Apple and cinnamon breakfast muffins

Simple breakfast muffins made with apples, cinnamon and goat’s yogurt. These muffins are healthy enough for breakfast, and easy to eat on the go!

I’m lucky enough to work from home, so it’s not often I need a grab-and-go breakfast these days – but with a toddler to feed, I’m always excited by a quick and easy breakfast option. She’s her mother’s daughter – doesn’t like to wait for food. These tasty apple and cinnamon breakfast muffins are healthy enough to eat first thing in the morning, but still feel like a treat!

Grab-and-go breakfast

Over the next few weeks, I’m working with St Helen’s Farm to bring you some recipes using their amazing goat’s milk products – they make milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, and even ice cream, all from goat’s milk. First up, they asked me to share a recipe that’s ‘naturally good on the go’ – and these apple and cinnamon breakfast muffins fit the bill perfectly.

Most breakfasts require you to be sat at a table like a civilised human being, cutlery and all. Porridge, cereal, yogurt – at the very least, they all need a spoon. For these apple and cinnamon muffins, and all you need in the morning is one hand to eat them with (even if the other hand is busy combing your hair, ironing a shirt, or feeding the dog).

Just bake a batch on Sunday afternoon, and they’ll see you through the week (with some to spare!).

Healthy breakfast muffins

According to some research that St Helen’s Farm did this summer, 83% of Brits would like to eat more healthily, and only two thirds of Brits are eating healthy meals at least once a day. These apple and cinnamon breakfast muffins are an easy first step towards remedying this!

The recipe is pretty healthy, so you can feel good about eating them first thing in the morning. There’s no refined sugar, just wholemeal flour, honey, and oats – along with fresh apples and plenty of cinnamon. But despite being healthy, they’re still completely delicious – you won’t miss the sugar at all.

The recipe also uses St Helen’s Farm goat’s yogurt, instead of my usual cow’s yogurt. If you’ve never used goat’s milk products before, they can be used as a one-to-one substitution for cow’s milk products. The flavour is mild, but slightly different from cow’s milk – goat’s milk has a slightly tangier flavour when eaten on its own (though it’s not noticeable in a recipe like this). Goat’s yogurt is a little less thick than some cow’s yogurts, but just as rich and creamy.

Why use goat’s yogurt?

Many people have issues with cow’s milk products, but find they can drink goat’s milk without any problems. There’s evidence to suggest that goat’s milk is easier to digest than cow’s milk, which may help with digestive comfort, and it also contains slightly less lactose than cow’s milk. It’s nutritionally more similar to cow’s milk than other alternatives, so can be a great option if you’re sensitive to cow’s milk.

Goat’s milk is not recommended for anyone who has been diagnosed with a cow’s milk allergy or lactose intolerance, but since the amount of lactose people can tolerate varies, goat’s milk could be a helpful alternative for people with just a mild sensitivity to cow’s milk.

Goat’s milk is also high in calcium, low in cholesterol, and a good source of many other essential vitamins and minerals. You can find more information about the health benefits of goat’s milk on the St Helen’s Farm website (explained by an actual dietitian, not just me!).

Simple recipe

As you know, I’m not an expert baker, so these breakfast muffins are super simple to make. Mix your wet ingredients, mix your dry ingredients, then combine – it couldn’t be easier. They don’t rise a huge amount during baking, so you can fill your muffin cases up fairly full (I’d say around 3/4 of the way to the top).

I like to use silicone muffin cases (this kind of thing – UK* / US*) rather than paper ones, as they don’t stick at all – it’s seriously like magic. Your muffins will come out perfectly, rather than being torn apart when you try to peel the paper case off. Totally mess-free, and perfect for popping in your lunchbox or just eating on your way out the door.

Breakfast made easy

If you do have a few spare minutes to sit down for breakfast, I’d recommend serving a breakfast muffin with some fresh fruit and an extra dollop of goat’s yogurt – a perfectly balanced breakfast to start your day off on the right foot! Or, if you’re in more in a rush, you may want 2 muffins to fill you up.

Either way, the little chunks of soft apple and hearty, oaty texture of the muffins will definitely put a smile on your face.

What are your favourite grab-and-go breakfasts that you can make in advance?

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5 from 9 votes

Apple and cinnamon breakfast muffins

Healthy apple and cinnamon muffins with plenty of flavour - perfect for a grab-and-go breakfast!

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 50 mins

Servings: 10 muffins

Ingredients

• 2 small sweet apples (I used Pink Lady apples)
• 2 medium eggs
• 130 g (~ 1/3 cup) St Helen's Farm goat’s yogurt
• 2 tbsp oil (use a flavourless oil, e.g. rapeseed / vegetable oil, canola oil)
• 3 tbsp runny honey
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 100 g (~ 2/3 cup) plain wholemeal flour
• 50 g (~ 1/3 cup) rolled oats (plus a few more for topping)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180°C (Gas Mark 4 / 350°F).
• Peel the apples, and cut into small chunks.
• Add the eggs, goat's yogurt, oil, honey, and vanilla to a large jug, and mix well to combine. Add the chopped apples, and mix again.
• In a separate mixing bowl, combine the wholemeal flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and mix thoroughly.
• Place some muffin cases into a muffin tray (I like to use silicone cases so there's no sticking) - you should be able to make around 10 muffins in total. Divide the mixture between the cases, filling each around 3/4 of the way to the top.
• Sprinkle each muffin with a few extra oats, and bake for around 25-30 minutes. The muffins should be lightly browned on top, and a skewer should come out clean.
• If using silicone cases, allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes (or a bit longer!), then carefully remove them from the cases, and finish cooling on a rack. If using paper cases, just transfer the muffins to the rack when they're cool enough to handle.

Course: Breakfast

Author: Becca Heyes

Note: Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on exactly what ingredients you choose. Information above is for 1 muffin.

If you’re in need of even more make-ahead breakfast ideas, why not try my oaty breakfast bars:

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