A muffin is not a muffin, but how do you ultimately distinguish between the two treats? After all, they are both roughly the same size and shape and come in a variety of flavors. This article will illuminate some of the distinguishing factors.
First of all, a muffin can be classified in several different ways. It can be a meal, typically for breakfast, it can be a snack, and it can even be a dessert. It is usually consumed first thing in the morning and is usually considered something healthy. They can even be eaten with a meal, rather than perhaps muffins or slices. Restaurants often serve them with a salad to add the extra carb filling that many people seem to crave with their salads. They are consumed with juice, milk, and other similar beverages, even sodas during lunch.
A cupcake, on the other hand, is often something that is considered a dessert and dessert only by definition. It is a delicacy that is not considered a meal and most would not be satisfied with a single cupcake, if in fact it was being consumed instead of a meal. Cupcakes are generally considered to have more calories and fat than a muffin. Sometimes this is not the case, but more often it is. They are usually consumed with milk and eaten after a meal or as a special snack.
Muffins can be made with fruit, wheat, bran, and other whole health-related ingredients, and can be more firmly grounded in the category of breakfast- or meal-enhancing foods. Cupcakes, however, are enhanced with delicious frosting, sugars, toppings, and other additive ingredients geared toward dessert. Cupcakes definitely look more like candy, while muffins look more like food.
They are clearly different if one only takes a look at the essential ingredients in front of each other. Muffins can even be made with atypical ingredients like cheese, pumpkin, the creative possibilities are limitless. Muffin ingredients typically, if ever, intersect in the more “food-related” additives. But the enhancements to a cupcake can also be limitless. Adding chocolate shavings, fudge drizzles, and a cold whip can make the wonderful treat even more irresistible.
Also, visually muffins tend to have almost a fattened mushroom shape with a distinctive “top”. Seinfeld even had a sitcom that illuminated how important the top of the muffin was to all of the muffin makeup, that in fact, many people dip and eat muffins leaving the bottom behind without eating. For whatever reason, it seems that much of the muffin’s flavor and attractive qualities tend to go through the top of the muffin. Whereas with cupcakes, the shape does not expand at the top. However, cupcake toppers have a special quality because that is where the cupcake maker can add their extra touches with frosting and other special additions. The two delicacies are not the same, but they are definitely both equally enjoyed bakery items that are universally enjoyed.