Blueberry Muffins

A high blast of heat first for the domed top, then down to finish. Frozen berries, tossed in flour so they stay put.

Prep
15m
Cook
22m
Waiting
10m
Total
47m
Serves
12 muffins
Effort
Easy
Scale
12 muffins
Units

Method

Blueberry Muffins — recipe grid
2 1 Whisk the wet ingredients smooth 3m 4 Fold together until barely combined, then divide into cases 4m Lumps are fine. Overmixed muffin batter bakes into tunnels and peaks. 5 Bake at 220°C / 425°F for 8 minutes, then 190°C / 375°F for 14 22m The initial blast sets a crust fast so the middle pushes up into a dome.
1 cup
1/2 cup
3/4 cup
1 tsp
2 1/2 cups 2 Whisk the dry ingredients 1m
2 tsp
1/2 tsp
1/2 tsp
200 g 3 Toss the berries in a spoonful of the flour 2m The coating stops them sinking to the bottom of every muffin.
2 tbsp
Read left to right: ingredients merge into steps, and the rightmost cell is the last thing you do. Steps account for 32m of hands-on and cooking time.

Two temperatures

Muffin domes come from oven spring — a rapid burst of steam and gas early on, before the crumb sets. A high initial temperature maximises that; dropping it afterwards stops the outside overbaking while the middle catches up. One constant moderate temperature gives you a flat, even muffin.

Notes

  • Frozen berries, not thawed. Thawed ones bleed and turn the whole batter grey-purple.
  • Fill the cases nearly to the top. Timid filling gives you flat muffins.
  • Best within a day. They stale fast because there is no fat-rich creaming step holding moisture in.

Try butter, 30 minutes, braise, or an ingredient you need to use up.