Description
This foolproof recipe creates incredibly fluffy, bakery-style blueberry muffins bursting with berry flavor. It’s a simple-to-make treat perfect for morning magic, featuring a unique warm spice note from cardamom and a delicious brown butter streusel topping.
Ingredients
- 0.75 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, divided
- 2.75 cups all-purpose flour, divided
- 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
- 0.25 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, divided
- 0.75 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 0.75 cup whole milk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon alcohol-free vanilla extract
- 2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Prep Oven and Pan: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners or grease generously.
- Brown Butter Streusel Base: Melt 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until golden brown and nutty (about 5-7 minutes). Pour into a heatproof bowl and let cool for 5 minutes.
- Combine Streusel Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, combine 0.5 cup all-purpose flour, 0.25 cup granulated sugar, 0.25 cup light brown sugar, 0.5 teaspoon ground cardamom, and 0.25 teaspoon fine sea salt. Pour the cooled brown butter over dry ingredients and mix with a fork until moist and crumbly. Set aside.
- Whisk Muffin Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together 2.25 cups all-purpose flour, 0.75 cup granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 0.5 teaspoon fine sea salt, and 0.5 teaspoon ground cardamom until combined.
- Mix Muffin Wet Ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (do not brown) and whisk it into the wet ingredients until smooth.
- Combine Wet and Dry for Muffins: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix gently with a rubber spatula until just combined (a few lumps are fine; avoid overmixing). Gently fold in the blueberries until evenly distributed. (Optionally, coat frozen blueberries in 1 tablespoon of flour to prevent sinking).
- Fill and Top: Fill each muffin cup about two-thirds full with batter. Swirl one-third of the streusel into the top of half the muffins, then sprinkle the remaining two-thirds of streusel evenly over the top of all 12 muffins.
- Bake: Bake for 5 minutes at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and continue baking for 18-22 minutes more, until golden brown and a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool and Finish: Remove muffin tin from oven and let cool in the tin for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Lightly dust tops with powdered sugar using a sifter or fine-mesh sieve before serving warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Store muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. For a dairy-free option, swap whole milk for unsweetened plant-based milk. Coating frozen blueberries in a tablespoon of flour before folding can help prevent them from sinking to the bottom during baking.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 muffin
- Calories: 300 calories
- Sugar: 25 g
- Sodium: 250 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 6 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 45 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 40 mg