Apricot & Honey Muffins — A Little Sunshine in Every Bite

 

 

If you’re craving a bake that feels like pure comfort and a touch of springtime sweetness, these Apricot & Honey Muffins are such a lovely place to start. They’re soft, tender, and just sweet enough — the kind of muffin that makes your kitchen smell warm and welcoming before you’ve even finished your first cup of tea.

They’re simple, wholesome, and perfect for breakfast, coffee breaks, or tucking into lunchboxes. A small batch of everyday ingredients… transformed into something that feels a little special. If you enjoy bakes that are easy, comforting, and full of flavor, you’ll want to try these.

  

These delicious muffins I am showing you today make for a fantastically tasty grab and go mid-week breakfast. Perfect for days when you are in a rush and don't have a lot of time to dawdle at the breakfast table.  

I love muffins.  Not quite a sweet as a cupcake, they almost make you feel like you are making a virtuous choice when you choose to have one. Who doesn't love a muffin?  Small individual quick breads built just for one! 

These lovely muffins smell heavenly when they are baking and no wonder as they are chock full of lovely nutritious things.  Whole grain oats, grated fresh apple, chopped dried apricots, chopped toasted pecans.  Ripe banana, sultanas and sweet honey. Oh, how I love baked goods sweetened with honey.

They are a perfect combination of fruit, nuts and fiber to keep up your energy levels and help keep you going the whole morning through!

 

INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE APRICOT & HONEY MUFFINS

There is nothing too out of the ordinary here. It is a fairly lengthy list, but most things are things which we almost always have on hand.

• 210g plain all-purpose flour (1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp mixed spice (pumpkin or apple pie spice will work) (see recipe notes)
• 50g chopped dried apricots (1/2 cup)
• 50g chopped toasted pecan nuts (1/2 cup) plus a bit more for sprinkling on top before baking
• 100g porridge oats (1 cup)
• 50g sultana raisins (1/2 cup golden raisins)
• 2 medium bananas, very ripe and peeled
• 2 unpeeled eating apples, grated
• 2 large free range eggs
• 5 TBS vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 TBS honey
• 6 TBS milk
• 100g soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup, packed)

  

INGREDIENTS NOTES

Do not use self raising flour. I cannot guarantee the results if you use it.  The leavening would need to be adjusted if you did use self raising flour and I am not sure at this time how much baking powder would be needed. In any case, you will need the soda in addition to baking powder.

I give a recipe to make your own mixed spice in the recipe notes if you so wish to make some. It is not an ingredient which is common in North America.

I used organic dried apricots that had not been treated with Sulphur which means they are not bright orange in color.

Porridge Oats are cut or crushed, not flattened. The whole oat kernel is split into small oat fragments that are inconsistent in size and shape. Porridge oats are occasionally called Scottish oats or Irish oats, based on their respective country of origin.

By eating apples I mean an apple that is somewhat sweet and not too tart. I used Honey Crisp. Do not peel.

I used liquid honey, not solid or creamed.

I used whole milk. That is all I keep in the house.

 

HOW TO MAKE APRICOT & HONEY MUFFINS

These are not all that difficult to make. They are done in the same way as most muffins.

1. Preheat the oven to 180*C/ 350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a 12 hole muffin cup with paper cases. Set aside. (Alternately you can butter the muffin cups and lightly dust with flour, shaking out any excess.)
2. Whisk together the flour, soda, baking powder, spice, apricots, pecans, raisins, and porridge oats in a large bowl. (I use a wire whisk to do this.)
3. Mash the banana well with a fork and then beat together with the eggs, oil, vanilla, honey, apples and milk. Stir in the brown sugar. (Make sure all of these ingredients are well combined.)
4. Make a well in the dry ingredients. Pour in the wet and mix to combine, working from the center. (Do not overmix. It is okay for the batter to be a bit lumpy, but there should be no large dry streaks to be seen.)
5. Spoon into the prepared muffin cases, filling them 2/3 full. Sprinkle the tops with few more chopped toasted pecans for texture and crunch. (Don't overfill the cups.)
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 - 40 minutes until golden brown, well risen, and the tops spring back when lightly touched.
7. Tip out to cool on a wire rack.

