Spice up your classic apple pie and try something a little different this time: Spiced Apple Muffins! These little babies feature a special, spicy twist with cinnamon and a hint of nutmeg. Their dough is moist and packed with fresh apple cubes, and the caramelized pecan nuts are like the cherry on the top. This is a little treat full of aroma that will WOW anyone, so get ready for when life gives you spiced apples.
I have to admit, I’m in looove with these. The combination of cinnamon and nutmeg might sound a little off, but I promise, these spices enhance one another and pair perfectly with the fresh apples. If you can, use freshly ground nutmeg, it will create an even richer flavor. A hint of rum adds to the intense, mouthwatering perfume. Another secret ingredient of the dough is mascarpone (or cream cheese) because it makes the dough super moist. To add a little bit of crunchiness, I added caramelized pecans as muffin toppings.
You might associate the flavors of cinnamon, apple and rum with autumn, but these little spiced apple muffins are perfect for any time of the year and any occasion: dessert, coffee, tea, even breakfast. It’s a super easy recipe with maximum flavor.
SPICED APPLE MUFFINS WITH RUM
EQUIPMENT
- 1 Muffin tin
INGREDIENTS
Caramelized pecans
- 50 g pecan nuts roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp cane sugar
- 1 tbsp water
Spiced Apple Muffins Dough
- 130 g all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp nutmeg finely ground
- 0.5 tsp cinnamon finely ground
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3 pinches of salt
- 50 g butter plus more for greasing the muffin pan
- 100 g cane sugar
- 2 eggs
- 4 tbsp of rum cognac or bourbon work well, too
- 0.5 tsp vanilla extract
- 100 g mascarpone or cream cheese
- 3 apples sour ones (fe. Boskop, Cox’s Orange, Elstar, Jonagold)
- 1 tbsp cane sugar for sprinkling
INSTRUCTIONS
Caramelized Pecans
- Heat the sugar with 1 tablespoon of water in a small saucepan until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat, add the pecans, mix them with sugar until the sugar has crystalized around the pecans. Place the skillet back on the heat, continue cooking for about 3-5 minutes, while stirring constantly, until the sugar becomes liquidy again and fully coats the pecans. The toasted-nut smell and golden brown color will appear when they are fully caramelized. Make sure to remove them from the heat before they get burnt. Leave to cool on parchment paper.
Spices Apple Muffin Dough
- Preheat the oven to 180° Celsius (356° Fahrenheit) and grease a muffin tin with a little bit of melted butter.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, whisk the butter together with the sugar until it has a light color, add the eggs and continue whisking until all ingredients are fully incorporated. Add the rum, vanilla extract and mascarpone and continue to whisk briefly until fully integrated.
- Peel two of the apples and cut them into 0.5 x 0.5 cm (0.2 x 0.2 inch) cubes. Add the apple cubes and the caramelized pecans to the butter-egg mixture. Combine half of the flour mixture to it, integrate gently with a spatula. Then, add the second half of the flour mixture and also gently blend. Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cup tin.
- Without peeling it, halve and core the third apple, and cut it into very fine slices. Arrange the apple strips nicely on top of the batter in the muffin cups and gently press the slices lightly into the batter. Sprinkle them with cane sugar.
- Bake in the preheated oven for approx. 15 minutes until golden brown and cooked all the way through. Check if cooked through by inserting a needle or small knife right to the base of one of the muffins in the center of the tin. When you pull it out, it should come away clean. If it has wet batter on it or is a little bit gummy when you pull it out, cook them for a few more minutes.
- Remove the muffins from the oven, letting them cool slightly. Carefully remove the muffins from the tin, using a small knife to remove the borders from the tin if they stick to it. Serve warm or allow to cool on a baking grate.
