I love all sorts of muffins and I’m always on the lookout for muffin recipes.  It is a real weakness of mine; I can’t resist grabbing a muffin when I see one. When you can pay as much as $3 for a muffin in your local coffee shop, it makes sense to make your own. While I was looking around I found literally hundreds of muffin recipes online. I found five recipes that I want to share with you. They are from Canadian Living and The Joy of Baking.

My favorite muffins are blueberry and cranberry, the bigger the better. I tried the Dr. Oetker muffin mix that you just add milk to and shake. It didn’t turn out that well. Even though I shook it and shook it, there was still powder at the bottom when I went to pour them out. I had to add powder to the muffins after I had poured them in the muffin tin and stir. Surprisingly, they did turn out okay. However, I think in the future I’ll make my own from scratch, nothing personal against Dr. Oetker. I hope you enjoy these.

Recipes from Canadian Living

Blueberry muffins

2 cups of all-purpose flour
2 teaspoonfuls of baking powder
1/4 teaspoonful of salt
1/2 cup of butter, softened
1 cup of granulated sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup of milk
1-1/2 cups of blueberries

Add flour, baking powder and salt to a bowl and combine. Cream the butter and sugar together in another bowl and beat the eggs in one at a time. Stir the milk into the mixture gradually. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, stir until all is blended. Fold the blueberries into the mixture. Spoon the mixture into prepared muffin cups (paper-lined or greased), fill to the top. Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 25 to 30 minutes or until the tops of the muffins are firm to the touch.

Maple muffins

3/4 cup of whole wheat flour
1/2 cup of all-purpose flour
2/3 cup of natural wheat bran
1 teaspoonfuls of baking powder
1/2 teaspoonfuls of baking soda
1 teaspoonful of cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1/3 cup of chopped dates
1 egg
1 cup of skim milk
1 cup of grated peeled apple
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1 tablespoonful of canola oil
1 tablespoonful grated orange rind

In a large bowl, combine the whole wheat and all-purpose flours, 1/2 a cup of the bran, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; stir in the dates.In a separate bowl, beat the egg; stir in the milk, apple, maple syrup, oil and orange rind. Pour over the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Spoon into a nonstick or lightly greased muffin tins; fill to top. Sprinkle with the remaining bran. Bake at 375°F for about 25 minutes or until firm to the touch.

Bran, Flaxseed, Cranberry muffins

1-1/3 cups of buttermilk
3/4 cup of All-Bran or 100% bran cereal
1/2 cup of natural bran
2/3 cup of fancy molasses
1/3 cup of vegetable oil
1 egg
1-1/2 teaspoonful of vanilla
2 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of whole wheat flour
1/2 cup of packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup of flaxseeds
4 teaspoonfuls of baking powder
2 teaspoonfuls of baking soda
1/4 teaspoonfuls each of ground nutmeg and salt
1 cup of dried cranberries

Grease muffin cups or line with paper liners; set aside. In a bowl, mix together the buttermilk, All-Bran and natural bran; let stand for 10 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the molasses, oil, egg and vanilla; stir into the bran mixture.In a large bowl, whisk the all-purpose and whole wheat flours, brown sugar, flaxseeds, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and salt together. Pour the bran mixture over top. Sprinkle with cranberries; stir just until moistened. Spoon into the muffin tin. Bake at 375°F for 25 minutes, or until the tops are firm. Let cool in pan on rack for 2 minutes. Remove from pan; let cool completely.

Recipes from Joy of Baking

Banana muffins

1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of granulated white sugar
1/4 cup of light brown sugar
1 teaspoonfuls of baking powder
1/2 teaspoonfuls of baking soda
1/4 teaspoonfuls of salt
2 ounces of white chocolate, cut into small pieces
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
8 tablespoonfuls (1 stick) of unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 very ripe large bananas, 3 mashed, 1 for garnish
1 teaspoonful pure vanilla extract

Mix the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and white chocolate in a bowl. In another bowl combine the mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined and batter is thick and chunky. Spoon the batter into greased muffin tins and place a slice of banana on top of each muffin for garnish. Place on a wire rack to cool for five minutes and then remove muffins from pan. Serve warm or at room temperature. Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes until firm to the touch.

Carrot muffins

1/2 cup of pecans or walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
2 cups of grated raw carrot (about 2-3 peeled carrots)
1 large apple, peeled and grated
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups of granulated white sugar
3/4 teaspoonful of baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of baking powder
1/2 teaspoonfuls of salt
1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of ground cinnamon
1 cup of coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
3 large eggs
3/4 cup of safflower or canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of pure vanilla extract

Toast the pecans or walnuts for about 8 minutes or until they are lightly browned. Let cool and then chop coarsely. Peel and finely grate the carrots and apple. Set them aside. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon. Stir in the nuts and coconut. Set them aside. In a separate bowl whisk together the eggs, oil, and vanilla extract. Fold the wet ingredients, along with the grated carrot and apple, into the flour mixture, stirring just until moistened. Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared muffin tin. Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes, or until firm to the touch Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. After about 10 minutes remove the muffins from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.