This is the difference between a muffin and a cupcake
Both little cakes are wrapped in a paper baking cup, and you can find them in dozens of different flavors. Still, cupcakes and muffins differ from each other more than you might think. We explain the differences so you’ll never confuse them again.
The ingredients
You might think that one contains different ingredients than the other, but nothing could be further from the truth. A cupcake and a muffin contain the same ingredients (butter, sugar, eggs, and flour). A muffin simply contains less sugar, and the butter is usually melted before being added to the batter. Cupcakes use more sugar, and the butter is usually at room temperature.
The preparation method
So what is the difference? It lies in how the batter is made. A cupcake is essentially a mini version of a cake, which is why it is made in the ‘cake method’. In other words, the ingredients are beaten with a mixer until the batter is light and soft. For a muffin, the ingredients are divided between two bowls: one containing the dry ingredients and the other the wet ingredients. These are then slowly combined with a spatula. This makes muffin batter somewhat coarser. So never try to make the batter more smooth by mixing it more, as this can quickly make the muffin tough.
The appearance
Of course, you can also see the difference in their appearance. Whereas the cupcake is, indeed, usually recognizable by a thick swirl of frosting and brightly colored sprinkles, the muffin generally stays as it comes out of the oven. And if you decorate a muffin like a cupcake, it will still be a muffin because of the method used to make the batter.
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