Picture an overcast, rainy fall day when you sleep late, stumble into the kitchen, make some coffee, and then set up your computer to watch the entire Season Four of Real Housewives of Potomac.

Okay, maybe the last part isn’t universal, but I’m off work for a week before I start my new job, so I get to do (pretty much) whatever I want. On a related note, I decided to make these apple cinnamon muffins this morning.

I’m a big fan of apple desserts in the fall, but sometimes you need something that is semi-healthy and filling and more easily passes as actual breakfast. See: these muffins. They’re slightly sweet, full of tender chunks of apple, and they’re warming with ground cinnamon. They’re the perfect thing to make when the weather becomes colder and you want an easy baking project.

You can use any kind of apples in these muffins but I used Jonagolds. I like that kind for baking muffins because they’re sweet with a little bit of tartness, so they usually pair well with other flavors. When I make a pie or crisp, I go for something tart like Granny Smith so I can balance all that sugar with some tartness.

A trick to baking perfect muffins every time is checking them when there’s a few minutes left of baking. Tap the top lightly with your finger. If the surface springs back, you’ll know your muffins are done.

These muffins are great with a cup of coffee or by themselves. It’s hard to eat just one.

Here’s a song to get you started on your muffin journey.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1 cup grated apple
1 cup apple cut into small cubes
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 cup plain, 5% fat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
turbinado sugar for sprinkling on top

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F with a rack in the middle. Spray or butter a muffin pan generously, or use liners if you want.

Whisk together the whole wheat flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Toss in the grated apple and cubed apple with a large spoon and stir until everything is well combined.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the olive oil and maple syrup until combined. Then whisk in the eggs until well combined. Whisk in the Greek yogurt, applesauce, and vanilla extract and mix thoroughly.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and combine with a large wooden spoon until there are no more traces of flour. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle some turbinado sugar on top of each muffin. Bake the muffins for about 12-14 minutes, or until the tops spring back to the touch. Cool the muffins in the tin on a wire rack. Enjoy!