We’re sick of cupcakes. Oh, don’t misunderstand: If you put a cupcake in front of us, we’ll eat it. If we happen to be walking in front of a bakery known for its red velvet prowess, we’ll stop. And office birthdays? We’ll eat the hell out of some cupcakes on office birthdays. We don’t mind eating cupcakes, we’re just sick of hearing about them. Fortunately, we may not have to for much longer. With the doughnut and macaron both picking up steam as the next sweet phenomenon, cupcake pans from coast to coast are going into retirement.
Since cupcakes took over the world, bakeware companies have gotten mighty creative. Sure, your trusty old muffin tin will do in a pinch, but what about rosebud-shaped cupcakes? Doesn’t a square, heart, or insect-shaped confection just taste better? We may be ready to move on from the cupcake craze, but we aren’t quite ready to hang up our Casabella Individual Silicone Muffin Cup Set. That’s where these muffin-cup recipes come in:
Meatloaf Muffins:
There’s nothing fun about a loaf pan, a fact that moms everywhere have learned the hard way. Enter the brilliant idea to scoop your meatloaf mix into individual cups. There are tons of versions out there but for a simple, juicy starter batch, try Rookie Cookie’s Italian-style Meatloaf Muffins. Wanna go bolder? Trick your dining companions with these spicy sausage cupcakes with mashed potato frosting from Noble Pig. Or whip up some tangy barbecue muffins from Petitchef. These freeze well, so you can make ‘em ahead of time and pop ‘em in the oven later. Those looking to get weird will appreciate these Thanksgiving-in-a-cup style Pumpkin-Turkey Meatloaf Muffins from Cara’s Cravings. Held together with pumpkin puree and topped with tart cranberry “icing,” these are the perfect way to usher in the fall chill.
Crab Cups:
These simple Muffin-Tin Crab Cakes from Eating Well make an ideal base for an Eggs Benedict, but if you want to turn up the flavor, try this Creole version from Epicurean. For more cake and less crab, it’s hard to beat these crab muffins from Cook Republic. Polenta, corn, and heaps of cheddar make these savory morsels addictive. Salivating over the idea of crab baked into muffin pans, but can’t shake that pesky shellfish allergy? These Snapper Cakes with Mango Chutney from Muffin Tin Mania will help.
Personal (Muffin) Pan Pizzas:
More like a pizza cone than a pizza slice, these chewy cups from Serious Eats are easy to fill with all your favorite toppings. Like it Hawaiian style? Cook Republic’s Ham and Pineapple Pizza Muffins ooze cheese and tart pineapple juice. Some of you may be of a mind to take the baby-pizza train all the way to calzoneland. We’re with you. And so are these Calzone Cupcakes from the Cupcake Project.
Taqueria in a Tin:
Say it with us now: “Taco Muffins.” This tasty recipe from Ben To Lunch may be intended for a 7-year-old, but we can’t get enough of it here at Poor Taste. Serve with sour cream, salsa, and a side of refried beans and you’ve got a cup-sized taco dinner. Tostada lovers will flip (and so will the pan) for Salad in a Jar’s Texas Fiesta Bowls. The shells come from baking flour tortillas over an upside-down muffin tin. If you’re planning a late night crawl through bars that don’t include a tamale vendor, bringing your own cupcake-sized versions may be in order. These Tamale Bites from FatFree Vegan are baked in a Twinkie Pan, but wouldn’t a rosebud tamale be perfect?
Amuse Bouche by the Batch:
These Chicken Italiano Appetizers come from Wilton, the company that mastered the cupcake pan. We dig the wonton-wrapper idea for other ingredients, too. Perhaps a tiny Chinese Chicken Salad? Wolfgang Puck would be so proud. Like single-bite caprese salad wrapped in pastry, these Phyllo Caprese Bites from Mike’s Table are perfect for outdoor entertaining. When you want to go ghetto gourmet, the Macaroni and Cheese Muffins from Framed Cooks or the Mac ‘n Cheese Bites from Your Vegan Mom, baked in mini-muffin tins, of course, are morsels of comfort food goodness.
Quiche Niche:
In these times of egg hysteria, we must value the healthy orbs we can get our hands on. What better way to appreciate the incredible edible (and hopefully salmonella-free) wonder than with a (fully-cooked!) individual quiche or frittata? The tangy goat cheese in these simple cupcake quiches from Take Back the Kitchen and the gourmet goodness of these Mini Asparagus Tomato versions from Big Sis Lil Sis may entice you to eat a baker’s dozen. A buttery pie-crust bottom turns this frittata recipe from The Kitchn into an ovo opus from A Girl Bakes in New York. FatFree Vegan adapts this classic egg dish with silky tofu and nutritional yeast in her Mini Crustless Tofu Quiches.
Breakfast in a Cup:
Any of the above quiche recipes would make a great breakfast, but when you’re really hungry, you need to pile those muffin cups with more ingredients. The Recipe File has breakfast-in-your-hand all figured out with this recipe for Baked Eggs, Toast, and Bacon in One Package. Love the combo of sweet and savory in the morning? Trade in that McGriddle for Breakfast Blogger’s Baked Eggs in Maple Syrup Toast Cups. When you’re famished and not concerned with convention, throw last night’s leftovers into a cup and bake. That’s how The Ungourmet came up with these Stuffing and Mashed Potato Cupcakes. If you have leftover mashed potatoes and some shredded cheese, these Potato Egg Boats from Hey, That Tastes Good! are a snap. Love a little corned beef hash in the morning? Take your favorite kind (homemade or canned), spoon it into cups, crack an egg on it, and bake as demonstrated in this Meal in a Muffin Pan from All Recipes.
Tiny Pies:
What’s not to love about a pie? Especially a tiny, cute-as-pie pie. We’d gladly snatch any of these from a windowsill. Not Martha sets the standard for fruit pies with these small and lovely morsels. The Miniature Pumpkin Pies from Digs Magazine are easy (as pie) to make, but if you want more of a challenge the Cupcake Project’s streusel-topped Mini Pumpkin Cup Pies are worth the trouble. The Muffin-Sized Mini-Cobblers from Thoughtful Consumption are an easy and delicious way to showcase whatever’s fresh at the farmers market. Blurring the lines between cupcake, doughnut, and pie, the Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes from In My Tiny Kitchen are ideal for those baby-stepping out of cupcake revelry.
Baklava Bakes:
We predict there may soon be a baklava movement afoot. This prediction may be, in part, to justify our daily dose of Panos Pastry delights but it’s also because the honey-drenched Turkish delight has never had its heyday. Fortunately, the bobble-headed Giada is on the case with her Simple Baklava recipe made in mini-muffin tins. We like this version from Zoe Bakes best and we also dig the cleverness of baklava-muffin hybrids from Cream and Sugar Kitchen.
The Pans:
1. Fat Daddio’s Square Muffin Pan
2. Casabella Individual Silicone Muffin Cup Set
3. Nordic Ware Backyard Bugs Pan
4. Chicago Metallic 12-Cup Nonstick Pretty Pansy Cupcake Pan
5. Wilton Dimensions 3D Multi-Cavity Cupcake Pan
6. SiliconeZone Heart Muffin Pan
7. Wilton Dimensions Giant Cupcake Pan
8. Nordic Ware Ice Cream Cone Cupcake Pan
9. Casabella Orange Silicone 6-cup Large Muffin Pan
10. NorPro NonStick Puffy Muffin Crown Pan
