Blueberry Corn Muffins

I haven't shared or posted too many of my baking recipes, I'm not really sure why. I think it's because I'm not as confident with baking as I am with cooking. I guess there's only on way to get over that and start experimenting and trying out more recipes from my foodie friends. This muffin recipe is my own and was the result of being short on ingredients, particularly white flour.( I followed my old recipe for basic muffins by changing some ingredients.) I was really craving muffins and had some fresh blueberries that needed to be used up. You will notice that there is very little sugar, I hate overly sweet baked goods, and sometimes with muffins I like to top them with honey or preserves.

There is very little oil, I always try to cook or bake with the least amount of fats. Cutting down on the oil unfortunately leaves you with a dry baked good so by adding the plain yogurt we are bringing back some moisture without the extra fat. Here's a comparison two Tablespoon(10 grams) of Sunflower oil has 83 calories and a 5 ounce or 170 gram plain yogurt can has a little as 100 calories.

I am using cane sugar but you can use white or brown sugar. I found this yummy sugar in my local organic food shop and I'm glad I was curios enough to buy it, because the taste is better than white sugar. Cane sugar is the juice of the whole sugar cane with the water removed but still retaining all the minerals and vitamins. Because this sugar is made from the first pressing of the sugar cane it keeps a slight taste of molasses. Well on to the recipe.

Your ingredients:
1 cup of white flour
1 cup corn meal (medium grain)
1/4 cup organic cane sugar (also know as Turbinado sugar)
1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda
1 TB. tangerine zest (lemon or orange)
1 whole egg
1 TBS. Sunflower oil
1/3 cups of plain white yogurt ( you can also use light sour cream or smetana)
1/2 cup milk
1 cup of fresh blueberries

Muffin tins or Brioche molds, (I used 4 large Brioche molds size 12 cm / 4.7 inch ) Similar to these:

1. Preheat the oven to 375c / 190c. Prepare the tins or molds by either lining with paper cups or cover the molds/tins with a little oil then dust with flour. (this is a great tip because it will help the muffins come out of the molds easier)
2. Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl dust the blueberries with white flour, this is to try to prevent them from bleeding too much. Make a small well in the dry ingredients and in the center add the egg,oil,milk and the yogurt. Start mixing all the ingredients until you have a smooth well blended batter. Gently fold in the blueberries, and mix all ingredients thoroughly. If you over-mix the blueberries will break down and the batter will turn purple( of course it doesn't affect the taste only the color, so it could be a fun thing to try.)
3.Fill the tins/molds 3/4 of the way and bake for 20 minutes in center of the oven. After about 15 minutes check by inserting a toothpick in the center to see that they have baked all the way through. If the toothpick comes out with batter you'll need to continue baking until it's dry.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving them. If you are eating them the next day and would like them warm you can always microwave the muffins.
I love these muffins for a light breakfast or you can enjoy them as a dessert or snack. They go great with a big Cafe au lait or black tea with milk, enjoy!