Cast Iron Blueberry Muffins

Is there anything that can get your mouth drooling faster in the morning than the smell of blueberry muffins with cinnamon topping cooking?  Even the smell of bacon doesn't rate that high.  There is just something about the sweet tang of the fruit and the warm buttery goodness of the batter that just makes you want to sit in front of the oven window like a child and watch them cook until the chime from the timer snaps you out of your trance and the countdown until they're cool enough to touch begins.  The anticipation is palpable.

Anyway you cook them, blueberry muffins are delicious.  Cook them in cast iron and the hot metal caramelizes the sugar and creates a slight crust on the exterior of the muffin, which ads yet another layer to an already amazing flavor profile. Something you cannot achieve if you bake muffins in paper cups or non-stick muffin tins.  Can you make this in papers or a muffin tin?  Sure you can. Can you make this in a cast iron skillet if you don't have a cast iron muffin pan?  Absolutely!

Muffin Batter

dry
2 cups of all purpose flour (8 ounces by weight)
1/4 cup of white sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt

wet
1 egg
3/4 cup of milk
5 Tablespoons of melted butter

Berries
1/3 cup of blueberries (fresh or frozen - I just use frozen)
2 Tablespoons of all purpose flour

Topping
2 teaspoons of white sugar
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of cardamom (optional)

Preheat your oven to 375'.

Grease your cast iron muffin pan wells and place the cast iron in the oven to preheat.

Mix your berries with the 2 Tablespoons of flour to coat and set aside.

Mix together the dry ingredients and set aside.

Mix together the wet ingredients and add to the dry.  Mix gently 20 strokes and fold the blueberries into the batter.  DO NOT overwork the batter.

In a small bowl, mix your topping ingredients and set aside.

Remove the cast iron from the oven (don't forget your mit!) Fill the wells to 3/4 full wi
th the batter.  Sprinkle the tops with with the topping mix.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until the muffins are golden brown.  Allow to coo
l a few minutes before removing from the pan.  Eat warm or cool on a rack.
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If you are using a skillet-

grease and pre-heat the pan as above but reduce the temperature to 350'.   Pour the batter in the skillet and bake for 30-35 minutes.

If you are using a muffin tin/papers -
Grease muffin tin wells or line with papers (DO NOT preheat pans.) Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.