Tender, buttery, and easy, these Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins have a tasty cinnamon streusel swirl running through them with more on top. They are sure to be a crowd pleaser!
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You guys know I love making muffins with buttermilk, but even I run out sometimes. Much like muffins made with buttermilk, sour cream helps to make these Coffee Cake Muffins tender and moist, just like you'd expect from one of my recipes.
Using a liquid, like sour cream, that is thicker and has acidity has a couple of great effects on your muffins. The thicker the liquid the thicker the batter, which leads to taller rising muffins, and muffins that stay moist longer. In addition, the acidity found in the sour cream reacts with baking soda to add even more rise and tenderness to the muffins as well. All the good things come from the sour cream!
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Ingredients
There are no ingredients surprises here. I bet you have them all right now and you could be eating these muffins in no time!
See recipe card below for quantities.
Substitutions
Let's make this work, even if you have dietary restrictions or preferences:
- Sour cream - If you don't have sour cream on hand, you can substitute with an equal amount of plain yogurt or buttermilk.
- Eggs - In a pinch, you can replace 1 egg with ¼ cup applesauce. I've done this with my basic buttermilk muffins and was pleased with the results.
- Flour - I have used gluten free flour to make muffins before and found it to be a great substitute if you are gluten free.
- Cinnamon - Although rare, a cinnamon allergy can be quite serious. If this is you, or you just don't care for cinnamon, you can use other warming spices. You can substitute with one third the amount of allspice, nutmeg, or ginger.
Variations
You came for coffee cake muffins because you wanted muffins that taste like coffee cake, right? Well, here are a few ways you can change things up but keep the same cinnamon streusel muffin vibe.
- Fruity - Add your choice of fresh berries into the batter for a burst of brightness.
- Loaf it - Bake this at 350°F for 35 to 40 minutes in a 9 inch loaf pan for slicing and serving. Just place half the batter into the pan, top with half of the streusel, dollop on the remaining batter and top with the remaining streusel.
- Be square - Bake this in a square baking pan, using the same instructions as for a loaf and baking for about 20 to 25 minutes at 350°F.
Instructions
Making these sour cream muffins is so easy, you'll wonder why you don't do it more often. Even so, sometimes I try to save a bit of time by mixing the coffee cake streusel the day before and storing up to a week ahead in the fridge
(Confession: I have a zip top bag full of streusel in my freezer for muffin emergencies.) Sometimes I even mix the dry ingredients for the muffins in a bowl the night before and cover them with saran wrap. Then in the morning, I just whisk, mix, and bake.
Step 1: Start by making the streusel. Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl; add softened, cubed butter.
Step 2: Mix together with your fingers until mixture is crumbly. Chill in the freezer until needed.
Step 3: Combine egg, sour cream, melted and cooled butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl.
Step 4: Whisk until thoroughly combined.
Step 5: Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients.
Step 6: Fold together until just incorporated – the muffin batter will be thick.
Step 7: Place 2 tablespoons of batter in the bottom of each muffin liner and smooth out with the back of a spoon.
Step 8: Top with 1 tablespoon of streusel topping. Add another 2 tablespoons of muffin batter and smooth the top. Finish each muffin with another tablespoon of streusel topping
Step 11: Place muffin pan in the oven and bake for 5 minutes at 425°F. Without opening the oven door, reduce temperature to 350°F and continue baking for another 15 to 18 minutes, until muffins are golden, tops spring back to the touch, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached.
Let your Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes before removing from pan to cool.
Expert tip
I find that, when adding streusel to the top of my coffee cake muffins, placing a round cookie cutter, ring mold, or biscuit cutter around the top of my muffins helps to keep the streusel where it belongs. None of the streusel spills out onto the top of the muffin pan, where it can burn, smoke, and set off the smoke alarm. Not that has ever happened to me 😜
Recipe FAQ's
Yes, you can. Although the extra fat gives extra moisture and richness, there is melted butter too, so we're gonna be okay.
Any extra muffins can be kept covered for up to 4 days. If you want to keep them longer than that, you can wrap them individually in plastic wrap, place in a zip top bag, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw on the counter for a few hours before eating.
You can freeze these muffins to bake later. Make them up to the point of adding the topping. Place the muffin pan into the freezer, making sure it is level, for at least 6 hours, or until frozen solid. Wrap individual muffins in plastic wrap and place in a zip top bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready, place frozen muffins in muffin pan and bake from frozen at 400° for 18 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
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-Cynthia
📖 Recipe
Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Streusel
- 1 ½ cups (180 g) flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ cup (150 g) brown sugar
- pinch kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons (84 g) butter cubed and softened
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Wet Ingredients
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup (240 g) sour cream room temperature
- 8 tablespoons (113 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F and line a muffin pan with paper liners; spray liners lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Melt butter and allow to cool.
Make streusel:
- Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl; add 6 tablespoons softened butter and mix together with your fingers until mixture is crumbly. Chill in the freezer until needed.
Make muffins:
- Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Combine eggs, sour cream, melted and cooled butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and fold in just until incorporated – the muffin batter will be thick.
- Place 2 tablespoons of batter in the bottom of each muffin liner and smooth out with the back of a spoon. Top with 1 tablespoon of streusel topping. Add another 2 tablespoons of muffin batter and smooth the top. Finish each muffin with another tablespoon of streusel topping
Bake muffins:
- Place muffin pan in the oven and bake for 5 minutes at 425°F. Without opening the oven door, reduce temperature to 350°F and continue baking for another 15 to 18 minutes, until muffins are golden, tops spring back to the touch, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached.
- Let muffins cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes before removing from pan to cool.
Save This Recipe! 💌
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later, plus you'll get great new recipes from me every week!
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