Apple Chai Muffins

So this recipe is so not on my "healthy" list, but it certainly is good. I rarely eat muffins, but I was having some of my 'mommy' friends over for coffee last week, and the apple chai muffins were the perfect pairing for coffee. The muffins themselves are moist (thanks to some sour cream) and light. The hold your traditional aspects of a muffin. I think people sometimes confuse muffins with cupcakes, and expect them to be dense, super sweet, and dessert like.  These are not, and that is exactly why I liked them. Although the thought of dessert for breakfast is often enticing, I didn't think that was suiting.

They are transformed into "chai" muffins by the simple addition of some Trader Joe's Chai latte powder, and they have wonderful pieces of fresh apples all swirled into each bite. As if they weren't good enough as is (which they were), I decided to take it a bit further with a little drizzle of chai cream cheese. I got the idea for these muffins from a local coffee shop (that my sister happens to work at). I think half of the reason I liked them so much was because they were light enough for summer, but perfectly laced with the "fall" season, thanks to the chai.

They are easy to make in the morning, and I prepped almost everything the night before so that all I had to do was throw it all together and stick it in the oven so we could eat warm muffins. I got all of the dry ingredients mixed together, and set aside. I took the butter out the night before as well so that it could come to room temp. I also cut, peeled, and cored the apples the night before, but I mixed them with some lemon juice so they would not turn brown and stuck them in the fridge. This is how I like to do thing (prepping I mean), especially if I have a limited amount of time. If prepping isn't your thing, by all means you can prepare it all at once, I just like less mess and less time.

Apple Chai Muffins

This recipe makes a lot of batter, which makes a lot of delicious muffins. I made 12 muffins, 24 mini muffins, and two mini loaf pans. You can divide it as you wish!

For muffins:

3/4 cup butter, at room temp

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons chai powder (you can find it near the instant drink mixes near the hot chocolate)

1 1/2 cups sour cream

2 cups diced apples, peeled and cored (I used 2 green, and 2 gala)

For cream cheese glaze:

1/2 stick unsalted butter (4 oz), at room temp

1/2 stick cream cheese (4 oz), at room temp

1-2 tablespoons 1/2 and 1/2 or milk

1 cup powdered sugar

1-2 teaspoons chai powder mix

For the Muffins:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar with the paddle attachment of an electric mixer. Add in eggs, and beat until mixed. Add in vanilla, and mix. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Add the dry mix to the wet, alternating the sour cream with the dry mix. Fold in the apples. Grease pans, and fill each muffin tin to the top. Bake for 40-45 minutes. 

For the Cream Cheese Glaze:

Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Add in the rest of the ingredients, and beat until smooth. I do mine in a food processor. Add more powdered sugar or milk as needed. Spread or drizzle on top of cooled muffins.