These are hands down the best Cinnamon Streusel Muffins! Filled with cinnamon flavor and topped with a buttery, crispy crumb, they make a wonderful quick breakfast or an afternoon sweet treat. It's a simple but refined recipe that your whole family will love, and it is perfect for those grey, chilly Fall mornings!
Best cinnamon streusel muffins recipe
This easy muffin recipe has the most amazing cinnamon flavor, fluffy texture, and crunchy streusel topping. It's like a warm, cozy, and delicately spiced hug in every bite! It's one of my favorite cinnamon desserts.
Streusel topping is a crisp, sweet, and buttery crumb used to garnish desserts like cakes, muffins, and cupcakes. The word streusel comes from the German word "streuen", which means to sprinkle! It adds amazing texture and flavor, and in my opinion, muffins taste so much better with it.
What's more, you can whip these muffins together in about an hour. Once the easy batter and cinnamon streusel are made, you just assemble and pop the muffins in to bake. It's so simple!
Katalin's key take on how to make super moist muffins
To get super moist muffins with that signature muffin texture, it helps to think about baking as if it were a science experiment with various techniques and components that all come together in a certain way.
First, you need to have all the right ingredients and measure everything to have the right amounts and correct ratios. I bake muffins with part oil and part butter, and this twist really does keep muffins moist.
I then employ my secret baking trick of folding in a mixture of vinegar and baking soda just before baking, which makes muffins unbelievably fluffy - without the vinegar taste, of course.
When it comes to baking muffins, do not overbake, as this will dry muffins out. Set a timer and make sure you bake at the right temperature.
Finally, make sure you store muffins correctly! Read my post on how to store muffins and keep them fresh so that they are moist and delicious for as long as possible.
Make the streusel topping
Cut the butter into small chunks and let it come to room temperature. This can take up to an hour, or here is how to soften butter quickly.
Whisk together the all purpose flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.
Add the room-temperature butter chunks to the mixture and mix with a spatula or wooden spoon just until the dry ingredients are coated with the butter.
You can make sand-like crumbs or larger crumbs by simply pressing the mixture together with your fingers.
Put the cinnamon streusel topping in the fridge to set while you prepare the muffin batter.
Top tip: you can also add cinnamon to the crumble topping for even more cinnamon flavor.
Make the muffin batter
Preheat your oven to 175°C / 350°F (no fan) and grease the muffin pan well with butter or oil, or use muffin cups.
Melt the butter, but allow it to come back to room temperature before using.
Whip the melted butter, oil, white sugar, and brown sugar together in a large bowl using an electric hand mixer until pale and fluffy. Then whip the room temperature eggs and yogurt into the mixture until combined. Alternatively, toss all the above-mentioned wet ingredients into a bowl and whip it until it becomes fluffy.
Sift the all-purpose flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking powder together in a separate bowl. Then, gently fold this flour mixture into the wet ingredients using a rubber spatula until everything is fully combined but not overmixed. Do not use a mixer for this step or the remainder of the recipe.
Combine the white vinegar and baking soda together in a small bowl. The mixture should be very bubbly. Immediately fold it into the muffin batter.
Assemble and bake
Evenly distribute the cinnamon muffin batter into the cavities of the greased Cupcake tin and top each muffin with a thick layer of cinnamon streusel topping.
Transfer the muffins to the preheated oven and bake them for 25 minutes at 175°C / 350°F (no fan) or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Allow the muffins to sit in the pan for 5 minutes, and then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Storage and freezing
Store the baked cinnamon streusel muffins at room temperature in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days. Here are more tips on how to store muffins!
You can freeze the muffins in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic food wrap for up to 3 months in the freezer.
I often like to make the streusel in advance, too. The unbaked crumb topping can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
Flavor variations
These cinnamon crumb muffins are super versatile! Once you have mastered the recipe, you can adapt it to suit you and try some delicious variations.
Add a pinch of spice such as pumpkin pie spice, ginger, or cardamon to the flour mixture of the muffin batter or streusel topping. You can also use quick oats instead of flour to make the streusel topping for a different texture. Use all brown sugar to create a cinnamon crumble topping with more caramel flavor.
Like cinnamon coffee cake muffins, finely chopped nuts such as walnuts or pecans can be added to the topping or layered in the middle of the muffins.
Fold some fresh berries into the batter to make blueberry streusel muffins. You can also add diced apples to make apple streusel muffins. Or go one step further and use my caramelized apple topping.
Drizzle the moist cinnamon crumb muffins with a bit of homemade caramel to serve as a dessert or some homemade walnut butter or homemade pecan butter.
Ingredient substitutions
Baking is a science, so it is important to note that substituting ingredients may result in a different taste or texture. You must keep the ratios of the ingredients the same for the best results.
Sadly, I cannot provide options for every dietary preference. However, my baking guides and substitution guides will help you see what might be possible.
For example, if you would like to use other types of flour or make gluten-free muffins, check out my flour guide for suggestions. You can easily make this streusel muffins recipe egg-free by using different suggestions you'll find in my guide on how to use egg substitutions.
