Maple Filled Doughnut Muffins

Remember those Maple Cookies I made? With that give-me-more-I-need-it-now maple frosting? I had to have it again because I couldn't stop thinking about it.

So I made some doughnut muffins.

And I filled them with the addicting frosting.

And the, to top it all off, I brushed them with butter and dipped them in cinnamon sugar.

You're welcome.

If you read food blogs at all, you will have seen some version of these doughnut muffins before. My friend Joann gave me this recipe. Lite and fluffy and not too sweet, they are the perfect do-anything-with-them muffin. They are a great base to build on. Like, say, to fill with maple frosting. After I ate them I though the only thing that would have made them better would be more frosting. Next time I'll frost the top with the maple too. Because you can never have enough maple. There was enough left over to frost the tops. But instead? I ate it with a spoon.

And now darn it, writing this post has made me want that frosting again! They make tummy control bathing suits, right?

Enjoy!

Doughnut Muffins with Maple Filling

Printer-Friendly Recipe

Ingredients:

For the doughnut muffins:

¼ cup butter, softened

½ cup sugar

1 egg

1 ½ cups flour

2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

½ cup milk (I recommend regular milk. I used nonfat and they were slightly dry.)

For the maple filling:

4 tablespoons butter, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons real maple syrup

1/8 teaspoon maple extract

1-2 teaspoons whipping cream

For the topping:

3 tablespoons butter, melted

¼ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

**Or, ditch the topping and use the maple filling to frost the muffins!**

Directions:

1.    Preheat oven to 350°. Line your muffin pan with liners.

2.    Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Set aside.

3.     Mix the butter and sugar with a hand mixer until fluffy. Add in egg and mix well.

4.    Add the flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture. Add the milk and mix completely.

5.    Divide among muffin liners and bake 15-20 minutes, or until slightly golden (a toothpick will come out clean). Cool completely before filling.

6.    To make the frosting, beat butter with hand mixer until fluffy. Slowly add in powdered sugar and syrup. Add maple extract and whipping cream and blend until combined.

7.    To fill the muffins, use tip #230 in a disposable pastry bag. Insert tip deep into the cupcake and squeeze filling in. About 1-2 teaspoons will fit in each. You can also use a small knife to cut out the center of the muffin and spoon in the filling.

8.    To top the cupcakes, brush lightly with the melted butter. Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a shallow bowl. Dip the muffin butter-side down in the sugar to coat. Or, instead of using this topping, you can frost the muffins with the maple filling.

Yield: 9 muffins

Source: Muffins adapted from recipezaar.com and filling adapted from dreamaboutfood.blogspot.com.