Micah A. Leal
Not too sweet but rich enough for breakfast, these sweet potato muffins are a close cousin to the beloved pumpkin spice muffin. A blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger spices fills these muffins with the best flavors of fall.
Begin by baking sweet potatoes until their insides are very soft. This cooking process allows a special enzyme in the potatoes to transform the starches into a natural sugar. It's not as sweet as table sugar, but it's incredibly deep in flavor. The potatoes are mashed and mixed into the batter. Rather than a butter-based muffin batter, this batter relies on the sweet potato and eggs for its structure. Milk and oil are called for to give both moistness and tenderness. Serve these muffins warm by themselves or with butter. Stored in an air-tight container, they keep well for days and can easily be reheated for breakfast or for an afternoon snack with a cup of coffee.
How to Make It
Step 1
Preheat oven to 425°F. Wash and dry the outside of each sweet potato thoroughly. Wrap in aluminum foil and place on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet for 1 1/2 hours. Allow to cool before discarding the potato skins and mashing the flesh in a bowl. Measure out 1 3/4 cup of the mashed sweet potatoes and set aside; discard any additional mashed sweet potato.
Step 2
Reduce oven to 350°F. Line 2 standard size 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners; set aside.
Step 3
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, oil, and milk until well combined. Add reserved mashed sweet potato and whisk until throughly incorporated into liquid ingredients. Add dry ingredients and stir until just incorporated and no pockets of flour remain.
Step 4
Divide batter among muffin cups by filling each muffin cup about two-thirds full. Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the tops have gained a little color, about 25 minutes.
