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If you’re searching for the best Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins, you’ve found them. These muffins are soft, fluffy, warmly spices with cinnamon applesauce, incredibly moist thanks to applesauce, and they have a buttery cinnamon sugar topping. They come together in one bowl with simple pantry ingredients – no mixer required.
Perfect for breakfast, meal prep, lunchboxes, or a cozy afternoon snack. For another easy applesauce muffin recipe – be sure and make these very popular One Bowl Applesauce Muffins. Slightly different with plain applesauce without cinnamon🍏🍎
Why You’ll Love These Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins
- Super moist texture from applesauce
- Warm, slightly sweet cinnamon flavor in every bite
- Easy one-bowl muffin recipe
- Freezer-friendly
- Great snack for kids and adults
Easy Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins (With Cinnamon Applesauce)
This is the perfect muffin recipe is you want quick applesauce muffins that turn out perfectly each and every time!
I love baking with applesauce – it adds so much moisture, natural sweetness, and reduces the need for excess oil or butter. The result? Tender muffins, moist texture, slightly sweet, muffins that stay soft for days… if they last that long!
For another quick bread recipe that use applesauce be sure and try my Applesauce Bread – it has the most amazing buttery, cinnamon crumble on top.
Simple Baking Ingredients Needed
Cinnamon Applesauce Muffin Ingredients
- Granulated Sugar
- Light Brown Sugar
- Vegetable Oil
- Large Egg
- Cinnamon Applesauce
- Sour Cream : Using full-fat is best for these muffins
- Whole Milk
- Vanilla Extract
- All-Purpose Flour : I use unbleached all-purpose flour
- Baking Powder
- Cinnamon
- Salt : Sea salt or table salt works great in this recipe
Cinnamon Sugar Topping Ingredients
- Melted Butter : I use salted but unsalted can be used as well
- Granulated Sugar
- Cinnamon
How To Make Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins (Printable Recipe Card)
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with parchment paper muffin liners, and then lightly spray each muffin liner with cooking spray. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, light brown sugar, vegetable oil, and large egg until it’s well combined.
Add the cinnamon applesauce, sour cream, whole milk, and vanilla extract. Continue whisking until combined.
Add in the dry ingredients; all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula just until combined and no flour streaks remain in the batter.
Scoop the muffin batter into each muffin cup filling each one nearly to the top.
Bake for 16-20 minutes or until the tops of the muffins are puffy, rounded, and when gently pressed it springs back. You can also use toothpick to test the centers of the muffins. It should come out clean or with crumbs, not wet raw batter.
Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool inside the warm muffin pan for about 15 minutes or until you can safely handle them.
Cinnamon Sugar Topping : Add the melted butter into a small bowl. In another separate bowl, stir together the granulated sugar and cinnamon until well combined.
Grab a muffin, turn it upside down, and dip the top only into the melted butter. Immediately dip it into the cinnamon sugar mixture until it’s well coated.
Place the muffins onto a wire cooling rack to finish cooling to room temperature, or eat one warm! Either way is delicious. Enjoy!
How To Store Leftovers & Freeze Applesauce Muffins
- Room Temperature : Keep leftover muffins stored at room temperature, in an airtight container or Ziploc bag, for up to 2-3 days. Eat at room temperature or warm it up in the microwave for 10-15 seconds until warm and soft.
- Freeze Baked Muffins : Once completely cooled to room temperature, wrap each muffin in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped muffins into a large freeze-safe Ziploc bag, and freeze for up to 2 months. Let the muffin thaw at room temperature for a few hours, or in the fridge, before eating at room temperature or warm it up in the microwave.
Pro Tips From The Test Kitchen
- My family loves the cinnamon sugar topping but it is optional if you don’t want it. The muffins will still be super moist, lightly sweet, and amazing without it.
- Once you add the flour do not aggressively, or overmix the muffin batter. Gently stir everything together just until no flour streaks or pockets remain in the batter. Be sure you are scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure you’re getting everything mixed in.
