Last weekend, I drove home to Oklahoma for my baby brother’s college graduation. I remember when he was tiny, and I was terrified of dropping him. Now he’s all grown up, and a few inches taller than I am. A couple of years ago, he developed an interest in videography out of nowhere. Now, he’s made a business of it. He’s going to come up to Kansas City soon and help me make some Cookie and Kate videos! We’re both stubborn perfectionists, and we’re both always right, so stay tuned for how that turns out.
My mom asked me to bring home some muffins to help with breakfast. I was already planning to make these with some frozen berries that Cascadian Farm sent to me, so it was perfect timing. Usually, when I bake muffins for the blog, I just freeze them for later. Watching my family enjoy them was way more fun. These raspberry muffins are based on my carrot muffins and apple muffins. Like the others, they are marvelously fluffy and moist, but made with 100 percent whole grains, and naturally sweetened, too. I added some lemon zest, which infuses the muffins with light lemon flavor, in between bursts of jammy raspberries.
Raspberries won’t be in season for a couple more months, and strawberries are just beginning to ripen up, so frozen berries were the perfect solution. Since raspberries (also blueberries and blackberries) are so small, you can fold them right into muffin batters without defrosting them first. Berries are are typically treated with pesticides on the field, so it’s best to buy organic when possible. In fact, strawberries are at the top of the Dirty Dozen list this year, so they are the most important fruit to buy organic. Frozen organic fruit is a great year-round option, and it’s less expensive than buying fresh organic fruit. I love to use frozen fruits in baked goods and desserts, and savor fresh, in-season fruit in its delicious raw state. You can enjoy these muffins any time you’re craving a sweet, fruity breakfast treat!
Watch How to Make Lemony Raspberry Muffins
This post was created in partnership with Cascadian Farm and I received compensation for my participation. Opinions are my own, always. Thank you for supporting the sponsors who support C+K! Make it dairy free: See buttermilk option above. Make it egg free: Substitute flax eggs for the regular eggs. Make it gluten free: Substitute an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend for the whole wheat flour. Bob’s Red Mill makes a GF blend that works well. *Note on Greek yogurt: I’ve used a variety of fat percentages and the muffins have always turned out well. Higher fat yogurt will yield a somewhat more rich muffin. You can also substitute plain (not Greek) yogurt, but your muffins might not rise quite as high.
