Never met a person who didn't like muffins. How could they? Moist and tender with bursts of flavor here and there. Maybe delightful blueberry explosions or tangy raspberry bursts. They can be seasonal! Hello pumpkin muffins or mango muffins. The options are endless. I simply adore them. And so does pretty much everyone I've ever made them for. After having a homemade muffin it's hard to go back to store bought. These delicious treats are super easy to make and they keep for a week. Unless, of course, they are gobbled up in days. Which happens a lot in my house.
This particular recipe is absolutely wonderful because you can use the fruit you want. The additional of the coulis at the end just intensifies the flavor. But don't e limited! Try combining flavors using the coulis. So, perhaps make a pear muffin with a blueberry coulis swirled in. Or a blackberry muffin with a strawberry coulis swirled in. The options are endless. Let your tastebuds and imagination run with this recipe. You won't regret it.
For this post I am showing you images for the pure blueberry option and raspberry option. They are made the same just swapping out the different berries.
Ingredients:
Coulis:
1-1.5 cups of berries (so blueberries, raspberries, blackberries....)
1 tablespoon granulated cane sugar
2 rind shavings from either a lemon or orange
Directions:
In a small saucepan add berries, sugar and rind shavings. Turn heat to medium and cook while stirring. Using a wooden spoon or a fork, mash the berries. Once a lovely syrup has formed (about 5 minutes), turn heat off. Remove the rind shavings. For raspberry/blackberries coulis, use a sieve and strain the coulis to separate the seeds from the gorgeous red coulis. For blueberries/strawberries, pour coulis into a bowl and set aside.
Streusel:
2 tablespoons warm melted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated cane sugar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest
pinch of salt
Directions:
I a small bowl, combine the flour, sugars, zest and salt. Mix with a fork. Drizzle in the butter and continue mixing with the fork. Small clusters of streusel will form. Set aside uncovered.
Muffin Base:
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter melted
3/4 cup plain whole fat yogurt/sour cream or my favorite...mascarpone
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-1.5 cups fresh berries (again, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries...etc)
Directions:
Set your oven grate to the middle level and preheat oven to 425 degrees
1. In a bowl, using a whisk, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat eggs and sugar until fluffy and pale. At least 5 minutes. This gives the muffins their fluffiness, so don't rush this step.
3. Slowly drizzle in the butter while beating the egg mix with handheld until fully incorporated. Add vanilla and whisk for a second or two.
4. Lower the speed of your handheld beaters and whisk in the yogurt/sour cream/mascarpone until fully combined.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet egg batter using your handheld or manually with a whisk. Do this until you can no longer see any flour. Scrape sides with a spatula and whisk again.
6. Using your spatula, mix in the berries as carefully as you can.
7. Add cupcake or muffin paper cups to a muffin tin and scoop out batter into each cup. I usually fill mine to 3/4.
8. Using a small spoon, make a small, shallow well in each muffin cup and pour in about 1 full teaspoon of coulis. Then using a toothpick or chopstick, swirl the coulis so that the top batter is completely stained with the coulis. Sprinkle about a tablespoon of streusel on top of the muffin. Repeat for all cups.
9. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes. The tops of the muffins should be dry looking and slightly golden. To make sure the muffins are baked through, use a toothpick and insert it in the middle of one muffin. The toothpick should come out clean when removed. If there is muffin or batter on the toothpick, continue baking and check again after a few minutes.
