Donut Muffins

Donut Muffins

INGREDIENTS

For the coating:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
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For the muffins:

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
• 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for coating the tin
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup whole milk, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks), at room temperature
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature

INSTRUCTIONS

For the coating:

1. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside.

For the muffins:

1. Heat the oven to 375°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Lightly brush a 24-well mini muffin tin with some of the melted butter, then coat with flour, tapping out any excess; set aside. Reserve remaining melted butter for applying the cinnamon-sugar coating.
2. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and baking soda. In a small bowl, whisk together milk and buttermilk. Set both aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time until combined. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
4. With the mixer set on low speed, beat in a quarter of the reserved dry ingredients. Then beat in a third of the reserved milk mixture. Continue to alternate until all of the remaining ingredients are incorporated, finishing with the dry ingredients. Do not overmix.
5. Fill the prepared muffin tin wells just to the rim with batter. Bake until muffins are lightly golden and firm to the touch, about 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin and transfer to a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Repeat buttering and flouring of the muffin tin and bake the remaining batter.
6. To coat the muffins, brush each generously with melted butter and sprinkle generously with cinnamon-sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Variation: Jelly Doughnut Muffins
If jelly doughnuts are more your style, allow the muffins to cool and use a small pastry tip to make a hole in the bottom of each. Fill the pastry bag with your favorite jam, jelly, or citrus curd and squeeze some into the muffins.