New York-Style Crumb Cake Muffins
By America's Test KitchenPublished on October 26, 2011
Time
1¼ hours, plus 20 minutes cooling
Yield
Makes 12 muffins
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
⅓ cup granulated sugar (2 ⅔ ounces/75 grams)⅓ cup dark brown sugar (2 ⅔ ounces/75 grams)¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon ⅛ teaspoon table salt 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and still warm1 ¾ cups cake flour (7 ounces/198 grams)Muffins
1 ¼ cups cake flour (5 ounces/142 grams)½ cup granulated sugar (3 ½ ounces/99 grams)¼ teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon table salt 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (¾ stick), cut into 6 pieces, softened but still cool1 large egg 1 large egg yolk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ⅓ cup buttermilk Confectioners' sugar for dustingBefore You Begin
Don't be tempted to substitute all-purpose flour for the cake flour, as doing so will make a dry, tough muffin. If you can't find buttermilk, you can substitute an equal amount of plain, low-fat yogurt. When topping the muffins, take care to not push the crumbs into the batter. Cooled leftovers can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Instructions
- Whisk sugars, cinnamon, salt, and butter in medium bowl to combine. Add flour and stir with rubber spatula or wooden spoon until mixture resembles thick, cohesive dough; set aside to cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard-sized muffin pan (cups have 1/2 cup capacity) with baking-cup liners.
- In bowl of standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt on low speed to combine. With mixer running at low speed, add butter one piece at a time; continue beating until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no visible butter chunks remaining, 1 to 2 minutes. Add egg, yolk, vanilla, and buttermilk; beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute, scraping once if necessary.
- Using 1/4-cup measure or ice cream scoop, divide batter evenly among muffin cups; using small rubber spatula, spread batter into even layer. Following photos below, break apart crumb topping into large pea-sized pieces and spread in even layer over batter (about 1/4 cup of crumbs per muffin), beginning with edges and then working toward center. Bake until crumbs are golden and wooden skewer inserted into center of muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool muffins in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack at least 20 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.
for the topping
for the muffins
Time
1¼ hours, plus 20 minutes coolingYield
Makes 12 muffinsIngredients
Crumb Topping
Muffins
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
Muffins
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
Muffins
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Since an authentic New York crumb cake recipe should have rich dough topped with thick chunks of lightly spiced crumb topping, we tweaked our favorite yellow cake batter to use in our crumb cake muffin recipe. For a proper crumb topping, we made large, doughlike crumbs and broke the dough apart into little nuggets that we sprinkled over the batter. The nuggets held together when baked, giving us sturdy crumbs that remained moist and tender on the inside.
Before You Begin
Don't be tempted to substitute all-purpose flour for the cake flour, as doing so will make a dry, tough muffin. If you can't find buttermilk, you can substitute an equal amount of plain, low-fat yogurt. When topping the muffins, take care to not push the crumbs into the batter. Cooled leftovers can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Instructions
- Whisk sugars, cinnamon, salt, and butter in medium bowl to combine. Add flour and stir with rubber spatula or wooden spoon until mixture resembles thick, cohesive dough; set aside to cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard-sized muffin pan (cups have 1/2 cup capacity) with baking-cup liners.
- In bowl of standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt on low speed to combine. With mixer running at low speed, add butter one piece at a time; continue beating until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no visible butter chunks remaining, 1 to 2 minutes. Add egg, yolk, vanilla, and buttermilk; beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute, scraping once if necessary.
- Using 1/4-cup measure or ice cream scoop, divide batter evenly among muffin cups; using small rubber spatula, spread batter into even layer. Following photos below, break apart crumb topping into large pea-sized pieces and spread in even layer over batter (about 1/4 cup of crumbs per muffin), beginning with edges and then working toward center. Bake until crumbs are golden and wooden skewer inserted into center of muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool muffins in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack at least 20 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.
for the topping
for the muffins
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