Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins

Because of the disastrous Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze recipe yesterday, I decided to make Ina Garten's Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins today. Tomorrow I have my Sociology Final and I was hoping these wouldn't be another flop of a recipe. Since I had a ton blueberries left over from yesterday, I might as well use them, right? This recipe was extremely simple and straight forward. Plus the blueberries didn't get crushed!! And why would they in this recipe? It's an actual batter which makes it less stressful. **Tip: Toss the blueberries in a little bit of flour before folding them into the batter to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin when baking. I also added the zest of one lemon to the batter because it goes well with blueberries. Making the batter was quick. The longest part of the recipe was the baking period but that was about it. These came out with a pale golden brown top and were delicious!! Finally, redemption from yesterday. These were moist, sweet yet tart from the blueberries and the lemon definitely rounded out the flavors. Hopefully these will be a great "brain food" tomorrow! They actually say that blueberries help with memory so let's see if that's true with my Sociology Final. Now I have to get back to studying!! Here's the recipe!

Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins (Makes 16 Muffins)
Ingredients
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
8 ounces (about 1 cup) sour cream
1/4 cup milk
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 half-pints fresh blueberries, picked through for stems

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place 16 paper liners in muffin pans.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, sour cream, and milk. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed add the flour mixture to the batter and beat until just mixed. Fold in the blueberries with a spatula and be sure the batter is completely mixed.

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pans, filling each cup just over the top, and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the muffins are lightly browned on top and a cake tester comes out clean.


-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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