Jazzed Up Blueberry Muffins

On Saturday morning after I got up and made coffee, I peeked in my fruit drawer and noticed pints on top of pints of blueberries that had somehow gone unused. Picking them up, I inspected them, took a bite, and decided that these perfectly ripe and juicy berries were to be wasted no more. I set off to make something with blueberries, what it was going to be, I had no clue. Flying by the seat of my pants, without a recipe, I got to brainstorming and decided that I really loved the flavor profile of my jazzed up banana bread.  I also knew that this recipe would lend itself well to a few tweaks and a pile of blueberries. Bonus points to my mom, as when taste tested my banana bread recipe, after telling me how much she liked it, she immediately said, “This would make a really great muffin.” Lightbulb! Blueberry muffins! So, I added some milk and blueberries to the recipe, played the recipe’s ratios, set the timer, and 30 minutes later I was greeted with the most fabulous smelling, heavenly, little blueberry pillows. Within an hour of making them, four of them were gone, and my husband said, with a full mouth of muffin, “You should share this recipe.” So, here is my recipe for my new favorite jazzed up blueberry muffins! They get their warmth from cinnamon, their lightness from the lemon zest and Greek yogurt, and their sweet smell and floral notes from plenty of vanilla extract. I think they are pretty wonderful and hope you will too!  

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/4 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp kosher salt

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• 1/4 cup butter, softened (1/2 stick)

• 1/3 cup greek yogurt ( I used Fage 2%)

• 2 teaspoons vanilla

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup milk

• 2 teaspoons lemon zest

• 1 heaping cup blueberries

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 350.

2. In a large bowl combine, flour, baking powder and soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir and set to the side.

3. In a stand mixer or in a bowl with a hand mixer, combine butter, sugar, and beat until fluffy. Beat in yogurt, then eggs, one at a time, until well incorporated. Add in vanilla, lemon zest and milk. I grated my lemon zest right over the bowl! I wanted my batter to catch all of the oil that is released when grating! Stir together.

4. Slowly pour in dry ingredients into wet, mixing until just combined.

5. Add in blueberries and bring together.

6. Divide batter evenly in 12 lined and greased muffin tins.

7. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden and tops of muffins spring back when touched.

Blueberry and Orange Zest Scones

Intimidated by homemade scones? Don’t be! They are nothing more than a biscuit that made it out the door with lipstick and heels on! Read: a fancy biscuit.

The great thing about these is that you can add whatever flavors you like. Chopped chocolate: you bet, cherries: why not, and cheese and chives: it’s a no-brainer. I used Cara Cara oranges here—which is the Navel’s more sassy/tart sister, and their juice is a little more pink in color, and fresh blueberries.

You can also make them as big or as small as you want! Baby blueberry scones would be perfect for a baby shower, and easier to fit on a cocktail plate.

This recipe allows the use of a stand mixer. If Queen Ina says you can use a stand mixer to make scones, who am I to argue with her? Don’t forget that unlike a biscuit, scones are vain and they want to shine! So the egg wash before baking is essential!

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2. Take 1 Cara Cara orange and zest 2 teaspoons worth. Then, juice 4 tablespoons worth of liquid from the orange. For me, this took both halves.

3. Measure out 1 cup of blueberries and place them in a colander.

Tip: Take a spoonful of flour and toss with blueberries; this will keep them from falling to the bottom of the mixing bowl and the baking container, too!

4. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, put in 4 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons of baking powder and 2 teaspoons of salt (this seems like a small amount but you're using salted butter) and mix together on the lowest speed.

5. Once combined, take 3 sticks of cold, salted butter and cut into 1/2 in. pieces. With the mixer still on the stir setting, add the butter to the flour mixture.

6. Let butter break down evenly into flour mixture, into pea sized pieces and the flour should look crumbly.

7. In a 2 cup measuring cup, pour in 1 cup of heavy cream (I never said these were low fat) and add in 4 beaten eggs (extra large), and the orange zest and juice.

8. Add blueberries into flour and then add egg/cream mixture, with the mixer still on the stir speed. Mix to barely combine, mixture should pull away from the sides and wrap around the paddle. There will still be flour in the bottom of the bowl but the egg mixture will be absorbed fully.

9. Take dough and turn it out to a lightly floured surface and knead a few times (don’t forget to flour your hands!) and knead enough to where the dough is no longer sticky.

10. Flour a rolling pin and roll out dough to 1 inch thick.

11. Take a 2 inch biscuit cutter, dip it in flour, and punch out 6 scones.

12. Combine scraps, re-knead and roll out to 1 inch.

13. Punch out 6 scones.

14. Repeat process and punch out as many as can fit on scraps.

15. Place on 2 parchment-lined baking sheets.

16. Combine one egg and a splash of water and brush tops of scones with egg wash. Sprinkle tops with sugar.

17. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

18. Enjoy!

Gluten Free Blueberry Cobbler

Two truths and a lie: I once cast over 500 votes for Kelly Clarkson in finale of season one of American Idol (Kelly, feel free to send a royalty check at any time) using both land lines at my parents house, my mom’s cell phone, and the cell phone I got in 5th grade for “emergencies,” I was once featured on episode of a hunting show filmed on my family’s ranch, and I am gluten free.

What’s that you say? Gluten free is the lie? You are correct! For those curious about the truths: the show is called Brush Country Monsters, the episode is “West Texas Whitetails.” I was also on the opening credits for season one of the show… I digress.

I am not gluten free; however, many people in my life are. Namely, my sister. As someone who views the making and giving food as one of the love languages (sorry, Gary Chapman), the thought of someone having to watch everyone else enjoy a treat that they can’t makes me sad. I wanted to change that and the Good Lord gave us oat flour—His mercies are indeed new every morning.

My friends, I give you Gluten Free Blueberry Cobbler...

Ingredients:

-1 cup of sugar

-1/2 tsp kosher salt

-2 to 3 cups of blueberries, depending on your berry-enthusiasm scale (mine is on the higher end)

-1 cup of oat flour

-1 tbsp of baking powder (these are generally gluten free, but always double check the starches in the ingredients)

-1 tbsp of the juice of an orange

-1 tsp orange zest

-1 cup of milk

-1 tbsp of vegetable oil (or your preference of neutral flavored oil)

-1 stick of butter

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl combine: sugar, salt, oat flour and baking powder and mix together. Add in the milk, oil, orange juice and zest and stir. Why the extra oil? Well, oat flour is a drier flour and it will be receiving moisture from the butter we add in later, but this oil is going to help the batter stay tender while baking.

In a baking dish (mine was 9x13), butter or coat the dish with a nonstick cooking spray. Add in your batter mixture to the baking dish. Then cut a stick of butter into 1/2 tsp size pieces, there are 8 tbs in each stick of butter, so you will have 16 pats of butter. Distribute the butter pats evenly on top of the batter. Then pour your blueberries on top of the batter and butter. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until cooked and golden brown.

Goes perfectly with ice cream and that’s no lie.