Blueberry Muffins

By hmorris31

Blueberry muffins, for all of their simple, warm appeal, have a host of problems, as they often emerge from the oven too sweet, too dense, or just plain bland, with little blueberry flavor. We wanted delicate muffins with a balanced fresh blueberry flavor. To achieve a delicate texture, we decided to forgo creaming the butter and
sugar and instead folded melted butter into the batter. Plain yogurt added moisture and a nice tang, and a little lemon zest complemented the sweet blueberries nicely. Sprinkling the muffins with lemon-sugar topping was the perfect finish
ing touch. Any muffin tin with standard-size cups will work here, and the batter can be placed in any of the cups. Frozen blueberries can be substituted for the fresh blueberries: rinse and dry the frozen blueberries (do not thaw) before folding into the batter

Ingredients

• TOPPING
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• MUFFINS
• 3/4 cup (3 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup whole-milk or low-fat plain yogurt
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1/2 cup (2.5 ounces) fresh blueberries

Details

Level of difficulty Average
Cost Average budget

Preparation

Step 1

1. FOR THE TOPPING: Adjust oven rack to
middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees.
Spray 4 cups of muffin tin with baking spray
with flour. Combine sugar and lemon zest in
bowl; set aside.

Step 2

FOR THE MUFFINS: Whisk flour, sugar, baking
powder, baking soda, and salt together in large
bowl. In separate bowl, whisk yogurt, egg, and
lemon zest together until smooth. Gently fold
yogurt mixture into flour mixture with rubber
spatula until just combined, then fold in melted
butter and blueberries.

Step 3

Using dry measure or ice cream scoop, divide
batter evenly among prepared muffin cups.
Sprinkle sugar topping over muffins. Bake until
muffins are golden brown and toothpick inserted
in center of muffin comes out clean, 20 to 24
minutes, rotating muffin tin halfway through
baking.

Step 4

Let muffins cool in muffin tin on wire rack for
10 minutes. Remove muffins from muffin tin and
let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.