I love blueberry muffins and I hate throwing away useful things, that’s how I came up with the idea for sourdough discard blueberry muffins. While most muffins recipes call for things like butter, sugar and sour scream, I used canola oil, sugar substitutes and greek yogurt, so I feel less guilty about eating these.
As with most of the population this year, my husband took up baking sourdough bread. I knew nothing about sourdough starter, and while my husband has certainly learned more about it than I, what I did learn is that you have to throw some of this stuff out every day. Every. Day.
As a crafter I am always looking at things that are headed for the trash can thinking, “what could I make from that”. I hate wasting things and sending so much stuff to the landfill. I didn’t always think this way and I have New York to blame or maybe be thankful for that. Quick story: We spent 6 weeks one summer living in Manhattan, NY. And you know what, they don’t have dumpsters/garbage cans. So all the trash. All. The. Trash. Just gets thrown out on the busy Manhattan sidewalks. Old mattresses, sofa’s, clothes, toys, plastic garbage bags leaking a steady stream of putrified, oily liquid across the sidewalk that you’ll slip on, just like ice. And not just once a week, but twice a week. Do you know how much garbage gets piled onto a sidewalk from a high-rise building? OMG it’s insane. When you live in the suburbs, your trash is contained in nice little trash bins, which are neatly lined up along the street for pickup. It’s all so tidy that you don’t give a second thought to how much trash is really generated in the world. Until you see it piled on the sidewalks, piled so high you can barely see over it and so wide that a once 2-way pedestrian walkway becomes one-way. Wait, where was I? Oh yes, a blueberry muffin recipe.
So anyways, now that I have seen the waste, I like to try and minimize it as much as I can – which you might note in some of my blog posts, where I like to upcycle various items that were destined for the landfill.
With sourdough starter you have to discard some every day before you feed it. I also don’t like wasting food, so I have been trying to find various recipes to use the sourdough discard. So far I’ve made coffee cake and donuts, both good, but not good enough that I would share the recipe and recommend you make them.
Ingredients for Sourdough Discard Blueberry Muffins
Makes 8 muffins
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup (125 g) all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup allulose (a sugar substitute)
- 1-1/2 teaspoon corn starch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)
Wet Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons Canola oil
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup (63 g) sourdough discard
- 1-1/2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
Crumb Topping
- 4 teaspoons canola oil
- 1/4 cup splenda
- 1/4 cup (32 g) all purpose flour
Directions
- Crumb topping: Place the splenda and flour into a bowl and mix with a fork to evenly distribute the ingredients. Add the canola oil a teaspoon at a time, using a fork to mix until it becomes a coarse crumble. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a muffin tin with 8 paper liners or grease generously to prevent sticking.
- Dry ingredients: In a large bowl combine the flour, allulose, corn starch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt with a fork. Add the blueberries and toss the mixture to coat. Set aside.
- Wet ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk all the wet ingredients until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
- Divide the batter evenly into 8 muffins and sprinkle the top with the crumble topping. Make sure to press the crumble, gently, on the top of the batter.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let muffins cool in the tin for 10 minutes before removing.
If you don’t have sourdough starter, sometimes you can get it from a local bakery for free. They are throwing it out daily as well and so sometimes they will give it to customers. I know in the past Squarz Bakery has given out free starter. Contact them, or another bakery to inquire.
Author: Nicole Bolin