Cinnamon Apple Muffins

The smell of Apple Cinnamon Muffins is like a tight hug from a good friend wearing the softest sweater and offering you a steaming mug of your favourite hot drink. They’re that cozy.

I pack most of my muffins with fruit and these are no exception. Chunks of apple generously stud the batter, making them more breakfast and less poorly-disguised cupcake.

 

I’ve been pairing them with delicious drip coffee every morning, because I was gifted a Precision Brewer coffee machine from my partner Breville.

I haven’t had tremendous luck with drip coffee makers in the past (or any other method of coffee making, really) which is why I fell so hard in love with the espresso machine I befriended last spring.

The four problems I have had with making non-espresso (drip, french press, chemex, etc.) coffee are controlling the water temperature (slightly too hot scorches the aromatic oils and makes the brew taste burnt), the grind (electric blade grinders are awful – the pieces are all different sizes so some get over-extracted and the blades create too much heat – again, burnt-tasting coffee), getting the perfect right quantities (I hit the nail on the head only occasionally with the amount of ground beans to water), and timing (having the coffee beans in contact with the water for just the right period to brew strong enough but not over-extract).

I have sunk many, many (geeky) hours into trying to solve these problems and in my pre-espresso life, used a meat thermometer and a kitchen scale just to get my morning cup.

 

 

Breville paired the Precision Brewer they sent me with their Smart Grinder, and a subscription to freshly-roasted beans, and this trifecta makes for crazy-good coffee, without any of the above-mentioned problems. I have never made brewed coffee that tastes as good as my go-to coffee shop (JJ Bean, if you’re local) before. This does. And I have never been so happily awake.

The Precision Brewer has precisely-controlled water temperature, bloom time, contact time, flow rate, etc. for a perfect cup of craft coffee (read: GOOD coffee). Coffee nerds rejoice.

It has lots of well-thought-out details, like the ability to make a single cup (to convert those pod fans), and an adapter to make it a pour-over coffee maker. It also does cold brew. And it’s the fastest 12-cup machine on the market. Plus, the insulated carafe keeps it piping hot. Pretty fabulous machine for coffee lovers, and I’m giving one away over on Instagram so get in there.

 

 

The Smart Grinder is not what they invited me to review, but it is really impossible for me not to totally geek out on that. As a conical burr grinder, it grinds the beans evenly and with minimal heat. I’ve only used a burr grinder for years, but my old one is hand-cranked.

This grinder doses automatically for the number of cups (or shots) you want, and selects the best grind size for the way you’re brewing (from French press all the way to espresso). It takes the most variable, challenging part of making consistently excellent coffee and turns it into a no brainer. This thing is tops. (And you get it for 25% off with purchase of the Precision Brewer. Also, a free bag of freshly-roasted coffee beans from a micro-roaster in your region.)

That was a major digression from the muffins, I’m sorry. I’m very caffeinated and get excited about food and beverage science even without 6 cups of freshly-roasted Guatemalan brew in my bloodstream. I hope I didn’t lose you because these muffins are so fluffy and delicious that you need them in your life.

This post is sponsored by Breville, but of course (and as always) thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you, dear friends and readers, for supporting me in the thoughtfully-chosen collaborations that keep the Foodess kitchen running! xo