Lemon Blueberry Muffins

I have a problem... when I get bored, I bake. Clearly a serious issue... but hey there are worse problems right?! ;-) I have been seeing several different versions of this muffin recipe all over the web, and had to give it a shot. I am a berry addict, and just am digging lemons big time lately. I of course, made this gluten free... with several substitutes ... yogurt instead of milk, egg beaters for eggs, extra lemon zest. These were very yummy, on the denser side for a muffin... but delightful regardless.

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour ( I used 1cup brown rice flour, and then split 3/4 with tapioca flour and potato starch.. with 1/2 tsp Xanthan gum)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries (frozen or fresh)
1/2 cup Egg beaters (or 2 large eggs)
1/2 cup low fat yogurt ( I used Dannon Light and Fit Vanilla)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a muffin tray with baking spray then set aside. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir in the blueberries. In another bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk, oil, lemon zest and the lemon juice. Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg mixture into the flour mixture until blended; do not over mix. Spoon the batter into the muffin tray then top with additional blueberries and sprinkle raw sugar on each muffin.
Bake for about 20-23 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let the muffins stand in the pan for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer them to a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm slathered in butter. Enjoy.


**On a side note & totally "un-muffin" related... I had to post this photo of my basil that is readily growing. Isn't it gorgeous?? I can't tell you how good it smells, it is really taunting me.. I am just going to have to go home, pluck some of those yummy leaves tonight and whip up something delicious! Hooray for summer!

Tuesdays With Dorie- Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins

This weeks recipe was chosen by Rebecca of Ezra Pound Cake (whose site I adore btw), Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins. As my first TWD of the year, this couldn't have been more appropriate for me.... as I love muffins.... corn, berry, chocolate muffins.. you name it.

Dorie certainly did not disappoint with this recipe. I did, however, make a few adjustments of my own for this recipe.. The first was using Pamela's Gluten Free Flour mix rather than All Purpose Flour and I left out the cilantro... as it is the one spice that makes me cringe...not a fan.

I know so many of the TWD bakers made this to serve with a Chili recipe.. and it really would be the perfect addition! I however, was not feeling Chili on Sunday... but instead paired it with "breakfast for dinner"... an omelet. :) Thanks Rebecca for this great choice, I will surely be repeating it... and was thrilled the GF conversion was a success.

Chai Blueberry Muffins

I adore muffins... and have a passion for ALL berries. Blueberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, Boysenberries... you name it. ( In fact I hate to admit it, but I have felt a little heart sore that berry season has ended. I was in heaven all summer.) When I saw this post on Chai-Berry Muffins... I was on a mission to make them Gluten Free. I have been in desperate need for a "go to Gluten Free Muffin", and I am happy to say VICTORY is FINALLY mine!

I played with this recipe many times. The first time I made it with regular all purpose flour, and I tested them... they of course were wonderful. Light, Fluffy and the "Chai" flavor adds a lovely fall touch.

Pamela's makes a terrific Gluten Free Baking Mix. It does already contain Baking Powder and Soda (1tsp baking powder & 1/4 tsp baking soda per cup) I made the appropriate adjustments & was so thrilled to have success! (the first time I tried this mix, I didn't realize I needed to adjust the ingredients.... and BOY was that a disaster! Oops)

I am going to post Elle's recipe with my adjustments (in green).. so that you can use the recipe either way you would like. They really are wonderful.... I served them to my Gluten eating family and they all loved them.

*note- I could not find Chai Spice at the store. However, you can mix 50% Chinese Five Spice & 50% Cardamom to get the Chai Flavor in a pinch.

Chai-berry Muffins-
makes 12

2 cups flour (2 cups Pamela's)
2 tsp baking powder (no baking powder added)
1 tsp baking soda (1/2 tsp baking soda)
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp chai spice blend (3/4 tsp Chinese Five Spice & 3/4 tsp Cardamom)
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup plain yogurt (I used Danon Light and Fit Vanilla)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 pint blueberries
3/4 cup chopped pecans (I left the nuts out..)

Heat the oven to 350°. Grease a 12 muffin tin.
In a medium bowl, mix the dry ingredients.
To a larger bowl, add the oil, yogurt, sugar and vanilla, mix well with a hand mixer or by hand.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir to combine a bit.
Grab a rubber spatula and fold in the berries and nuts.
Fill the muffin tins--an ice cream scoop makes for more evenly sized muffins, and it's much neater than a spoon.
Bake for about 25 minutes and check. They should be golden brown and a tester should come out clean.
Cool in pan on rack for 5 minutes or so, then run a knife around the muffins, and turn them out on the
rack to cool.

Dorie's Corniest Corn Muffins

My cousin Lynne recently introduced me to Dorie Greenspan's "Baking: From My Home to Yours". What a fabulous book.... So many delectable recipes I can not wait to dig into! Lynne in fact is now participating in the Tuesdays with Dorie Baking group. What a great idea & a fun excuse to bake. I may have to hop on board to one of these days... Anyways I bought the book this weekend and was ready to dig in. I chose her first recipe "Corniest Corn Muffins" and they were just lovely. I followed the recipe almost to the "T" and they were very light, fluffy and enjoyable. Below is Dorie's Recipe......

Corniest Corn Muffins Adapted from Baking From My Home To Yours

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
6 tablespoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
1 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons corn oil (I only had Canola oil on hand..so used that instead)
1 large egg ( I used egg Beaters)
1 large egg yolk
1 cup corn kernels (add up to 1/3 cup more if you’d like), fresh, frozen or canned (in which case they should be drained and patted dry)

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F. Butter or spray the 12 muffin molds in a regular-size muffin tin, or fit the molds with paper muffin cups.

Working in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. In a large glass measuring cup with a spout or in another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, melted butter, oil, egg and yolk. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with the whisk or a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. Don’t worry about being thorough – the batter will be lumpy and that’s just the way it should be. Stir in the corn kernels. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin molds.

Slide the pan into the oven and bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a knife inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Pull the pan from the oven and carefully lift each muffin out of its mold and onto a rack to cool.