11/21/2011 12:27:13 am

Anything cinnamon makes me feel happy and warm. We are going though a cold snap at the moment, but the sun is out. I prefer to stay indoor.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.
Rita

Heather @girlichef link

11/21/2011 02:11:53 am

Growing up in Michigan and here and there in this area of the midwest, I crave a chilly Thanksgiving. Weather patterns seem to have shifted over the last couple of years, though. It's mid-40's here right now, but I can remember quite a few turkey days where snowsuits and hats and mittens were donned and the kids played in the snow while the adults cooked and watched football and chatted. Doesn't look like that's gonna happen this year. Still chilly enough to appease me, though ;)

Your muffins sounds scrumptious...they'd warm me right up on one of these chilly days!

thedabble link

11/21/2011 02:30:58 am

Have a wonderful time, Monet! You can't go wrong this time of year with cinnamon. Yum! We had our first big snow/ice snafu over the weekend here in Minnesota. Greg and I had a fun time trying to get to Trader Joes in St. Paul during it. But it's all melting today with higher temps. Happy turkey time!

Tina@flourtrader link

11/21/2011 03:56:32 am

I love cinnamon, so the more posts using that ingredient the better. These muffins would be great with some coffee on a cool morning.
It is bouncing weather here in Texas. Muggy and sticky one day and cool the next. February will be the coldest, so am gearing up with the winter stuff then.
Have an awesome Thanksgiving, Monet!

Maren link

11/21/2011 05:27:04 am

I don't crave bread too much anymore except for the occasional chocolate chip cookie and pizza... but these muffins made me have the worst bread craving ever. They look so wonderful.

Karen link

11/21/2011 07:58:53 am

ummmmmm . . those look and sound soooo gooood!!! Have a blessed Thanksgiving, Monet!

anh link

11/21/2011 11:26:46 am

I want to reach the screen and get one muffin for myself. Delicious.

Julie link

11/21/2011 01:13:18 pm

Cinnamon is so perfect this time of year. Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving enjoying your family :)

Sprigs of Rosemary link

11/21/2011 08:43:22 pm

I may not have been able to handle the bread (that silly fear of yeast thing) but I think I could manage the muffins! Hope you have a blessed and peaceful feast with your family!

Jeanne link

11/21/2011 11:26:25 pm

Luckily, we live in the foothills of the mountains so we get a bit of a chill in the air (this morning it was 41 degrees!), but during the day we have more mild temps. I really miss the seasons of New England! These muffins look so comforting. I hope that you have a wonderful Thanksgiving, Monet.

foodie @ Tasting Spot link

11/22/2011 03:01:08 am

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Joanne link

11/22/2011 04:41:18 am

Once again you out did your self. Those muffins look and sound delish.

As for weather, we "suffer" the seasons. Spring and Fall are perfect but come winter...I wish I could come visit you. :)

Brian @ A Thought For Food link

11/22/2011 06:04:08 am

Sending you lots of love and good wishes this Thanksgiving.

Mwah!

Becky link

11/22/2011 06:14:35 am

I love all things cinnamon, so I'm sure that I would love these muffins.

Here in Chicago Land our temps ahve been in the 40's-50. Pretty good for this time of year. Winter is fast approaching however, with the "S" word, snow.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family!

Magic of Spice link

11/22/2011 06:19:29 am

I love all things cinnamon and these are no exceptions...they look amazing!
Wishing you guys and family a very Happy Thanksgiving :)

Amy link

11/22/2011 09:01:17 am

Monet, these sound amazing! Cinnamon is so warming this time of the year and so delicious in baked goods. It makes us almost forget about the cold and having to wear tights (although I like the fashion aspect of them). Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving :)!
Amy

Jessy link

11/22/2011 09:31:06 am

These look delicious and so perfect for Fall! Here in Florida it is always hot! lol. Well we have a few weeks of cool weather and then back to hot again. Can't wait to make the muffins! thanks for sharing.

elisabeth@foodnandthrift link

11/22/2011 11:34:06 am

Your delicious cinnamon muffins are exactly what I need tomorrow morning with a tall mug of coffee. I will be making some things for Thanksgiving, but not the entire meal this time. We're invited to friends' house!
Wishing you, and your family a Happy Thanksgiving! We're having a nice cool day for Thursday. (cool, as in the upper sixties!)
Big hugs, to you sweet friend!

Angie@angiesrecipes link

11/22/2011 01:17:34 pm

Gorgeous muffins! It's breakfast time here and I wish I could just grab a few with my morning tea!

Happy Thanksgiving!
Angie

Liren link

11/22/2011 01:19:38 pm

Dear Monet! Safe travels to Houston - and warm cinnamony wishes for a happy gathering with your relatives this Thanksgiving. I'm so thankful for you and your sweet friendship! I do think these cinnamon muffins are in my near future :)

Faith link

11/22/2011 09:16:19 pm

These cinnamon muffins look wonderful -- they'd be the perfect thing for our family brunch tomorrow morning! I hope all is well with you and I'm wishing you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving, my friend! XO

Jessie -- The Messie Kitchen link

11/22/2011 10:09:54 pm

Monet, these look delicious. I can imagine how strange it would be to be in warm Austin this time of year, but I'm sure you will be enjoying it very much when all of your friends and family are freezing further north. This will be my first holiday season living in Boston, and while I'm going to Virginia to spend time with family, it still feels strange to be so far away. Happiest of holidays to you!

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Cinnamon Muffins

Monet MoutrieWriting and baking in Austin, TX. I'm currently pursuing my MFA in Creative Writing...with hopes of a pie shop and a book in the near future. Thank you for reading and sharing.

Monet Moutrie
Writing and baking in Austin, TX. I'm currently pursuing my MFA in Creative Writing...with hopes of a pie shop and a book in the near future. Thank you for reading and sharing.