Moist and Marvelous Corn Muffins

I have always been a big fan of corn muffins. The problem is that often they are dry and stick in your throat. I have been searching for years for the perfect recipe for corn muffins in order to make them moist and tender. In general muffins can be a baking person’s Waterloo since they seem like such a simple thing to prepare and yet so often come out with a dry texture that you need something to wash it down with.

After many years of preparing them and experimenting, I finally have discovered that the best way of making a perfect muffin is to separate into two bowls the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients. This requires getting two bowls dirty, however It is worth that small extra effort. What is important to understand in the prep of a muffin is that over beating your ingredients will give you a tough muffin. Therefore, you should only combine the wet and dry together at the last minute and I found using a whisk incorporates the mixture well without overmixing it.  That’s why I nearly always make them by hand now and not in the mixer.  It’s easy and gives you better control so they mix just right.  

This is less nerve-racking then it may seem. All it entails is preparing the ingredients that you will need in advance and only mixing the batter when you have everything in front of you. Always always have your oven preheated and with muffins you want the heat to be fairly high which will result in a nice high dome.  Even if your default for baking is 350 degrees, there is a reason oven manufacturers give you a higher and lower choice!  😜 Really, I’m speaking to myself, since for years I defaulted to 350 and was sure the higher temp would ruin the muffins and dry them out.  Nay nay I say, this is the correct temperature for your oven –  your muffins will come out far better.

This is general prep for muffins and should be followed whenever you make them.

Corn muffins have an additional step that I have learned to make and makes a huge difference, in my opinion, in the end results.  In Israel, the cornmeal is ground quite coarsely and in the USA it’s much finer. 

 

 

I take the corn meal and a soak it in buttermilk or a reasonable facsimile thereof, for example, if I make it non-dairy, I use soy milk with a nice thick texture.

I then add a teaspoon of vinegar to a cup of the soy milk and it looks and acts very much like buttermilk.

I allow it to soak for approximately 10 to 15 minutes and I find that the cornmeal absorbs some of the liquid and it softens it so that it bakes up moister.

Ever since I started doing this with my cornmeal muffins they have come out deliciously soft and tender. Sometimes it is these little attentions which can make a huge difference in the ultimate result.

Then, I add the rest of the wet ingredient to the cornmeal mixture and only after I’ve whisked that together well do I pour this into the dry mixture which I’ve already whisked together previously.

Then the final mixture, which I briefly whisk together just till the vast majority of the flour is incorporated. I’m usually obsessive about every drop of flour being incorporated but not in the case of muffins. Really.

This mixture is thickish but a bit runny. Then take out your muffin pan and oil spray with a vengeance! Seriously, don’t chintz on the spray. Apportion the batter evenly into 12 muffin cups.

They are all pretty much filled to the top. This is what you want so the muffins will form a domed top in the oven.

Finally bake for 15 minutes – no more no less (of course, this is if your oven is properly calibrated) since it will be perfectly baked yet not dry. Gently poke one with a toothpick and it should have a crumb or two cling to it. Done!

Marvelously Moist Corn Muffins

Dairy or non-dairy *

1 cup cornmeal

• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk OR soy milk with a teaspoon and a half of vinegar added – let sit for a few minutes till you get a slightly curdled look

1 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup oil

1 large egg

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Take out two medium sized bowls. Into one, put the cornmeal and pour the buttermilk over it, stir till combined and put aside for at least 10 minutes. Take the other bowl and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Whisk till properly combined.

Then, add to the cornmeal mixture the oil and egg. Whisk thoroughly. Finally, add the wet mixture to the dry, whisking briefly till no big pockets of flour remain.

Take out a 12 cup muffin pan, spray liberally with oil spray to cover the both the inner part of the muffin cups and the top of the pan so that the top of the muffins won’t get stuck. This is a pet peeve of mine, when the muffin tears because you didn’t use enough oil spray. This will prevent your aggravation.

Then I use an ice cream scoop (I love the Oxo) an idea I saw Ina Garten use and have since adopted, to scoop the mixture into the muffin cups. It gives you equal portions that way.

Put the pan into the preheated oven (I cannot sufficiently emphasize the need for preheating, otherwise baked goods simply will not come out properly), and bake for 15 minutes. If your oven is accurate, this is the exact amount of time to bake them. Perfect, tender luscious muffins. Now that cup of coffee or tea is only because you want it together, not because you need to wash it down. 🙂