Snickerdoodle Muffins

First off, some wonderful news: Hubby and I are pregnant! Our little peanut is due October 9th and we are over the moon about it. Unfortunately, pregnancy equals an aversion to all things cooking, especially the poultry we typically live on. Hubby's been in charge of his own meals lately and I've been existing on cereal and yogurt with the occasional granola bar, salad, and bowl of fruit mixed in. I don't mind going out to eat, as long as I don't think about the cooking process (isn't it weird that my nausea is tied to all things food and all things cooking?), so we've been eating out a lot lately.

Then came the day that I was reading my food blogs and doing an exceptional job of staving off the nausea and I found this recipe on the Tasty Kitchen blog. I had to make it. Hubby was off doing daytime assault rifle training (ah, to be a cop and smell like gunpowder for days . . . yuck), so I decided to bake these to surprise him. He's been feeling very neglected lately and is especially thankful for the way I used to cook because now it's soup and grilled cheese living all over again. I think he feels like he's back in college. And he can't even complain because it's his fault I'm knocked up, haha!

Anyway, back to the recipe. It's amazing. The muffins are light as air and the cinnamon and sugar covering the entire thing makes it taste just like a snickerdoodle cookie. And snickerdoodles are Hubby's favorite cookie. He was so happy when he came home from the outdoor range, soaked through and bruised all over from drills to find warm, cinnamony muffins waiting for him. I think he almost cried.

Snickerdoodle Muffins
*From Tasty Kitchen

1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks unsalted)
1 cup sugar
2 whole eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup buttermilk

For the topping:
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350º. Prepare 2 muffin tins with liners. The muffins are too delicate to just spray the pans, so definitely use the liners. In a mixer, combine the butter and sugar and cream until fluffy.

Add the eggs and vanilla and combine.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients.

Add half the dry ingredients to the batter and mix to combine.

Add the buttermilk and sour cream and mix again.

Finally, add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix until you have a smooth batter.

In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar for the topping.

Using a scooper (or your hands), scoop a ball of the dough into the cinnamon and sugar mixture. Gently roll the ball around (this is a bit of sticky mess, but it's worth it and it gets easier as you get the hang of it). Place the ball into the muffin liner.

When you have completed all the muffins, sprinkle the remaining cinnamon and sugar on the tops of the muffins. Bake for 15-18 minutes until golden on top and toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Enjoy!