I somehow believed that muffins were extremely difficult to make. Hence, I never even attempted to make them in the past. This all changed after I watched an episode of the Barefoot Contessa. Ina Garten is one of my favorite chefs on the Food Network and her recipes have never let me down. She made these muffins look so easy to prepare, I had to make them the next day! In less than 40 minutes, I had delicious, warm muffins to enjoy with my cup of coffee. They were so moist on the inside, but had a nice sugary crunch on the outside. This is due to mixing in the sugar at the very last moment.

I made two tweaks to Ina’s recipe: I added whole wheat flour and vanilla extract. If you don’t have whole wheat flour or prefer not to use it, simply use all-purpose flour instead. This recipe is great to use for a muffin “base” as well. Just follow the recipe to make the batter and use other kinds of fruit instead. You could make blueberry, apple, banana nut or even chocolate chip muffins. The possibilities are endless! 

Recipe
Yield: 12 muffins

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tbsp. ground cinnamon
2/3 cup milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled down
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup diced fresh strawberries
3/4 cup sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place rack in center of oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Line muffin tins with paper liners.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon together in a large bowl. (If you don’t have a sifter, use a whisk to mix the ingredients together.) In a smaller bowl, combine the milk, egg, butter and vanilla extract.
3. Make a well in the middle of the dry mixture. Pour the wet mixture into the well and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined. Do not over mix the batter! It’s okay if there are some lumps remaining.
4. Add the strawberries and sugar; stir gently with a rubber spatula to combine. Again, do not over mix! You still want to be able to see some of the sugar crystals as this gives the muffin tops a nice crunch.
5. Using an ice cream scoop, spoon the batter into the muffin cups to fill the paper liners. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly and enjoy!