Looking for a cozy breakfast or snack? Try these Morning Glory Muffins! This 1970’s muffin recipe is everything it’s cracked up to be. Each one is moist and warm-spiced, studded with carrots, pineapple, raisins and pecans. There’s a bit of whole wheat flour for nutty body and a hint of coconut sprinkles as a topping. It’s like a combination of carrot cake and applesauce cake, in muffin form! Here’s how to whip up a batch.
Why are they called Morning Glory muffins?
Turns out, this famous flavor was born in the 1970’s in Nantucket. Chef Pam McKinstry created the muffin recipe for her restaurant, the Morning Glory Café, in 1978. They quickly became popular and the recipe was published in Gourmet Magazine in 1981. The original Morning Glory muffins recipe was a straightforward muffin. The batter featured all-purpose flour and cinnamon, and it was stuffed with raisins, carrots, apple, pineapple, pecans, and coconut. Many riffs on the original have popped up in restaurants around the country, and the muffin started to take on a vaguely “health food” vibe, sometimes including either bran or whole wheat flour.
Ingredients in Morning Glory muffins
For this Morning Glory muffins recipe, we wanted to stay true to the original character of the muffins while also celebrating its vaguely “healthy” history. We took inspiration from this Epicurious source and former head of Tartine Bakery, who likes to add whole wheat flour and brown sugar to the mix to add that signature “brown” muffin texture. Here’s what you’ll need for this Morning Glory muffins recipe:
All-purpose and whole wheat flour Granulated and light brown sugar Cinnamon and allspice Baking powder and salt Canned pineapple Grated carrots Raisins Pecans Eggs Applesauce Vegetable oil Milk Vanilla extract
Mix-ins and variations
Morning Glory muffins have a variety of mix-in options, depending on the chef. If you’re used to this type of muffin, you may want to add one of the following:
Walnuts: use chopped walnuts instead of pecans Coconut: add ¼ to ½ cup sweetened shredded coconut Apples: add ½ cup peeled and diced apples Orange zest: add 1 teaspoon orange zest for a beautifully zingy flavor
Tips for these Morning Glory Muffins
This Morning Glory muffin recipe comes together quickly and simply: just mix the dry ingredients, mix the wet ingredients, and combine! Here are a few tips to making these muffins a success:
Resist the urge to overmix. Overmixing muffin batter can cause holes in the crumb and a denser texture. Mix just until the streaks of flour disappear. Chop the pineapple finely. You don’t want huge chunks of pineapple here. The muffin cups will be full to the brim. This is intentional: it makes for a hefty muffin with a generous muffin top. Baking at 400°F makes a taller muffin. This temperature makes a taller muffin and it’s quicker to bake, versus 350°F which is standard.
Storage info
These Morning Glory muffins are even better the next day! Store them at room temperature overnight, and they become even more moist and delicious. Here are a few pointers:
Store up to 4 days at room temperature. Store in a sealed container and they become even more moist over time. Store refrigerated for 1 week or more. Store refrigerated up to 1 week or more. Make sure to allow to come to room temperature before serving, otherwise they are very dense. Frozen: Freeze the muffins in a sealed container for up to 3 months.
And that’s it! Let us know if you try these Morning Glory muffins and what you think.
More muffin recipes
Want to try more classic muffin flavors? Here are a few to try?
Go for a Basic Muffin Recipe that you can customize to your liking Make Classic Blueberry Muffins or Lemon Blueberry Muffins Grab Coffee Cake Muffins, Apple Cinnamon Muffins or Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins Try Easy Banana Muffins, Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins or Banana Nut Muffins Opt for Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
This Morning Glory muffins recipe is…
Vegetarian. 5 from 1 review