 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

CAN THESE MUFFINS BE MIXED TOGETHER AHEAD OF TIME?

If you like you can mix together the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients separately, ready to mix together when you are ready to bake them. The dry ingredients can be kept in a bowl, covered on the countertop. The wet ingredients should be kept in the refrigerator, covered. Bring them to room temperature before mixing and baking. I would not do this more than 24 hours ahead of time.

WHAT ARE PORRIDGE  OATS?

Porridge Oats are cut or crushed, not flattened. The whole oat kernel is split into small oat fragments that are inconsistent in size and shape. Porridge oats are occasionally called Scottish oats or Irish oats, based on their respective country of origin.

CAN I CUT THIS RECIPE IN HALF?

Yes, you can absolutely cut this recipe in half.  Simply divide all of the ingredients by two. Bake times will remain the same and you will be able to make six delicious muffins rather than 12.

CAN THESE BE FROZEN ONCE BAKED?

Yes, these can be frozen after baking. Simply wrap  each muffin individually in some cling film and then place them all into a zip lock baggie, label and date.  That way you can take out as many or as few as you wish to eat. You can thaw them on the countertop for several hours, or you can gently reheat in the microwave for about 30 seconds on high. You can freeze them for up to three months, properly wrapped.

HOW LONG WILL THESE MUFFINS KEEP ONCE BAKED?

They will keep for up to five days once baked. Store in an airtight container.

 

A FEW OTHER MUFFIN RECIPES TO ENJOY

Here are a few other muffin recipes that you might also enjoy!

SPECIAL K BREAKFAST MUFFINS - These are the PERFECT breakfast muffins. Quick and easy to make. Delicious. I highly recommend. Simple and filled with fiber. You can use ordinary Special K cereal, or you can be a bit more extravagant and use one of the varieties which contain fruit.  This recipe makes half a dozen fabulous muffins. 

GINGERBREAD MUFFINS - I am a hug fan of gingerbread anything. I think gingerbread is probably one of my favorite things to bake and eat! They are moist and delicious with a lovely crumb and beautiful ginger/cinnamon flavor. The recipe makes a full batch of 12 fabulous muffins! 

  

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Yield: One Dozen

Author: Marie Rayner

Apricot & Honey Muffins

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 55 Min

Moist and delicious for a fabulous breakfast on the go. They smell heavenly when they are baking! 

Ingredients

• 210g plain all-purpose flour (1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp mixed spice (pumpkin or apple pie spice will work) (see recipe notes)
• 50g chopped dried apricots (1/2 cup)
• 50g chopped toasted pecan nuts (1/2 cup) plus a bit more for sprinkling on top before baking
• 100g porridge oats (1 cup)
• 50g sultana raisins (1/2 cup golden raisins)
• 2 medium bananas, very ripe and peeled
• 2 unpeeled eating apples, grated
• 2 large free range eggs
• 5 TBS vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 TBS honey
• 6 TBS milk
• 100g soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup, packed)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180*C/ 350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a 12 hole muffin cup with paper cases. Set aside.
2. Whisk together the flour, soda, baking powder, spice, apricots, pecans, raisins, and porridge oats in a large bowl.
3. Mash the banana well with a fork and then beat together with the eggs, oil, vanilla, honey, apples and milk. Stir in the brown sugar.
4. Make a well in the dry ingredients. Pour in the wet and mix to combine, working from the center.
5. Spoon into the prepared muffin cases, filling them 2/3 full. Sprinkle the tops with few more chopped toasted pecans for texture and crunch.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 - 40 minutes until golden brown, well risen, and the tops spring back when lightly touched.
7. Tip out to cool on a wire rack.

Notes

Make Your Own Mixed Spice:

You can easily make your own mixed spice: Combine 1 TBS ground cinnamon, 1 tsp each of ground coriander and nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp each of ground cloves and all spice. Mix well and store in an airtight container out of the light for up to 6 months.

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