Vanilla Chai Muffins

I’ve got a little small-batch recipe today for some fluffy, sugar-crusted vanilla chai muffins that are the perfect little treat. As with most of my small-batch recipes, this one can easily be doubled if you’re looking for a full batch, but sometimes you just want to keep it small!

These muffins are mixed by hand and they come together with some chai-steeped buttermilk for a tender, flavorful muffin. I’m using vanilla sugar on top for a lightly crisp and sweet topping, and overall these are the perfect muffins, not too sweet and super easy to make. Let’s get to it!

How to Make Vanilla Chai Muffins

First up, mix the dry ingredients in a medium bowl until well combined, including the sugar. This recipe uses all simple ingredients- the two items you may not have on hand are buttermilk and chai tea. You can replace the buttermilk by adding about 1/2 teaspoon of white vinegar to the bottom of your measuring cup before adding in whole milk to measure 1/2 cup total.

Then it’s time to heat the buttermilk and steep two bags of chai tea in the buttermilk for about 10 minutes. This gives the milk time to cool down, and the tea plenty of time to give up it’s flavor. Using buttermilk adds acid to the batter, which creates a super tender, fluffy texture for these muffins.

Stir together the steeped buttermilk, egg, vanilla extract, and some vegetable oil until everything is combined, and then pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture.

You can simply use a spatula to bring everything together. For this recipe, and most simple muffin recipes, you want to avoid over-mixing the batter here. Just stir it gently until there are no remaining dry pockets of flour in the batter. The batter will be lumpy at this stage, and that’s ok! Set the mixture aside to rest for about 30 minutes.

Once the batter has rested, divide it evenly between 6 muffin cups and top each muffin generously with sugar- you can use granulated sugar or vanilla sugar here. Vanilla sugar is granulated sugar that has been combined with vanilla bean seeds, giving it a super yummy vanilla flavor and scent. I like to buy mine online, but you can also make it yourself.

These muffins should puff up a lot as they bake, and they’ll turn a light golden brown color on top. The sugar creates a slightly crisp topping to these muffins that makes them really special, and the chai flavor carries throughout. Cool the muffins slightly before enjoying warm!

Tips & Tricks for Vanilla Chai Muffins

Here are my tips to help you along the way in this simple recipe:

• Mix the batter by hand to avoid over-mixing here. I love when I can mix a batter by hand, and this case it’s really more fool-proof to avoid an electric mixer.
• Do I have to use buttermilk? Buttermilk contributes to the texture of the muffins. However, you can replace the buttermilk by adding about 1/2 teaspoon of white vinegar to the bottom of your measuring cup before adding in whole milk to measure 1/2 cup total.
• Do I have to use vegetable oil? You can swap in any flavorless oil that you like in this recipe and get the same results!
• Do I have to rest the batter? Don’t skip this step? It ensures that your muffins puff up and get that tall, bakery-style domed top. It’s worth the wait.
• Do I have to put sugar on top? These muffins are not super sweet, so I recommend the sugar topping. It tastes great, the texture is delightful, overall it’s a great addition!
• Can I double this recipe? Yes, you can easily double this recipe to make 12 muffins without any adjustments!
• I’m at about 5,000 ft. above sea level, and I find that most people who live between about 3,000-7,000 ft. above sea level do not need to make any adjustments to my recipes.

Enjoy!

Print

Vanilla Chai Muffins

Servings 6 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 chai tea bags
• 3 tbs vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 2 tbs. vanilla sugar optional

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl, heat the buttermilk in the microwave for about 1 minute, or until it’s almost boiling. Place the tea bags into the hot buttermilk, and let the mixture steep for about 10 minutes, and then discard the tea bags. In the same bowl, stir together the buttermilk, melted butter, vanilla extract, and the egg. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry.
2. Stir together until no dry pockets remain, but do not over-mix. It’s ok if the batter is a little bit lumpy at this stage.
3. Cover, and let the batter rest on your counter for 30 minutes. This will help everything come together before baking, and it also helps to ensure you get high-domed muffins.
4. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Spray your baking pan with baking spray- you want the spray to coat the top of the pan mostly to prevent overhang from sticking. Line with paper cups.
5. Once your batter has rested for a full 30 minutes, scoop evenly into your prepared pan. The muffin cups should be very full here, with the batter coming up almost the top of the cups, and you should end up with 6 muffins. Generously sprinkle the tops with the vanilla sugar, or with more granulated sugar.
6. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the muffins are puffed, lightly golden brown, and a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs on it. Once removed from the oven, use a butter knife to ensure that any overhanging parts don’t stick to the pan. Cool the muffins completely in the pan, and enjoy!

Dough-Eyed

Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!