Virtually any meal can be made into a miniature version with a muffin tin.
Whether it’s all your favorite breakfast ingredients in a cup or a tiny dessert made just for one, your kid will eat anything if it’s in a cupcake shape!
Try these fun muffin cup recipes that make meal prep easier and mealtime more fun.
Hash Brown Bowls
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If this isn't the best homemade alternative to a fast food egg-and-hash-brown combo, we don't know what is!
Ingredients:
1 lb shredded potatoes
4 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp salt and pepper
12 eggs, scrambled and cooked
Directions:
Mix together shredded potatoes with butter, salt and pepper. Press into each greased muffin tin. Bake at 400 degrees F until browned and crisp for about 45 minutes. Fill with cooked, scrambled eggs.
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Kids ActivitiesGranola Fruit Tarts
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Turn your home into a French bistro with these yummy fruit tarts that are as delightful as a mid-afternoon light dessert.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
2 tbsp chia seeds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup and 1 tbsp coconut oil, melted and cooled
1/4 cup maple syrup
4 cups plain Greek yogurt
Fruit and berries, as desired
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and grease the muffin tin. Mix together the oats, shredded coconut, chia seeds and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Add melted coconut oil and maple syrup and combine. Scoop out the mixture to fill 12 muffin tin cups. Press oat mixture on the bottom and sides of the cup. Bake for 15 minutes until oats are browned around the edge. Remove to cool. Fill cups with Greek yogurt, berries and fruit.
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Kids ActivitiesMini Taco Salad Bowls
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Talk about taking Taco Tuesday to the next level! These mini taco salad cups are perfect for parties or for little ones who haven't quite mastered the fork just yet.
Ingredients:
12 2-inch round wonton wrappers
1 cup black refried beans
1/2 cup lettuce, chopped
1 tomato, diced
1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tbsp sour cream
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease the muffin pan. Fit a wonton wrapper into each muffin cup, making sure that each wrapper has an opening in the center. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Heat the refried beans and place into each cup. Top with lettuce, tomato and cheese. Serve with sour cream and cilantro as a garnish.
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Kids ActivitiesFrozen Minestrone Soup Cups
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Muffin tins can make meal prep easier, and reheating soup much quicker.
Ingredients:
1 onion, finely chopped
3 leeks, white parts only, chopped
2 celery stalks
3 carrots, finely chopped
14 oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
14 oz. tin chopped tomatoes
4 cups vegetable stock
2 oz. small pasta
4 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
1 1/2 oz. Parmesan, grated
1/2 tbsp. sugar
Olive oil, as needed
Salt and pepper
Directions:
Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large saucepan. Add onion, leeks and sugar and fry over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add celery and carrots and continue to fry for another 5 minutes. Stir in the beans, tomatoes and stock. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, partially covering the pot with a lid, and simmer for 25 minutes. Add pasta and simmer. Stir in parsley and half of the Parmesan. Let cool completely once finished before freezing. Place soup in silicone muffin molds and freeze uncovered. Keeps for up to 8 weeks.
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Kids ActivitiesPizza Bites
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Forget the store-bought frozen mini pizzas—these pizza bites are delicious, inexpensive to make and are a crowd pleaser for the whole family.
Ingredients:
1 large pizza dough
2 cups pizza sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 cups pizza toppings (pepperoni, peppers, etc.)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a muffin tin. Pinch pieces of the pizza dough into roughly golf ball-size rounds and flatten in your hand. Press into each muffin cup. Place 1-2 tbsp of sauce into each dough cup. Add other toppings to each roll, without the cheese. Bake for 15 minutes before adding cheese. Sprinkle cheese on top of sauce and other toppings. Bake for 10 more minutes.
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Kids ActivitiesBite-Size Apple Pies
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It doesn't have to be fall or a special occasion to introduce apple pie to the dessert table. Note that this dessert calls for a mini-muffin tin but can be adapted for regular sized cups.
Ingredients:
Filling:
3 granny smith apples, cored, peeled and diced
5 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Crust:
4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
10 tbsp butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups flour
Pinch of salt
Topping:
1 tbsp sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
3 tbsp butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
Directions:
For the filling, cook the ingredients over low heat in a medium pan, stirring until butter has melted. Turn up the heat to medium-high and cook for 5 minutes until apples soften. Remove and cool.
For the crust, beat softened cream cheese and butter in a bowl until combined. Add flour and salt. Divide into 24 1-inch balls. Press each ball into each mini muffin cup so that dough covers all sides evenly.
For the topping, mix flour, both sugars, cinnamon and salt. Rub in butter with your fingers until the mixture forms a coarse crumb-like mixture. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Fill each cup with filling mixture, minus the juices. Gently press topping over apple filling. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden.
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Kids ActivitiesMini Raspberry Cheesecakes
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When an entire piece of cheesecake is just too much (yeah, right), mini cheesecakes are perfect for little ones and adults.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups graham crackers, finely ground
3 tbsp butter, melted
1 1/2 cups and 5 tbsp sugar
6 oz. fresh raspberries
16 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs
Directions:
Preheat the oven for 325 degrees F. Line the muffin tins with paper. Stir together crackers, butter and 3 tbsp sugar. Press 1 tbsp of the mixture into the bottom of each cup. Bake for about 10 minutes until set. Puree raspberries in a food processor until smooth. Press through a sieve to remove solid pieces of the raspberry puree. Whisk in 2 tbsp of sugar. Beat cream cheese until fluffy. Then, on low, add remaining sugar. Mix in salt and vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time. Spoon filling over crust in each cup. Drop no more than 2 dollops of puree over each cupcake. Bake in oven for about 30 minutes with a roasting pan filled halfway with water. Remove tin and cool completely. Refrigerate in tin for at least 4 hours before serving.
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Kids ActivitiesPineapple Upside-Down Cake
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Creating this upside-down treat is significantly easier with the help of a muffin tin—and it's individualized for the perfect portion!
Ingredients:
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pineapple juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp cornstarch
For the topping:
6 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
12 pineapple rings
12 maraschino cherries
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 12-mold large muffin tin. Whisk eggs in a large bowl. Add sugar, brown sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth. Stir in pineapple juice. In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and cornstarch. Gradually add dry ingredient mixture into egg mixture until combined.
For the topping, melt butter in a saucepan. Add brown sugar, vanilla and salt, cooking for one minute and stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Spoon 2 tablespoons of topping mixture into the bottom of each muffin tin, then place a pineapple ring on top and a cherry in the middle of the pineapple ring. Fill each muffin tin with cake batter. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
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