Friday 24 February 2012

Blueberry muffins (muffin base)

This is the first recipe I baked with my middle daughter, one of "the twins".  She was 2.8 years old and wanted to work with me in the kitchen.  I have "issues" with messes but nontheless agreed right away.  We had a good time together, I did not get stressed out and she didn't push my boundaries.  We actually had a good time. 

Normally, the kitchen is very much my territory.  I let you in to help me when I've given you very specific tasks to do, you do it and get out.

This was fun and pleasant and I felt good about it.  She was so proud to say these were her muffins!  That was the big reward for me!

I would say these are a great muffin that could be switched around to make a few other kinds.  Add about 1/4 cup peanut butter to the batter, and / or throw in some chocolate chips and you can use any frozen fruit you prefer. 

The muffins were light and fluffy and baked up nice and tall so they looked good too.  I'd say you could sell these in a bake sale no problem.

The original recipe has a yummy streusel topping that you can put on to bring these to a brunch or an outdoor gathering like a picnic, but I find it messy in the house.

Blueberry Muffins
from Canadian Living
2 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk (or 1 Tbsp vinegar and top with milk to equal 1 cup, let sit a minute or two)
1/4 cup butter, melted (or applesauce, just as good)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (don't thaw them, just throw them in right at the end so they don't colour your muffins)
- mix dry, mix wet.  Combine only to moisten the dry ingredients.  Add berries to the last couple of stirs.
- greased or paper-lined muffin cups, fill 2/3 full and bake for 25 minutes at 375F.
- be sure to take all muffins and loaves (bread especially) out of the pan as soon as you can.  It'll keep a nice crispy crust and they won't get all mushy.  Take this lesson with your for all your muffins and loaves.  (Cakes are different, they need to cool completely so they don't break when you handle them.)

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