Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Blueberry Goat Cheese Muffins

Posted by Erin Wilburn / 15 comments » / breakfast, goat cheese, Nashville

These muffins are the result of another cafe copycat.  Yes, I like to frequent as many (non-Starbucks) coffee shop/cafes in Nashville as I can, in case you haven’t noticed!  Back in the fall, I met my good friend Tony at a local Nashville favorite, Fido, to sip coffee & catch up.  As we were in line to order, my original plan was to just get my favorite drink (Milkbone latte, nonfat, no whip, made as a cappuccino instead, and yes I am that difficult).  But in the pastry case a certain muffin flavor caught my eye.  Nestled between the typical banana nut muffin, bran muffin, and chocolate muffin was a blueberry goat cheese muffin.  My curiosity was instantly piqued, and I knew I had to get it.  I was sure it would be good, as every cake/muffin/cookie/etc I’ve had from Fido in my numerous visits has been delicious, not to mention their made-to-order menu is pretty amazingly delicious too!  Not long after my first bite I knew instantly I would be baking a version of these in my own kitchen.  These were so good, I kept stopping what I was saying in conversation with Tony, to proclaim, “This is really good!  Really really good!”

Now, I don’t want anyone wary of goat cheese to run from this recipe.  The goat cheese flavor is only a mere essence.  Honestly, if you weren’t told it was in there, you wouldn’t know.  Besides, how often is sour cream used in baked goods?  No one ever says anything baked with sour cream tastes like sour cream.  The goat cheese is mainly used to moisten the muffin.  If you know to look for the goat cheese, depending on how advanced your palate is, you could probably sense it.  I’m really glad I finally got around to making the copycat version of the muffin I had at Fido.  These were delicious!!

One last Nashville plug before the recipe, as you know I love local establishments and local products.  So, when recreating the muffin I ate at Fido, my only choice for the goat cheese was a local company I already adore, Noble Springs.  I’ve been turned onto their cheeses for a couple years now, and I’ve already raved about them in my Goat Cheese Stuffed Fig post in 2009.  Every cheese I’ve bought from Noble Springs has been exceptionally delicious, and Dustin or whomever happens to be selling at the market, is always super nice, and excited about their cheeses.

Print

Blueberry Goat Cheese Muffins

from Coconut & Lime

Yield: Approx 20 muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups flour (I always use 1/2 all purpose and 1/2 white whole wheat)
2 cups blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup soft goat cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup blueberry puree
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, at room temperature
optional: demerara sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400. Grease or line 12 wells in a muffin tin. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, mix together butter, goat cheese, puree, egg and vanilla until blended. Add the dry ingredients. Mix the batter thoroughly (batter will be very thick) then fold in blueberries. Fill each well about 3/4 of the way and sprinkle with demerara sugar if using. Bake 15-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean or with just a few dry crumbs. Remove to rack and let cool at least 2 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Info per muffin (if yield is 20 muffins) Calories: 122; Fat: 4g; Sodium: 172mg; Carbohydrates: 19.4g; Dietary Fiber: 1.4g; Sugar: 9.5g; Protein: 3g