Favorite Blueberry Muffins

If you’re not the parent of a teenager, a school counselor, or a teenager yourself, you may not have known that the June ACT was today. But in my world, it’s all I’ve talked about, thought about, and done since school let out at the end of May. And so while all my teacher friends were posting pics from the beach (or just in their PJs), I was waking up at 5:30 to drive around the northern part of Louisiana to teach ACT.

Don’t get me wrong — I still love every minute of it — both the helping kids part and the extra income part.

But y’all — I was exhausted!

So today… was my first day of summer!

I went to the farmer’s market and bought beautiful tomatoes (and blueberries!) I lay on the couch and watched Netflix and TikTok. I brushed my cat. I did some laundry and there are boat plans for this afternoon.

But I also baked for the first time in what feels like months. Just ask my kids.

Obviously, blueberry muffins are a family favorite and I apparently already posted a previous version on this site. But these blueberry muffins put those sad, flat-topped things to shame. I’m sure we enjoyed them in the moment… but no wonder I didn’t like the pictures!

In addition to tasting better, these were much easier (1 bowl! No mixer!) I made them with a pint of blueberries from the farmer’s market in about 15 minutes this morning — which is less time than it took my oven to preheat. And they are simply the best. We will never go back. Adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen’s “Perfect Blueberry Muffins.”

Ingredients:

• 5 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup sugar
• Grated zest from 1/2 lemon
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 cup fresh blueberries (or frozen — do not defrost first)
• 3 Tablespoons raw sugar

Procedure:

• Preheat the oven to 375.
• Spray muffin tin with nonstick spray (you can use muffin cups, but so much of the muffin stays on the cup, so we don’t go that route)
• Place the butter in a heat-proof bowl (I use an 8 cup measuring cup) and microwave until melted
• Whisk in the sugar and lemon zest
• Add the sour cream and egg, whisking until well-combined
• Sprinkle baking powder, baking soda, and salt on the top of the mixture
• Switch to a spatula and fold in the flour. The mixture will be very stiff
• Fold in the blueberries, trying not to break them
• Scoop into 9 muffin tins (if you go for 12, they won’t be as beautifully domed)
• Sprinkle with raw sugar
• Bake for 25 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean