Orange-Spiced Whole Wheat Muffins Recipe

Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the ¼ cup of walnuts, ¼ cup of granulated sugar, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, granulated sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves, ground ginger, nutmeg, and orange zest.

In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, applesauce, melted butter, and vanilla extract.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. The batter should be mostly combined with a few streaks of flour.

Add ¾ cup of walnuts, stir until incorporated. Do not overmix the batter, or it will result in dense muffins.

Fill the muffin cups to the top with batter. Sprinkle with walnut and cinnamon sugar topping.

Bake for 18 minutes until the muffins have crested over the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. They may show a combination of loose sugar and melted sugar.

Serve warm with a pat of butter and a drizzle of honey, and enjoy!