Blueberry Muffin Cookies

You all know how I love to combine my sweet treats--taking something you'd typically associate with one type of dessert and blend it together with another. Ice Cream Sundae Cookies. Apple Fritter Muffins. Smores Waffles. So it should comes as no surprise that I would jump at the chance to make cookies that taste like blueberry muffins, especially for my niece Abi who loves blueberry muffins and just happened to celebrate her birthday last week. These cookies taste like fluffy blueberry muffin tops, complete with struesel crumbled on top. They are deliciously soft and the blueberries burst with sweetness in every bite. Dave and I couldn't get enough of these and they were Abi approved as well. Plus, if it has muffin in the name, that means it's an acceptable breakfast item, right? Just ignore that part about a cookie if it's before noon.

Blueberry White Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Another sweet treat enhanced by the fruits of the season. Blueberries are just about out of season, but there are still some available in New England. I suggest if you can get your hands on some of the fresh, tart berries, grab them and immediately make these cookies. The soft cookies have all the good stuff. One of my top requests for cookies from my family, particularly my niece, Elyse, and my Dad, are my Oatmeal Cranberry cookies. And Elyse has a spot in her heart from fruit-flavored goodies. So when her birthday rolled around last month, I knew I needed to share these with her. These cookies are hearty but not heavy with a touch of sweetness added from white chocolate chips and fresh blueberries bursting throughout. And the pairing of oatmeal and blueberries seems to be the perfect way to bridge the gap between summer and fall.

Blueberry Waffles

We get some amazing blueberries from our farm.  I'm happy to just eat them by the handful (and usually do), but Dave wanted me to "do something" with them recently and decided he wanted blueberry waffles. Happy to oblige (hey, if he's going to have input on a meal so I don't always have to come up with the menu, I'll jump right on it), I found a recipe and got to work. These baked up to fluffy, delicious waffles with a touch of sweetness in the batter and a bit more from the blueberries.  We ate more than a few, but they were perfect for a lazy Sunday breakfast and of course I froze the extras, turning them into toaster waffles for a quick weekday breakfast.

Blueberry Muffin Cookies

My niece Abi turns 7 next week (as I learned when I forgot how to do math and she pointed it out to me!), so of course I had to include some birthday baking when I sent along her gift.  And this is a child who loves a blueberry muffin.  If it's on the menu, she'll order it,no need to think twice.  So as an ode to her favorite breakfast treat, I wanted to make a cookie version--one of my favorite things to do.   And this version is amazing!  A fluffy, tender, soft texture inside with a light sweetness.  Then you bite a blueberry and it just explodes, filling your mouth with that wonderful berry flavor.  Dave was amazed at how spongy these cookies turned out, nothing at all like a cookie, but very much like a muffin.  I hope Abi enjoys them as much as we did!

Mini Pancake Muffins with Blueberries or Sausage

I love pancakes.  But I also love muffins.  So these little guys are just little bites of breakfast heaven that give you the fluffy, tender pancake flavor that you love in a perfect mini muffin form with a golden crust.  Flavored up with blueberries (or any fruity mix-in) or sausage (sweet and savory!) and served with maple syrup, you'll have breakfast bites that can be nibbled on the go or would be easy for little hands.  Traditional blueberry or amped up with sausage bits snuggled into these pancake bites, these mini muffins are a great make ahead breakfast option that you can freeze in advance and heat in the microwave for busy mornings when scratch pancakes just won't happen.  And a fun new way to enjoy your pancakes!

Blueberry Zucchini Mini Muffins

Mini muffins are the perfect little treat to add a bit of sweet flavor to breakfast or tea time.  These mini bites of muffin goodness get their softness from the moisture in the zucchini, a slight sweetness from the blueberries, and are healthed up with the wheat flour.  I also like the depth of flavor from using both white and brown sugar so the muffins are sweet but not sugary.  Plus the cinnamon is a nice kick of flavor.  If you took my suggestion of preshredding and freezing some leftover zucchini at the end of last summer's harvest, you'll be glad you did when you whip up these mini muffins.  I popped a couple of these into my work bag for breakfast and also shared them with my January Foodie Pen Pal as a yummy but healthy treat to help us both stay on track with our New Year's resolution of not eating too terribly.

Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins

So not my best moment in the kitchen.  I'm not sure how to classify these.  They tasted awesome (I really thing a scoop of vanilla ice cream with one of these guys crumbled in the bowl would be amazing), but the visual execution was a complete FAIL.  I think my problem was that the recipe stated it made 12 muffins, but I probably could have made 15 and been successful.  The batter was very full in the muffin tin, so when they rose in the oven, they stuck to the stoneware and were a mess to get out of the pan.

This casualty was super yummy, but I didn't think about adding ice cream until I finished it.

Blueberry Bread

Please excuse the paper plated picture.  I took this bread on a trip and therefore didn't have my usual white plate prop.  At least I remembered to photograph it before it was completely consumed!

I love this bread.  I like it more than my Banana Nut Bread, and I like that a lot.  It's got a coffee cake-like texture, and the tang of the orange juice combining with the sweetness of the blueberries really does it for me.  Sometimes I'll make up a loaf to give as a hostess gift (who wants to make breakfast the morning after a party?), and it's always a crowd pleaser.  Or I'll take it for a weekend away.  Or we'll hoard it at home by ourselves.

This recipe comes from Mixing Bowl, posted by lakergirl.  The only change I made was to add vanilla to the batter, which helps develop the flavor from the blueberries.  It's a pretty quick recipe, and either frozen or fresh blueberries will work.

Blueberry Bread

Ingredients
2 cups flour, sifted
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons melted butter
1/4 cup hot water
1/2 cup orange juice
1 beaten egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.

In another bowl, mix together butter, water, orange juice, egg and vanilla.

Add wet ingredients to dry and gently fold until just mixed.  Be careful not to overmix the batter.

Gently fold in blueberries.

Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and pour batter into pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 60-70 minutes, or until a tester inserted in center comes out clean.

Turn out onto cooling rack placed on top of a cutting mat.

Glaze

Ingredients
2 Tablespoons orange juice
2 Tablespoons. honey
1 teaspoon orange zest

Just before the bread is finished baking, boil orange juice, honey and zest for 1 minute in small sauce pan.  

While bread is still warm, drizzle glaze over the top.

Makes 1 loaf.

Happy Baking,
The Cookie Princess

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