I get up and bake something for the kids most days before school. I’d say I’m baking muffins two to three times during the school week and sometimes on the weekend. Once you know how to make muffins, you won’t be able to stop either. This recipe for Cappuccino Muffins with Chocolate Chips comes into play often.
It doesn’t hurt that it is our youngest son’s favorite muffin (he’s 12, going on 35). I like to make them on a Monday as a “welcome to the start of a good week” kind of thing. If I skipped that school week, I’ll make them on the weekend because we all love them. If I feel like making fancy muffins, I opt for the cappuccino spread. Sometimes I make that cappy muffin recipe, other times I make our usual, and add in the spread from the other cookbook. They are all wonderful no matter what combo you choose.
Just want to get to the recipes? Click on the links in the table of contents below. Otherwise, the rest of us will take a look at the cookbooks containing both recipes for cappuccino muffins, and then mosey our way into the kitchen to make ’em.
- Cookbooks in this Article:
- Good Mornings and Good Memories
- Inside The American Country Inn and Bed & Breakfast Cookbook
- Inside The Taste of Home Most Requested Cookbook
- Make Morning Better
- Cappuccino Chip Muffins Recipe
- Cappuccino Chip Muffins with Cappuccino Spread
- Homemade Cappuccino Muffins with Chocolate Chips
- Related Resources:
Cookbooks in this Article:
Good Mornings and Good Memories
I love this cookbook series. I have the both The American Country Inn and Bed and Breakfast Cookbook Volume One and Volume Two. The authors published another book in 2004 along the same lines: Best Recipes from American Country Inns and Bed & Breakfasts with more than 1,500 recipes. It’s just as good as the others. My books by Kitty and Kitty and Lucian Maynard are getting rather covered in flour and my notes (and, apparently, the cat). If you aren’t familiar with these cookbooks, let’s take a look, so you can see why I am a raving fan.
We loved staying at bed and breakfasts while we traveled around Indiana. Yes, even with a toddler in tow (way back when) and through the years. Innkeepers by and large were (and are) simply wonderful. Some had cats, dogs, or horses to pet, others had interesting toys they’d bring out that belonged to their kids or grandkids, and a few got down on the floor and played with our boys because they enjoyed having kids around so much. Kids along or not, snacks like cookies and pie were often supplied “just for fun.” We have many wonderful memories.
One of the best parts of a bed and breakfast is right there in the name: The breakfast! Innkeepers pile it on. I never knew how busy my day would become, so I needed a big breakfast. Bed and breakfasts were always reliable in that regard—and it was always delicious. Which is why a cookbook like The American Country Inn and Bed & Breakfast is especially exciting to me.
Inside The American Country Inn and Bed & Breakfast Cookbook
Published in 1987 and 1990 and 2004, these cookbooks are huge. Volume One is 511 pages, Volume Two is 628-pages long, and the 2004 book is 499 pages (that’s including the index). There are two indexes in each book. One is an index of cities and business names, while the other is an index of the recipes.
Unlike other cookbooks, chapters aren’t broken down into meal type or category. The 50 states, plus the District of Columbia and even Canada make up the chapters in the first two volumes, while the third book skips Canada and Washington D.C. Within each chapter, you then have whatever bed and breakfasts decided to participate, with that bed and breakfast’s recipes following the heading. Each bed and breakfast in the book includes the name, location, address, phone number, and a long or short introduction. The number of included recipes, and the type, vary with each bed and breakfast. There are many bed and breakfasts that only include one recipe, while others include a couple pages full of them in a bunch of different categories.
Some recipes include a brief summary or a tip (or how it relates to the B&B somehow). The majority of recipes are homemade, which I prefer. You just don’t know what you will find, though it is fun to see if there are recipes from B&B’s you’ve visited. I’ve made plenty from these cookbooks, including Chicken Elizabeth (a family favorite, and kind of fancy-looking),
You won’t find images in this cookbook. You will, however, view sepia-toned illustrations featuring many of the bed and breakfasts. Not every B&B includes an illustrations of a featured bed and breakfast, but it is a neat touch. I do enjoy seeing what the place looks like. Bed and breakfast headings are listed in black bold-face font, while the recipe titles are written in brown.
Inside The Taste of Home Most Requested Cookbook
Then there is the Taste of Home cookbook. In case you are unfamiliar with the brand, they are a crowd-sourced cookbook that nicely display the submitter’s name and location (which I do like). The recipes are typically simple, with a mix of scratch recipes and recipes that use a lot of packaged stuff.
In the Taste of Home Most Requested Recipes cookbook, there is an entire chapter called “Quick and Easy” that is useless to me. Chapters include: Editors’ Favorites; Snacks and Appetizers; Breakfast and Brunch; Soups and Sandwiches; Sides, Salads, and Breads; Main Dishes; Guilt-Free Fare; Quick and Easy; Seasonal Selections; and Dessert.
