Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (2024)

Standard Muffin Recipe – A plain muffin batter is added to a muffin tin, then you can add your favorite flavors (fruit, nuts, chocolate, etc.) to each muffin. Great for kids and guests because everyone gets to choose the type of muffin they want.

Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (1)

About a year ago, I noticed severalrecipes trending on Pinterest involving pancake batter and muffin tins. Some people called them puffins, some people called them individual baked pancakes. The generalidea was totake pancake batter and pour it into a muffin tin, then top the batter with your favorite flavors (fruits, nuts, chocolate chips, oats, etc.) and bake it. I thought it was a great idea, so I tried it. Unfortunately, I didn’t really like it. The thing about pancake batter is,it’s not very good on its own. That’s probably why most people douse their pancakes in lots of maple syrup. Even when I added syrup to the baked pancakes, or whatever you want to call them, they still weren’t my favorite.

But, I still really liked the idea of being able to use a bunch of different flavors/toppings to add to one standardbatter. The batter just needed to taste better.So why not use the muffin tin for it’s actual purpose, making muffins!Muffin batter is lighter and sweeter; and you can still add all of your favorite additional ingredients to it.

This is great forhouse guests, kids, and picky eaters because everyone can choose theirfavorite flavor of muffin to make. It’s also a great way to get creative in the kitchen. I tried a lot of different flavor combinations and some of the ones that sounded a little strange ended up being great, like dried cranberry and sweetened coconut.

Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (2)All you do is follow the standard muffin recipe below, fill a muffin tin with the batter, and top with your favorite muffin flavors/additions.Use a toothpick to push the additional ingredients down into the batter and swirl them around a bit. This way the additional ingredients are spread throughout the muffin and don’t just sit on top of it, as you can see in the blueberry muffin pictured on the right. Then, just bake and cool the muffinslike any other muffin recipe. Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (3)The amount of additional ingredients you add is up to you, if you like lots of chocolate chips in your muffins, then add lots of chocolate chips. I ended up using about a tablespoon of each additional ingredient.

I experimented with lots of different flavor additions for this standard muffin recipe. Here are a few that I tried: blueberry (pictured on the right), banana nut, chocolate chip, dried cranberry & sweetened coconut, mango & sweetened coconut, Peanut butter & jelly, and brown sugar & oats.

Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (4)

Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (5)This brown sugar and oats muffinwas another one of my favorites. The brown sugar addition really sweetened it up.

I do have a suggestion for your flavor additions. If you are adding an ingredient that is not very sweet, like blueberries, you may want to roll that ingredient around in a little sugar before you add it to the batter.

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Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (6)

4.95 from 50 votes

Standard Muffin Recipe - A plain muffin batter is added to a muffin tin, then you can add your favorite flavors (fruit, nuts, chocolate, etc.) to each muffin. Great for kids and guests because everyone gets to choose the type of muffin they want.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Video

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Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp. baking powder
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup skim milk, or your preferred milk/milk alternative
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
  • cooking spray

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place muffin liners in a muffin tin and spray with cooking spray.

  • In a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine.

  • In another bowl, add the sugar, milk, vanilla, egg, and oil. Whisk to combine.

  • Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined; batter should be lumpy. Do not over mix.

  • Fill the muffin liners ¾ of the way up.

  • Add your favorite muffin flavors/additions (fruit, nuts, chocolate chips, oats, etc.). Take a toothpick and push the additional ingredients down into the batter and swirl them around a little.

  • Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

If you are going to use a muffin addition that is not very sweet, like blueberries, it would be a good idea to roll that ingredient around in a little bit of sugar before you add it to the muffin batter.

The baking powder will start to react as soon as the wet ingredients are added to the dry ingredients. So, it's a good idea to have all of your additional ingredients prepared (ie. fruit peeled and chopped) before the batter is made.

Nutrition

Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 152kcal | Carbohydrates: 23.7g | Protein: 3.1g | Fat: 4.9g | Saturated Fat: 0.5g | Fiber: 0.5g

Course Bread/Muffin, Breakfast, brunch

Keyword basic muffin recipe, muffins, standard muffin recipe

Cuisine American

Author Amanda Finks

Tried this recipe?

Let us know how it was by leaving a review or sharing on Instagram with the tag #thewholesomedish!

