I can not believe how quickly this last month has gone. I swear it was Sunday and now it's already Friday again. In fact every night this week I would think, "I need to get a post up tomorrow." Guess that didn't work out so well since this is my first post this week. Oops.
The good news is that I am T-minus 21 days to China! Of course, as with every move in my life, I am full blown denial and shut down mode. Denial and shut down mode is when I reach the point of knowing that the move is right around the corner and knowing that there are a bajillion things I need to do and somehow being completely unable to complete any one task. Seriously, I require the assistance of person with the ability snap me back to reality. Lucky for me my sister will be here Saturday to [hopefully] do just that.
In the meantime I have managed to whip up some goodies to share on the blog in the coming weeks. Since it's Friday, you know I had to share something sweet.
I have a huge soft spot in my heart for muffins. It might be because it's kind of like eating a cupcake for breakfast. That, and it love a good breakfast on the go. Since I have zero time in my morning for "extras", a breakfast that I can grab and eat while walking to my car is really ideal. These muffins have a fresh lemon flavor (yay for lemon trees in SoCal backyards!) with bursts of berry goodness. I chopped my blackberries up pretty finely (part of my weird cooked fruit texture aversion) but you could also leave them more chunky, if you're into that sort of thing. Definitely don't skimp on the lemon zest because it really brightens them up!
Blackberry and Lemon Muffins
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Grated zest of 1 small lemon, about a heaping tablespoon
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 cup sugar
8 Tbsp warm melted butter (1 stick)
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups (about 6 oz) chopped fresh or frozen blackberries*, if frozen defrost and drain liquid
*Yes I realize blackberries are not in season. They just looked so good and I was craving them, so I bought them. You can always use frozen berries and brands like Trader Joe's are pretty good.
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare 2 muffin tins with 18 liners.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest. Set aside
In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together the eggs, sour cream, sugar, lemon juice, butter and vanilla.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and, using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, mix together just until evenly combined. Add the blackberries and gently fold into the batter. Careful not to over mix, that can cause tough muffins.
Divide the batter into the muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in pan for just a few minutes, until the muffins are cool enough to handle and transfer to a wire rack.
Adapted from Simply Recipes