Mulberry Muffins

Let’s forage!

Berries don’t just come from the produce aisle, they’re growing all around us, you only have to know what to look for, and when. Mulberry trees are heavy with fruit right now in Wisconsin and so, armed with a zip lock baggie and a recipe plan, I gathered just enough…about a cup and a half, for a perfect batch of mulberry muffins.

Mulberry muffins are easy ~ one bowl and a whisk.

They are light and fluffy, not weighty and dense like bakery muffins. Perfect for breakfast or coffee break.

I’m sharing my secret for baking with delicate berries ~ there’s no mushing, mashing, or bleeding!

Swap out other berries. As the season goes on use black raspberries, wild blackberries, gooseberries, marionberries, ollalieberries…

What are mulberries?

Mulberries are small, soft berries that grow on trees. They look a bit like elongated blackberries, but their flavor is usually milder, sweeter, and less tart. Birds love them, so do humans.

In the U.S. you can find mulberry trees in backyards, alleys, parks, and along fences.

Mulberries are best used soon after picking. They’re lovely in muffins, pies, jams, sauces. I grab them when I can and freeze extras so I can make mulberry muffins any time of year.

Why don’t I see them in the grocery store?

Because mulberries are too soft and fragile to ship well. They bruise easily and have a very short shelf life once picked. They’re perfect backyard fruit, terrible grocery-store fruit.

What do they taste like?

Mulberries are tricky because they look like blackberries but don’t taste like blackberries. They’re softer, sweeter, and more delicate ~ less tart, less dramatic. A ripe purple-black mulberry has a flavor somewhere between blackberry, fig, and grape,

Why I add a light streusel to mulberry muffins

I love this light streusel, you can mix it up in seconds and it just gives the muffins a little bit of extra texture and sweetness in every bite. I do this on my Strawberry Muffins, my Lemon Muffins, and my Rhubarb Muffins, for example ~ I really like the effect.

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Mulberry Muffins

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Mulberry muffins are soft, fluffy, and easy to make with just a handful of fresh fruit. Keep this recipe handy for all kinds of berries ~ foraged, farmers market, or supermarket.

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Prep Time:10 minutes minutes

Cook Time:30 minutes minutes

Total Time:40 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 muffins

Video

Equipment

• 1 12 cup muffin tin
• muffin paper liners

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

• 1 1/2 cups mulberries, flash frozen

streusel topping (optional)

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter

muffins

• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste, you can also use extract.
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups all purpose flour

Instructions

• Flash freeze your mulberries: place them in a single layer on a plate or baking sheet and pop in the freezer for 30-45 minutes. This helps keep the delicate berries from falling apart in your batter. You can do this just before you start your muffins, or days ahead of time. Just pack the frozen berries in a heavy duty zip lock freezer bag.
• Preheat oven to 375F and butter a muffin tin, or line with muffin tin liners.

the streusel

• Combine the ingredients with your fingertips until it is crumbly and the butter is completely incorporated. The mixture will be dry but keep at it until the moisture of the butter is thoroughly incorporated. Set aside.

the muffins

• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the 2 large eggs, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 3/4 cup buttermilk, and 2 tsp vanilla bean paste. Get everything well combined.
• Whisk in the 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, and 1/2 tsp salt. Then fold in the 2 cups all purpose flour. When the flour is almost all incorporated, fold in the 1 1/2 cups mulberries.
• Fill your muffin cups quite full, and then sprinkle lightly with streusel mixture. Bake in a preheated oven for about 25-27 minutes, or until risen and just turning golden. Different ovens vary greatly, so check these on the early side.
• Cool slightly before turning the muffins out of the pan. Devour warm, with plenty of butter.

Notes

My berries were small, if yours are large, slice them before freezing.

Flash freezing your berries keeps them firm and whole and prevents the fruit from bleeding into the muffin batter.

Forage smart: only pick mulberries from a tree you can confidently identify, and stick with fully ripe fruit. Avoid trees near roadsides or sprayed areas, wash the berries well, and leave any unripe fruit for the birds.

NOTES ~ Click here to add your own private notes.

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Author: Sue Moran

Keyword: baking, berries, breakfast, muffins, mulberries, summer, wild berries

Nutrition

Serving: 1 muffin · Calories: 314 kcal · Carbohydrates: 42 g · Protein: 5 g · Fat: 14 g · Saturated Fat: 3 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 7 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g · Trans Fat: 0.1 g · Cholesterol: 47 mg · Sodium: 208 mg · Potassium: 179 mg · Fiber: 2 g · Sugar: 19 g · Vitamin A: 131 IU · Vitamin C: 5 mg · Calcium: 71 mg · Iron: 2 mg

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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