Ina Garten's Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins

Simply the best!

These beautiful Blueberry Muffins are what I call “Simply Wonderful!” I rate every recipe I make and the “Simply Wonderful” title has to be earned. I don’t just hand it out! The fact that these muffins are extra moist and bursting with luscious blueberries is what earned them this special crown. Also the smile on everyone's face who has had the pleasure of sinking their teeth into one, tells me so!

My oldest son recently came home from college for Fall Break and brought four friends with him. He requested his favorite Blueberry Muffins and I was more than happy to oblige. My goal was to have the house filled with the aroma of these flavorful muffins the minute he walked through the door. Easy for me, this batter can be made ahead of time and baked on demand.

Cobi Quick Tip: Make the batter the night before and keep in the fridge to bake the next day.

I make them in my electric stand mixer but they can just as easily be made with a hand held mixer or even a bowl and fork for that matter! However you decide to make them, know they will be “Simply Wonderful!”

You’ll Need

- Makes 16 muffins -

12 tablespoons ( 1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 ½ cups sugar

3 extra- large eggs, at room temperature

8 ounces sour cream (about one cup. I usually buy the 8 oz size container which makes life easy!)

¼ cup whole milk

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract (I love this one. I really think a quality vanilla makes all the difference)

2 ½ cups all - purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 half-pints fresh blueberries, picked through for stems (Cobi Quick Tip: I always buy an extra just in case I feel the batter needs more blueberries, so I usually buy 3)

Watch How

Read How

First things first. I take my extra large eggs and unsalted butter out of the refrigerator the night before I am going to make them. The reason? You need these two ingredients at room temperature.

Cobi Quick Tip: Important to note, when a recipe calls for extra large eggs, use extra large eggs. It will make a difference in the outcome of whatever you are baking.

I like to have all of my ingredients ready before I get started. That means sifting my dry ingredients together first. Grab a fine mesh sieve and place it in a medium bowl. Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt in the sieve and shift. I find sometimes the salt needs a little help, use your fingers to press the salt through. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together the room temperature butter and sugar until fluffy, about 5 minutes.

This thick, fluffy texture is what you’re looking for after 5 minutes of creaming the butter and sugar together.

With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs one at a time. Crack your eggs in advance. (This will ensure no shells sneak into our batter preventing crunchy muffins). Now add the vanilla, sour cream, and milk.

Remember that flour mixture we set aside? Grab it. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time and beat until just mixed. You don’t want to over mix here or you will end up with very dense muffins. Remove the mixing bowl from the base. Take a spatula and do a little folding to make sure there is no flour at the bottom of the bowl.

Now let’s fold in those beautiful blueberries!

Now, at this point you have some options. You can put the batter into the refrigerator (overnight even) and bake them when you’re ready or you can bake now. I have found putting the batter in the fridge for even just a little bit makes scooping them into muffin pans easier. So, I pop them in the fridge while I clean up the kitchen and get my muffin pans ready. By then the batter is a little more set and easier to work with.

I like to brush the top of the muffin pan with a little canola oil before placing my muffin liners. The oil does two things, it helps with getting the muffins out of the pan easier because the tops don’t stick, and with cleaning the pan later.

I highly recommend using muffin liners. My go-to muffin liner is always white. I used to go for the fun football or party liners but I found they made these muffins just look dirty. So now I always use white muffin liners. I like how they show off the muffin as the star of the party by keeping a clean and elegant appearance.

Now let’s talk scooping. The best simplest way to get the batter into the muffin pan is with an ice cream scoop. I use a bowl size DS-12 (2 ½”) or DS-16 (2 ¼”). Level off the scoop and fill all of the cups in minutes. This ensures every muffin comes out the same size and bakes evenly. So fast and easy you will never go back to using spoons!

Sometimes at this point, as I am filling the muffin tins I feel the batter might need some more blueberries- this is what I buy the reserve half-pint for! Often two pints is enough but sometimes you get halfway through your batter and feel it could use a few more. Add as needed, this is all down to preference. My family are major blueberry fans so we like a lot!

Time to put them into your preheated 350 degree oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. You are looking for a light brown on top of the muffins and a cake tester comes out clean. Yum!

I hope these muffins become your family favorite! Enjoy.

All my Love,

Cobi

- Recipe adapted from Ina Garten’s Blueberry Muffin Recipe -

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