Triple Berry Vanilla Yogurt Muffins

Guys, I'm obsessed with these sweet, juicy patriotic muffins for Memorial Day Weekend!

Tender and rich muffins are sweetened with a bit of vanilla yogurt and studded with juicy, fresh berries! If this doesn't scream summer comfort, I don't know what does.

Before gushing more over how much you NEED to make these muffins to kick off all your MDW festivities, I just want to thank you for the great feedback on my meal delivery review post - one of my most read to date! I'm glad so many of you were interested and I will be working on a second review next week. Be sure to share with any friends or family who may be thinking about signing up for one of these services. 

So, muffs, I love muffins. They are pure breakfast indulgence as far as I'm concerned. And these Triple Berry Vanilla Yogurt Muffins are no exception. Imagine a warm Saturday or Sunday morning, sitting outside in the sunshine, with a fresh cup of coffee and one of these gorgeous muffins. It's a match made in heaven! And like I said...you need to make them (sorry for being bossy).

Muffins have made an appearance on GSG twice before - in the banana oat and jumbo pistachio form. The recipe below is more closely related to the pistachio muffins in that we are using a whole stick of butter, for deliciousness and to keep 'em fresh, and we overfill our muffin cups to get beautifully big, round-topped muffins.

I used a combination of chopped strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, but you could certainly sub one of those for blackberries. My raspberries were a bit tart, so for extra sweetness I used brown sugar instead of white sugar and topped the muffins with a small sprinkle of turbinado sugar. From start to finish, these are a wonderful slow weekend breakfast.

I mean....look at that crumb!

P.S. Heading to a cookout this weekend? I'm positive these would make a lovely hostess gift - nothing better than having a home cooked breakfast the day after a party that they don't have to lift a finger for!

Here's what you need for Triple Berry Vanilla Yogurt Muffins* (Print Recipe!)

2 cups all purpose flour (see note)

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

2 large eggs

1 cup low fat vanilla yogurt (see note)

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 stick butter, melted (see note)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups mixed berries - I used strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, about half a cup each

Here's what you do

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a standard 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. In a separate, small bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, brown sugar, butter and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and combine with a few quick strokes of a rubber spatula until just a few dry bits remain, Gently fold in the berries.

Divide the batter into 12 muffin tins, filling them nearly to the top. This will ensure big, fluffy muffins. Bake for 17 minutes until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. 

Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a cooling rack. Enjoy while they are still warm, or cool completely then wrap them well in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container on the counter. Eat within a day or two for the most fresh muffins!

Notes: 

-You could most likely replace half the all-purpose flour with whole wheat or white whole wheat baking flour. I would not replace any more than half at the risk of making the muffins gritty or crumbly.
-I used regular yogurt for this recipe, but greek yogurt would also be just fine. You could use anything from non-fat to full-fat, depending on preference.
-The cookbook I use notes that you can use anywhere from 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of butter. The more butter, the longer the muffins will stay fresh. So, if you don't plan on eating them right away, up the butter all the way to 1 stick. You won't regret it!
-Muffins also freeze well!

*Muffin recipe adapted from the Joy of Cooking cookbook