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Farm Kitchen:  Blueberry muffins  |
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lonestargal
True Blue Farmgirl
607 Posts
Kristi
Texas
607 Posts |
 Posted - Sep 11 2005 : 2:30:49 PM
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| Does anyone have a really good recipe for blueberry muffins? I have a couple but everytime I try them they turn out really really bland and quite bad. I have followed the directions but I don't know if it needs more sugar or more fruit or what the deal is. Any help would be appreciated!!! |
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CityCat
True Blue Farmgirl
198 Posts
Catherine
Toronto
Ontario
Canada
198 Posts |
Posted - Sep 11 2005 : 5:48:54 PM
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Could you post a recipe that didn't work well? I could probably critique it and maybe tell you what to change. I'm always tweeking recipes to suit my tastes, so I may be able to help. I do have a great recipe for blueberry muffins, but it's not for the fat conscious and you HAVE to use wild blueberries, otherwise it isn't spectacular.
If you're having trouble with bland blueberries, the solution would be to use only wild blueberries. Far superior in taste!
Cat |
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katie-ell
True Blue Farmgirl
1818 Posts
Katie
Illinois
1818 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 05:02:57 AM
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| I made blueberry muffins yesterday morning! Recipe from www.epicurious.com -- do a recipe search for Blueberry Muffin Tops. (I like this website, because you can read lots of reviews from home cooks who have tried the recipe already -- lots of info on how it turned out, substitutions made, etc.) Loved these muffins! I used frozen blueberries from Trader Joe's . . . The recipe uses butter and lots of blueberries and mama! are they good. |
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lonestargal
True Blue Farmgirl
607 Posts
Kristi
Texas
607 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 10:13:53 AM
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Wow thanks Katie-ell I'll check out that site.
Citycat--I've tried the blueberry muffins out of the Betty Crocker book (let me know if I need to post that one, I figured most people have that book  ) but the most recent one I tried was this...
Blueberry Orange Muffins
1 3/4 C. flour
1/3 C. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 C. milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 C. butter, melted and slightly cooled
3 Tbs. orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 tsp. Vanilla
3/4 C. fresh or frozen blueberries, thawed
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in large bowl. Beat milk, egg, butter, orange juice concentrate and vanilla in medium bowl on medium speed of electric mixer until well combined. Add milk mixture to dry ingredients. Mix just until dry ingredients are barely moistened (mixture will be lumpy). Add berries and stir gently just until evenly distributed.
Fill greased muffin pan (or line with baking cups) 3/4 full. Bake 20-25 min or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Now the texture was fine and cooking time was fine but they just had no flavor what-so-ever. I used fresh berries and Katie-ell says to use only wild berries which I have a bag of so I'll try those next time but any other tips would be greatly appreciated. |
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katie-ell
True Blue Farmgirl
1818 Posts
Katie
Illinois
1818 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 11:29:18 AM
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| Kristi -- I didn't use wild berries -- I think citycat recommends wild berries for her recipe. Mine were Northwest berries, frozen, from Trader Joe's. Worked out super -- however, my muffins took longer to bake than the recipe said, either because I put lots of batter in each muffin cup (I got a little more than 1/2 the muffin tops than the recipe yields!) or because of the frozen blueberries. (I did not thaw before using.) But they turned out great. I can't tell you how great! Try muffin tops -- fabulous, especially if you like a streusel topping. More yum per muffin. |
Edited by - katie-ell on Sep 12 2005 11:30:07 AM |
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blanket of stars
True Blue Farmgirl
51 Posts
Kat
Hancock
NH
51 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 4:48:56 PM
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I've made these for sale at the farmer's mkt and natural foods store- I modified a recipe to make it more low-fat.
1 c sugar
1 c milk (2%)
3 T canola oil
2 eggs
Beat in mixer bowl.
I use frozen berries because our fresh season is so short! Cut open a bag of frozen berries, pour into another bowl and sprinkle with 1 T flour and 2 t sugar and toss. Set aside.
To mixer bowl add
3 c King Arthur flour
4 T baking powder
grating of fresh lemon peel
1/2 t cinnamon if wanted
Mix briefly with mixer paddle. Remove bowl and fold in frozen , coated blueberries. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop 2 scoops ( for Texas size) or 1 scoop (regular size) into greased muffin tins. I always make the big ones - makes 9. Sprinkle with sugar and bake at 350 for about 40 minutes - the frozen berries make it take longer. If you use fresh berries, it's more like 25 minutes, so CHECK THE MUFFINS EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE. Cool and turn out onto rack. |
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CityCat
True Blue Farmgirl
198 Posts
Catherine
Toronto
Ontario
Canada
198 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 5:51:17 PM
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I suggested using wild blueberries, because at least here in Ontario, the cultivated type of blueberry is huge! (thumb-nail size or larger!) and not a lot of flavour compared to the tiny wild blueberries which while small pack a lot of blueberry punch!
Kristi: I would use freshly grated orange or lemon peel instead of the orange concentrate. Are you using real vanilla? It's more expensive, but it will make your baked items taste better. If you use buttermilk instead of ordinary milk, it will have a lot more flavour. Or, even try vanilla flavoured soymilk.
When I have a bit of time, I'll post my favourite blueberry muffin recipe. Just wanted to write a quick note!
Cat |
Edited by - CityCat on Sep 12 2005 8:29:23 PM |
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lonestargal
True Blue Farmgirl
607 Posts
Kristi
Texas
607 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 6:00:27 PM
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Ooops, so sorry I got you guys mixed up  . Ok I'll try your tips citycat. Thanks so much!!!
Katie-ell--I bookmarked that recipe for sure it sounded soooo good. The tops is basically all I eat anyways  Do you have to have the special muffin top pan or can you do it another way? I'm sure the pan would be easier though.
blanket of stars--that recipe sounds very good and I'm going to try that one as well!! Thanks. |
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katie-ell
True Blue Farmgirl
1818 Posts
Katie
Illinois
1818 Posts |
Posted - Sep 12 2005 : 6:44:45 PM
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| Kristi -- Yes, I have a special muffin top pan. I love the tops, too! Need to get another of those pans . . . tried to find them at Target but no luck. I'll let you know if I find a source. -- OK, update time! Found it at Crate & Barrel through Google. Now you've got me going -- we have C&B stores here, so I'm going to get one tomorrow. Ah, muffins! |
Edited by - katie-ell on Sep 12 2005 6:46:53 PM |
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Rosemary
True Blue Farmgirl
1825 Posts
Virginia
USA
1825 Posts |
Posted - Sep 13 2005 : 08:01:26 AM
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| Blueberries will hold their shape and release their flavor more robustly in muffins or pancakes if you coat them in a little bit of flour before folding them gently to the batter at the last possible second. It helps the flour to stick if they are still a little moist from rinsing and patting dry. I use flour sack dishtowels for this because they are so absorbent you don't really have to pat, which the berries appreciate. |
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lonestargal
True Blue Farmgirl
607 Posts
Kristi
Texas
607 Posts |
Posted - Sep 13 2005 : 08:29:11 AM
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Oh Katie-ell, you are so lucky to have a C&B store. I love those stores!!! I'm going to have to look for one of those pans, guess I'll try Linens&Things.
Thanks Rosemary for the blueberry tip. I'll try it next time I have fresh berries. |
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Farm Kitchen: Blueberry muffins |
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Blueberry muffins
