BLUEBERRY CRUMBLE MUFFINS

 

last summer my boyfriend & i had a garage sale in an attempt to make some money/get rid of our old junk. i thought it would be a great opportunity to sell some of my baked goods, so i made banana muffins and these blueberry crumble muffins. the garage sale ended up being a COMPLETE failure, however the muffins saved the day! they were just about the only thing we sold and the one thing that intrigued passer bys to check out our sale. while these muffins use an oil based instead of butter, the buttery crumble topping makes up for it! the smell these bad boys produce coming out of the oven is pure heaven:)

ingredients: (makes 12 muffins)

for the muffin

  • 3/4 cup raw sugar
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup almond milk [milk, buttermilk or greek yogurt could be substituted]
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1.5 cups all purpose flour
  • 1.5 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest [optional]
  • 1 cup fresh blueberries [1.5 cups if you like them super berry]

for the crumble

  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup raw sugar
  • 1/4 cup cold butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

directions

  • preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • for the muffins: in a mixing bowl add the oil, raw sugar, egg, vanilla, and almond milk. mix until ingredients are well combined.
  • sift in flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest until JUST combined, do not over mix. stir in blueberries.
  • evenly distribute batter amongst a 12 tin greased muffin tray.
  • for the crumble: in a separate bowl, add the flour, raw sugar, butter, and cinnamon. mix with your hands until a coarse sandy texture is formed.
  • sprinkle crumbled on top of each muffin.
  • bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until crumble begins to brown slighty.

OAT FUDGE BARS

 

it's new blog layout day!!! so lets celebrate over oat fudge bars. these are my favourite starbucks treat, but as a baker i am embarrassed to admit how much i enjoy one. i decided to make my own from scratch and i haven't bought one since:) this is an easy recipe, just be patient enough to wait for them to cool completely before digging into! the fudge isn't a true fudge, its a very simple three ingredient mock fudge that is fail proof. you can use any kind of chocolate chips in this recipe, but i always bake with milk chococlate because, sugar. the oat layer also makes a great oatmeal cookie/bar if you wanted to eliminate the chocolate, but who the hell doesn't want chocolate fudge?

ingredients:

for the oats

  • 1 cup raw sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 3 cups quick oats
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

for the fudge

  • 1 can sweetended condensed milk
  • two cups milk chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

directions:

  1. preheat oven to 350 degrees and begin with the oats layer.
  2. in the bowl of a stand mixer cream raw sugar, brown sugar, and butter together until light and fluffy.
  3. add eggs one at a time, followed by vanilla until combined.
  4. in a separate bowl, sift together flour, oats, baking soda and salt. add into mixing bowl until ingredients are welll combined.
  5. for the fudge layer, in a saucepan on low heat melt together the condensed milk, chocolate chips, butter, and vanila until smooth.
  6. to assemble, using a 9x13 greased baking pan spread 3/4 of the oat mixture to form a flat crust. pour the fudge mixture on top followed by dropping remaining spoonfuls of the oat mixture.
  7. bake for 20-25 minutes, until the edges begin to lightly brown. let cool to room temperature [even easier to refridgerate] before slicing.

LEMON BARS.

 
lemon squares v.jpg

when life gives you lemons, make lemon bars. this upcoming weekend i am going to a farewell party for a friend who i was told loves lemon meringue pie! so i decided to make lemon bars, as they are just as tasty (or better), but are much easier to snack on & serve. these lemon bars feature a shortbread cookie style crust with a sweet & tangy layer of lemon filling. the taste of these bring me back to making lemon meringue pie with my mom, where i would literally eat a bowl of the filling to myself:) the recipe has been adapted from smitten kitchen/barefoot contessa (so you know its good).

ingredients:  

for the crust

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 1/2 cup raw sugar

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 2 cups all purpose flour

  • pinch of salt

for the filling 

  • 4 large eggs

  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 1 heaping tablespoon lemon zest

  • 2/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

  • 2/3 cup flour

directions:

  • preheat oven to 350 degrees

  • staring with the filling, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

  • add the vanilla, flour and pinch of salt and mix until just combined.

  • in a greased 9 by 13 inch pan, flatten the dough into it with your hands, building a 1/2 inch crust along the edges.

  • bake for 15-20 minutes (while you prepare your lemon filling).

  • in a separate mixing bowl begin making the filling by whisking the eggs, sugar, vanilla, zest, juice, and flour together until well combined.

  • when the crust is ready, pour filling over it and immediately put in back in the oven for 25-30 minutes.

  • let cool to room temperature before slicing and serving!