Birthday Cake Muffins
These birthday cake muffins are colorful, light, and perfect for any celebratory occasion. I make them with flour, vanilla extract, and rainbow sprinkles. In less than 20 minutes, they bake into a soft cake-like texture that requires no frosting, making them the ideal portable treat.
Servings: 32 mini muffins
Calories: 77kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup melted butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 180 C.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl until well combined.
- In a separate bowl whisk together the milk, yogurt, eggs, vanilla and melted butter.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and gently stir to combine. Do not over-mix.
- Gently fold in ¾ of the sprinkles into the batter, reserving some to top the muffin batter before baking.
- Evenly divide the batter between a mini muffin tray and sprinkle reserve sprinkles over each muffin.
- Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Allow the muffins to cool in the tray for 5 minutes before removing and cooling completely on a cooling rack.
- Store muffins in an airtight container in a cool dry place for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 1 month.
Notes
- My #1 Secret Tip for this birthday cake muffin recipe is to stop mixing the batter as soon as the flour disappears. Overmixing develops the gluten and leads to dense muffins instead of a soft crumb. I like to think these muffins compete with cupcakes, and a light, airy texture is very important.
- Room temperature ingredients: I make sure my eggs, milk, and yogurt are at room temperature, so the batter mixes and emulsifies smoothly without clumping.
- Do not overfill: I fill each cup 2/3 full, giving the muffins enough room to rise into a dome without spilling over.
- Check early: Mini muffins bake quickly, so I start checking at around 10 minutes, and keep a close eye on them to prevent them from drying out.
- Sprinkle timing: I fold the sprinkles in gently and add a few extra on top of the scooped muffins just before baking to keep the colors bright.
- Cool properly: Once the muffins are out of the oven, I remove them from the tray after a few minutes and leave them to cool on a wire rack to stop them from condensing underneath.
Nutrition
Serving: 1mini muffin | Calories: 77kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 37mg | Potassium: 30mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 7g