Kindness

Kindness is essential in our daily lives.
I will share weekly a new post with a message of how powerful kindness really can be.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Blueberry Muffin Recipe

PRELUDE TO A BLUEBERRY MUFFIN RECIPE:

For some unknown reason, although blueberries are fairly easy to grow, many of us are not inclined to plant them in our landscape and/or gardens. Blueberry bushes, as they grow, produce lots of berries which are both delicious and good for our health - reason being I decided to plant a few bushes here at home amongst the veggies in my raised beds. Growing them at home will also save me the time and money spent traveling and the cost of the berries themselves. I purchased my bushes at a local nursery where I could trust the employees to provide me with the pertinent information required for properly planting and providing for them. It was recommended, for cross-pollination purposes, to plant more than one bush so I bought three different types. Having planted them just this Spring it's amazing that I've been able to pick handfuls at a time for cooking with pancakes, eating on cereal and mixing them with yogurt. Not only that, I know exactly what type of pesticide was used on my berries - NONE!

This year I picked six quarts of blueberries at a local blueberry field where the only thing they grow is blueberries. I gave two quarts away;

used two quarts to produce 10 jars of delicious blueberry jam;


used 1 1/2 cups for making a dozen blueberry muffins
(note 3 are missing - taste testing - yum);
 

and froze the remaining berries so I can make more yummy blueberry muffins during our too long and too cold winter.

Freezing the blueberries really is a very easy process. First, using a strainer,wash the berries and pick through them to remove any stems or leaves that may have fallen in your quart.


Spread them out in a single layer on a large cookie sheet (preferably one that has sides)
and place them flat on a shelf in your freezer. 

After they have frozen, you simply transfer them from the tray into your preferred size freezer bag(s) and take out only the amount of frozen blueberries you'll need per recipe as required.
  


WHOOPIE...HERE COMES THE BLUEBERRY MUFFIN RECIPE
(best one I've ever tasted, so well worth the wait) 

Ingredients:

1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup plain or vanilla yogurt (full fat or low fat)
1/3 cup vegetable, canola, safflower, or corn oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 - 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (if using frozen blueberries, do not thaw before adding them to the batter)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Position rack in center of oven. Butter or line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

           In a large bowl whisk together the lightly beaten egg, yogurt, oil, and vanilla extract.

In another large bowl whisk the flour with the sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Gently stir the blueberries into this dry mixture.

Using a rubber spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and
stir only until the ingredients are combined and moistened. (The batter will be thick.)
 

Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter, using two spoons or an ice cream scoop.
 

Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes (+/- depending on your oven)
or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Let cool for about 10 minutes before removing from the pan.
Makes 12 good-size muffins.


ENJOY!
 I PROMISE, YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!!

Note: This recipe was borrowed from www.joyofbaking.com where instructions are provided via a video.



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