Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins

One of my friends came over Saturday night and kindly gave a huge bag filled with blueberries she has picked that morming.   These blueberries were so fresh and huge I knew immediately that I would be baking something the next day.   When I got up Sunday morning it was pouring out, so I figured it was the perfect opportunity to put the berrie to good use.

In the Boston area Jordan Marsh blueberry muffins are ledgendary. The Jordan's muffins were huge, packed with blueberries, and topped with sugar.  Jordan Marsh was bought out by Macys in the mid-1990s and the bakeries were closed.   People still talk about how much they miss the muffins.   A former Jordan's baker used to sell the muffins at a bakery he opened after Macys took over, but that bakery has since closed too.

This is the Jordan Marsh muffin recipe that has been floating around for a while.  I do not know if this is the exact reciepe that Jordans used, but it comes close.   The key is lots fresh blueberries and crunchy sugar on top. This receipe also calls for mashing some of the blueberries into the batter which I think really adds to the flavor and makes the muffin super moist.  These are not the kind of muffins that a non-blueberry eater could pick the berries out.

I used gradulated sugar for the top, because that is what I had in the house, but I think next time I make these I will buy some sugar in the raw to give the tops that extra crunch.

Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
½  cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
½  cup whole milk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 ½  cups fresh blueberries

Preheat oven to 350F.  Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together into a medium bowl & set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and 1 ¼ cups sugar and cream at low speed until the mixture is smoothly blended. At low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, and blend. Add the flour mixture and the milk a little at a time, alternating one with the other, and beat until blended, then remove the bowl from the mixer. Mash ½ cup of blueberries with your hands and gently fold them in with a wooden spoon or spatula. Add the rest of the berries and gently fold them in. Place paper muffin cups into the muffin tin, and fill each cup with slightly more than ¾ of batter. Sprinkle the remaining ¼  cup sugar over the muffin tops, then bake in the center of the oven for 25-30 minutes, until the muffins are golden brown and puffy. Remove from oven. If desired, top muffins with melted butter and sprinkle with more sugar immediately after removing from oven. Let cool before serving.