Double Berry Muffins with Ricotta Cheese

Wake up to these delightful Double Berry Muffins, made light and fluffy with the rich addition of ricotta cheese. You’ll start the day with a smile on your face.

Years ago in a break between college and graduate school, I took a job working in a bakery and restaurant. It was during the Muffin Heyday. You know, the 90s. Muffins were all the rage, mostly because we found a way to make cupcakes taste and feel a little bit healthy. True story.

One of my favorite perks of the job was the free muffin and coffee at break time. The muffins were always big and fluffy with nice crunchy tops. Oh, that was a nice spring and summer eating my way through every flavor imaginable. I particularly loved the berry muffins.

Since then, muffins have been some of my favorite baked goods. They are easy to make, especially when I have a few batches of my Mix and Match Muffin Mix on hand. My kids love them. Muffins are so customizable, you can change the ingredients, and honestly, you can make them a “healthy cupcake.” Plus, they are easily controlled for portions.

As long as you don’t eat ten.

This recipe for Double Berry Muffins is a new favorite of mine. Instead of the yogurt that I normally use, I substituted ricotta cheese that we had on hand. The result was a delicious, creamy, light, and fluffy muffin, loaded with berries. I’ll definitely consider ricotta again for muffin making.

I chose to use raspberries and blueberries, but you could also throw in boysenberries or cranberries, if you like. I don’t recommend strawberries because they have a higher water content and will change the texture of the recipe.

Don’t worry that your muffin pans will be full. Very full. That’s okay. Mound it up. As long as you measure precisely and your oven is the right temperature, you’ll have big, high crowned muffins just like the bakery makes. I currently bake my muffins at 375 as I find that helps them rise higher and have nice crunchy tops

Remember when I put out a call for muffin pan advice? You all changed my life with your recommendation of USA pans. I love those suckers like no other. I’m slowly replacing my old pans with these since baked goods never burn or stick in them. Wowza. If you need pans, they’re the kind to buy.

Here are the muffin tools I use almost every week:

Double Berry Muffins with Ricotta Cheese

Wake up to these delightful Double Berry Muffins, made light and fluffy with the rich addition of ricotta cheese. You’ll start the day with a smile on your face.

Preparation Time:10 minutes
Cook time:30 minutes
Total time:40 minutes
12 servings
Ingredients:

3 cups unbleached flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar plus 2 tablespoons
1 cup whole milk
1 cup ricotta cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
6 ounces raspberries
6 ounces blueberries

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375°. Line a muffin tin with papers or spray with nonstick cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 1 cup sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine the milk, ricotta, oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and lemon zest. Whisk to blend, until the ricotta is well incorporated. There should be no lumps.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture. Fold gently a few turns and add the berries. Continue folding until incorporated.
Fill the prepared muffin cups. Cups will be mounded full. Sprinkle remaining 2 tablespoons sugar over the tops of the batter. Bake for 30 minutes or until a tester comes out with a few crumbs attached. Cool on a rack and serve.
Muffins can be frozen once completely cooled. Place in a ziptop freezer bag and freeze up to 2 months.