These coffee cake muffins bring the perfect balance of soft, fluffy texture and a sweet, crumbly topping. With a delicious blend of cinnamon, brown sugar, and buttery streusel, these muffins taste just like your favorite bakery-style coffee cake but in a convenient, grab-and-go form. This easy recipe will quickly become a household favorite.
This coffee cake muffins recipe is perfect for anyone who loves a cozy, spiced muffin with a soft crumb and a sweet, crunchy topping. Unlike traditional coffee cake that’s made in a large pan, these muffins are individually portioned, making them perfect for meal prep, quick breakfasts, or brunch gatherings. The addition of a cinnamon-sugar crumble adds just the right amount of sweetness without being overwhelming.
One of the best things about cinnamon coffee cake muffins is their versatility. You can make them ahead of time, freeze them for later, or customize them with different add-ins like nuts, fruit, or even a drizzle of glaze. They’re perfect on their own or paired with coffee, making them a delicious homemade alternative to your favorite café treats.
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Why We Love Coffee Cake Muffins Recipe
- Quicker and easier to make than a traditional coffee cake. This cinnamon coffee cake muffin recipe takes just 25 minutes to make.
They’re easy enough to whip up for the kids after school or when friends stop by unannounced. - Single Serving – Portion control at its best, and the small size makes them perfect for little hands to hold. This is also a great grab-n-go breakfast idea for a busy morning!
- Bakery fresh flavor, but with less calories.
There’s no denying that Costco coffee cake muffins taste absolutely delicious. But, believe it or not, each one has a whopping 740 calories!
Thankfully, our cinnamon muffin recipe is better than Costco’s. Ours taste just as fabulous but have just 421 calories.
Speaking of our favorite warehouse club, have you made our copycat version of Costco chocolate chip cookies yet? They are SO good!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Butter: We recommend using unsalted butter for this recipe. This is because some brands of butter have more salt than others and are just too salty for making baked goods.
If all you have on hand is salted butter, don’t use any additional salt in the batter for the coffee cake muffins. - Sour cream: This ingredient adds a tangy flavor and tender consistency to baked goods, in the same way buttermilk does in pancakes and Bisquick biscuits buttermilk.
An equal amount of plain-flavored whole milk yogurt or Greek yogurt is a good substitute for sour cream in coffee cake muffins. - All-purpose flour: For tender, cake-like muffins, substitute half of the all-purpose flour in the muffins with cake flour.
**Use this substitute for the muffin batter only. For the cinnamon streusel crumble topping, use 100% all-purpose flour.
Recipe Variations
- Crumb cake muffins: Add an extra layer of streusel inside the muffins for even more crumble goodness.
- Chocolate chip: Mix in a handful of chocolate chips for a rich, sweet twist.
- Bakery-style muffins: Use tall muffin liners and bake at a higher temperature for the first few minutes to achieve a domed top.
- Fun add-ins: Try chopped pecans, dried fruit, or a cinnamon glaze to make them even more delicious!
Equipment Used in the Recipe
- Bowls
- Stand mixer
- Silicone spatula
- Muffin pan
- Muffin cup liners – optional
How to Make Cinnamon Coffee Cake Muffins
- Be sure all ingredients are at room temperature.
Using room-temp ingredients in cake recipes is important. This is because cold ingredients, especially eggs and butter, are much more difficult to incorporate. - Use a stand mixer for the best results.
Not everyone owns or can afford to own a standing mixer, but if you have one, it will make easy work of mixing the muffin batter. If you need another option, use an electric hand mixer.
- Avoid overmixing the batter.
All-purpose flour has strands of protein in it (known as gluten). Just like our muscles get stronger when we exercise them, gluten gets stronger the more it’s beaten.
When it comes to this cinnamon muffin recipe, overworking the gluten will give you baked goods that are tough and dry, not tender and soft.
- Leave some space in the pan for the coffee cake muffins to rise.
In a regular-sized muffin pan, each “well” holds approximately 1 cup of batter. To prevent batter from baking over the top rim, fill each muffin cup 3/4 full of batter.
🎯 TFN Pro Tip
For the best bakery-style coffee cake muffins, start baking at 400°F for the first 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350°F for the remaining bake time. This method helps create tall, domed muffin tops while keeping the inside soft and fluffy!
- Test doneness using the toothpick test.
Sometimes it can be difficult to tell if the inside of baked goods are cooked completely.
The easiest way to check for doneness is to insert a toothpick into the center of one muffin. If it comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs, they’re ready to come out of the oven!
