Sweet potato crumb muffins

Flour, melted butter, and brown sugar combine to make a crumb topping that is chewy and crisp, not soft. The brown sugar in the batter helps create a light and tender crumb and contributes to the muffins’ moistness and gorgeous golden exterior.

They’re tasty and texturally satisfying, and they're perfect for fall baking, making a great self-contained breakfast that is perfect for feeding a hungry child while in transit on hectic school mornings.

Ingredients (makes 12)

• CRUMB TOPPING
• ¾ cup (102 grams) all-purpose flour
• ½ cup (100 grams) packed dark brown sugar
• ¼ cup (29 grams) chopped pecans
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 4 tablespoons (½ stick; 57 grams) butter, melted
• MUFFINS
• 2 cups (272 grams) all-purpose flour
• 2½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick; 113 grams) butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup (200 grams) packed dark brown sugar
• 2 large (100 grams) eggs, at room temperature
• 1½ cups (368 grams) roasted, peeled, and mashed sweet potatoes (from about 3 potatoes). Roasting the sweet potatoes will produce the sweetest results, but really any way you cook them will be just fine – in the oven or microwave, or in boiling water.

Method

• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. I prefer light-colored pans for cakes and dark pans for muffins. Darker pans absorb heat more quickly than light pans. For cakes, that leads to dark, unpleasant edges. But for muffins, it means they dome nicely and brown evenly
• PREPARE THE CRUMB TOPPING
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, pecans, cinnamon, and salt. Add the melted butter and stir to combine. Set aside.
• PREPARE THE MUFFINS
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, and baking soda. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
• Beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the mashed sweet potato. Beat in the flour mixture. Do not overmix.
• Use a large spring-loaded ice-cream scoop to divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups. Sprinkle the crumb mixture evenly over the tops, squeezing it to create clumps of various sizes. (It’s OK if some of the crumb mixture lands on the tin.)
• Bake the muffins until they are puffed and set and a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean, 26 to 30 minutes. Let the muffins cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then transfer to the rack to cool completely. The muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature.

Samantha Seneviratne spoke to Homes & Gardens about her passion for farmstand fall baking – this is one of four of her favorite recipes from her book which she whips up with seasonal, harvest product.