July 12, 2010

Not Too Sweet Blueberry Muffins

Description:
On occasion people offer me muffins that I bite into only to find that what they've really handed me is a cupcake with fruit inside. I don't have anything against cupcakes. It's just that when I'm expecting a muffin, I want a muffin.

The following is a blueberry muffin recipe that does not consist mostly of fat and sugar with an extra sprinkling of fat and sugar on top. In fact, from Nathan's point of view, these muffins are more like bread with blueberries inside. That's not quite right because there is a bit of sweetener in them, but not so much that the sugar hits you between the eyes.

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour (Hard red wheat will provide a muffin with more flavor. Hard white wheat will provide a muffin that *looks* more like what you might find in a standard bakery or among friends that use white flour when baking.)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup honey, agave nectar, cane syrup, molasses or brown sugar (a sweetener, in other words)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 1/2 buttermilk (or powdered buttermilk and water)
1/4 butter, melted

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease muffin tin or use silicone or paper cups.

Mix all of the ingredients (except the blueberries) together gently until just combined. Don't overstir. That'll make the muffins come out with a bit of a hockey puck nature. Fold in the blueberries and pour into muffin tin.

Cook for 25 minutes or until light brown on top. If you use a mini-muffin tin, check the muffins after about 10 minutes. It's likely they'll be done.