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Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Berry Cobbler Muffin

             I can remember when I was growing up all the pies and cobblers that my grandmother made. She never made just one at a time, and during the summer she always had them ready to be eaten. My favorite had to be the blackberry cobbler. She would wander out into a patch of blackberries not worrying about the thorns that covered the bushes, and come back with buckets full of dark, sweet blackberries. Those wild blackberries are becoming harder and harder to find these day. Blackberries that can be bought in the store are often large, and also sweet, but they are pricey. I happen to come across some blackberries and blueberries at a decent price. I bought both intending to use them in smoothies, but I ended up not using them for that purpose. Not wanting to let the berries go bad I decided to make muffins. I figured that would be something easy and delicious. I knew blueberries would be good in muffins, but I wasn't sure about the blackberries. Well, now I am sure. They worked great! I was sent back to a time when I played outdoors all day during the summer, and only came in to eat. My grandmother's cobbler was one of the things that I remember fondly. I will never be able to recreate her cobblers, but I now have these delicious muffins that do remind me of the taste.



I love how these muffins turned a deep golden color.


Full of antioxidant packed berries.


They smell yummy!


Look at all those berries...

It only took me a few minutes to mix all the ingredients together, and it didn't take long for them to start to brown in the oven either. I replaced the oil in these muffins with unsweetened applesauce. The applesauce helps add moistness and flavor. If you would like to use oil instead replace the applesauce with equal parts oil. Adding oil instead of applesauce will slightly affect the flavor.


2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup ground flaxseeds
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
Dash of nutmeg
½ teaspoon cinnamon(more if you like a stronger cinnamon flavor)
1 large egg
6 oz. vanilla greek yogurt
½ cup to 1 cup of sugar(depending on how sweet you want it)*
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup water
1 pint fresh blueberries, rinsed
1pint fresh blackberries, rinsed


Preheat oven to 375°.

In a large bowl mix the whole wheat, ground flaxseed, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg and cinnamon. Set aside. In a separate bowl mix egg, yogurt, sugar, applesauce and vanilla extract. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Mix gently. Add the water a little at a time until all ingredients are just blended. Do not over mix. Mixing too much will create a rubbery consistency. Batter should be thick. Using an ice cream scoop, fill the scoop with batter and place in pre-lined or greased muffin tin. One full scoop will be enough for one muffin. Bake about 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick. It toothpick comes out clean then the muffins are done. If the toothpick is wet then the muffins aren’t ready. 

Let muffins cool in muffin tin for about 5 minutes. Remove and let cool on a cooling rack. 

These muffins freeze easily. I generally freeze all but a couple at a time. I take out what I will need for the next day letting them thaw in the fridge overnight. I was able to get 20 muffins out of this recipe.

*I used ½ cup of sugar which is plenty sweet for me. It is just enough to take any tartness out of the berries. If you would like more of a dessert muffin then you can use up to 1 cup of sugar.

Nutritional Information: Calories:137, Total fat: 3.8g, trans fat: 0, cholesterol: 9mg, sodium: 73mg, Total Carbs: 22.7g, Dietary Fiber: 3.8g, Sugars: 9.1g, Protein: 4.2g, vitamin A: 1%, Vitamin C: 8%, Calcium: 6%, Iron: 7%




Its a good thing this recipe made 20 muffins. More for me!


As I am typing this post I realize that this would make a great dessert. Add the full cup of sugar to the recipe and bake as directed. This would be good topped with whipped cream, butter cream frosting, and even cream cheese icing. 

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Muffin Greatness

Opening my refrigerator today I realized I had some blueberries that wouldn't make it til tomorrow before they would have to be thrown out. Those tiny, blue, antioxidant filled orbs were staring at me from their spot on the shelf saying "save me, save me". I just couldn't let them go to waste. Right next to them was a package of blackberries that were meant for smoothies, but I didn't feel like making smoothies with them once I got them home from the store. After a few minutes of experimenting, and a few more minutes in the oven I ended up with a delightful, lightly sweetened muffin. My first thought when I took a bite while they were still warm was......... cobbler. My intention was just to make a simple muffin with berries in it. I had no idea that it would end up tasting like a cobbler, but, boy am I glad that they did.




I am working on the recipe, because as I said this was an experiment. I didn't write everything down as I went along. Once I have everything written down I will post the recipe with more photos. In the meantime I am going to try not to eat all the muffins at once.