BLUE-RASPBERRY MUFFINS

I was torn between making a coffee cake or muffins for a Father's Day breakfast. I created a recipe that had the best of both worlds, a blueberry muffin with a streusel topping. After all, what's the best part of a coffee cake...the sugary, buttery, crumbly topping!

When preparing the batter I discovered I did not purchase enough blueberries, but did have some raspberries on hand. I combined the two and the result was a delicious muffin with a crunchy topping, a beautiful hue of purple.

A single variety of berry or a mix would work well in this recipe.

Blue-Raspberry Muffins

2 cups all purpose flour

2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

3/4 c blueberries

1/2 c raspberries

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 t lemon zest

3/4 cup milk

2 T all purpose flour

5 T light brown sugar

1/2 t cinnamon

2 T cold butter, cut into pieces

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 12 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.

In a medium bowl combine 2 cups flour, baking powder and salt.

In a large bowl beat butter with granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add lemon zest and stir to combine. Stir in dry ingredients, alternating with milk, just until combined. Do not over mix. Fold in berries. Spoon batter into prepared cups. (Batter will be thick).

To make streusel, combine 2 T flour with brown sugar. Add cinnamon. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or two knives, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle streusel over batter in cups.

Bake 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center, comes out clean. Cool muffins for about 10 minutes before removing from pan.