Makes: 12
Time: About 40 minutes
This low-maintenance recipe is a canvas for experimentation. Mix and match your fruit with chopped chocolate, nuts, seeds, or spices, and, if you’re using frozen fruit, don’t bother to thaw it. The only rule here is not to overmix—muffin batter should be lumpy.
1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin with a little oil or line it with paper or foil muffin cups.
2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
3. Beat together the egg, milk, lemon zest, and oil in a medium bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just enough to combine everything. If the batter is very dry and doesn’t come together easily, add 1 to 2 tablespoons more milk. Gently fold the blueberries into the batter.
4. Distribute the batter among the muffin cups, filling them about two-thirds full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the muffins are browned on top and a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool the pan on a rack for 5 minutes before removing the muffins. Serve warm or at room temperature or cover tightly and keep at room temperature for a couple days.
BLUEBERRY STREUSEL MUFFINS Sprinkle Streusel Topping over the muffins before baking.
CORNMEAL BLUEBERRY MUFFINS Cornmeal gives these muffins a great crumbly texture. Substitute cornmeal for ½ cup of the flour.
BLUEBERRY YOGURT MUFFINS Substitute ¾ cup sour cream or whole yogurt for the milk. Substitute baking soda for ½ teaspoon of the baking powder.
WHOLE WHEAT BLUEBERRY MUFFINS Substitute 1½ cups whole wheat flour and ½ cup ground flaxseed for the all-purpose flour.
BROWN BUTTER BLUEBERRY MUFFINS The nuttiness of brown butter plays well off sweet, tart blueberries: Substitute 4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter for the oil. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook it until little brown flecks appear in the pan. Continue to swirl the butter until it turns a light amber color, then remove it from the heat.
RASPBERRY–WHITE CHOCOLATE MUFFINS Substitute fresh or frozen raspberries for the blueberries. Fold ½ cup chopped white chocolate into the batter.
PEACH OATMEAL MUFFINS Substitute rolled oats for 1 cup of the flour. Replace the blueberries with chopped fresh or frozen peaches.
CRANBERRY-GINGER MUFFINS Substitute 2 teaspoons ground ginger or minced fresh ginger for the cinnamon. Replace the blueberries with fresh or frozen cranberries.
COCONUT MUFFINS Substitute coconut oil for the neutral oil and packed light brown sugar for the granulated sugar. Replace the lemon zest with lime zest and the blueberries with shredded unsweetened coconut. Sprinkle each muffin with a bit of coconut before baking.
SPICE MUFFINS Add ½ teaspoon allspice, ½ teaspoon ginger, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon ground cloves to the dry ingredients. Substitute ½ cup raisins or currants for the blueberries.
SAVORY MUFFINS Play with savory flavors for an outside-the-box muffin: Reduce the sugar to 1 tablespoon and omit the blueberries and lemon zest. Fold 1 cup cooked minced onion or leek and ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese into the batter.