How to Make Muffins without
a Muffin Tin
By Amber Dubin
5/11/2010
English 393: Section 03
Intro: Who? What? and Why?
Who would make muffins this way?
Anyone who has the resources and wants a healthy snack
College kids or anyone else who doesn’t have a muffin tin
What is this mysterious method of muffin making?
Ice-cream cones can be used in lieu of a muffin tin
This method can be used for both Cupcakes and Muffins
For the purpose of this tutorial we will be making Strawberry Muffins
using a recipe from Stonyfield Farms yogurt
Why use it?
Even if you own a muffin tin, this way makes muffins look festive
More eco-friendly than cupcake paper and require less cleaning
Safety Concerns
Raw ingredients and
improper sanitation
methods can cause food
poisoning
Hot surfaces can burn skin
Beware of sharp objects
What You Need:
12 Flat-bottomed Cake Ice Cream cones
Some kind of flat baking sheet if no muffin tin is available
Two mixing bowls and basic cooking utensils
Ingredients for Stonyfield Farm strawberry muffins:
1 cup All-Purpose flour
¼ cup melted butter
1 cup Whole Wheat flour
2 eggs
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 cup Stonyfield Farm yogurt
1 cup chopped strawberries
Step 1: Pre-preparations
Pre-heat oven to 375°F
Start warming butter on stove on
very low heat
Clean and chop up strawberries (most time-consuming step)
Leave in measuring cup until needed
Step 2: Combine Ingredients
Part A: Mix together flour, sugar and
baking soda
Part B: In a separate bowl mix eggs,
yogurt, butter and vanilla
Part C: Toss chopped strawberries into
flour mixture
Last: combine contents of two bowls and stir
Step 3: Pour into Cones
This may seem like the easiest step, but without a muffin tin, this is
actually the on that requires the most care
The pan must be put in the
oven ahead of time and
each cone must be filled
individually and placed on
the pan to avoid imbalance
on a flat pan
Each cone should be filled
up to ½ or ¾ from the top
of the cone to allow room
for the batter to expand
Step 4: Bake
Bake for 20-25 minutes until tops of muffins are golden
brown
When muffins are done, knife inserted into center should
come out without batter on it
Burn warning: be sure to
let cool before handling
or eating
Step 5: Eat Them!
Decorate and enjoy!
General Problems
Muffins are temperamental: they require special environmental
conditions to keep them in peak condition.
Muffin cones in particular
should be eaten the day
they are made because the
moisture from the cake will
cause the cones to lose
their crispness
Their beauty is skin deep: even
though sometimes the slightest
mistake can make your muffins
not come out looking the way
you want them to, thankfully
they should come out tasting
just as good as long as the
correct ingredients were used.
Troubleshooting
Problem
Cause
Solution
Muffins fall flat
Too much yogurt
Try them anyway!
Muffin or cupcake
cones are top-heavy
Too much icing plus the
shape of the cone causes
top-heaviness
Use container that
accounts for the height
of the muffins
Muffins Explode
Cone was over-filled or
previously damaged
One full ice-cream scoop
of batter per cone should
be the perfect amount
Solution for Top-Heavy Muffins:
A container like this is perfect for keeping this
type of muffin upright
FAQs: Overflows and Explosions
Being in contact with the hot
pan will not cause the cones to
crack or explode
Muffin explosions should not
happen often as long as the
cone is filled no higher than ½
inch below the rim of the cone
Filling to Prevent Overflow
Correct!
Incorrect!
Questions?
Visit How to make a Cupcake cone at WikiHow at:
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Cupcake-Cone
For more specific instructions