Love cinnamon? Our sourdough cinnamon bread is a must-try; try this recipe next!
Serving Suggestions
Bakery-style muffins like these cinnamon coffee cake muffins pair wonderfully with a variety of sides and drinks to enhance their cozy, indulgent flavors. The warm notes of brown sugar, walnuts, and pecans in the muffins are perfectly complemented by a creamy latte or a robust cup of black coffee.
For a heartier pairing, serve them with a side of Greek yogurt topped with fresh berries or a drizzle of honey. If you’re looking for a savory balance, try pairing these muffins with scrambled eggs or smoked bacon for a satisfying brunch spread. Want a little extra indulgence? Sprinkle powdered sugar on top or serve alongside a batch of blueberry muffins for a delicious variety. Whether you scoop them onto a plate for a sit-down meal or enjoy them on the go, they’re always a hit!
Want some other weekend breakfast ideas?
Not much is better for a sweet weekend brunch than thick slices of strawberry french toast recipe, toasted slices of cinnamon swirl bread, or a basket of Bisquick blueberry lemon muffins!
For something a little more savory, you can’t go wrong with egg and hash brown cups and slices of toasted sandwich bread recipe whole wheat.
Recipe FAQs
Very few recipes for coffee cake include actual coffee. In fact, there isn’t any in our coffee cake muffins either.
Most people agree that “coffee cake” was named that because it is typically served with coffee.
Unfortunately, streusel doesn’t hold up well to the moisture that occurs during the process of thawing. So, it is best not to freeze cinnamon streusel muffins.
Because we include streusel in this cinnamon muffin recipe, it’s best to keep the muffins in an airtight container at room temperature. Your fridge has moist air that can make the crumb topping soggy.
At room temperature, they usually stay fresh for 4-5 days.
Yes! Try mixing in chocolate chips, chopped nuts, or dried fruit for a fun twist.
More Sweet Treats To Love…
If you tried this cinnamon streusel coffee cake muffins recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Coffee Cake Muffins
Equipment
- 3 bowls
- stand mixer
- silicone spatula
- 1 muffin pan
- 12 muffin cup liners - optional
Ingredients
Streusel Topping
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 8 tablespoons (4 ounces) butter melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Muffin ingredients
- 8 tablespoons (4 ounces) butter room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup sour cream room temperature. *See Notes for substitutions
- 2 cups all-purpose flour *See Notes for substitutions
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
optional
- confectioners sugar for dusting tops of muffins
Instructions
Make the streusel topping
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon until combined. Add melted butter and vanilla extract to the flour mixture. Stir together with a fork until the topping is pea-sized crumbs.
Make the batter
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- Add the butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer bowl). Use a mixer on high speed to cream the butter and sugar together. Add eggs to the batter, one at a time, mixing for 15 seconds each. Add vanilla extract and sour cream, and beat on medium speed until the mixture is smooth. As necessary, scrape down the insides of the bowl with a silicone spatula to be sure the batter is well combined.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the creamed butter mixture and stir until the batter is smooth.
- Spray the muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray, or use paper liners. Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full with batter (about 1/4 cup of batter). Spoon 2 tablespoons of streusel topping evenly over each cup, to cover the muffin batter.
- Bake at 350ºF for 15-20 minutes, until the coffee cake muffins are golden on top and the streusel topping is light brown. Test for doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick into the center of one muffin. Muffins are done when the toothpick comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs.
- Remove the pan of coffee cake muffins from oven and set it on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Then, remove muffins from the pan and let them cool completely on the rack.
- Dust the tops of the cool muffins with confectioners sugar before serving, if desired.
Notes
- Sour cream substitute: 1 cup plain whole milk yogurt or plain Greek yogurt.
- For tender, cake-like muffins, substitute half of the all-purpose flour in the muffins with cake flour. **Do not substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour for the cinnamon streusel topping.
Nutrition
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Andrea says
Oh do these muffins look and sound amazing! A perfect breakfast to start my day with.
Suja md says
Delicious yet simple recipe that the whole family loved. Can’t wait to make it again!
Lubna says
Wish to grab one just right out of the screen. So good looking and so yum….
Kate says
So tender and flavorful with that incredible streusel topping!
Ieva says
I never tasted the Costco version of these muffins, but I doubt they could be as delicious. So quick, and so delicious, and they stayed fresh the next day too! Thanks for the recipe – they are just perfect with midmorning coffee!