- I prefer using parchment paper muffin liners but you could just spray the muffin pan instead. Liners help prevent the sides of the muffins from browning to much, and I think the liners also help the muffins bake more evenly, which is why I prefer using them.
- To make scooping the muffin batter into each muffin cup, I suggest using a large cookie scoop to do it! I have linked the one I love in the recipe card below.
More Muffin Recipes You Will LOVE
- Cinnamon Roll Muffins
- Nutella Banana Muffins
- Cinnamon Banana Bread Muffins (Best Banana Muffin Recipe)
Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- ⅓ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup cinnamon applesauce
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons milk I use whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
Cinnamon & Sugar Topping
- 4 tablespoons butter melted
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners and lightly spray them with cooking spray OR you can just spray the pan well with cooking spray and not use liners. *I have done it both ways and it turns out fine either way.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, and egg with a whisk. Mix until it's dark in color and thick.
- Add the applesauce, sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract. Stir with the whisk until combined.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula just until combined and no flour streaks remain.
- Scoop the batter into each muffin cup filling each one nearly full (about 3/4 full with slightly more being ok).
- Bake for 17-20 minutes or until top are puffy and rounded.
- Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 20 minutes or until you can handle them.
Cinnamon & Sugar Topping
- Put the melted butter into one bowl. To another bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Grab a muffin and dip the top only into the melted butter and then immediately into the cinnamon & sugar. Roll the muffin around so that you can get the sides of the top of the muffin.
- Place the dipped muffins on a cooling rack to finish cooling completely OR eat one warm! It's really good. Store leftovers at room temperature in an airtight container.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love to see it! You can share it with me on @togetherasfamilyblog and follow on Pinterest @together-as-family-blog-recipes or Facebook @togetherasfamilyblog for more!
Just made these. Ate one warm and they are fabulous. Dense slightly sweet apple flavor.
Would these work well as a mini muffin?
I’m sure they would work great as mini muffins. Make sure to watch them carefully as they bake because they will most likely bake faster since they’re smaller.
I made chunky apple sauce. use 1 1/2 cups batter was pretty thick. worked great. Thank you for sharing this!
You’re welcome! Thank you for your comment Teresa.
I made these for after dinner treat last night. They are perfect… not too sweet! I left off the cinnamon sugar topping as I have to watch my sugar intake and they were for me, the perfect sweetness! A also substituted apple butter for about half of the applesauce and added about a Tablespoon of molasses just for fun! They were delicious! These will be a favorite fall treat for sure!
Thank you so much for your comment! The idea of switching applesauce with apple butter is so fun, and I’m so glad you liked them!
Hi,Lucy! Does this make 12 or 16 muffins? I’d like to make them for a morning ladies Bible study I attend and I want to make sure there’s enough. I’m sure they’ll be a hit!
Hello! This recipe makes 16 muffins. I hope they love them!
Absolutely delicious! Great recipe! Thank you.
You are so welcome! Thanks for your comment 🤗
so delicious especially with the butter cinnamon sugar topping
Thank you so much!
Can you sub the egg for more applesauce ? Egg allegirs
You would use 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce to replace one egg. And sources say to add a 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder for every 1/4 cup of applesauce to keep the texture of the baked good light since fruit purées can make them dense. Good luck!
Love this easy recipe. I did add raisins with some. I will try chopped apples next time too.
The best muffin recipe that I’ve ever made. They were devoured. Thank you!
Recipe looks amazing! Do you have any suggestions for subbing the dairy products? I have a dairy allergy so unfortunately I can’t have sour cream. I was going to use cashew milk instead of whole milk, not sure what to sub for the sour cream or if I should just skip it? Thanks!
I am not familiar with dairy free subs. I do know you can use yogurt instead of sour cream so maybe try a dairy free yogurt (plain). Hopefully that helps a little!