The Home Cook: French Breakfast Muffins

A few days a go, my weekly Better Homes and Gardens e-mail featured breakfast stuffs. Pancakes, waffles, quiches, frittatas...it had them all. Including a link to a BHG Muffin Recipe Interactive, very exciting stuff. One of the recipes was for French Breakfast Muffins...now all things being equal, the French know a few things about food. Any culture that relies that heavily on butter and cream must be able to whip up some magnificent breakfast goodies. Not that this recipe actually came from France, in all honesty is probably based off some 60 year old New England granny's recipe that she clipped from a box of Jiffy Mix. BUT, it still looked good and I wanted to give it a try.

I'm glad I did, they are a nice sweet little muffin that would be a perfect side for any breakfast. I think I'd really enjoy them with some poached eggs and a bit of bacon. They fill that doughy hole usually filled by English Muffins, buttered toast or a half a bagel quite nicely. The recipe is smallish, only making about 8-12 depending on how you fill your muffin cups. For my first run I substituted half the AP flour with White Whole Wheat flour in my on going effort to increase the amount of whole grains we eat. Unfortunately definitely affected the end product. I think had I gone with straight AP, this batch would have been a fluffier more tender muffin. The addition of the White Whole Wheat while healthier, made the muffins a bit mealy...not unlike cornbread. I can't say I dislike it as it certainly tastes much better than cornbread...but I'm guessing it's not what the end product is supposed to feel like in your mouth. Regardless, I think that the substitution was ok and definitely didn't ruin the recipe by any means.

I also added 1/4 teaspoon of All-spice to the batter. Nutmeg is such a great spice, but I always feel bad when I see him all alone, he has such great buddies in ginger, clove and all-spice that it's hard not to add one or two of them to whatever I'm making. This upped the subtle flavor of the muffin a bit and will most certainly be added again next time. I'm glad I took the time for this recipe, it will be nice to have some in the freezer for days I'm on the road or late for work...and even with the slightly altered texture the recipe is definitely a keeper and will be a nice addition to the muffin collection.

French Breakfast Muffins

1-1/2 cups Flour
1/2 cup Sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon Salt
1 Egg
1/2 cup Milk
1/3 cup Butter, melted
1/4 cup Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/4 cup Butter, melted

In a mixing bowl combine flour, the 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.

In another bowl beat egg slightly; stir in milk and 1/3 cup melted butter or margarine. Add egg mixture to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (the batter may be lumpy). Lightly grease muffin cups. Fill cups about two-thirds full with batter. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until muffins are golden.

Meanwhile, in a shallow bowl combine the 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Immediately dip tops of hot muffins into the 1/4 cup melted butter or margarine, then into the cinnamon-sugar mixture until coated. Serve warm. Makes 12 muffins.

Recipe courtesy BHG.com