Giant Streusel Topped Blueberry Muffins

There are very few foods that Mike and I don't agree upon.  One minor one is fish--I don't care for it, but he doesn't mind it.  The biggest issue is fruit.  I could eat fruit every meal for the rest of my life and be perfectly happy.  Mike eats his banana every day and would be pleased to continue that way for the rest of his life, with the possible exception of strawberries.

I was thrilled to get to go blueberry picking last year.  Even though Mike doesn't eat them, he still encouraged me to go picking (by myself, of course!) and freeze an incredible amount of blueberries!  I use them year-round for smoothies, in pancakes, and in muffins.  When Tina announced that this month's Crazy Cooking Challenge was to find the recipe for the ultimate blueberry muffin, I jumped on this opportunity to scour the web for the best recipe.  And friends, I do believe I have found it! 

My search led me to Christy's site, The Girl Who Ate Everything.  If the story she told in her blog post didn't draw me in, the pictures of her muffins certainly did!  Her story had me giggling, and her pictures had me drooling.  I knew I found an amazing recipe.  I borrowed a giant muffin tin from Mike's mom so I could make specialty-shop sized muffins.  Let me tell you--they did not disappoint!

Streusel Topped Blueberry Muffins

Makes 12 muffins (or 4 giant muffins)

You will need:
2 cups flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup whole milk
2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

Streusel topping:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 cup butter, softened
1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1.  Prepare streusel topping by combining the sugar, flour, butter, and cinnamon in a small bowl with a fork (or your hands).  Mix until the texture resembles wet sand.

2.  Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl.  Set aside.

3.  In a large bowl, cream the sugar and butter together until fluffy.
 
4.  Add in the eggs, vanilla, and milk and stir until combined.

5.  Add the flour mixture and stir until just combined.

6.  Gently fold blueberries into the batter. (I toss my blueberries with a small amount of flour first to keep them from sinking in the batter.)

7.  Scoop into greased (or paper lined) muffin tins.  Sprinkle muffins with streusel topping.

8.  Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean.

Source:  The Girl Who Ate Everything