I Like Big Puffs and I Cannot Lie

Breakfast during the week at our house is usually some toast or a bagel thin (that's my pre-workout breakfast...to be followed by a second breakfast at work.)  Weekend breakfasts aren't usually any more involved...maybe eggs...or maybe I pout and Andrew takes me to breakfast.
But I was feeling cookery this morning, and I whipped up the PW's French Breakfast Puffs.
Ermergerd.
They are a delicious, butter dipped, cinnamon sugar coated cross between muffin and doughnut.  They're about a difficult to make as chocolate chip cookies, meaning, anyone can do this.  It gets a little messy at the end, when they get their butter and cinnamon sugar bath, but it's totally worth it.
PW's original recipe can be found here or on page 66 of her first cookbook.  Her recipe is below, with my remarks in italics.

Here we go!

3 cups Flour
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg (I went heavy-handed with the nutmeg, cause I like 'em spicy...so maybe 3/4 tsp??)
1 cup Sugar
2/3 cups Shortening
2 whole Eggs
1 cup Milk
1-1/2 cup Sugar
3 teaspoons Cinnamon
2 sticks Butter (the panicked look on Andrew's face when I told him the recipe called for 2 sticks of butter...you should have seen it!  I was able to use about a stick, plus two or so tablespoons.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 12 muffin cups. (I sprayed em down with non-stick spray.)
In a large bowl stir together flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Set aside.
In a different bowl, cream together 1 cup sugar and shortening. Then add eggs and mix again. Add flour mixture and milk alternately to creamed mixture, beating well after each addition. (I used my Kitchen Aid...just like making cookies, I tell ya!)
Fill prepared muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden. (Mine took closer to 30 minutes...just watch em.)

Naked Puffs

In a bowl, melt 2 sticks butter. In a separate bowl combine remaining sugar and cinnamon. Dip baked muffins in butter, coating thoroughly, then coat with cinnamon-sugar mixture.

I didn't eat three, I swear!  I just thought to take the picture while my hands were clean, melting more butter...

 Serve warm.  Entice your mother to come down for puffs, instead of driving all the way into town to the Bagel Shop. 

The humanity!

You can freeze any remaining puffs.  Then your husband won't have any food guilt.