When I was a kid, my mom’s plan was to teach me to cook so I would someday be a somewhat functional adult. I mean, we all kind of plan that, or at least think about it sometimes, right? Before she died when I was 9, I hadn’t learned a whole lot, but I had a handful of things in my repertoire: Melted Cheese on a Plate (which is exactly what it sounds like–I would put shredded cheese on a plate, melt it, and eat it with a fork like a very classy girl.) Sausage and Sauerkraut (because what 9-year-old doesn’t make that for all her friends? No wonder people thought I was weird.) Campbell’s Tomato Soup made with milk instead of water. Pancakes. And blueberry muffins.
These are not the blueberry muffins of my childhood; these are much better blueberry muffins. They have cinnamon streusel on them and lemon zest in in them and they’re easy to make with stuff you probably either have on hand or can easily get. They are perfect for breakfast or brunch or “hey, I’m feeling snacky, but I have to wear a bra to the grocery store, so it’s either blueberry muffins or melted cheese on a plate again.” Here’s a little life tip: blueberry muffins are almost always better than melted cheese on a plate (notice I didn’t say always, because hey, we all have our dark times.)
time to make the muffins
For these, you’ll need all-purpose flour, salt, orange or lemon rind, baking powder, buttermilk, eggs, oil (although you can sub apple sauce if you want to healthify these a little), blueberries, and sugar for the muffins
You’ll also need butter, flour, sugar, and cinnamon for the streusel topping.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners and set aside.
Lightly spoon the flour into measuring cups and level with with a knife and combine it in a large bowl with the baking powder and salt,
sugar,
and citrus peel.
Make a well in the center of the mixture.
Place the the egg, buttermilk, and oil in a smaller bowl…
Whisk them together and add the mixture to the dry ingredients,
stirring just until moistened.
In a small bowl, combine the remaining flour and sugar and then toss the blueberries in this mixture until they are well-coated. Gently fold the blueberry mixture into the batter.
Spoon the batter into lined muffin tins, filling 2/3 full.
To make the streusel topping, combine the 1/4 cup sugar, 2 1/2 tablespoons flour, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two butter knives until the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over the batter
and bake for 18-20 minutes or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack. Makes 12 muffins.
Then you should eat ’em (because they are muffins and that’s what you do).
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Streusel-Topped Blueberry Muffins
Description
These are the BEST streusel-topped blueberry muffins ever, but they are also quick and easy made from pantry staples!
Ingredients
Muffins
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoon grated orange or lemon peel
1 large egg
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 c. fresh or frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon sugar
STREUSEL TOPPING
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners and set aside.
Lightly spoon the flour into measuring cups and level with with a knife and combine it in a large bowl with the baking powder, salt, sugar, and citrus peel. Make a well in the center of the mixture. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, and oil. Add to the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened.
In a small bowl, combine the remaining flour and sugar and then toss the blueberries in this mixture until they are well-coated. Gently fold the blueberry mixture into the batter. Spoon the batter into lined muffin tins, filling 2/3 full.
To make the streusel topping, combine the 1/4 cup sugar, 2 1/2 tablespoons flour, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two butter knives until the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over the batter and bake for 18-20 minutes or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack. Makes 12 muffins.
Oh my word!!!! I just bought fresh blueberries yesterday then I got your update today. Yummy, yummy, yummy and I might add very easy to make. I always find it unnerving to add liquid to the dry, I usually do it the other way because I am afraid it won't blend well but it did today! Looking forward to your secret, hope it's something us Canadians can use. Putting pictures of the muffins on your facebook! PS. Thanks for this recipe!
Coating the blueberries in the flour/sugar mix keeps the berries from sinking to the bottom of the batter by basically creating a "glue" around each berry which helps to suspend it in the batter. One doesn't have to add the sugar to the mix as the flour alone is all that is necessary. 🙂 (but it does add an extra bit of sweetness)
My brother's roommate adores blueberry muffins so every time I visit I make sure to have a batch in tow. This will be next one I try!
The reason for stirring some of the flour in with the blueberries before adding them to the batter is to prevent the blueberries from sinking to the bottom. 🙂 It's a great trick but have to admit I don't know why or how it works. LOL
Oh my! Those look way too good.
Buoni !! I love blueberries and muffins!! Yummy 😉
Who won/win (?!!) the giveaway?!
Abbracci from Italy.
For once and I mean ONCE, I have blueberries and buttermilk … there is a God in HEaven!! YUMMIE!! Thank you for the recipe, I'm off to the kitchen 🙂
those look fantastic!
Is there a secret to keeping the crumble from melting? I have not had much luck, even when I keep the butter really cold.
Steph, that's weird! I have no idea!
Crystal–that's my guess. I'm thinking the flour kind of soaks up the juices while they're baking so the muffins don't get too much moisture in them and the sugar mixes with the flour to make a little syrup in each bite.
Also, mixing the berries with the flour will help so they don’t settle to the bottom of the muffin.