Who doesn’t love the smell of warm cinnamon streusel muffins fresh out of the oven? They’re perfect for breakfast with a cup of coffee, brunch, or any time you want your kitchen to smell amazing. These moist muffins have the perfect, buttery texture with a sweet cinnamon swirl and a brown sugar crumble.  They are easy to make, use simple ingredients, and are beautiful and impressive too.

Making these muffins starts with a simple vanilla muffin batter. In addition to whipping that up you stir together some brown sugar and cinnamon for a swirl in the middle of the muffin and then stir together the crumb topping. You layer the different components into each cupcake liner and bake until golden brown cinnamon-y goodness. 

Ingredients needed for my Cinnamon Streusel Muffins Recipe:

• Brown sugar, light or dark
• Ground cinnamon 
• Unsalted butter
• Salt 
• White sugar
• Vanilla extract 
• Eggs
• Buttermilk
• Baking powder 
• All-purpose flour

Supplies needed:

• Large mixing bowl
• Electric mixer
• Muffin tin
• Cupcake liners
• Rubber Spatula

How to make the Cinnamon Crumble Muffins:

• Preheat your oven to 350°F (190°C) and line your muffin tin with paper liners.
• In a large bowl, mix together the softened butter and sugar until smooth. Add the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.
• In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
• Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, alternating with the buttermilk. Mix until just combined.
• Mix the granulated sugar and ground cinnamon in a small bowl. That’s your swirl mixture!

• For the crumb topping: mix the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.
• Stir in the melted butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Set it aside.
• Spoon some muffin batter into each cup, filling them halfway.
• Generously sprinkle a spoonful of the cinnamon swirl mixture over the batter in the center of the muffin. 
• Top it off with the remaining batter, filling the cups almost to the top.
• Generously sprinkle the streusel topping over each muffin, covering the batter. (The muffins will expand as they bake so really get that crumble on there.)
• Pop the muffin pan into the oven and bake muffins for 18-20 minutes, until they’re golden brown and a toothpick comes out from the center with a few moist crumbs.
• Let them cool in the tin for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Tips for the best muffins:

• Fill your liners at least 3/4 of the way for tall muffin tops.
• Use a small cookie scoop to portion the batter equally
• Use a food scale and the weight measurements if desired.

Substitutions:

No buttermilk?

Plain greek yogurt or sour cream can work in a pinch. You can also add lemon juice or vinegar to a cup of whole milk to make your own buttermilk!

Once they’re cooled, enjoy! Store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. To freeze them, wrap the muffins with plastic wrap and then store in a freezer-safe bag.  

Want to add pecans? 

Mix 1/4 cup of chopped pecans to your streusel topping if desired. 

Other favorite muffin recipes:

• Blueberry Muffins
• Pumpkin Muffins
• Apple Cinnamon Muffins

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Cinnamon Streusel Muffins

Yield: 12 muffins

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

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Ingredients

Cinnamon Filling:

• 1/2 cup brown sugar, light or dark (3.5 oz)
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon 

Cake:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (3 oz)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 3/4 cup white sugar (5.3 oz)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar (1.4 oz)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature (8 oz)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder 
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (8.8 oz)

Crumb Topping:

• 3/4 cup flour (3.5 oz)
• 1/3 cup brown sugar (2.3 oz)
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon 
• 3 tablespoons melted butter (1.5 oz)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350°F (190°C) and line your muffin tin with paper liners.

For the Cinnamon Filling:

Mix the brown sugar and ground cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

For the Muffin Batter:

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the softened butter and sugar until smooth. Add the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.

In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, alternating with the buttermilk. Mix until just combined.

For the Crumble:

Mix the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.

Stir in the melted butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.

To Assemble:

Spoon some muffin batter into each cup, filling about halfway.

Generously sprinkle the cinnamon swirl mixture over the batter in the center of the muffin. 

Top it off with the remaining batter, filling the cups almost to the top. Use a skewer or toothpick to gently swirl the batter together a few times.

Generously sprinkle the streusel topping over each muffin, covering all the batter. (The muffins will rise a bit so you will need to thoroughly cover the muffins with the topping.

Pop the muffin pan into the oven and bake muffins for 18-20 minutes, until they're golden brown and a toothpick comes out from the center with a few moist crumbs.

Let them cool in the tin for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

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