At the Serendipity Farmhouse Test Kitchen, we’re always looking to put our own unique spin on classic recipes. When our staff stumbled upon the Blueberry Sourdough Muffin recipe by Susan Reid at King Arthur Baking, I knew it was the perfect recipe to showcase the incredible baking and milling skills we have access to here in our humble Test Kitchen.
Hello my friends! Chef Blondie here. – To make this recipe adaptation come together, I relied on my Hubby, our resident sourdough expert. It was his job to make sure our sourdough starter, affectionately named Mrs. Patmore, was ready to do her job. So, Hubby fed her in the morning on baking day and made every effort to keep her warm and cozy.
Mrs. Patmore is a lively culture. Hubby has faithfully fed and nurtured her for over a year. Over time, she has developed deep, complex flavors that I knew would pair beautifully with the sweetness of blueberries.
What We Changed in Our Blueberry Sourdough Muffins
When it came time to conduct our test we followed the King Arthur recipe as a guide, but made a few key adjustments to really make the recipe our own. We made the changes to fit in with everyday cooking in our farmhouse kitchen and to suit our personal preferences. Here are the two most significant modifications.
Reduced Baking Temperature
The original recipe calls for an oven temperature of 425°F. With muffins and similar items, I find this temperature to be a bit too high. I think it increases the chance of scorching and overcooking. So, I reduced the temperature to 400°F. Of course that meant that the baking time had to be increased to about 30 minutes.
Home-Milled Cornmeal
In the past, when I have used this recipe I found that store-bought cornmeal is too coarsely ground. The grittiness of the cornmeal tends to detract from the enjoyment of the muffins. Because Hubby is now exploring different ways to use home-milled grains, he provided a now obvious solution.
Using dried corn (not popcorn) he milled cornmeal that was finer, and smoother in texture. As a result, the grittiness disappears from the muffins but the flavor of the cornmeal is retained. – It makes for a perfectly enjoyable, rustic texture and flavor.
Blueberry Sourdough Muffin Test Summary
This SFH Test Kitchen adventure was a great success. The elements of sourdough tanginess, rustic grain flavors, and the sweetness of blueberries combined to make a batch of muffins that were beyond compare. And if you want to make them even better, slather on some great Irish butter. – These are blueberry sourdough muffins you will make again and again.
Watch our video. Give this recipe a try. And most of all – Happy Cooking!
Blueberry Sourdough Muffins
At the Serendipity Farmhouse Test Kitchen, we're always looking to put our own unique spin on classic recipes. When our staff stumbled upon the Blueberry Sourdough Muffin recipe by Susan Reid at King Arthur Baking, I knew it was the perfect recipe to showcase the incredible baking and milling skills we have access to here in our humble Test Kitchen.
Notes
Note #1: We used a 3.5-ounce pack of dried blueberries instead of fresh or frozen.
Note #2: If using frozen berries, don't thaw them before adding to the batter; you'll have fewer blue streaks if they're added frozen, just before scooping.
Note #3: We preheat the oven to 400°F instead of 425°F as in the original recipe. This reduces the chance of scorching, but requires that the baking time be extended to 30 minutes instead of 23 minutes.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- • 1 cup (120g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- • 1 cup (138g) yellow cornmeal, preferably whole grain
- • ¾ teaspoon salt
- • 1 teaspoon baking soda
- • 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
Wet Ingredients
- • 1 cup (227g) sourdough starter, ripe (fed) or discard
- • ¼ cup (57g) milk
- • ½ cup (156g) maple syrup or ½ cup (170g) molasses, or honey
- • 4 tablespoons (57g) melted butter or ¼ cup (50g) vegetable oil
- • 1 large egg
Other Ingredients
- • 2 cups (340g) blueberries, fresh or frozen (Notes #1 & #2)
- • Demerara sugar or coarse sparkling sugar, for sprinkling tops
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. (Note #2) Grease the wells of a 12-cup muffin pan, or line with papers and grease the inside of the papers.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
- In a second bowl, beat together the starter, milk, egg, melted butter, and sweetener. Blend the wet ingredients with the dry, taking about 20 seconds.
- Gently stir in the blueberries just until blended.
- Fill the cups of the prepared pan two-thirds full; sprinkle the tops of the muffins with sugar if desired.
- Bake the muffins for 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the pan from the oven and allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the pan. Don't let them cool in the pan, or they'll steam and the outside will become tough.