These are what berry muffin dreams are made of. Really. A super soft, delicate crumb, a hefty burst of fresh berry flavor and a crunchy, leave-you-wanting-more subtle lemon scented topping. We’re talking weekend breakfast while curled up with your coffee and the paper happiness. Or grab and go snack any time of the day.
As I sit here typing this and enjoying my bite of one of the last two muffins of the week that T is having during his “recess,” I can’t help but think how awesome that these are better on the second day and still wonderful on the third. And the batch we made a few weeks again even tasted wonderful after thawing from the freezer. We don’t make this kind of “bonus” muffin too often, aka a muffin that isn’t made with whole wheat flour or packed with some other great for you ingredients like seeds and veggies, but when we do, these are so worth it and an extra special treat. (And also make a fabulous thank you or just thinking of you gift.)
And while these have all the wow going on, they are a one bowl for the muffin, one bowl for the topping kind of recipe. A mix, sprinkle on top then bake affair. I like to make beautifully domed muffins when I make these, so usually get one pan of twelve, but you could even make them about half the size and get almost double.
The put together starts with mixing up the dry- cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Then mixing in the wet- buttermilk, eggs, a little oil, vanilla and melted butter. (This is what makes them far from dry, stale muffins.) Then a healthy dose of fresh berries (I like blues, raspberries and blackberries,) gets folded in gently. That gets scooped into the muffin tin and a tiny spoon of raspberry jam gets swirled on top. This part is fun for the kids and really adds to that berry pop. And on top of that goes the sprinkle of crumb topping and then to the oven they go.
A few of my tips and notes for the best muffins:
- Try not to over mix the batter if you want the most tender muffin.
- You can use frozen berries in this recipe. My favorite are those frozen little wild blueberries.
- To store at room temp- keep covered for about 3 days.
- To store in the refrigerator, keep them covered for up to a week.
- To store in the freezer- keep them in an airtight freezer-safe bag and store for up to a couple months. Thaw still wrapped at room temperature.
- You can use all-purpose flour but I really do recommend trying them with the cake flour. I think it makes a lovely difference here.
- Don’t worry if you don’t have buttermilk (I almost never do,) you can add a couple tablespoons of apple cider or white vinegar to a measuring cup then fill to the 1 cup mark with milk. Wait for a few minutes, and you’ve got buttermilk.
I hope you’ll try these. All that berry goodness in the photo above should give you the extra nudge if you need it. And if you do make these, I would love it if you could leave a comment and rating below or tag me on Instagram. Happy Friday!!
Perfect Berry Muffins
These are what berry muffin dreams are made of. A super soft, delicate crumb, a hefty burst of fresh berry flavor and a crunchy, leave-you-wanting-more subtle lemon scented topping.
Ingredients
- 3 cups (384g) cake flour*
- 1 1/4 cups (250g) granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp + 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup buttermilk *
- 2 lg eggs, room temperature
- 1/3 cup grapeseed or other neutral oil
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (80g) unsalted butter, melted & slightly cooled
- 1/4 cup raspberry jam (optional)
For the crumb topping:
- 3/4 cup (96g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- zest of half a lemon
- 5 tbsps (70g) unsalted butter, melted & slightly cooled
Instructions
-
Preheat the oven to 400f/200C and spray a 12-cup muffin tin with baking spray or line with muffin papers.
For the crumb topping:
-
Start with the topping first. Add all the topping ingredients to a medium-sized bowl and combine with a fork or your fingers until crumbly. Set in the refrigerator.
For the muffins:
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Take a tablespoon from the measured flour and sprinkle it over the berries in a small bowl. Toss to coat. Then in a large bowl, add the remaining flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine.
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In a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla. Then slowly whisk in the melted butter.
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Add the buttermilk mixture to the bowl with the dry ingredients then use a spatula to gently combine until almost incorporated . Do not over mix. Then fold in the berries until combined and no flour streaks remain.
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Divide the batter among the muffin cups using a large cookie scoop or spoon. (I fill them all the way to the top for the muffins pictured.) Place 1 teaspoon of the raspberry jam on the top of each muffin and slightly swirl with a toothpick. Spinkle the crumb topping evenly on the muffins. Bake for 10 minutes then turn the heat down to 350F/177C and continue to bake until the muffins are light golden brown at the edges and a toothpick or thin knife inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes more. (if you make the muffins smaller, they will bake in less time.) Immediately remove the muffin tin to a wire rack and cool. Serve immediately or at room temperature.
Recipe Notes
- You can use frozen berries in this recipe. My favorite are those frozen little wild blueberries.
- To store at room temp- keep covered for about 3 days.
- To store in the refrigerator, keep them covered in the fridge for up to a week.
- To store in the freezer- keep them in an airtight freezer-safe bag and store for up to a couple months. Thaw, while still wrapped, at room temperature.
- *You can use all-purpose flour but I really do recommend trying them with the cake flour. I think it makes a lovely difference here.
- *Don’t worry if you don’t have buttermilk (I almost never do,) you can add two tablespoons of apple cider or white vinegar to a measuring cup then fill to the 1 cup mark with milk. Wait for a few minutes, and you’ve got buttermilk.
