Cinnamon Breakfast Puffs
I first saw this recipe at https://www.saveur.com/ and they were called "Dirt Bombs," a specialty of Cottage Street Bakery in Orleans, Massachusetts. Saveur described them as muffin-like donuts, which is achieved by double dipping them in melted butter and cinnamon sugar.
Since then I saw them in Apple Betty and Sloppy Joe: Stirring Up the Past with Family Recipes and Stories by Susan Sanvidge, Diane Sanvidge Seckar, Jean Sanvidge Wouters, Julie Sanvidge Florence, four sisters, who share recipes of the food made in their house while growing up in Wisconsin in the 1950s and 1960s. In their book they are called Cinnamon Breakfast Puffs.
I've also seen them called French Breakfast Puffs and Cinnamon Sugar Breakfast Puffs on the Internet. According to https://smittenkitchen.com/, their origin is the Betty Crocker Test Kitchens. The 1950s Betty Crocker Cookbook has a recipe for them and their website still has a recipe almost exactly like the Cinnamon Breakfast Puffs below except they only use 1/2 cup butter for the topping. They are called French Breakfast Puffs in the cookbook.
French Breakfast Puffs (cinnamon sugar muffins)
From the 1950's Betty Crocker Cookbook
Like delicate, glorified doughnuts. Miss Esoline Beauregard of Fort Lauderdale, Florida said, "Please try my mother's recipe."
Mix together thoroughly ...
1/3 cup soft shortening
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
Sift together ...
1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
and stir in alternately with ...
1/2 cup milk
Fill greased muffins cups 2/3 full. Bake until golden brown. Immediately roll in...
6 tbsp. melted butter
then in a mixture of ...
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
Serve hot.
Temperature: 350 degrees (mod. oven).
Time: Bake 20 - 25 min.
Amount: 12 medium-sized muffins
Cinnamon Breakfast Puffs
from Apple Betty and Sloppy Joe: Stirring Up the Past with Family Recipes and Stories
Muffins:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup shortening
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup whole or 2% milk (skim milk will not work in this recipe)
Topping:
6 tbsp. butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 12 muffin cups. In a large bowl, beat sugar, shortening, and egg with a mixer. In another bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Alternately add dry ingredients and milk to shortening mixture. Fill muffin cups a generous half full. Bake until golden and pulling slightly away from the edges of the muffin cups, 20 to 25 minutes.
Toward the end of the baking time, make the topping. Melt the butter and pour it into a shallow bowl. (The butter can harden if you do this too early, and it's too late if you wait until the muffins are out.) In a separate, shallow bowl, mix the cinnamon and sugar. When the muffins are done, remove them from the pan and roll each whole muffin immediately in the melted butter and then in the cinnamon/sugar mixture.
Makes 12 muffins
Cottage Street Bakery "Dirt Bombs"
from https://www.saveur.com/
The crust of these muffin-like donuts, a specialty of Cottage Street Bakery in Orleans, Massachusetts, is achieved by double dipping them in melted butter and cinnamon sugar.
4 1⁄2 cups unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing
3 cups (13 1⁄2 oz.) all-purpose flour, sifted
1 tbsp. baking powder
1⁄2 tsp. kosher salt
1⁄2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1⁄4 tsp. ground cardamom
3 1⁄2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup milk
2 1⁄2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
Heat oven to 400°. Grease three 6-cup muffin tins with butter; set aside. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cardamom in a bowl; set aside. Using a hand mixer, beat 12 tbsp. butter and 1 cup sugar in a bowl until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Alternate adding dry ingredients in 3 batches and milk in 2 batches; beat until batter is smooth. Spoon about 1⁄4 cup batter into prepared muffin tins; bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into donut comes out clean, 15-20 minutes. Invert donuts onto a baking sheet with a wire rack; let cool completely.
Melt remaining butter in a bowl; in another bowl mix remaining sugar and the cinnamon. Working one at a time, dip entire donut in butter and roll in the cinnamon sugar. Repeat dipping and rolling; return to wire rack until crust is set.
Makes about 1 1/2 muffins