Standard Muffin Recipe - The Wholesome Dish (2024)

FAQs

What is the general ratio of flour to water in a muffin? ›

The magic ratio for muffins in 2:2:1:1. This means 2 parts flour to 2 parts liquid to 1 part fat to 1 part eggs. The really important part is remembering to use the same unit of weight for each part!

What is the most important rule to follow when baking muffins? ›

The number one rule for successful muffins is: Don't over-mix the batter. Use a rubber spatula to quickly fold (gently stir) the liquid ingredients into the dry ones. A few streaks of flour still showing is okay, especially if you plan to add in extra ingredients like fruits and nuts.

What is the formula for muffins? ›

A basic formula for muffins is 2 cups flour, 2-4 tablespoons sugar, 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 egg, 1/4 cup oil, shortening or butter, 1 cup milk. When the fat, sugar and egg ratio in a recipe reaches double or more than this, you have reached the cake level.

What are 4 steps for the muffin mixing method? ›

The muffin method is quick and easy. Mix the dry ingredients together. Mix the wet ingredients together including the eggs, and then add the wet mixture to the dry mixture with a rubber spatula and you're ready to bake. (Don't use the electric mixer.)

What are the 5 steps in the muffin method? ›

The Muffin Method Mixing Method
  1. Dry in one bowl.
  2. Wet in another.
  3. Wet in dry.
  4. Stir, stir, stir.
  5. Bake.

Is it better to use milk or water in muffin mix? ›

In a muffin mix that calls for water, can I substitute milk? A. We don't recommend using milk instead of water because the milk can make holes in the paper liners or the sides of the muffins.

What happens if you put water in muffin mix instead of milk? ›

Though you may notice a slight difference in texture, you can definitely substitute water for milk when preparing our muffin mixes!

Do you need baking soda and baking powder for muffins? ›

In muffins, there's usually only baking powder. Baking powder is double acting, meaning it activates upon mixing with moisture and then again upon the heat of the oven. For recipes only leavened with baking soda, which loses efficacy over time if it's not baked immediately, this technique likely wouldn't work as well.

What is the secret to a great muffin? ›

18 Tips For Making The Absolute Best Muffins
  1. Warm up your ingredients before baking. ...
  2. Always test your leavening agents. ...
  3. Pull out your scale to weigh ingredients. ...
  4. Avoid over-mixing your batter. ...
  5. Add mayo to the batter for more moisture. ...
  6. Use both butter and oil in your muffin recipe. ...
  7. Let your muffin batter rest.
Apr 20, 2023

What is the secret to high muffins? ›

bake at high temperature initially

High heat encourages the muffins to rise quickly and create a nice dome. You can start baking them at a higher temperature, such as 425°F (220°C), for about 5 minutes, and then lower the temperature to the regular baking temperature for the remaining time.

What is the most common flaw when baking muffins? ›

Overmixing is a common problem with muffins. First combine dry ingredients, mixing well. Then combine liquid ingredients, mixing well. Finally combine dry and wet ingredients, by hand, using only 15 to 20 light strokes.

Is it better to use butter or oil in muffins? ›

Many muffin recipes use cooking oil instead of butter. Oil, being a liquid, distributes easily in the quick-mix batter and is readily absorbed into the baked muffin, producing a light non-greasy texture. Vegetable oil is ideal because its mild flavour doesn't compete with the main flavour of the muffin.

What type of flour is best for muffins? ›

You can use either all-purpose flour or pastry flour; all-purpose flour gives you a sturdier muffin while a pastry flour muffin will be lighter and more delicate.

How do you make muffins rise higher? ›

Start the oven on high

Bake your muffins at 400°F for the first 5 minutes, then drop the temperature to the more standard 350°F for the remainder of the bake time. This method sparks the leavening agents (especially baking powder) in the batter to react quicker, creating that gorgeously risen top.

What is the muffin method step by step? ›

Instructions
  1. Place all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Combine all liquids in a separate bowl. ...
  2. Fill greased or paper-lined cupcake pans all the way to the top. Bake 25 minutes. ...
  3. For longer storage, freeze muffins for up to 3 months.

What are the three stages of the baking process? ›

In general, there are three major stages in the baking process: expansion of the dough, drying of the surface, and crust browning.

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