In Southern New Jersey, I live near farms where I can pick blueberries for 4 weeks every summer. Hammonton, only a 30 minute drive from me, calls itself the blueberry capital of the world.
And indeed, New Jersey blueberries are fantastic. I'm a recent transplant to New Jersey, so I feel like I'm pretty objective about this. They have a mineral quality from the sandy soil that really makes them special. Or at least, that's what I taste in them.
That's what makes it so exciting for me, every July, when I can finally go blueberry picking. Several farms here in Atlantic County have pick-your-own blueberries. When we go to pick up our CSA at B&B Farms, Amelia grabs a basket and drags me over to the rows of bushes to play in the dirt and pretend to pick berries. I would have picked blueberries every week this year if the weather hadn't been so hot.
When I've decided to fill my fridge with more blueberries than I probably should, what should I do with them all? I add blueberries to my pancakes, for sure. But the next thing I do is make these delicious blueberry muffins again.
I first made this recipe two years ago, when Smitten Kitchen refreshed her recipe. For years I had made Alton Brown's blueberry muffin recipe, and loved it. (I have a similar version of his muffins, but with chocolate chips, here.) But I wasn't as happy with Alton Brown's recipe the last time I made it; it hadn't changed, but I must have.
Next I tried Alton Brown's updated, over-the-top muffins; those muffins overflowed and flattened out, more of a mushroom shape than a nice, mountainous muffin shape. I wasn't happy with his updated version, either - those were too big for my muffin tin, for one thing. (His assertion that everyone loves a muffin top is inaccurate.) And they just didn't bake properly for me.
In any case, I really like this recipe from Smitten Kitchen. It makes fewer muffins (9, a good number for a family of 2 ½ people).
How to Make Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients are simple: just the usual flour, sugar, butter, egg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. There's a little lemon zest lightly flavoring the batter, giving it just a hint of citrus. And of course, there's tons of blueberries strewn throughout the muffins - so many so that Alex once told me it was almost too many. The batter is topped with extra, crunchy sugar.
These muffins are quick and easy to make - just mix everything together - and turn out perfectly as promised. Just don't overmix the batter, or the muffins may become dense.
The muffins rise and dome nicely - no batter overflowing onto the muffin pan and flattening out. They're moist and fluffy, even after a few days. The sugar sprinkled onto the batter makes for a nicely crunchy top - don't skip it!
Like this recipe or have questions? Leave a comment or rate it below!
📖 Recipe
Smitten Kitchen's Perfect Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons butter (melted)
- ½ cup sugar
- zest from ½ a lemon
- ¾ cup plain yogurt (175 grams)
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups flour (180 grams)
- 1 ¼ - 1 ½ cups blueberries (about 200 grams) (frozen are fine)
- 1 ½ - 3 tablespoons coarse or sparkling sugar
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine melted butter, sugar, lemon zest, yogurt, and egg. Whisk until smooth.
- Whisk in baking powder, baking soda, and salt, then fold in flour and blueberries, stirring until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Divide batter between 9 greased or paper-lined muffin cups. Smooth out the tops, and sprinkle with ½ or 1 teaspoon of sparkling sugar (more will make a crunchier top).
- Bake at 375F for 20-30 minutes, until tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack so that the bottoms don't get soggy.
Notes
(Recipe originally posted on September 27, 2016. Recipe, text, and photos updated in July 2018.)
Jenn says
These were delicious and super easy to throw together! I doubled the recipe and thr kids are enjoying them for breakfast 2 days in a row!
Leona Konkel says
I'm so glad you guys liked them!!
Emma says
I love the smitten kitchen muffins with their turbinado top!
I'm confused- you talk about using the smitten kitchen recipe, but the recipe author is you. Did you make changes or something?
Leona Konkel says
They are great!
This is the Smitten Kitchen recipe, but I have rewritten it in my own words. I did get slightly different weights on a few ingredients, but measurements listed are broadly the same. When I reworked this post this year, I wanted to be sure that I had proper attribution back to Smitten Kitchen.
Eftoda Debbie says
Absolutely DELICIOUS!!! Best blueberry muffins I’ve ever made!