The other day I was on Pinterest and I saw a picture that said "Raisin cookies that look like chocolate chip cookies are the main reason I have trust issues". I literally laughed out loud. That statement couldn't get any more truer. It got me thinking of another pretty predominant reason why I have trust issues: blueberry muffins that look like chocolate chip muffins! I can't tell you how many times they've fooled me, over and over again.
And let me tell you, it's a pretty horrible feeling when you think you're going to bite into a soft and gooey chocolate chip and you end up biting into a tarty blueberry. At least, it is for me. Probably because I've never really been fond of blueberries. Even when I was younger, I hated finding blueberry Nutri-Grain bars in my lunchbox. It was straight up betrayal by my mother who knew I only liked the apple-cinnamon ones. Again, trust issues come to mind.
But don't worry, this isn't going to be some sob story about how these blueberry muffins changed my life and I will now forever love blueberries, etc, etc. It is, however, a story about how I don't think I'll freak out anymore if I accidentally bite into a blueberry muffin, because I finally decided to give them a shot and see what they're all about. No surprises. No being Punk'd. I went in with full knowledge that I would be biting into a blueberry muffin in the end and it wouldn't be against my will.
It really does make all the difference to know that beforehand, by the way. You're more likely to give an unbiased opinion when you're not flipping out about the blueberries not being chocolate chips. So, what's MY official unbiased opinion on these muffins? Well, as you've probably already guessed, they're actually not that bad! They were light and fluffy and I really liked how the batter wasn't overly sweet and thus, allowed the tartness of the blueberries to shine through. Yes, I'm actually happy about the tartness of the blueberries shining through.
I'm just as surprised as you are. I thought for sure I'd have an issue with the taste of the blueberries but I actually ended up liking them since they provided most of the sweetness in the muffin. Them, and the streusel topping. I admit, I specifically chose this recipe because it involved a streusel topping and I knew that if anything was going to make me enjoy a muffin, it would be the streusel topping. But as it turns out, it wasn't the streusel topping alone, but rather it was all the different components that came together in a symphony of flavors that made this muffin wonderful.
Here's to overcoming my fear of biting into look-alike chocolate chip muffins and acquiring a new taste in the process!
Blueberry Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel
Yield: 6 muffins
Ingredients:
For the muffins:
3/4 cup fresh blueberries + 1 teaspoon flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 and 1/2 eggs (One egg equals 1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons. To measure out 1/2 an egg, simply beat one egg until the egg yolk and white are blended and then measure out 1/8 cup or 2 tablespoons)
1/4 cup milk
pinch of vanilla powder (or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)
For the streusel topping:
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with paper liners or spray with cooking spray.
Add the blueberries and 1 teaspoon flour to a bowl. Toss well and set aside.
Sift together 1 cup of flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, eggs, milk and vanilla until well combined.
For streusel, sift together brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Add butter. Mix together with a fork or your hands, until you form a paste. Set aside.
Add dry ingredients to wet and mix until just combined. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups 2/3 – 3/4 full. Top batter with a sprinkle of the streusel topping.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 – 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Adapted from The Family Kitchen
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