When does a cupcake become a muffin?
Muffins are technically "quick breads" while cupcakes are, of course, cakes.
Both generally use baking soda or powder for leavening action (what makes them puffy) but a real cupcake recipe contains much more sugar or sweetener in the batter than a muffin recipe - in fact, it is often a regular cake recipe panned up in a muffin tin. This is where the initial confusion arises, as the size & appearance is similar. However, I must say that commercially marketed muffin mixes contain a high amount of sugar, resulting in taste confusion, as do flavours like Chocolate Chip muffins.
Technically, then, a cupcake could never become a muffin or vice versa, but modern service of both dishes has confused the issue and in ten years the frosting may be the only difference - and given habits of chains like Starbucks, such as coating the tops of ostensible "muffins" with sugar glaze, that may not be a factor either.
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