Allspice Crumb Muffins

Allspice Crumb Muffins feature a moist, fall flavored muffin with a streusel crumb topping. These are great for breakfast or brunch!

This post was originally published on October 1, 2010. It has been updated with new photos and additional commentary in September 2020.

Happy Fall! It seems like the weather in my area has changed from summer to fall since my last post! Can you believe it's already October???  

I've been MIA lately but for good reason - we closed on our new house and moved in! We are still working on getting settled, but my first priority was establishing a functional kitchen. I'm really looking forward to getting back into a routine that involves more cooking, baking, and blogging!  

I've had my eye on these Allspice Crumb Muffins for quite some time, and I decided that they would be the perfect breakfast for my wonderful family members who graciously gave up their Saturday morning to help us on moving day. These muffins were great, incorporating the delicious spices of fall.  

UPDATE: I recently made these muffins for Bob and the girls. They LOVED them! The muffins are moist and flavorful. They consist of a basic muffin batter flavored with allspice and an allspice streusel topping. I'll take you through the basic steps of how to make them.

Allspice Substitution

Unlike the name suggests, allspice is actually a singular "spice," or more specifically a dried, unripe berry that has the flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove. If you don't have allspice, you can prepare a mixture of 2 parts ground cinnamon, 1 part ground nutmeg, and 1 part ground clove. I have these details listed in the recipe card notes below.

Making the Streusel Topping

To make the streusel crumb topping, combine the flour, brown sugar, and allspice in a bowl, sifting it together with your fingers. Then, add the cold pieces of butter and toss to coat. You can break the butter up a bit into smaller pieces to get a mixture that looks like the photo below.

Making the Muffin Batter

As with many batters, for this muffin batter you'll be mixing the dry ingredients separate from the wet ingredients. To prepare the dry ingredients, whisk together the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, allspice, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.

To prepare the wet ingredients, whisk together the melted butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract in a glass measuring cup or bowl.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients.

Gently fold the batter together with a spatula. If using the lemon zest, add it now. The zest does not make the muffins taste lemony, but rather gives a nice flavor balance to the allspice.

Assembling and Baking the Muffins

(1) Prepare the muffin pan. If you are using a metal muffin pan, I recommend using muffin/cupcake liners. If you are using a silicone muffin pan, I recommend spraying the muffin cups with a floured nonstick baking spray like Pam for Baking. Alternatively, you can use regular nonstick spray.

I like to line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place the silicone muffin pan on top. This gives stability to the silicone and makes it easier to move it in and out of the oven. The foil lined baking sheet catches crumb topping that would otherwise burn onto the baking sheet.

(2) Add the muffin batter to each well of the muffin pan. The easiest way to do this is to use an ice cream scoop or a large batter scoop.

(3) Sprinkle the streusel over the top of each muffin. Press the crumbs into the batter to help them adhere.

(4) Bake the muffins. The are done when a knife or toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Gluten Free Option

I haven't tried it with this recipe, but I have good luck using Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour in place of all purpose flour in many baked goods recipes, including these Blueberry Muffins!

📖 Recipe

Allspice Crumb Muffins

Meghan

Moist, fall spiced muffins with a streusel crumble topping.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Cool Time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 12 muffins

Calories 309 kcal

Equipment

• 12-cup muffin pan

Ingredients

  

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For the streusel:

• ½ cup all purpose flour
• ½ cup light brown sugar (packed)
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice (see note)
• 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (cut into small pieces)

For the muffins:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice (see note)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup light brown sugar (packed)
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
• 2 large eggs
• ¾ cup whole milk
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• zest of 1 lemon (optional)

Instructions

 

• Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 375°F.
• Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or spray with cooking spray. Place the muffin pan on a baking sheet.

Make the Streusel:

• Put the flour, brown sugar, and allspice in a small bowl and sift ingredients through your fingers to blend. Add the cold pieces of butter and toss to get irregularly shaped crumbs. Set aside in refrigerator.
  ½ cup all purpose flour, ½ cup light brown sugar, ½ teaspoon ground allspice, 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter

Make the Muffins:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, allspice, and salt. Stir in the brown sugar, making certain there are no lumps.
  2 cups all purpose flour, ½ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon ground allspice, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ cup light brown sugar
• In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk the melted butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract together until well combined.
  8 tablespoons unsalted butter, 2 large eggs, ¾ cup whole milk, ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with a whisk or rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. The batter should be lumpy. Stir in lemon zest if using.
  zest of 1 lemon
• Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups. Sprinkle some streusel over each muffin, then use your fingertips to gently press the crumbs into the batter.
• Bake for about 20 minutes or until the tops are golden and a thin knife inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin to the cooling rack.

Notes

If you don't have allspice, you can make a similar-tasting substitute by mixing 2 parts ground cinnamon, 1 part ground nutmeg, and 1 part ground cloves.  This recipe requires 1 teaspoon total ground allspice (½ teaspoon for the streusel and ½ teaspoon for the muffin batter).  This equates to ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon cloves.

Source: Baking from My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, as featured on Meet Me in the Kitchen

Nutritional information is only an estimate and will vary based on your ingredients and substitutions.   

You're Gonna Bake It After All

bakeitafterall.com

Nutrition

Calories: 309kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 4gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.5gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 214mgPotassium: 85mgFiber: 1gSugar: 23gVitamin A: 444IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 102mgIron: 2mg

Keyword breakfast, dessert, fall, muffins

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!