Cinnamon Sugar Mini Donut Muffins

Get ready for one of the most popular Muffin Monday recipes I've made!  They're little, sweet, crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, and more addictive than you can imagine.  In fact, these innocent little muffins led to an argument in the transition classroom.

I'll explain - maybe you've noticed that most of my Muffin Monday recipes have been healthy.  They have been; I knew that most of the staff in the class had been dieting and participating in our school's Biggest Loser competition.  But hey, that's over, and it was time to give them a real treat.  I didn't announce this change, I just sent the muffins in, which led to Nick fighting with everyone else over the healthiness of the little muffins!  He insisted I only bake healthy muffins, while the rest of the staff figured it out right away :)  I appreciate Nick's belief in my healthy recipes, but even a healthy baker can stray sometimes.

No, these aren't diet muffins.  But you know what?  Sometimes you don't need a diet muffin.  Sometimes you need a soft little donut muffin, lightly flavored with cloves, that is dunked in melted butter and rolled in cinnamon and sugar.  In fact, you need them more than sometimes.  You need them all the time.  They melt in your mouth and everyone knows that that means you don't absorb any calories from them.

Recipe:

cinnamon sugar mini donut muffins
from Crunchy Creamy Sweet 
yield about 18 mini muffins

Ingredients:
for the muffins:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup all-purpose flour
for the sugar coating:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions:

1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Grease the cavities and top of a mini muffin tin.  Set aside.

2) In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder.  Set aside.

3) In a large mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter and sugar.  Add spices and vanilla and whisk well.  Add milk and whisk again.

4) Add dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.

5) Pour batter into muffin cups.  Bake 15 - 17 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center of each muffin come out clean.

6)  Prepare the coating: melt butter in a small bowl.  In another small bowl, mix sugar and cinnamon. When muffins are completely cool, dunk each one in melted butter and then roll in cinnamon sugar.  Return onto wire
rack and let cool for a few minutes.