Granola-Apple Muffins

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup granola, plus more for garnish
¼ cup wheat germ
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
2 eggs
1 cup applesauce
⅔ cup packed golden brown sugar
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
2 crisp apples, preferably Granny Smith, 1 peeled, cored, finely diced
AND 1 cored and sliced into 12 wedges - not peeled


Preheat oven to 375°F.
Stir the first 9 ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, applesauce, brown sugar and butter together. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in diced apple.
Divide mixture evenly among 12 muffin cups, I prefer to use tulip muffin cups for this recipe since they allow me to overstuff the muffin. Sprinkle the top of each with a pinch of extra granola. Stand an apple wedge upright in batter of each muffin and bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes. Cool slightly before removing from pan.

Ideas:

Batter can be baked in a loaf pan or a round cake pan. Arrange apple wedges on top of batter with extra granola. Bake until a toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean, about 30 to 35 minutes.