To make these muffins without butter. Check out my butter substitution guide to learn how. Your best bet would be to entirely replace the butter with oil (the exact ratios are in my above-mentioned butter substitute guide).
Expert tips to make cinnamon streusel muffins
- Use high-quality unsalted butter with an 82% fat content for the most delicious streusel topping.
- Some recipes call for melted butter or cold butter for the streusel topping, but I find room temperature butter is best. It can take up to an hour for butter to reach room temperature out of the fridge. You can use cold butter, but it will take longer to make the crumb topping this way.
- The egg and yogurt both need to be at room temperature for the batter to properly emulsify when it's added. Take them out of the fridge ahead of time.
- Use thick Greek or Turkish-style yogurt for the best flavor and texture.
- Do not overwork the muffin batter. Once the egg is combined with the oil and sugar, stop using the mixer. Only use a rubber spatula from that point on.
- Grease the pan well so that cinnamon streusel muffins don't stick and easily come right out of the cavities.
- I like to check the muffins after 23 minutes of baking. Ovens can vary in temperature, and muffin tins can vary in size, which can impact the baking time. Avoid overbaking muffins; it makes them dry.
What equipment to use
Always weigh your ingredients by the gram using a digital scale for precision. Baking is all about accuracy! I do not recommend measuring by volume for baking.
Combine the cinnamon streusel muffin ingredients using an electric hand mixer, and then switch to a rubber spatula to avoid overmixing. I do not recommend using a stand mixer, as this runs the risk of overmixing the batter.
Bake the cinnamon streusel muffins in a 12-capacity muffin pan.
All ovens vary, and many baking mistakes come from an incorrect baking temperature! Make sure your oven is correct by using a digital oven thermometer.
Allow the muffins to cool down after baking on a wire cooling rack.
Try some of my other muffin recipes
Have you tried this recipe?
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Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
For the brown sugar cinnamon muffins
- 110 g (½ cups) Oil no flavor vegetable oil
- 55 g (¼ cups) Unsalted Butter gently melted but use at room temperature
- 100 g (½ cups) Granulated sugar
- 100 g (½ cups) Brown sugar
- 2 Egg room temperature
- 120 g (½ cups) Yogurt thick Greek or Turkish style at room temperature
- 250 g (2 cups) All purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ taspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon White vinegar
- ½ teaspoon Baking soda
- 1-2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
For the streusel topping
- 150 g (1¼ cups) All purpose flour
- 100 g (½ cups) Granulated sugar
- 50 g (¼ cups) Brown sugar
- 110 g (½ cups) Unsalted butter room temperature
- pinch of salt
US customary cup measurement is an indicative figure only. Measure the ingredients with a digital scale by weight (gram). Baking is art but also science which requires precision and accuracy.
Instructions
Make the cinnamon streusel topping first
- Cut butter into small chunks and let it come to room temperature.
- Whisk together flour, salt, cinnamon, granulated sugar, and brown sugar, then add the room temperature butter chunks to the mixture and mix with a spatula or wooden spoon just until the dry ingredients are coated with the butter.
- You can make sand-like crumbs or larger crumbs by simply pressing the mixture together using your fingers.
- Place the streusel into the fridge, while preparing the muffin batter.
For the brown sugar cinnamon muffins
- Heat oven to 175 C / 350°F (no fan).
- With an Electric hand mixer whip the oil, melted but room temperature butter and two kinds of sugar together until pale and fluffy, then whip the eggs and yogurt in. This is your wet ingredient.
- Mix vinegar and baking soda together in a small bowl, it will be super bubbly. Immediately fold the mixture into the muffin batter.
- Spoon or pipe the batter into 12 cavities of a Cupcake pan. Finally, finish with a thick layer of crumble on top.
- Bake the muffins for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Let them cool on a cooling rack.
- Serve them fresh or store them at room temperature for 2-3 days.
Notes
- Use a combination of white and (light or dark) brown sugar for the best texture and beautiful butterscotch flavor in your muffins.
- The eggs, yogurt, and butter should all be at room temperature for the muffins.
- Use good quality 82% unsalted butter for the cinnamon streusel.
- Digital scale is required for a consistent, happy baking experience:)
- Always pre-heat your oven and consider using a digital oven thermometer for the best results.
- Each oven is different, so you might need to adjust the baking time slightly.
- Do not overbake your muffins, as that can result in a dry texture.
- For the crumb, some recipes recommend using melted butter or cold butter. With cold butter, you would have to work the mixture a bit longer, as the butter slightly needs to be warmed up to coat the dry ingredients, but eventually, the same result can be achieved. With melted butter, you would have to chill the mixture for the butter to somewhat set and being able to form the crumbs. Therefore, I suggest working with room temperature butter that is just perfect to create the crumbs.
Linda Murphy
Do the salt and cinnamon go into the streusel topping also? They are listed in the ingredients, but not in the instructions.
On the second step for making the muffins, I can not get the oil and sugar to be fluffy, and are you supposed to be combining both the white and brown sugar with the oil? I just says sugar, not sugars but the brown sugar is otherwise mentioned.
Thanks for your help?
Katalin Nagy
I have clarified a few points in the recipe card, hope it will be clearer now. Good luck!