I actually bought buttermilk last week. I’m one of those that usually use the classic substitutes of mixing either vinegar or lemon juice with milk, so actually buying buttermilk was a new thing for me. The reason I decided to buy real buttermilk was because I was making Joy the Baker’s biscuit cinnamon rolls (my post on that will come later!) and I wanted to be sure not to mess it up by substituting this or that. So when I was done making those (which were delicious, by the way), I had all this leftover buttermilk. Sure, I could have frozen it. But I came across this recipe for jam-filled donut muffins on taste.com.au. Commenters on the recipe gave it glowing reviews, so I decided to give it a go.
I didn’t need to change anything about the ingredients, but I did need to change what I baked the muffins in. The recipe says to bake these in one of those king-size 6-hole muffin tins, but I don’t have one of those. So I used a standard-sized 12-hole muffin tin. I also used muffin/cupcake liners. It was a bit trickier doing it this way! I put about a tablespoon (maybe a little bit more) of batter in the bottom of each liner. I used a small plastic baby spoon to smooth the batter out so that it would completely cover the bottom (the batter is very, very thick) then put 1/2 teaspoon jam on top. Using about another tablespoon of batter, I covered the little blob of jam completely so it wouldn’t seep out. I used the baby spoon again to help get the batter to cover the jam. I had *just exactly* enough for 12 muffins!
When the muffins were cool enough to handle, I peeled the liners off (don’t do this too soon, or the muffins will have trouble coming away from the liners), I brushed them with melted butter and rolled them in cinnamon-sugar. They’re best eaten while they’re still warm, and they taste great with coffee!
I’ve made two batches of these since last week, but I didn’t have buttermilk for the second batch. I decided to just use the plain skim milk that we normally drink, but added about a teaspoon of melted butter to it to make it resemble whole milk. The muffins still baked up wonderfully, and in my opinion, they seemed to be a bit more tender, although they lacked the tanginess of the buttermilk from my first batch. But still, my modified batch was without a doubt a winner. I absolutely love these – buttermilk or not!
If you decide to make these and go with 12 standard-sized muffins, I recommend to use a *rounded* 1/2 cup of sugar to coat the muffins because I noticed there doesn’t seem to be quite enough to get through all 12 muffins. Also, since you’re adding a bit more sugar, give a few extra shakes of ground cinnamon to the mix as well!
I highly recommend making these muffins. They’re so simple and taste absolutely delicious!
- 300g (2 cups) self-raising flour
- ⅔ cup caster sugar, plus ½ cup extra to coat
- 80ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 175ml buttermilk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 tsp good-quality strawberry jam
- 100g unsalted butter
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- Preheat oven to 180°C and grease a 6-hole muffin pan.
- Sift the flour into a medium bowl, then add a pinch of salt and the caster sugar. In a jug, combine the vegetable oil, egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract. Add to the dry mixture and stir to only just combine (do not over-mix). Place a spoonful of the mixture in each muffin hole and make an indent in the centre. Fill each indent with a generous ½ teaspoon of strawberry jam. Cover the jam with the remaining muffin mixture and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, melt the butter. Combine the extra sugar and the cinnamon in a large bowl. When the muffins are cool enough to handle, brush each muffin with the melted butter, then roll in the cinnamon sugar. Serve while still a little warm.
i love that this doesn’t make a huge batch–perfectly for us! 🙂
oh my! jam donuts are an absolute weakness of mine, these muffin versions look divine!
These look great! Is it wrong to put a buttermilk glaze on top? Haha!
Thanks for a wonderful recipe. I made these last night and they were so amazing. Mine look really like muffins, while yours are prettier. But in terms of taste and moistness of the dough, they are so so good. Thanks again!