Blueberry Muffins
Posted by Alex on May 22, 2011
It’s no secret that I’m slightly obsessed with blueberry muffins. After seeing this recipe which boasts of being ‘the best blueberry muffins’ I had to try. It was a big call and they probably weren’t the best I’ve had but were still rather delicious. The hunt for the best blueberry muffins continue.
For a while now I’ve wanted to change the direction of my blog a little to reflect my change in life style. Now I’m working fulltime and living in a new city it can be a little difficult to get out and shoot seascapes. Rather then drop photography completely I want to explore different areas that I can do in my own home. Food photography is one. This has the potential to be very interesting because I’m hopeless at baking and also quite the newbie at organising lights and styling. So I guess this is to share my journey where I welcome any critique you might have.
| Blueberry Muffins |
- Jam:
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
- 1 tsp sugar
- Muffins:
- 2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries1 1/8 cups sugar/splenda*
- 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose/white wheat flour*
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp table salt
- 2 large eggs
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly**
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil**
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Begin by making the jam: Bring 1 cup of blueberries and 1 teaspoon of sugar to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook the berries, mashing with a spoon several times to break some of the berries open, stir frequently until mixture is thickened and reduced to about a ¼ cup (about 6 minutes). Transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, adjust your oven rack to upper-middle position and heat 425º. Spray muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in large bowl. Whisk 1 1/8 cups sugar and eggs together in a medium bowl until thick and texture is consistent (about 45 seconds). Slowly whisk in butter and oil (or applesauce) until combined. Whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla until combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg mixture and the remaining cup of blueberries into the flour mixture until just moistened (batter will be very lumpy with a few spots of dry flour; do not overmix).
- Divide the batter equally among the prepared muffin cups (batter should completely fill cups and mound slightly). Spoon a teaspoon of cooked berry mixture into center of each mound of batter. Use a chopstick or skewer to gently swirl the berry jam into the batter using figure-eight motion. Bake until the muffin tops are golden and just firm, about 17 to 19 minutes (about 25 minutes for large muffins) rotating muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe – seebrookecook
Combining my two loves. Coffee and blueberry muffins.
Let’s talk setup. I was hoping to capitalise on the morning light from my kitchen windows after reading this helpful food photography lighting guide written by Taylor Mathis but unfortunately it was a gloomy and overcast day. Instead I placed an octabox at the front and an umbrella from behind both powered with Alienbee B1600 lights. This worked well even if slightly harsh.
I underestimated the difficulty in actually presenting the blueberry muffin. Placing it on the granite benchtop wasn’t an option so using a chopping board had to make do. This will definitely require more planning for next time. At the moment I’m thinking laying a pretty tea towel down might work well but if anyone has any suggestions I’d love to hear.
Let’s try cupcakes next week.
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3 Comments
By Ellie on May 22, 2011 @ 6:30 pmPermalink
YUM!!!
By Jack Chauvel on May 22, 2011 @ 11:07 pmPermalink
Top down shot on the board is great.. really nice food photography shop. What type of cupcakes?
Teatowel is a good idea… how about a piece of glass? would it perhaps flash/reflect too much?
By Alex on May 22, 2011 @ 11:21 pmPermalink
Thanks Jack! You’ll have to wait and see won’t you