These made from scratch Blueberry Muffins are a great start to any day…and…a great snack any TIME of the day. Filled with big, ripe, juicy and fresh picked Blueberries, you’ll not only enjoy the taste, you’ll reap the health benefits of eating Blueberries. Blueberries are now in season here in the South and that just means it’s time to get outside and pick some berries. C’mon…whatcha waiting for?
Recipe: Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping
A quick search of the Internet will give you the “skinny” on just how nutritious Blueberries are for you. With only 80 calories per cup and virtually no fat at all, Blueberries offer lots of nutritional benefits. They’re packed with Vitamin C, high in fiber and, are right up there near the top when it comes to antioxidant activity per serving. Combine all that with the fact that they just taste really good…and we’ve got a WINNER for sure.
Blueberry season has just begun here in the South. We’ve had some beautiful weather the past few days and folks are already out picking Blueberries to make all sorts of great things. And, just like Strawberries, Blueberries are very versatile. You can make Blueberry Jam, Blueberry Jelly, Blueberry Syrup for pancakes, Blueberry Cobblers….the list just goes on and on.
We hope to add a variety of things here on Taste of Southern that we consider our Blueberry Favorites. I love Blueberry Pancakes and Blueberry Cobblers so look out and be forewarned OK. But, the first thing that came to mind was these delicious Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping.
Blueberry Hill U-Pick Farm:
Saturday afternoon turned out to be a super nice, cool Spring day to get outside a bit. Fishing would have been lots of fun but, I had a couple of places I wanted to visit and knew I couldn’t do them all and go fishing too.
I ventured just a few miles from home and paid my first official visit to Blueberry Hill U-Pick Farm. I knew about them last year but, I got wrapped up in peaches and just never got around to working very much with Blueberries. Of course, peaches are just coming in around here as well.
I had the opportunity a few nights ago to talk via phone with a gentleman that attends the same church as my brother. My brother spoke very highly of him and asked me to give him a call. It was a bit late when I made contact but we ended up having a very nice conversation and I was eager to meet both him and his wife in person.
Their farm isn’t very old but they already are growing 9 different variety of Blueberries. Who even knew there was more than one type of Blueberry? Not me. I guess I’d never actually given it much thought as they kind of all look about the same to me….know what I mean?
It was about 2:00pm when I pulled onto the property at Blueberry Hill U-Pick Farm. The sun was shining brightly but, we at least had a bit of a breeze. I spotted one couple picking some berries and then just a little further up, I saw another fellow picking. Blueberry Hill U-Pick is on the Honor System. You get a bucket, pick your berries, drop your money in the locked money box and go on your way. How cool is that?
They also have a small retail store on the property for their berries. They carry them freshly picked or you can purchase fresh frozen berries in 5lb or 10lb boxes. You’ll also find their own line of….Jam, Jelly, Salsa, Juice, Syrup, Cider and more items….all made from Blueberries. You can order most of their products online and I’ll include the link a little further down.
I picked about half a gallon of berries. I knew I only needed a pint for my muffins but once you get started…you just keep going if the picking is good. Their rows are marked with blue flags to let you know which ones to pick on for the day. Instructions are clearly placed and gathering the berries was both quick and easy…even for me.
As I stepped inside the retail store, the couple that had also been picking berries came out the front door. I was cheerfully greeted by Anthony, one of the owners and, when he asked how I was doing….I said, “Hot.” Without hesitation, he stepped over to the Slushie machine and poured me a cup of Muscadine Grape Slushie. Slushies, if you aren’t familiar with them, are frozen ice drinks that come in various flavors. This Muscadine Grape flavor was a bit of a specialty though…..and….it hit the spot right away. It wasn’t just cold….it was very delicious and refreshing.
I talked with Anthony a few minutes and then finally offered out my hand. As he extended his, he introduced himself. Then, I told him my name. A bigger smile came over his face as he rememberd having talked with me a few nights earlier.
Anthony and his wife Janice own and operate Blueberry Hill Farm. She came in a little later and I had the chance to meet her as well. These are just two SUPER NICE folks. They’re good Christian people with a mission for their growing little farm of berries. Anthony pulled out chairs for us both and we sat and talked about the farm for a good 20 minutes if not longer. You can read more about them on their website and learn how they are turning this clay land we have into good land for growing Blueberries. They are one of the few in our local area and I know you’d love meeting them should you get the opportunity.
You can learn more about them by clicking on their website. www.blueberryhillupick.com
So, with fresh Blueberries in hand, I headed home, snacking on my freshly picked berries all the way. If nothing happens, I’ll be visiting Blueberry Hill U-Pick Farm quite a few more times over the next few weeks. Maybe you can also.
I hope you’ll give these Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping a try. You can make them without the topping if you desire but, it’s so quick and easy to make so….go one step further and add the topping….you’ll be glad you did. If you’re ready….Let’s Get Cooking!
Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping Recipe: You’ll need these ingredients.
We’ll begin with the prep for our berries. Place about one cup of Blueberries in a colander. Sort through them and remove any bad berries you might find. Also, remove any stems or other items that might have been attached.
Gently rinse the berries under cold running water. Don’t run the water at full force…just lightly…so you don’t tear up the tender berries. Toss them around inside the colander and give them a good rinse.
After they have drained a few minutes, place the washed berries in a plastic container or small bag. Then, add about 1/4 cup of flour to them. Just sprinkle it over the top of the berries.
Close the bag or place a cover of some sort on your container…depending on what you’re using of course. Now, give the berries a few good shakes and coat the berries in the flour you just added.
The flour should stick to the moist berries like this. Coating the berries with the flour is suppose to keep the berries from all sinking to the bottom of the pan while they bake. We’ll see.
