Cleo Coyle's Best Blueberry Muffins

This is it. The best recipe for Blueberry Muffins (in my opinion, of course)! Why do I call it the best? Because it yields impressive results with little fuss and few ingredients. It's the best because it's the kind of recipe that I use again and again. 



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A Note from Cleo

Our Coffeehouse Mystery readers may remember this beautiful muffin from our 15th Coffeehouse Mystery, Dead to the Last Drop, in which our amateur sleuth, coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi (like Mr. Smith) goes to Washington, where she sets out to caffeinate the nation's capital and solve a capital crime.

The recipes in the book are some of our favorites, and this is definitely one. Here's why...

THIS BLUEBERRY MUFFIN RECIPE

IS "THE BEST" FOR US BECAUSE:

(1) It's a no-fuss recipe. You don't need many ingredients. 

(2) These are not cupcakes pretending to be muffins with more sugary cake than berries. You will get what the muffin is named for: blueberries. The muffins are packed with this healthful super-food, and you can use fresh or frozen.

(3) The muffins will bake up beautifully. No gray batter. The muffin interior will remain yellow, as you see in my photos.

(4) The crumb of this muffin is tender with a taste like pound cake, yet you won't need to drag out the mixer and cream butter and sugar to achieve it. You simply whisk ingredients together in one bowl. The secret is in the use of whole milk, not skim or low fat; and especially in the combination of vanilla and lemon flavorings. So don't leave those out!

Another tip: For presentation, yellow paper liners in your muffin tins will nicely set off all those luscious dark berries. May you...

Eat with blueberry joy!

~ Cleo

To download a free PDF of

this recipe that you can print,

save, or share, click here. 

Click for Cleo's
Free Recipe PDF.

Cleo Coyle's 

Best Blueberry Muffins

Makes 6 standard muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
   + 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1 egg
1/2 cup whole milk (do not use skim or low-fat)

1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil

1/4 cup white, granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon zest (grated lemon peel, no white pith)

Generous pinch of finely ground sea salt (or table salt)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

(optional) 1-2 tablespoons coarse finishing sugar such as                    
               a Turbinado or Demerara or a white coarse finishing sugar
               to sprinkle on before baking 

Directions:

Step 1 - Prep oven and muffin pan: Preheat oven at least 30 minutes to 375º Fahrenheit. Note that many ovens often do not reach the pre-heat temperature when their "ready" buzzers ring, so be sure to pre-heat oven well. Line six muffin cups with paper holders (yellow makes a nice presentation) and coat the papers with non-stick spray to prevent sticking. 

Step 2 - Prep blueberries: If using fresh blueberries, de-stem, wash, drain, and pat dry. They can be a little moist, no worries. If using frozen blueberries, use them right out of the freezer, do not thaw. Gently toss the fresh or still-frozen blueberries in the 2 teaspoons of flour. Do not crush the berries, keep them whole. The flour will absorb excess berry juice during baking and prevent your muffins from turning gray. Set aside.

Step 3 - Create batter with one bowl mixing method: Crack egg into a mixing bowl and gently beat with a whisk. Add milk, oil, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, and salt and whisk until well blended. Now add baking powder and whisk very well, until dissolved. Switching to a spoon or spatula, mix in the flour until all the raw flour disappears into the batter and a lumpy batter forms. 

Do not over-mix at this stage or you will develop the gluten in the flour and your muffins will be tough instead of tender. Finally, gently fold in the flour-tossed blueberries. Take care not to crush the berries, keep them whole.

Tip: Be sure to grate only the yellow part of the lemon rind and not the bitter, white pith. A microplane, like the one shown (about $10.00 US), is made especially for zesting citrus and is handy to have in the kitchen. To shop online for one, click here.

TIP: When you whisk in the baking powder, be sure it is fully dissolved like the photo below. In the photo above, it is not yet fully dissolved. Keep whisking until it looks like the photo below.

Step 4 - Bake: This batter will make 6 standard muffins. Divide it up evenly among your paper-lined (and lightly sprayed) muffin cups.

I usually do not use finishing sugar. But you may like this addition. If using a finishing sugar, sprinkle a bit on over each unbaked muffin top. 

Bake in your well-preheated 375º F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Muffins are done when tops just begin to become light golden brown. Allow to cool before removing paper liners or paper make stick.

The muffins picture above do not have finishing sugar on them. The muffins below do have the finishing sugar. Both ways are delicious, although I prefer the ones without the extra sugar.

TIP: Toothpick method for de-panning hot muffins: If you leave fresh-baked muffins in their hot pans, the bottoms may steam and become tough. Here's an easy way to remove hot muffins fast. See my photos below...

Gently insert toothpicks as shown, taking care not to create visible holes in the muffin tops. Use the toothpicks as handles and carefully lift the muffin from the pan. This is a good way to get the muffins out of their hot pan without squashing them. Place on a rack to continue cooling.

NOTE: ALLOW MUFFINS TO COOL 

BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO REMOVE

PAPER LINERS OR PAPER MAY STICK.

(Above) Baked muffins with finishing sugar...

TIP ON STORING: The sugar is nice and crunchy just out of the oven and within the first day, but once you wrap the above muffins in plastic and store them in the fridge, the crunchy sugar tops will go soft and soggy on you. So if you're making these muffins a day or two in advance of serving them, consider leaving the sugar off the tops like the ones below...

To store: Once completely cool, store muffins in a Ziplock plastic bag or plastic container. If your weather or climate is warm, also place in refrigerator. They will keep well several days that way. 

To reheat: Muffins can be reheated easily (10 to 15 seconds) in microwave, so you can continue to...eat with blueberry joy!

Click for Cleo's
Free Recipe PDF

Eat (and read) with joy!

~ Cleo Coyle

New York Times bestselling author

of The Coffeehouse Mysteries and

Haunted Bookshop Mysteries

Cleo (Alice) with her husband Marc

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