Apple Oat Cottage Cheese Muffins

PREP TIME 15

COOK TIME 20

TOTAL TIME 35

12 muffins

Soft, fluffy apple muffins made with cottage cheese and old-fashioned rolled oats. No mixer needed, and ready in about 40 minutes.

Apple oat cottage cheese muffin on grey rustic plate

Watch how to make the recipe

Ingredients

Flour mixture

1¾ cups (210 g) all-purpose flour (plain flour)
⅓ cup (30 g) old-fashioned rolled oats
2 level teaspoons level teaspoons baking powder
¼ level teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
½ teaspoon salt
⅔ cup (134 g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1½ cups (170 g) apples, cut into ¼-inch (6 mm) pieces (I used Pink Lady apples. See notes for other options)

Cottage cheese mixture

2 large eggs, at room temperature
½ cup (120 ml) vegetable oil
¾ cup (170 g) small-curd cottage cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) or 170°C fan. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
Cottage cheese mixture: In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, oil and vanilla extract, then add the cottage cheese and whisk until combined. A few small curds are perfectly fine.
Flour mixture: In another large bowl, whisk together the flour, rolled oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, and cinnamon. Add the diced apples and toss gently to coat them in the flour mixture.
Combine: Pour the cottage cheese mixture into the flour mixture. Fold gently with a spatula just until no dry streaks of flour remain. Do not overmix.
Fill: Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups, filling each almost to the top. Sprinkle the tops evenly with the granulated sugar.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until the muffins are well risen, golden, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool: Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove them.

Storage

Store the muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. If you need to keep them longer, store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. They also freeze well for up to 2 months.

Recipe Notes

Cottage Cheese: I whisk the cottage cheese with the eggs, oil, and vanilla until most of the curds break up. A few small curds are perfectly fine. If you'd rather have a smooth batter, blend the cottage cheese before mixing it with the eggs, oil, and vanilla.

Apples: I used Pink Lady apples and left the peel on because it's thin and softens as the muffins bake. If you're using apples with a thicker peel, you can peel them if you prefer. Honeycrisp, Gala, Fuji, and Envy all work well too.

Oats: Use old-fashioned rolled oats. If you only have quick oats, they'll work too, but they'll soften more as the muffins bake. I don't recommend steel-cut oats because they won't soften enough.

Nutrition