Granola Upside Down Cupcakes

"Splish splash, I was taking a bath," sang granola as it flopped around in some milk - content with his lot only until he saw something else going on in the kitchen. 

"Wheeeeee!" screamed the pineapple while it hung in midair during an upside down flip.


"Yaahoooo!" cried the inverted plum, holding on tightly to a cinnamon cake as it swung around.

Granola looked up at me, pleading, "Can I go upside down, too?"  "Of course, my friend!" 

 Granola Upside Down Cupcakes Recipe

For these granola upside down cupcakes, I adapted a vanilla sour cream cupcake recipe from Seriously Simple Holidays by Diane Rossen Worthington.  My adaptation has a strong cinnamon flavor and a morning-with-coffee feel. 

For the granola in these cupcakes, I used a homemade granola recipe.  However, these upside down cupcakes would also work with store-bought granola (I provide instructions for using either granola).  The granola will be slightly more moist in the homemade option because it starts off unbaked and bakes in the cupcake.

Yield: 12 cupcakes

• 1 1/4 C flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 large eggs
• 1 C sugar
• 1/2 C unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 C sour cream
• 2 C granola (You can use unbaked granola - from your own recipe or my granola recipe - or already baked homemade or store-bought granola.  You could even use crumbled up granola bars.)

1. Lightly grease the bottom of a cupcake tin.
2. Line the bottom of each cupcake holder with granola - about 1/4" thick (no need to break out your ruler - anywhere close to that is fine).
3. If the granola is already baked (or store-bought), simply set the tin aside.  If you are using a homemade granola recipe that you haven't baked, bake the cupcake tin with the granola at 350 F for ten minutes.
4. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium-sized bowl and set aside.
5. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar for about 2 minutes, or until light and creamy.
6. Add the butter and vanilla and beat on low speed for about 1 minute, or until well blended.
7. Beat in the dry ingredients on low speed until blended.
8. Add the sour cream and beat until smooth and well blended.
9. Spoon the cupcake batter over the granola-filled liners until the liners are each about halfway full.
10. Bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean and the tops are firm.
11. Take the cupcakes out and turn them upside down.  Listen for your granola screaming, "Yabba Dabba Doo!"

Another granola cupcake recipe is coming soon!