Oatmeal Muffins (add your own fruit of choice) from Sally’s Baking Addiction

Oatmeal Muffins - made several times in November 2025 from Sally’s Baking Addiction

Blueberry

1 cup milk

1 cup whole oats

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 large egg

1/2 cup maple syrup or honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup blueberries or other chopped fruit

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine oats and milk, covering oats completely. Let sit for 20 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line 12-capacity muffin tins with cupcake liners.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; set aside.
4. In microwave-safe bowl or large glass measuring cup, melt butter and let cool slightly. Add maple syrup, egg and vanilla extract, whisking until combined.
5. Add wet ingredients to flour mixture, mixing with fork until combined. Do not over mix.
6. Add oats and milk, mixing gently until uniform thickness; do not overmix. Fold in blueberries or whatever chopped fruit you're using.
7. Evenly divide batter amongst all twelve cupcake liners, filling to top. Lightly sprinkle with oats and/or chopped nuts if desired.
8. Bake at 425 degrees F for 5 minutes then turn down the heat to 350 degrees F. Bake another 16-18 minutes for a total of 21-23 minutes in the oven or until a toothpick inserted in several muffins comes out clean. Remove from oven, let cool for a few minutes then remove from muffin tin.

The original title of these muffins was Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins but I ended up making 3 versions of this recipe since it was so versatile so I'm calling them more generically as oatmeal muffins. 

The first time I made them with blueberries as the original recipe directed. But I made the mistake of not reading the recipe ahead of time and didn't realize you were supposed to soak the oats in the milk for 20 minutes for the moisture the muffins need. 

Sure enough, they came out a little more heavy and dense than they probably should have. They still tasted good but were definitely better from a texture perspective when warm or warmed up. 

So I was determined to make them properly the second time as I know Sally's Baking Addiction has good recipes. Especially if you follow them correctly, ha.

Banana Pecan

To mix things up, I went with banana pecan for the second attempt. We had some rapidly ripening bananas so I took a couple, chopped them into chunks and folded them into the (properly made) batter. I didn't mash them like I would for banana bread but instead kept the banana as chunks. 

I had used agave for the blueberry version but that didn't add much flavor or sweetness. The second time around I used maple syrup and that seemed to work better to give it a tiny bit more flavor. The chopped banana chunks worked beautifully to add some soft texture and pockets of sweetness. Plus the toasted pecans on top added a nice crunch and flavor.

I'm trying not to make things so sweet nowadays so my grand nephew can partake without imbibing too much sugar. These turned out to be a fairly healthy snack for him.

We all enjoyed the base recipe of these muffins so much that I made them a third time when my niece and nephew in law invited neighbors over for an informal Sunday meet and greet. For the third version, I chopped a Fuji apple into chunks and also went with pecans on top.

I liked them but I think it would've been better from a texture perspective to use a Granny Smith apple which I didn't have at the time. The Fuji worked from a sweetness perspective as, again, these muffins aren't that sweet. A Granny Smith would've softened more in baking.

But these were still pretty good. Since these were for company, I fancied up a few slightly by drizzling warm salted caramel over the top. That turned out pretty well as the caramel added more sweetness and gooeyness. If you want to keep these on the healthy side, obviously you can skip the caramel.

Overall, I was impressed by the versatility of these muffins. They're easy to make, don't take that long to bake, and have good flavor and texture. Just don't forget to soak the oats in the milk first.