Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins (small batch)

 

 

 This recipe I am sharing with you today is for the best sour cream blueberry muffins!  They are moist and delicious, filled with plenty of berries and the recipe is perfectly sized for the smaller family, making only six beautiful muffins.

Blueberry muffins are one of my absolute all-time favorite muffins. No surprise there as blueberries are one of my favorite fruits!  

 

This recipe is a beautiful one. They always turn out tender and moist, probably due to the use of sour cream in the batter.

There are no bells or whistles. Just simple ingredients and techniques.  Good food done well speaks for itself don't you think?

 

I am lucky enough to live in a place where wild blueberries grow in abundance.  So much so that they were a thing that I took very much for granted when I was a child.  We used to be able to pick them right in our back yard!

It was not until I moved to the UK and that I truly came to appreciate these little blue jeweled beauties for their true worth. When I first moved over there you could not find blueberries in any of the shops.

Happily they were much more abundant by the time I moved back to Canada.  They were the cultivated ones, but beggars can't be choosers. We actually were growing our own in our back yard.

 

When I was growing up my mother would put us to work every summer picking wild blueberries for the freezer and the winter to come.  She would give us each an ice cream bucket. (Ice cream came in nice plastic buckets back in those days.) Our orders would be to fill our buckets.

Oh but it was back breaking work. Squatting down in the bush, picking those berries.  Wild blueberries grow close to the ground and are very tiny in comparison to the cultivated ones, but as with any wild berry the flavor is incomparable. Sweet and concentrated.

 

Mom was not really one to waste blueberries on things like muffins or pancakes.  Not even cakes. Hers were always destined to be made into pies. My father loved blueberry pie, or bear pie as it is also lovingly referred to.

Bear pie because bears love blueberries too and the danger has always been that when you are picking them during berry season you will come across a bear or two or three.  I was always very conscious of that face and always kept an active eye out for them! 

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SOUR CREAM BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

Simple ingredients done well. That's always been my promise to you!

• 1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
• 1/3 cup (63g) granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup (63g) soft light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch nutmeg
• 3/4 cup fresh blueberries, plus extra to top
• 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup (140g) plain all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup (60g) dairy sour cream

 

Both kinds of blueberries work well in these muffins, cultivated or wild. Today I used cultivated ones as it is not quite blueberry season here yet, and truth be told, I am way past crouching in the grass to pick my own berries.

I would not ever turn down the offer of some already picked however!  That would be a real bonus!

I use full fat sour cream and large free range eggs. You can use plain yogurt in the place of the sour cream if you wish to. It works just as well.

 

HINTS AND TIPS FOR MAKING GOOD MUFFINS

1. have all of your ingredients at room temperature. Most baking recipes work best when everything it at an equal temperature and if things are cold then your timings will be off.

2. Mix the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients separately in separate bowls.  Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, combining everything just until the dry ingredients are evenly dampened. Over-mixing is the enemy of muffins, and toughens them, by developing too much gluten. In fact, lumps are preferable.

3. Fill your  muffin cups almost to the top of the tin. This will give you a beautiful crown.

4. If you don't have a six cup muffin tin, you can use a 12 cup tin, using every alternate hole in the tin and filling the empty holes half up with water. This will prevent your tin from buckling and warping.

 

HOW TO MAKE SOUR CREAM BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

These are very easy to make and if you bear in mind my tips (see above) you can pretty much be assured of success every time. 

Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/gas mark 6. Butter a six cup regular sized muffin cup really well or line with paper liners.

Whisk together the flour, soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg to combine.

In another bowl whisk together the egg, oil, both sugars, vanilla and sour cream to combine.

Stir half of the flour into the wet ingredients, folding together just to combine. Fold in the remaining flour, again just until the flour is all incorporated. Gently fold in the berries.

Divide between the prepared muffin cups equally. Place several berries in the top of each muffin decoratively.

 

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for a few minutes before tipping out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Store any leftovers in an airtight container. You can reheat them in the microwave for a few seconds. 

These also freeze very well. Just wrap them airtight and pop them into the freezer. Use up within three to four months.  These are so good though, I doubt you will have any leftover to freeze.

 

Just look at all those juicy blueberries.  I love a muffin that doesn't stint on the add ins, don't you?  Why call it a blueberry muffin if you are only going to add a few! 

Also look at the lovely holes and tunnels. That is the mark of a good muffin.  This is the exact texture you are looking for!

 

If you enjoy blueberries as much as I do, you might enjoy some of my other blueberry recipes. I guarantee each one to be delicious and simple.

BLUEBERRY MUFFIN CAKE - The recipe makes one small loaf sized blueberry cake. Moist and deliciously filled with berries and topped with a buttery streusel crumble and sweet glaze. 

BLUEBERRY CUSTARD PIE - This is my favorite blueberry pie. This delicious twist on blueberry pie like that old favorite amped up, with a lush and creamy custard filling, topped with a wonderfully moreish sweet, crisp and buttery streusel topping. 

BLUEBERRY BUTTERMILK PANCAKES - I am always impressed with how tall, light and fluffy these beautiful pancakes are.  They are a favorite breakfast treat any time of the year!

Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins (small batch)

Yield: 6

Author: Marie Rayner

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 35 Min

Bakery quality muffins you can bake at home, downsized recipe for the smaller family. Moist and filled with loads of lovely berries.

Ingredients

• 1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
• 1/3 cup (63g) granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup (63g) soft light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch nutmeg
• 3/4 cup fresh blueberries, plus extra to top
• 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup (140g) plain all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup (60g) dairy sour cream

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/gas mark 6. Butter a six cup regular sized muffin cup really well or line with paper liners.
2. Whisk together the flour, soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg to combine.
3. In another bowl whisk together the egg, oil, both sugars, vanilla and sour cream to combine.
4. Stir half of the flour into the wet ingredients, folding together just to combine. Fold in the remaining flour, again just until the flour is all incorporated. Gently fold in the berries.
5. Divide between the prepared muffin cups equally. Place several berries in the top of each muffin decoratively.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.
7. Cool in the pan for a few minutes before tipping out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
8. Store any leftovers in an airtight container. You can reheat them in the microwave for a few seconds.

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