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Ritz-Carlton Blueberry Muffins

Source of Recipe

From "Cooking for Comfort" by Marian Burros


Recipe Introduction

"When I first ate blueberry muffins at THE Ritz-Carlton, there was only one Ritz-Carlton, the Ritz-Carlton in Boston. The hotel has been serving some version of them since it opened in 1927. This recipe was created in the 1980s, and I'm sticking with it. The secret is the crusty, sugared topping."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 3 ½ cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour
â—¦ 3 tablespoons baking powder
â—¦ 1 ½ cups sugar
â—¦ Pinch salt
â—¦ 5 lightly beaten eggs
â—¦ ½ cup milk
â—¦ 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
â—¦ 5 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen


Recipe

Place a rack in the middle of the oven; preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease the tops of large muffin tins and insert paper muffin cups in each opening. If using a nonstick muffin pan, greasing and muffin cups are unnecessary.

Mix the flour, baking powder, ¾ cup of the sugar, and salt together by hand. Stir in the eggs, milk, and butter; do not overmix. Carefully fold in the berries. (The batter is very thick.) Mound the batter in the muffin tins about ¼ inch from the top of the tin and sprinkle with the remaining sugar.

Reduce the heat to 400 degrees and bake the muffins for about 20 minutes. Test by inserting a cake tester in the center. If it comes out clean the muffins are done; otherwise, return the muffins to the oven for a few more minutes. Remove the muffins from the tins and cool a little on a rack. Serve.


Makes about 12 muffins



• For larger muffins, bake in greased custard cups and bake about 5 minutes longer.

• If blueberries are not in season, use frozen berries. Fresh blueberries out of season are often unbelievably sour.

• Like all muffins, these do not taste better the second day. The same is true, but to a lesser extent, if the muffins are frozen. But if you want to have these for weekend guests, you can save yourself a little time in the morning by having the dry ingredients mixed together the night before; just store them in a covered container; wash and dry the blueberries. Add the wet ingredients in the morning.