Apple Cider Muffins

These delicious apple cider muffins are tender, cozy and covered in an amazing apple pie erythritol sugar coating! The batter is a simple quick bread, and it gets its aromatic flavour from apple cider, fresh grated apple, spices and vanilla bean. They are so easy to make and are are the perfect treat to satisfy your sweet tooth! You can also make this in a loaf pan, just need to adjust the baking time to 50-60 minutes. The muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days and they freeze well too without the topping and add the spiced sugar after thawing for the optimal result.

Batter	Topping
250 g White spelt flour 150 g Erythritol (or granulated sugar) 2 tsp Baking powder 2 tsp Apple pie spice mix A large pinch of fine sea salt 280 ml Apple cider 1 Large egg, at room temperature 2 tbsp Unsalted butter, melted 1 Vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped 1 Large apple, grated (about 200 grams)	30 g Blanched almond sticks 50 ml Apple cider 80 g Erythritol (or granulated sugar) 1 tsp Apple pie spice

Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Grease and flour a 6-cup jumbo muffin tray, shaking off the extra flour.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the spelt flour, erythritol or sugar, baking powder, apple pie spice, and salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the apple cider, egg, melted butter, and vanilla seeds until well combined.
Pour the liquid mixture into the flour mixture and stir gently until just combined. Be careful not to overmix. The batter should be slightly runny.
Divide the batter into the prepared muffin pan and top with almond sticks. Bake in the center of hot oven for 305-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out with a few crumbs and the top is golden brown.
Remove it from the oven and let it cool in the pan for a few minutes. Spoon some apple cider over each muffin while still warm.
In a small bowl, combine the erythritol or sugar and apple pie spice. Tip the mixture into a large plate.
Carefully remove the muffins from the pan and coat them with prepared spiced erythritol, rotating the muffin as needed to coat all sides. Enjoy them warm with a glass of apple cider!