Apple Pie Mini Muffins

Source: adapted from a recipe in Parents Magazine, November 2013

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups white whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup plus 1 Tablespoon packed brown sugar, divided
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chilled butter, divided
3/4 cup buttermilk (I used 2 1/4 teaspoons lemon juice + milk to 3/4 cup, stirred and allowed to sit for 5 minutes)
1 egg
2 apples (I used only one - a Gala - but the recipe called for 2 Granny Smiths), peeled (if you want to, but I didn't) and chopped in 1/4 in cubes
1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds (didn't have any so left 'em out)
1/2 cup rolled oats (I used quick oats since I don't have a food processor)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line 36 1 3/4 inch muffin cups with paper baking liners (or just spray 'em with nonstick cooking spray); set aside.  In a small bowl, whisk together flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.

Melt 1/4 cup butter.  In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg, and melted butter.  Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just combined.  Fold in apples; set aside.  In a food processor (or just in a bowl with your hands and a couple of forks) combine pumpkin seeds (if you have them) oats, and remaining butter and brown sugar.

Fill liners almost to top.  Sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon of seed mixture.  Bake for 15 minutes (mine were nearly overdone at 13 so watch closely!) or until lightly browned.  Let cool 5 minutes; remove from cups and let cool completely.  Store covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for a month and thaw on the counter.

Notes:
Muffin time again - I was cutting it rather close this month.  But I made it!  I was perusing through a binder of recipes that I had collected from various sources (newspapers, magazines, backs of boxes, mailers, etc) when I came across this one that I must have clipped last year (but I didn't remember doing so).  They looked pretty in the picture and the recipe sounded tasty, so I decided this would be my official October Muffin of the Month.  They were really cute being cooked in the mini muffin tin and they made perfectly pop-able snacks for us.  My only complaint is that I wish I had checked them a few minutes earlier because I think they were a bit dry/overcooked (and, like I noted above, I didn't even let them go the full 15 minutes!).  But they still tasted pretty good - I especially loved the bits of cooked apple that were sprinkled throughout.