Mugwort Red Bean Muffin (Korean Herbal Sweet Bean Muffin)
This muffin combines mugwort powder and cooked sweet red beans in a soft, fluffy batter that bridges Korean traditional flavors with Western baking technique. Mugwort contributes a distinctive herbal fragrance - faintly bitter, grassy, and deeply aromatic - that permeates the entire crumb and gives it a muted green hue. The red beans, folded in whole, add pockets of grainy sweetness that burst with each bite. Cake flour and baking powder keep the rise gentle and the texture light, while melted butter adds moisture without heaviness. The combination of mugwort and red bean is deeply familiar from Korean rice cakes, but baking it as a muffin introduces a crisp top and a pillowy interior that the steamed rice cake format cannot offer. Mixing the batter in no more than ten to twelve strokes prevents toughness - visible streaks of flour are acceptable and even preferred over a smooth, overworked batter. The beans should be folded in last with a gentle spatula motion to preserve their shape. These muffins pair naturally with grain-based lattes, where the roasted notes in the drink echo the earthy quality of the mugwort.
Adjust Servings
Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a muffin tray.
- 2
Combine cake flour, mugwort powder, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
- 3
Whisk eggs, milk, melted butter, and vanilla in a separate bowl.
- 4
Fold wet ingredients into dry until 80% mixed, then fold in red beans.
- 5
Fill each cup to about 80% and level the tops.
- 6
Bake 20–22 minutes until a skewer comes out clean, then cool.
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