16 Mistakes You're Making With Muffins

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Whether your favorite muffin is filled with chocolate chips or fresh blueberries, we can all agree that these baked goods are a quintessential breakfast component. The small, cup-shaped quick bread originated in America in the mid-19th century — which coincided with the proto-leavening agent known as pearlash. The first muffins contained similar ingredients to the flavors we see today, like fresh fruit, nuts, and seeds. The first muffin mix was created in the 1920s, while store-bought varieties emerged in the 1950s with the expansion of preservatives that could keep baked goods from going stale (via The Warren County Post). Today's most popular muffin flavors include bran, banana nut, blueberry, corn, and poppyseed.

Muffins are deceptively easy baked goods that we take for granted. Here are some ways you might be missing the mark on your homemade treat and what you can do to help you make a better batch next time.

You should consider adding a couple of tablespoons of mayo to your next batch of muffins to help improve the texture and moisture of the batter. Although you might think of mayonnaise as only useful for sandwiches, the condiment has a surprising utility when it comes to baked goods. Since it is made of a base of eggs and oil, it can replace these ingredients in a muffin mix — which most recipes include anyways. If you want to make this swap, you should plan to use three tablespoons of mayonnaise for each egg the recipe calls for. You'll find the resulting muffins to be much softer and moister. 

The acid in the condiment, which is usually lemon juice or vinegar, can help add a flavorful tang to your baked goods and help loosen the protein structure in the flour as well. The acidity causes a softer crumb structure in the muffin, which we think provides a bit more satisfying structure than a standard mayo-less muffin. 

Muffin batter is notoriously liquid-like. The second you introduce a fast-speed hand mixer or stand mixer, you'll find that it always seems to make its way out of the bowl and onto the walls and countertops of your kitchen. 

One clever trick to prevent your muffin batter from splattering from your electric hand mixer requires only one tool: a paper plate. Cut two tiny holes into it and stick the beaters through. You should use the pointy end of the beaters to make the holes; this ensures that they are a perfect size so that the plate doesn't fall off the mixer and into the ingredients. You'll also see the best results if the bowl is smaller than the plate. Either way, you'll cut down on the muffin splatter that you have to clean up after you're finished — and avoid wasting precious batter.

Frozen berries can be an inexpensive way to improve flavor and provide novel textures to your favorite muffin recipes. However, the major problem in using them is that the colors in your fruit tend to leave a colorful hue of blue, red, or purple throughout the entire baked good. 

If you want to avoid dyeing your entire muffin, King Arthur Baking Company recommends rinsing your frozen berries several times in cold water to remove the juice. You'll notice a color change in the water from dark to light. Once the water stops getting any lighter, place the berries in a paper towel and gently dry them — avoid squishing them to let out any more juices. Then, you can stir your fruit into the batter. The movement of the mixture may cause some mild bleeding, but not nearly as much as if you were to add the frozen berries directly from the bag. 

If you're making a fresh batch of muffins in a hurry, you might be inclined to scoop the batter right from the bowl, add it to the tins, and bake immediately. However, baking your mixture right away can do more harm than good. Most professional bakeries allow their muffin batter to rest overnight before scooping and baking it in the morning. When the blend is sitting, the dough's starches slowly hydrate, resulting in a thicker, more unctuous mixture. The rest time also allows the gluten in the flour to slack — which prevents the baked goods from becoming too chewy. 

While an overnight rest is recommended for the optimal muffin height, giving your batter even an hour to rest on the counter while you're preheating your oven and preparing the rest of your meal is enough time for sky-high, soft baked goods.

Do you prefer muffin tops or bottoms? If you're failing to achieve the highest possible rise from your muffins — since who doesn't love a baked good that looks like it came straight from a bakery — it might be because you're under-filling your muffin tin. Chef Alton Brown recommends filling the muffin tins more than just the standard recommended "halfway." The Los Angeles Times recommends instead filling the cups between ⅔ and ¾ of the way to the top. This figure will give you enough space for the muffins to form a crisp muffin top over the tin without spilling over into the other wells.

The Los Angeles Times also notes that if you have empty wells in your pan, you should fill them with a few tablespoons of water each. This will prevent the tin from warping as the filled cups are baked and promote a more even bake across your muffins.

There's a reason why muffins are often coated in sugar. Kitchen Serf notes that many have turbinado or coarse sugar (also known as "sanding sugar") added as a garnish before baking. It provides a bit of texture and shines on the top of the muffin. Plus, the baking process allows the sugar to stick to the pastry without disintegrating into a smooth, sticky syrup. For maximum adherence, brush a little bit of melted butter on top of the muffins before adding the garnish. When you bite into a pastry sprinkled with sugar, you'll find a terrific contrasting crunch to the softness of the baked good. 

While you may think to add a bit of granulated sugar instead, we should note the standard white sugar you bake with is a little too fine to make a difference in the muffin's final texture. Brown sugar would not work either because it contains molasses which becomes sticky when heated. 

There are numerous ways to assess if your muffins are finished baking — some of which have more credence than others. The best way to test for a fully-baked pastry is to use a cake tester or a skewer. Place the metal in the center of the muffin. If the batter clings to it on the way out, they need a bit more time. If the metal comes out clean or with a few crumbs, your muffins are finished baking (via Cook's Illustrated). Another simple test you can do to see if your pastries are finished baking is to poke them with your finger. Properly cooked muffins will spring back, while underdone ones will maintain the imprint of your finger.

Other tests for doneness, like color, are unreliable when it comes to baking these treats. If you use a thinner batter, you'll find that the color of the muffin is less golden brown than a thicker mixture. Dark ingredients like bran and cocoa powder can also alter the color of your pastry.

The world of muffins is much wider than you'd think it is. While most people associate the baked good with the sweetened berry or decadent coffee cake variety, you can switch things up by instead making savory muffins. You can make a bacon and cheddar pastry that is perfect for enjoying with lunch — or stick to breakfast sausage instead. If you want to be more creative and hybridize your favorite foods, you can make pizza muffins with a standard muffin base, pizza sauce, and flecks of mozzarella and pepperoni sprinkled throughout. 

Fresh herbs are an easy way to balance out the sweetness of your baked good. If you're cooking with goat or cheddar cheese, consider adding some fresh sprigs of rosemary or oregano for a stronger organic flavor. If you already have a muffin tin, you might consider deviating from the traditional muffin batter and instead using the tray to make portable egg white breakfast cups with cheese and veggies.