Sprouted Rye Apple Butter Muffins

It's September, and my soul cries out for a sweater. Alas, here in the land with two seasons (HOT and NOT HOT), we must celebrate fall in other ways. Look past the eggplant and the okra still going strong at the market, and autumn delights reveal themselves. Persimmons! Pears! And most exciting, apples! Yes, apples do grow in Texas, and as soon as the rosy Galas, Annas, and MacIntoshes start coming in, I look for recipes for tarts, pies, applesauce, and muffins to use them every which way I can. These Sprouted Rye Apple Butter Muffins, shared by our baker extraordinaire Barrie, are just what I was looking for. Barrie introduced me to one of her new favorite ingredients - sprouted rye flour - which imparts a hearty, earthy flavor that plays oh-so-nice with tart apples and crunchy toasted walnuts. A simple streusel tops things off with a sweet-salty crunch. I hadn't made streusel with melted butter before (previous attempts had me cutting cold butter into flour like pastry), but I loved the resulting texture - nubbly and homey, like a chunky, warm sweater! These keep great and travel well too – a keeper recipe for sure. Enjoy them with sweet cream butter or a dollop of Greek yogurt. ~Elizabeth

Sprouted Rye Apple Butter Muffins

from Barrie Cullinan

Makes 12

Streusel:

2 T butter, melted

1/2 c sugar

3/4 c sprouted rye flour

Pinch of salt

Muffins:

1 c flour

1 c sprouted rye flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 c sugar

1/4 c brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 stick butter, melted

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 c buttermilk

3/4 c apple butter

1 apple, chopped

1 c. walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

Prepare streusel: 

In a small mixing bowl, combine sugar, rye flour, and a pinch of salt. Mix well to combine. Drizzle melted butter over flour mixture and stir with a fork until mixture is dry and crumbly. If necessary, use your hands to mix and squeeze to form a crumbly consistency. Set aside.

Prepare muffins:

Preheat oven to 400. Line a muffin tin with paper muffin cups (or butter generously) and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients. In a second bowl, whisk together melted butter, eggs, vanilla, buttermilk and apple butter until thoroughly combined. Pour wet ingredients into dry and stir just until combined. Fold in chopped apples and walnuts. Let mixture rest 20-30 minutes (if you don’t have 20-30 minutes, then just let batter rest for as long as possible). Fill muffin cups to the top with batter, then top each one with streusel (don’t worry of it doesn’t all stay on top of muffins). Bake at 400 for 20 minutes.