8 Krusteaz Muffin Mixes, Ranked

Store-bought muffin mixes were a big part of my introduction into solo baking as a child. They were something easy that took very few ingredients. The instructions were generally simple. And the serving size was not too big. Plus, I learned how to use the oven on my own, create portions, and watch my bake times. So, they were wonderful to explore with all the different flavors.

I rarely ever make muffins anymore, as they are easy to purchase, but recently the Krusteaz brand of mixes caught my eye. My family had always leaned on Krusteaz pancake and waffle baking mixes for those respective delights, so I felt that the muffin mixes would generate a similarly positive product. And there were so many different kinds to pick from that I was very excited to try them all. So, I purchased every one that my grocery store had to offer.

While the muffin mixes I had used as a child sufficed, I expected more from these mixes. I wanted bigger, plump muffins that were full of flavor. I wanted them to have a more homemade look and taste than the simple mixes of the past. But I also wanted them to be easy to prepare. And after trying my hand at these mixes, this is how they ranked.

I didn't know what to expect from cheesecake muffins, as I would have imagined them to have an additional flavor of fruit, like cherry cheesecake or perhaps strawberry. However, these were plain. The instructions were a bit intricate, having to portion out the 12 muffins by adding tablespoons of batter, then an included creamy cheesecake filling, and then more batter on top. As careful as I was to follow the instructions, I still ran out of batter well before I was able to cover all 12 centers. And the packaged filling had a very pungent smell of something closer to Roquefort than cream cheese or cheesecake, so this option did not start on the best foot.

They came out of the oven looking slightly small and simple but nicely browned. The scent was sweet but gave no indication of the cheesecake flavor, nor did the first bite. I honestly felt I had mistakenly grabbed a banana or cinnamon crumb muffin, as what I tasted was sweet vanilla with cinnamon. But I pulled it apart and saw the creamy white center and knew that I was indeed tasting the cheesecake option. The creamed middle was harsh on my tongue, translating the scent from earlier to the taste, tart and sour, and nothing like cheesecake. While the muffin was moist and slightly sweetened, it was easy to place last. I took two bites and wanted no more. This is was a bad muffin mix I wouldn't advise making at home.

I feel like Krusteaz missed a chance here to make lemon poppy seed muffins, which I personally love, but these poppy seed muffins are almond. In fact, the scent of almond paste was so potent from the batter, I found it to be overly strong and off-putting. In addition, there was a seemingly overly large bag of poppy seeds that went into this batter. So, I had my reservations as these went into the oven.

Once baked, they looked okay. They weren't necessarily ample in size or golden in color. They looked as if they would be lemon with the yellow of the cake, but I knew they were not. Pulling away the muffin cup, I could see the poppy seeds were more of an infestation than an addition; there were so many. It gave the appearance of something that was going to be savory, but the sweet scent of almond wafted from the inside as I pulled the muffin in two.

As soon as the first bite hit my tongue, it tasted like marzipan or straight almond paste. Then there was something else — a nutty, blunt flavor came through. Was that the poppy seed? I believe it was. It tasted roasted. I had never really tasted poppy seed so fully. And I didn't care for it. The only reason this ranks higher than the cheesecake is that the smell was at least something familiar. But I would not recommend this mix either. It's all wrong.

While there is a great divide in the South as to whether cornbread should be sweet or not, I am on the sweet side. And I was happy to try this honey cornbread mix to see what it offered. Much like most cornbreads I know, this mix can be made into muffins or baked in a pan (make a Johnnycake) by tweaking the ingredients ever so slightly. Out of all the mixes, this one was the only one that called for milk. And when the wet ingredients were added the rich smell of butter filled the air, and I was immediately enticed.

The cornbread muffins cooked to a lovely bright golden color with obvious signs of cornmeal across the flattened top. I went in for a taste, tearing a piece from the sides, and I could feel the gritty texture between my teeth. It was delightful. However, the sweetness was a bit too much on the high side for my tastes. It went over the level of any of the other muffins and hid the savory flavor of the cornmeal. It wasn't honey but seemingly candied. And I knew very quickly that this wasn't going to be a cornbread that ever got to grace my dinner table. Visually and texturally, this was incredibly pleasing, putting it leaps and bounds ahead of the lower two. But the sweetness needs to be reined in, which allows for this to fall towards the bottom of the list.

The smell of banana plumed from this mix as soon as the wet ingredients went in. The walnuts became obvious once I began mixing the oil, egg, and water, but seemed sparse. The banana scent that emanated strongly from the batter was highly artificial and lingered in my nostrils even after I moved from the kitchen. However, visually, it very closely resembled my mother's homemade banana bread with dark brown veins of real bananas running through it. And the box specified no artificial ingredients and made with real bananas. So, I was a bit perplexed.

When I pulled these from the oven, I was overjoyed to see how voluminous they had become. They were huge with a beautiful golden-brown peak. I pulled the paper away and split the muffin in two with my hands. I couldn't see any walnuts, but as the first bite reached my teeth, I could feel the meaty texture and taste the presence. The crust of the muffin held a slightly crusty aesthetic, and the cake inside was moist, subtly sweet, and tasted of banana. A little too much like banana.

I went back and forth on this muffin. It was great in so many ways, but there was something in the banana flavor that leaned into artificiality. Although the look and texture could easily pass for homemade, the taste spoke of a something different. While better than the ones ranked lower, I still wouldn't recommend this one.

