Blueberry Muffins

I love blueberry muffins. These blueberry muffins are no exception, they are delicious! I love the addition of the lemon sugar that is sprinkled on the top. And the batter......YUM!! I got to actually lick the bowl all by myself - no little helpers! Maybe because one of them was down for a nap and the other was licking the generously battered spoon. Regardless of the reason, I savored every little bit.

I found this recipe on Mels Kitchen Cafe.

Linked on Sweets for a Saturday #3 and Sweet Tooth Friday.

2 cups frozen blueberries (or 2 cups fresh)
1 1/8 cups plus 1 teaspoon sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly
1/4 cup oil
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup sugar
zest from one lemon

Stir together 1/3 cup sugar and lemon zest in a small bowl and set aside for topping.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a standard muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray or line with baking cups. Rinse one cup frozen berries under cold water and spread on a double layer of paper towels to dry well. Put remaining one cup berries in a food processor and pulse 3 to 4 times. Put berries and 1 teaspoon sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat to simmer. Cook until the mixture is thickened and reduced to about 1/3 cup, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and cool to room temperature, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Toss the berries that have dried on the paper towels in with the flour mixture. Whisk remaining 1 1/8 cups sugar and eggs together in a medium bowl until thick, about 45 seconds. Slowly whisk in the butter and oil until combined. Whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla until combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold egg mixture into flour mixture until just moistened. The batter will be lumpy with a few dry spots of flour – don’t overmix. This is the key to moist and tender muffins.

Fill the muffin cups until they are about 3/4 full. Spoon a teaspoon of cooked berry mixture into the center of each mound of batter. Using a skewer, gently swirl the berry filling into the batter using a figure eight motion. Sprinkle lemon sugar evenly over the muffins.

Bake until the top of the muffins are golden and just firm, 17-18 minutes. Cool muffins in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool 5 minutes before serving.