Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins

Last week I went on a baking spree and filled my freezer with muffins for quick breakfasts and after school snacks. My oldest two girls had just pulled out of the driveway to drive back to Utah for college and I tried to get my mind off my sadness by doing a little stress baking! The rest of my kids woke up that morning to a whole table full of muffins, they loved it – haha.

Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins were at the top of my list of muffins to bake. They’re sweet, tender, and topped with a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar. I also made a batch of our favorite Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread (as muffins) to celebrate the beginning of fall. Both of these muffins are favorites in our house!

To mix things up, I made some of the muffins as mini loaves instead of traditional muffins. One mini loaf is the equivalent of about two small muffins. My husband and I stayed at a lodge in the Olympic National Park this spring and in the lobby they had little mini loaves like this to take with you every morning. I really fell in love with the idea of mini loaves, as they are just a little bit more filling. Perfect for hiking in the Olympics and making it through a full day of school or work.

Here are the links to the pan and muffins liners that I like to use.

Freezing muffins is a breeze. Just let the muffins cool completely on baking racks and place in freezer bags.

Take the muffin out of the freezer the night before if planning to eat it for breakfast, or the morning of if planning to eat it for an after school snack. You will thank yourself later!

Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins

1/2 cup salted butter, room temperature
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons table salt
1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
1 1/2 cup frozen or fresh blueberries (if I’m going to be freezing the blueberries after baking, I like to use fresh blueberries in the recipe)
Cinnamon Sugar, for sprinkling (1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 teaspoon cinnamon)

Directions:

Line 12 cup muffin pan or 8 cup mini loaf pan.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. This will take several minutes. Add the eggs, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat until light and fluffy.

Add the dry ingredients all at once and mix just until combined. Scrape the bowl, add the milk and mix until just combined. Gently mix in blueberries by hand. Divide batter evenly between baking cups. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes (start checking at 20 minutes if baking as a standard muffin size), until the tops are golden brown and the muffins are baked through.