The scent of this mix was highly blueberry, and I was surprised that there would be even more blueberry appeal as it also came with a can of blueberries to add. The eggs, oil, and water needed to be mixed in with the powder first to form a batter. Then I drained the can and added the blueberries, lightly folding as to not turn the batter blue.

When these went into the oven, I had quite high hopes. I'm a big fan of blueberry muffins, and I had added a nice amount of plump berries to this batter. But when the timer went off and I went to remove them from the oven, I was a bit disheartened at their appearance. They weren't very well mounded and hadn't browned within the time frame. While there were a couple of berries apparent at the top, the muffin bit was quite pale.

Peeling the muffin in half, I was happy to see a vast number of berries within. I popped a piece in my mouth and found the cake was moist and slightly sweetened. The blueberries themselves held flavor but no pop or texture to speak of. And were I not biting directly into a blueberry, the flavor was not highly recognizable in the body of the muffin. Although these were the first muffins in the batch that I would happily eat, they just didn't reach the heights of the ones ranked higher.

This cinnamon swirl option can be made into a crumb cake or muffins and comes an additional large bag of cinnamon crumb topping. For the muffins, this crumb needs to be divided into two, with half going into the prepared batter and the other half topping the muffins before going into the oven. While this is an extra step, it's a very small one.

Once baked, these muffins both looked and smelled delicious. The crumble on top had separated and settled. When I removed the muffin cup, I could see that the crumble had collected just below the rim and created a crusty differentiating line between the top and bottom. Biting straight through, the taste and texture of the muffin and crumb were spicy, sweet, fluffy, and crunchy. However, when separating the muffin top, which I like to do, and tasting the cakey part below, there was really no flavor of the cinnamon at all. This surprised me as half of the crumb had been added to the batter.

In order to enjoy the entirety of this muffin, one needs to eat from top to bottom in one bite, which I don't often do. And while I am a bit of a baker, I don't know that anyone would look at these and think they were homemade due to the crumb topping. While these are undeniably better than the ones that came before, they just don't check as many boxes as the two that rank higher.

The zesty scent of orange filled the air as I emptied this mix into a bowl. It was lively and bright. And while I had expected the mix to be filled with dehydrated cranberries at best, there was a can of cranberries in the box, just like the blueberry mix, and that caused me to smile.

I simply had to add the eggs, water, and oil to create the base batter and as I did, I noticed dark, thin flecks emerging that seemed to be possible citrus zest. I drained and emptied the can of cranberries into the bowl and folded them in gently as to not turn the entire batter a bright pink. The scent of cranberries joined the vibrant orange and filled my senses. Then I scooped them into their cups and popped them in the oven.

When finished, the muffins were an adequate size, mounded with different hues of gold and a few visible pieces of cranberry. The aroma of orange hit my nostrils as I brought a piece in for a taste. It was plump and fragrant, tart and tangy. The essence of the orange and cranberry filled my palate and lingered into the aftertaste. I would have liked to have felt a bit more moisture in the cake of the muffin, but that is the only thing that keeps these from ranking higher. Fresh and fruity, these would make for a tasty snack or an excellent addition to a brunch spread.

The chocolate chunk mix was simple, only requiring oil, water, and eggs before mixing and scooping into the 12 muffin cups. And while it only called for the cups to be filled two-thirds of the way, I had more than enough batter to have filled them completely and still have made a few more. I ended up throwing some of the batter out, which I won't do next time.

Of all the options, these came out of the oven looking the most robust. The tops of the muffins looked like plump chocolate chip cookies — browned around the edges, golden in the middle, sporting nice fat pieces of chocolate — and I was more than excited to sit down and try a taste. As I pulled the paper away from the muffin, I could see that the chips were scattered all along the border, and that visual was even more impressive when I tore the muffin in half and saw they ran through its entirety.

The first bite was decadent, moist, cakey, slightly sweet, and accompanied by a dense, rich flavor and texture of dark chocolate. The flavor was of a fresh baked chocolate chip cookie, but it was elevated by a fluffy body that provided one delightful mouthful after another. I loved having to chew both the cake of the muffin and the more solid bits of chocolate. I would happily make these for a group or myself. Easy to make, exceptional visual, and a delight to the palate.

I went into these mixes hoping to find something as simple to make as the ones I had when I was young — a couple of ingredients, a couple of steps, and into the oven. I wanted to find a mix that produced something that looked like I had worked harder than I had. It needed to create a truly tasty treat that I would be happy to serve guests or take to a friend. I wanted flavors that tasted as good as anything I could make from scratch. And while that might all seem like a high bar for a muffin mix to cross, there were a couple that did.

I ranked these mixes on prep and on finished product (both looks and taste). So, I paid close attention to all the hoops I had to jump through in order to make the batters. I found the cheesecake to be incredibly convoluted for the end results it produced but was overly happy with the chocolate chunk and the cranberry orange. I took at least two bites of each and cleaned my palate between the selections. Nothing left a harsh aftertaste, so this wasn't difficult.

Even when taking everything into consideration, the top two muffin mixes beat the rest by a large margin. Both are ones I will happily make again. I hope to work out the moisture issues with the cranberry orange by possibly adding some oil or sour cream. And I plan on playing with the chocolate chunk by adding nuts, possibly fruit, maybe even java chips or peanut butter chips. That mix has a lot to offer in variations and flavors.