These moist apple muffins are a breeze to make, using simple ingredients that deliver big on flavor! Loaded with fresh, juicy apples and warmly spiced with cinnamon, they’re the perfect treat for busy mornings or a cozy afternoon snack.
What Type of Apples to Use for Apple Muffins
Typically when it comes to baking anything with apple, you want to try and use a ‘baking apple’. Popular baking apple’s include Honeycrisp apples, Granny Smith, Jonagold, Braeburn, and Royal Gala apples.
Why baking apples? They’re typically firmer and hold their shape better when baked. This ensures that the apple slices or chunks in your muffins maintain some texture and don’t turn into mush. Softer apples like Red Delicious or Golden Delicious can become too soft and watery when baked, although they may be fine for this muffin recipe as they bake up pretty quickly 🙂
What You’ll Need to Make Apple Muffins
What I love about this recipe is that it’s simple to make (no electric mixer required) and uses ingredients you probably already have in your pantry!
Here is what you’ll need:
– All purpose flour (plain four in the UK).
– Baking powder (no baking soda in this recipe)
– Salt
– Ground Cinnamon
– Ground cloves & nutmeg (optional, but recommended! Adds a wonderful flavor, similar to my spiced apple cake and spice cake recipe).
– White granulated sugar (you can use brown sugar too as a substitute. For the topping, make sure you use coarse sugar though, as soft brown sugar won’t provide the same ‘crunch’).
– Eggs
– Unflavored vegetable oil (I use canola oil. I preferred vegetable oil over melted butter for this recipe as it made for moister muffins, that stayed moist for longer).
– Whole milk
– Vanilla
– Fresh red apples (any red baking apple will work).
Want more muffin recipes? You can find all my muffins recipes here, including my banana muffins that have a delicious crumb topping, chocolate muffin recipe and more!
How to Make Apple Muffins
You can find the full list of ingredients in the recipe card at the end of the blog post (for easy navigation, hit the ‘jump to recipe’ button at the top of the blog post). Here is just a quick visual breakdown of the recipe (recipe video is also provided in the recipe card below).
Preheat oven to 200℃ (390℉) conventional and line a 12-hole standard muffin tin with muffin liners. Set aside for now.
Topping: Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon and stir to combine. Set aside for now.
Muffin batter: Begin by peeling and dicing the apples (remember to remove the core).
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside.
In a large bowl add in sugar, eggs, oil, milk and vanilla. Using a whisk, mix until well combined and smooth.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and using a spatula, fold until just combined. Add in diced apples and fold until just combined. Avoid overmixing.
Distribute the batter into the cases in the muffin pan (until almost full — leave a little space at the top). Sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mixture evenly across the top of the muffins.
Place into the preheated oven and then once the oven door is closed, immediately reduce the temperature to 180℃ (350℉) conventional. Cook for 20-23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs on it.
Once done, allow the muffins to cool in the tray for 10 minutes, before carefully placing the muffins on to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!
How to Store Apple Muffins
These apple muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. The apples do make the muffins more soft over time, so you can add a paper towel inside the container to absorb moisture and prevent them from becoming too soggy (although I quite like them like that!)
For longer storage (up to 5 days), place the muffins in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring them to room temperature or warm them slightly in the microwave before eating.
Moist Apple Muffins
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Topping
- 2½ tbsp white granulated sugar
- 1¼ tsp ground cinnamon
Apple Muffins
- 1¾ cups (210 g) all purpose flour - plain flour in the UK
- 1½ tsps baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1½ tsps ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg - optional
- ⅛ tsp ground cloves - optional
- 1 cup (200 g) white granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs - room temperature
- ½ cup (105 g) unflavored vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- ½ cup (120 g) whole milk - room temperature
- 2 tsps vanilla extract/essence
- 1¾ cups (210 g) diced fresh apples - peeled and cored. About 2 medium apples.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200℃ (390℉) conventional (see note 1 if using a convection oven) and line a 12-hole standard muffin tray with muffin liners. Set aside for now.
- Topping: Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon and stir to combine. Set aside for now.
- Muffin batter: in a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl add in sugar, eggs, oil, milk and vanilla. Using a whisk, mix until well combined and smooth.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and using a spatula, fold until just combined. Add in diced apples and fold until just combined. Avoid overmixing.
- Distribute the batter into the muffin cases (until almost full — leave a little space at the top). Sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mixture evenly across the top of the muffins.
- Place into the preheated oven and then once the oven door is closed, immediately reduce the temperature to 180℃ (350℉) conventional (see note 2). Cook for 20-23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Once done, allow the muffins to cool in the tray for 10 minutes, before carefully placing the muffins on to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
42 Comments
This is a great recipe.. I added some almonds into the batter and also sprinkled crushed almonds on top with the cinnamon sugar. Came out very tasty. Thanks for the recipe.
Yay! So glad you loved the muffins Rabinder 🙂
So delicious! My daughter and I doubled the recipe for our big family of 6 following it exactly as written and they turned out perfect! This recipe is a keeper and will be a regular around here 😋
Aww yay! So glad you and your family loved the recipe Lisa 😀
I love all your recipes especially the fudgy brownies! I have also tried your banana bread, carrot cake and muffin recipes – a superhit always! Thank you for virtually helping me satiate my pregnancy cravings! For the apple muffin recipe – can I grate the apple instead of dicing due to texture preference?
Thanks so much Akshaya! So happy to hear you’re loving the recipes 😀
I havent tried grating the carrots myself for this recipe, but I think it should work perfectly fine! 🙂
If I’m using a tin of cubed apple which is not sweetened how can I sweeten it
Hi Patricia! I think leaving them unsweetened will be best as this recipe uses fresh apples and the batter has sugar in it for sweetness 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hiya, can you swap the oil for butter? Thanks!
Hi Ellie! 🙂 Yes you could do that, just keep in mind the muffins may not be as moist once cooled, but will still taste great! Hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Made these tonight. Hubby got stuck in almost as soon as they came out of the oven… the aroma was driving him crazy. The look on his face indicated 5 stars😁
Haha so so happy to hear that Mary! Really appreciate the wonderful feedback 😀
I just made this apple muffin and they are super delicious 😋 I used green apples cause I had green apples super good muffins and easy recipe 🙏 thank you so much for your recipe love it 💕
Yay! So glad you loved the muffins Maria 🙂
Hello MK
Whoow you have make nice cakes and recipe everything is nice
Thanks so much Lungiswa 😀
Thank you so much for this recipe, it’s produced the best apple muffins I’ve ever made and my family have ever had!
I bake muffins and cupcakes more regularly than full cakes as they are quicker and just a bit easier to manage serves, so I’ll be sure to try out your other recipes for these…they all look fabulous!
I am so so happy to hear you and your family loved the apple muffins Linda! 😀
Thanks so much for the wonderful feedback and hope you enjoy the other recipes just as much 🙂
Hi, if I replace granulated sugar with brown sugar, will the measurements remain the same?
Hi Vass! I haven’t tried that myself, but in the batter it should be fine and all other quantities will stay the same 🙂
For the topping, if using soft brown sugar then you may not get a crunchy topping. If using granulated brown sugar then it should be okay 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Delicious muffins, especially loved the sugary cinnamon on top! Really easy to make too! 10/10!
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed the recipe and found it easy to make Amelia 😀