Easy Peasy Blueberry Muffins

Muffins are one of the easiest of baking tasks, in my humble opinion. For one, you don't need a mixer. You just whisk things and use a wooden spoon.

You just need one mixing bowl.

There's no icing involved.

And they often utilize fresh ingredients of the season. Which is why, June and July are totally the months that you should be whipping up fabulous blueberry muffins.

I go tried and true with my recipe from that gal Betty Crocker. There's a reason why this cookbook has been reprinted again and again for almost 75 years. Because the recipes work! And they're super yummy.

This recipe offers a couple of options about things. I listed how I do at the bottom of the recipe.

These muffins come out light and fluffy. The blueberries really shine. The streusel topping is the perfect touch. It crumbles and melts in your mouth. These muffins are so delightful with your coffee first thing in the morn.

Streusel-Topped Blueberry Muffins
Makes 12
From the "Betty Crocker Cookbook"

For the muffins:
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil or melted butter
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup fresh, canned (drained) or frozen blueberries

For the streusel topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp. firm butter

To make the streusel: In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut in firm butter, using a pastry blender or fork, until crumbly.  Set aside.

To make the muffins: Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease bottoms only of 12 regular-size muffin cups with shortening or cooking spray, or line with paper baking cups.

In a large bowl, beat milk, oil and egg with fork or wire whisk until well mixed. Stir in flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt all at once just until flour is moistened (batter will be lumpy).

Fold in blueberries.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.


Sprinkle each with about 1 tablespoon streusel topping.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. If baked in greased pan, let stand about 5 minutes in pan, then remove from pan to cooling rack; if baked in paper baking cups, immediately remove from pan to cooling rack. Serve warm if desired.

Please note: The Jersey Girl uses paper baking cups, oil and fresh blueberries. She also lets the muffins cool for about 20 minutes in the baking pan on a cooling rack before removing. 

Aunt Dolly's Blueberry Tea Cake

Yeah. You read it right. I have an Aunt Dolly. Unfortunately, this awesome lady passed away many years ago. She was my Mommom Sacco’s sister. And, Aunt Dolly was known for her baking prowess.

Each year around this time when the blueberries are in full effect in my parts of Jersey, me and my fam are known to make a bazillion Blueberry Tea Cakes in honor of Aunt Dolly.

(Hammonton is coined the Blueberry Capital of the World. Just beyond my back yard are acres upon acres of blueberry fields. My first paid job was packing blueberries at age 12. Do you get the blueberry-hued picture here?)

One of the reasons we make the cake all the time – aside from it being majorly awesome – is that my brother-in-law Bob is a mac daddy produce broker and he bestows upon us many ginormous flats of delish blueberries throughout June and July. So, you gotta do something with the blueberries besides putting them on your cereal or eating them as a snacky-poof.

If you’re not familiar with Hammonton, I will give you a heads up: When you visit Hammonton folk who happen to grow blueberries or other awesome produce-type goods, they will give you their seasonal goods to enjoy. Don’t try to protest. My people will also force-feed you, and in the fall bottles of homemade wine or packages of freshly hunted deer meat may appear on your doorstep (but not in a spooky Godfather-kind of way.)

For some reason, Hammonton speaks in food and in giving. Which is probably one of the reasons I still live here and convinced my darling Husband that he really, truly wants to live here.

(Actually, he loves calling H’town home. I think at first he thought my parents would be up our grill 24/7 in a very “Everybody Loves Raymond” kind of way, but they are SO not like that. At all. (OK. So I talk to my Mom and sisters five times a day. That could happen if we lived anywhere.)

Anyway, onto the Blueberry Tea Cake. First off all, blueberries are the star of the show but the crumb topping really makes the cake stand out. The cake is fab with your coffee or tea. But, I’ve been known to have a piece with a glass of delish wine (oh, how I miss my vino) or a healthier glass of milk. Whatever your pleasure.

The cake is made in a good ol’ square Pyrex dish. The recipe calls for two cups of blueberries, but since you’re my peoples I will give you a few Jersey Girl tips: Throw in a few extra handfuls of blueberries and always use the biggest blueberries you can find.

Aunt Dolly’s Blueberry Tea Cake

2 cups sifted flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 egg
¼ cup butter or margarine, at room temperature
¾ cup sugar
½ cup milk, at room temperature
2 cups blueberries, plus a handful

Crumb topping

¼ cup sugar
¼ cup flour
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ cup butter or margarine, at room temperature

Mix together sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter to form coarse crumb.

To make the cake:
Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Cream butter. Gradually beat in sugar. Add egg and milk. Beat until smooth. Add dry ingredients. Fold in blueberries. Spread batter in greased and floured 8 or 9-inch square pan. Sprinkle with crumb mixture. Bake in hot oven at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes.

Please note: The Jersey Girl uses extra large eggs.