Place the two eggs in a small bowl of hot water. The water needs to be about 110º F. That’s about the temperature of hot water out of your tap. Cover this bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and set it aside for a few minutes. We’ll use them later. The eggs need to be room temperature at least but, we’re helping the process along a bit further and warming them up even more.
It’s time to measure out the All Purpose Flour for our batter. Here’s a little cooking tip on how to measure flour.
Don’t just take your measuring cup and dip it directly into the bag to scoop out the amount you need. Instead, use a spoon and dip the flour out and place it in the measuring cup. This keeps you from packing the cup with more flour than the recipe actually calls for. Once the cup is full, use a knife and slide it across the top to get a LEVEL cup of the flour. Baking typically calls for a LEVEL portion when measuring out flour.
Next, pour the measured amount of flour called for…into a sifter. It’s not required but, sifting just always seems to help. Besides, it’s always a treat to pull out mama’s old sifter and use it again. Actually, I’m not certain if this is the one she use to have or, if it’s the one I purchased when I had to start making biscuits at our restaurant. She may have even gave me that one. Either way, I prefer to think it’s hers….much better memories that way.
Add the salt.
Add the Baking Powder.
Sift the dry ingredients together. Set aside for the present time.
To Make The Crumb Topping Mixture:
In a small bowl, add one cup of “packed” Brown Sugar. Unlike when measuring flour, the Brown Sugar needs to be pretty well packed into the measuring cup in order to get an accurate measurement. Just spoon it in and press it down until you’ve got a good solid amount as called for.
Think of it as a little sand castle. Remember how you needed to pack the sand into the bucket to get it to hold its shape? Kind of the same thing. Cute isn’t it?
Add the flour.
Add one teaspoon of Cinnamon. I forgot to include it in the picture of Ingredients. It is listed in the ingredients in the printable recipe at the bottom of the page though.
Take a fork and stir it all together a bit.
Cut the butter needed into very small little cubes…or kinda diced like. Butter should be soft but not mushy soft.
Take the fork again and….mash it all up. This will take a minute or two. Mash up the butter into about pea sized pieces or smaller. Just keep stirring it around….it’ll happen. This is your completed Crumb Topping mixture. Set this aside for a few minutes while we mix up the wet ingredients for the batter.
Grab a medium sized bowl and start by breaking two eggs and placing them in the bowl.
Add in the “packed” Brown Sugar needed.
Add in the white sugar. White sugar doesn’t have to be packed in any fashion…..just scoop it out and add it to the bowl.
Add the vegetable oil.
You’ll need 3 Tablespoons of Butter at almost room temperature. The butter needs to still have some firmness to it when pressed. Don’t let it get all mushy soft and stuff.
Add the room temperature Buttermilk.
Use your electric mixer. Set the speed to LOW and slowly begin incorporating all of the wet ingredients. Go ahead and mix this up well.
Now it’s time to assemble the batter. Pour the WET ingredients into the bowl of DRY ingredients.
Mix the ingredients SLIGHTLY. Use the electric hand mixer, set on LOW speed and, just briefly mix the ingredients until they’re slightly incorporated together. Don’t over mix at this point.
Add a few of the blueberries into the bowl. Use a spatula and gently FOLD the berries into the batter mix. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go.
Gently fold in the remaining Blueberries. Again, do not over mix the batter.
Pre-heat your oven to 400º F.
I prefer to use the paper cups when making cupcakes or muffins. Just place one paper sleeve inside each opening of your muffin pan.
Of course, you could also just grease the openings and then add the batter. It’s your choice. I also like to use my Ice Cream scoop to add the batter to the cups. Only problem is, I’m trying to use it with my left hand here and it wasn’t working too well. I’m right handed and was using the right hand to take the picture. Fill each cup about 3/4ths full with the batter. I opted to go ahead and fill all 12 cups. It wasn’t actually enough batter to do that many and they ended up being on the small side. Nine would have probably worked out better and made a little larger muffin in the long run.
Once the cups are filled, lift the pan about 4 inches off your counter top and just….drop it. Do this a couple of times to work out any bubbles that might be in the batter. It also helps to spread the batter out evenly inside the cups. Wait…it’s also kind of fun to do.
Use your fingers and add a little of the Crumb Topping mixture to each of the cups. I went a little sparingly with mine and had a bunch of topping mix leftover. Too much of the topping can cause the tops to be a bit soggy so use it sparingly.
I also added a few sprinkles of Turbinado Sugar to the topping. Turbinado Sugar has large crystals and I rather like it. Use it if you have it. You’ll find it on lots of the cupcakes and muffins you purchase ready baked at your grocery store.
Place the completed muffins on the middle rack of your oven set at 400ºF. Watch them closely as they bake.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until done.
While the muffins are baking, setup your wire racks for when they come out of the oven. We’ll let them cool on these racks for about 15 minutes.
Be sure to test your muffins to make sure they’re done before you remove them from the oven. Insert a wooden toothpick into one of the larger muffins. If it pulls out clean….they’re done. If you find bits of dough stuck to the toothpick, they need to bake a few minutes longer. We’re not counting the Blueberry on the toothpick. Chances are you’ll stick the toothpick right through one of the berries. Look for any dough or crumbs of the muffin that might be sticking to the toothpick.
Let the muffins sit on the wire rack and cool for about 15 minutes. Once they have cooled a bit, use a spoon to help slip each one out of the pan. Or, you can just flip them over onto a towel or the wire racks…..you’ll just lose a bit of the crumb topping if you do it that way. Take my word for it OK…I’m not saying that I actually did MINE that way…..er….well…..just take my word for it on this one. You can thank me later.
Serve and Enjoy!!!
