This recipe for Blueberry Muffins is absolutely fantastic. I’ve made them for several occasions and they haven’t let me down yet. I grew up loving the blueberry muffins out of the box, which are actually pretty good, but these take it up a few notches, and they’re still pretty simple to pull off.

The original recipe calls for fresh blueberries, which are great if you can get big, perfect berries from the store. But I’ve found that keeping a bag of frozen blueberries on hand means that I not only make these more often, they are also more consistent since I’m not relying on the season to determine how things work out. If you use the frozen blueberries, do not defrost them before you add them to the batter. You’ll end up with a mushy blue mess in your batter and it’s really not necessary. Just keep them in the freezer until its time to add them to the mix and toss them in gently.

Between the generous sprinkling of blueberries throughout and the crunchy sugary crust on the muffin tops, these muffins are just delicious. They are excellent right out of the oven with some butter, but they also make a good snack in the afternoon (if they last that long). I made these for Mother’s Day and my mom wouldn’t let me keep the leftovers. Since it was her day, I couldn’t really blame her.

6 tablespoons butter, softened, plus more for tins
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 ¾ cups sugar
1 large whole egg plus 2 yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup milk
2 cups blueberries
1. Butter small muffin tins; set aside. Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl, sift flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium until fluffy (this works just as well with a hand mixer, so no worries if you don’t have a stand mixer). Add eggs and vanilla, mix until well combined. Reduce the speed of the mixer to low; alternate adding flour and milk to the mixer, beginning and ending with flour (this is a little messy, GO SLOW). Gently fold in berries by hand
3. Divide batter among muffin tins; sprinkle generously with extra sugar. Bake until light golden, about 30-45 minutes. Cool in the pan for a few minutes before serving.