Blueberry Muffins are For BFFs

Blueberry muffins are a coffeeshop classic, but I have some pretty strong opinions on what constitutes a quality blueberry muffin.  One thing they are not is a cupcake.  If your not sure if your pastry is a muffin or a cupcake, you are in the wrong store.  I love a good cupcake, but there is a time and a place for every bakery treat and when I want a muffin it should be fairly dense, moist, and just a little sweet.  The second thing that is great about a muffin, with it’s dense crumb count, is that they can easily be made without liners.  No need to put a piece of dry paper between you and that blueberry goodness.  Cupcakes can be made without them, but it’s more difficult, so they get a pass for having liners.  No excuses for the magnificent muffin.

So my muffin rules are as follows.

1.  Denser than a cupcake.
2. No paper liners.
3. Don’t over mix.
4. Get yourself a classic go-to muffin recipe and you can swap the fruits and spices for all your creative desires.

The reason behind rule 3 is that if you mix much more than just combined the muffin won’t rise as much, they should be dense, but not like a loaf of bread.

And I’ve got you covered for rule 4:  following is my blueberry muffin recipe.  You can omit the blueberries for a different fruit, add spices, toppings, or even savory fillings.  Sky’s the limit.  I like to use frozen fruit when baking, for texture and cost reasons.  That is with the exception of bananas, but we’ll discuss that in a few weeks.

creamed butter and sugar

eggs and vanilla are in, now its time to incorporate the flour mixture

blueberries are a go, a couple stirs and the muffins are ready to bake

Blueberry Muffins for BFFS

ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 stick butter (softened)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 t vanilla
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup blueberries (frozen)
• cooking spray (or vegetable oil with a paper towel)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

1. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt.  Whisk together lightly with a fork.
2. In a mixing bowl cream together butter and sugar until combined.  The do not over mix part doesn’t come in to play until combine the dry mixture with the wet, so you don’t worry too much yet.
3. Add 2 eggs and 1 t vanilla to the creamed butter and sugar and mix until the eggs are fully incorporated.
4. Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet.  You can mix with the electric mixer or with a rubber spatula, but just until you don’t see any more flour.  If you are using an electric mixer you will need the spatula for the sides of the bowl.
5. Add 1/2 cup milk and mix until just combined.
6. Add the rest of the dry mixture and mix one last time until just combined.
7. Add the blueberries and stir in with a rubber spatula.
8. Use the cooking spray to evenly cover each muffin hole on a pan with 12 muffin spots.  You can also use a 6 muffin pan, or a mini muffin pan and adjust cooking times.  If you aren’t using cooking spray, use a paper towel to wipe the inside of the holes with vegetable oil or butter.
9. Scoop muffin mix into the tin using two spoons or a cookie scoop.
10. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.  The muffins are done if you poke them with a toothpick and it comes out clean.
11. Let them cool in the muffin pan for a few minutes, then use a butter knife to go around the sides of each muffin to pop them out.  Eat immediately or let cool completely and store on the counter in a air tight container for up to 4 or 5 days.  They also freeze well if you let them cool completely and then wrap individually in plastic wrap.

If you don’t have a cookie scoop two spoons work great. Scoop the mixture with one spoon and scrape in with the second.

Did it look like a hot mess when you put the muffins in the oven? Don’t worry they’ll melt down and then rise up like this!

So why do I call them Blueberry Muffins for BFFs?  First reason is one of my BFFs loves them and had been hinting at how much she missed them since I moved, so I made a batch to take to our monthly dinner meet-up (shout out to Vida).  Second reason is they are just such a classic recipe that once you get the recipe down, they are no stress, but make for a great treat to your day.  Just like a good BFF.