I Searched for Years for Muffins This Fluffy, Then Found Grandma’s

For years I tried muffin recipes that came out flat, dry or heavy, and then one afternoon I found my grandmother's recipe card tucked inside an old cookbook. Her secret was so simple: buttermilk, oil instead of butter, a thick batter and a very hot oven for the first few minutes. These muffins rise tall with those bakery-style domes and stay soft for days. My grandkids eat them warm for breakfast, and I always hide two for myself.

Servings: 12 · Prep: 15 min · Cook: 20 min

Ingredients

• 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) vegetable oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 1/2 cups (220 g) fresh or frozen blueberries
• 2 tbsp coarse sugar for the tops

Method

1. Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or grease it well.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Take out 1 tbsp of this mixture and toss it with the blueberries in a small bowl; the light coating helps keep the berries from sinking.
3. In a second bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, oil, vanilla and lemon zest until smooth.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and fold gently with a spatula, about 12 to 15 strokes, just until no streaks of flour remain. The batter should be thick and a little lumpy. That is exactly right: overmixing is what makes muffins tough and flat.
5. Fold in the blueberries with two or three more strokes. Let the batter rest for 10 minutes while the oven finishes heating; this lets the flour hydrate and gives taller tops.
6. Fill the cups all the way to the top, using an ice cream scoop for even muffins. Sprinkle each one with coarse sugar.
7. Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 5 minutes, then, without opening the door, lower the oven to 375°F (190°C) and bake 14 to 16 minutes more, until the domes are golden and a toothpick in the center comes out clean.
8. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then move them to a rack. They are wonderful warm and just as soft the next day.

Tips and variations

• No buttermilk? Stir 1 tbsp lemon juice into 1 cup (240 ml) milk and let it stand 5 minutes.
• If using frozen blueberries, do not thaw them; add 2 minutes to the baking time.
• Swap the blueberries for chopped apple and a teaspoon of cinnamon for a cozy fall version.
• Keep the muffins in an airtight tin with a paper towel underneath for up to 3 days, or freeze them for a month.

I hope these muffins end your search the way they ended mine. Happy baking from my kitchen to yours!