Blueberry Muffins

I love their indigo colour when ripe.

Living in Bosnia and Herzegovina has contributed a great deal to my library of cooking. Having spent here only two and a half years is quite some time to try and adopt all the different vegetables, fruit and other types of food which I wasn't familiar with before. Blueberry is one of those fruits that people don't usually eat in Turkey but people in Bosnia consume a lot in every possible way. You can find blueberries everywhere sold fresh or processed: juice, syrup, yogurt, chocolate, jellies, snacks, even cereals. I later happened to learn that the northeastern part of Turkey is one of the main sources of Caucasian berries. However, they are not widely eaten all over the country. It is probably because they are not cultivated; wild berries grow naturally on the hills and forests. These native blueberries are eaten only locally as jelly, dried or fresh fruit. 

TV commercials started only a few years ago to boost the popularity of blueberries in Turkey as a diet supplement that works. Blueberries contain antioxidant pigments so they have a role in reducing risks of some diseases, including inflammation and certain cancers. If you supplement your diet with blueberry juice, it will enhance memory and learning while reducing blood sugar and symptoms of depression. It also helps in maintaining normal blood pressure and preventing urinary tract infections.

I love the indigo colour of ripe blueberries so much that I started to add them to my muffin recipes right away. Here it goes. Enjoy it. 

   Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large egg
• 1 cup milk
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 185 °C and lightly grease or line with paper baking cups 23/4-inch muffin cups. 
2. In a large bowl, blend together the flour, baking powder, and salt. 
3. In a medium bowl, beat the egg, milk, butter and sugar until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and fold in the blueberries.
4. Combine the two mixtures, blending until the dry ingredients are moistened. 
5. Fill the muffin cups about three-quarters full. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. 
6. Cool completely on a wire rack.