New York Style Crumb Cake Muffins Recipe 455

Steps:

• 1.Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line muffin pan with baking cups or prepare panettone baking cups by spraying them lightly with cooking spray. 2.In a medium bowl, whisk together sugars, cinnamon, and salt. Pour the butter over top and using a wooden spoon, mix until incorporated. Then add the cake flour and mix until mixture resembles a thick and cohesive dough. Set aside. 3.In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt on low speed to combine. With mixer at low speed, add butter one piece at a time; continue beating until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no visible butter chunks remaining, 1 to 2 minutes. 4.Add the egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract and buttermilk and mix until all has been incorporated and batter is light and fluffy. 5.Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, divide up batter into prepared muffin pan. Then, sprinkle a generous amount of the crumb topping on top. Do not press the crumb topping into the batter. Just let it sit on top. 6.Bake for 20 minutes or until crumbs are golden and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. (Note: I did stick my muffins under the broiler at about the 15 minute baking mark so the tops would get nice and brown. If you do this, make sure to watch it carefully. You do not have to do the broiler step and can omit it completely.) 7.Let muffins cool for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Makes 12 muffins ............................. Don't be tempted to substitute all-purpose flour for the cake flour, as doing so will make a dry, tough muffin. If you can't find buttermilk, you can substitute an equal amount of plain, low-fat yogurt. When topping the muffins, take care to not push the crumbs into the batter. Cooled leftovers can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees and line a 12-cup muffin tin with liners.
• Make the topping: In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, melt butter, then let it simmer until the foam on top falls to the bottom of the pot and turns brown, 4 to 6 minutes. It will smell nutty when it's ready. Immediately pour butter into a small bowl to keep it from getting any browner, and let cool for 5 minutes.
• Whisk together flour, sugar, spices and salt in a medium bowl. Pour in the brown butter and stir, pinching the mixture together, until crumbs form. Set aside.
• Make the batter: Whisk together sour cream, eggs, vanilla, almond extract and lemon zest in a mixing bowl.
• In a large bowl, using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a handheld electric mixer, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt until combined, about 10 seconds. Add softened butter and beat for 20 seconds to work it into the flour. Add egg mixture and continue beating until the batter is very smooth, about 1 minute.
• Sprinkle a scant tablespoon of the topping crumbs into the bottom of each muffin liner. Spoon the batter on top of the crumbs, dividing it evenly.
• Bake muffins for 5 minutes to firm up the tops so the crumbs don't sink into the batter. Remove muffin pan from the oven and lower heat to 350 degrees. Sprinkle the remaining crumbs on top of each muffin. Continue to bake until the muffins are springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes longer. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Use an offset spatula or butter knife to lift the muffins out of the pan. Finish cooling muffins on a rack.