Morning Glory Muffins

January 5, 2023

5.0

(12)

A plate of morning glory muffins with a cup of tea.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Drew Aichele

The name says it all: These Morning Glory muffins are glorious. Invented in 1978 by chef Pam McKinstry, who owned Nantucket’s Morning Glory Cafe, these hearty muffins contain a bright and warming combination of fruits, nuts, and spice. It’s crucial to toast the pecans before adding them to your batter; muffin batter doesn’t get hot enough to toast the nuts much while baking, and toasting is essential for deeper flavor. These kitchen sink breakfast muffins are balanced and flavorful, but they do take well to substitutions. Don’t like pecans? Drop them out or swap with another toasted nut. Not into carrot? Skip it and double the apple. Have dried cranberries instead of raisins? Just substitute the same volume, one-to-one.

Recipe information

Total Time
1 hour
Yield
Makes 12

Ingredients

¾ cup neutral oil (such as grapeseed or canola), plus more for muffin pan

1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. (145 g) whole wheat flour

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. kosher salt

2 large eggs

½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar

½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 16-oz. can crushed pineapple, drained and squeezed dry

1 cup shredded peeled carrot (from about 2 medium or 1 large carrot)

1 cup shredded peeled Granny Smith apple (from about 1 apple)

½ cup golden raisins

½ cup sweetened coconut flakes

½ cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

Preparation

Step 1
Preheat oven to 350º. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. Lightly coat flat top of muffin pan with neutral oil to prevent sticking.
Step 2
Combine 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour, 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. (145 g) whole wheat flour, 2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp. baking soda, and ½ tsp. kosher salt in a medium bowl.
Step 3
Whisk 2 large eggs, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar, and ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar in a large bowl until smooth. Whisk in ¾ cup neutral oil (such as grapeseed or canola) and 2 tsp. vanilla extract. Mix in one 16-oz. can crushed pineapple, drained and squeezed dry. Fold in 1 cup shredded peeled carrot, 1 cup shredded peeled Granny Smith apple, ½ cup golden raisins, ½ cup sweetened coconut flakes, and ½ cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped.
Step 4
Fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just combined and no flour streaks remain. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling them to the brim.
Step 5
Bake muffins, rotating pan after 15 minutes, until the top springs back to the touch or a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 25–30 minutes. Let cool in pan slightly, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Muffins are best the day they are made and even better if they are still warm.

TagsMuffin Pastries Epicurious Carrot Root Vegetable Vegetable Baking Pineapple Fruit Pecan Nut Breakfast Brunch Snack Apple Coconut Easy

Sign In or Subscribe
to leave a Rating or Review

How would you rate Morning Glory Muffins?

Leave a Review

Reviews (12)

I’m writing this more to say thanks to Epicurious for including the amounts in the instructions! So many recipes list the ingredients with amounts in the ingredient list, but in the instructions it says, “Add the flour.” The muffins were great. I used cranberries.
- Karen
- Kansas City
- 2/14/2024
I made these today, but applied the advice from previous reviewers: 1. I used 1/4 c honey for the sugar, 2. I added 1/2 tsp ground ginger. Personally, 1/4 c of honey wasn’t sweet enough for my taste. I might try 1/2 cup maple syrup next time. I also didn’t think the muffins were spicy enough, and will probably add a little more cinnamon, in addition to freshly grated ginger, in the future. Otherwise, these turned out great, but have potential to be better!
- Anonymous
- 6/10/2023
Why do most muffin recipes have so much sugar? That makes them cupcakes in my book. When I make this recipe I will use 1/4 cup honey and no sugar - plenty sweet, especially with the natural sweetness of the raisins, pineapple, apple and carrot. A muffin is bread, a cupcake is cake.
- Mainiac
- Maine
- 2/5/2023
This is the Morning Glory recipe I've been searching for, thank you. Added 1/2 tsp ginger and 1/4 tsp cardamom but otherwise followed exactly. Perfect.
- Anonymous
- 1/11/2023
I love a good muffin, and these are now a family favorite. I’ve scoured the Internet and more recipe books than I can count. Thank you Epicurious. I make this recipe as provided, it’s perfect
- CgyMom
- Calgary, Ab
- 2/3/2024
I followed the recipe and they turned out beautifully; exactly as described. Why is it that the majority of people who write reviews are the ones who feel compelled to change the recipes before trying them? Once the recipe is changed their reviews are irrelevant and useless! They are probably the same people who salt and pepper their food before tasting it;)
- Annoyed
- Grants Pass, OR
- 7/9/2023
Oh my goodness what a wonderful muffin! I added one large ripe banana because it was ready to bake and ended up plumping my raisins in the pineapple juice because they were dry. I’m definitely adding this recipe to my file.
- Debbie Lanenga
- Holland, MI
- 5/26/2023