That said, I am pleased to report that I have made a few recipes from multiple chapters in the 248-page book (including the index) that are more our style. I feel like you want to know what, so lemme take a look…Grandma’s Honey Muffins, Chocolate Cake, Fiesta Dip, and Cappuccino Muffins.
Make Morning Better
Funny thing, I had a recipe clipping of the muffins, but with a longer title, from Taste of Home or Quick Cooking magazine (I’m not sure), but I misplaced it. I looked through my muffin cookbooks before I remembered it was a TOH-brand recipe. Luckily, I got back on track, and the recipe I wanted was included in the TOH Most Requested cookbook. That was a great surprise.
Now if only I could find their recipe for diced breakfast potatoes that used evaporated milk. That’s about all I remember of it, except that it was so good. But I lost the clipping at least a decade ago. I have no idea where it could have gone. Anyone know what I’m talking about?
You know what else is a great surprise? A muffin everyone in the family that makes everyone happy (and it’s not just the minimal caffeine talkin’ either). Make either muffin. Make the spread—or don’t. However you spin this, these cappy-flavored muffins are wonderful.
Cappuccino Chip Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 2 teaspoons Instant Espresso Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon Don't omit the cinnamon!
- 1 Cup Milk Warmed NOT Boiled.
- 1/2 Cup Butter Melted and Cooled
- 1 Large Egg Beaten
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips (I've also used toffee chips, but I would recommend a chocolate chip and toffee mixture)
Instructions
- 375* oven
- Grease your muffin tin with Pam for Baking or Baker's Joy. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder, Instant Espresso Powder, Salt, and Cinnamon. Give it a whisk to break up any clumps.
- In a separate bowl, mix Milk, Butter, Egg, and Vanilla Extract just until blended. I use a larger liquid measuring cup than I need to melt the butter, and I combine all the ingredients in that to save me a bowl.
- Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients (think: volcano shaped) and add the buttery milk mixture. Give it a few swipes with your spoon, but stop before the flour is totally combined. This will ensure you don't overmix your batter since we still have chocolate chips to add and a little flour on the chocolate chips keeps them from sinking into the batter.
- NOW add the chocolate chips. Mix until just combined. Once you stop seeing streaks of flour, YOU'RE DONE.
- Divide the batter among a dozen muffin cups.
- Bake 375* for 15-20 minutes. It takes my oven 17 minutes to bake. How do you know they are done? A toothpick inserted in a non-chocolate chip area will come out clean. The muffin center will spring back lightly when gently pressed. They will look done.
- I leave my muffins out, uncovered, with a towel draped over them the first night. After that, if there is an "after that," I store them in a covered, reusable container.
Cappuccino Chip Muffins with Cappuccino Spread
Ingredients
Cappuccino Spread
- 4 ounces Cream Cheese (that's half a block) Cubed (for easier mixing)
- 1 Tablespoon Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Instant Coffee Granules
- 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1/4 Cup Mini Chocolate Chips If you use full-sized chips, it's a chunkier spread, FYI.
Cappuccino Muffins
- 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon Do Not Omit (it adds the cappy flavor!)
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 Cup Milk
- 2 Tablespoons Instant Coffee Granules
- 1/2 Cup Butter, Melted
- 1 Large Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 3/4 Cup Mini Chocolate Chips You can use whole chocolate chips in whatever kind you prefer (semisweet, bittersweet, milk). I use regular-sized chocolate chips.
Instructions
Make the Spread
- Combine the ingredients in a food processor or by hand.
- Cover and refrigerate.
Make the Muffins
- 375* oven.
- Grease a muffin tin with Baker's Joy or Pam with Flour and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients.
- In a small bowl, mix together the Milk and the Instant Coffee Granules until they are dissolved.
- Add in the Butter, Egg, and the Vanilla Extract. Combine well.
- Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, but don't stir too long. While you see a lot of unmixed flour, add in the chocolate chips. This will keep the chips from sinking to the bottom of the muffin AND help prevent overmixing.
- Combine. Once you see a few streaks of flour, tread slowly. Incorporate those last bits and STOP MIXING.
- Fill cups 2/3 full and bake at 375* for 17-20 minutes. Muffins are done when the top springs back lightly when pressed and a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool for 5 minutes and then pop out of the tin.
- Serve with the espresso spread, if desired.
Homemade Cappuccino Muffins with Chocolate Chips
My “Bed and Breakfast” copies are used and I was happy to see an index card someone left inside Volume One of recipes they tried or wanted to try. That’s my favorite thing. If you need more muffin related info, read the history of muffins and find out how they were invented and how they’ve changed. Enjoy!
Related Resources:
Leave a Reply