I’m a Corn Muffin-A-holic. I’m also a purist when it comes to corn muffins. I don’t like any fruit in them. Just corn muffin goodness and butter satisfies that soulful need.
When I was a kid, my Mom used to bake us all sorts of wonderful treats. These included her corn muffins. But, when there wasn’t time for those, she’d often have on hand the old Thomas’ Corn Toasties. They were a small pancake-sized “muffin” that went into the toaster and then you’d slather them with butter.
These days I’m gluten free almost exclusively and so, when I’m craving something, I go into experimental mode. My favorite corn muffin recipe is from Ina Garten. I am capable of making a batch and eating them until they are gone………
Corn Muffins can be bland, dry, and too crumbly – sometimes even chalky when you’re trying gluten-free. Could I make one that was worth eating?
Today, I took a stab at these. In this case I acquiesced and allowed for some lemon zest. While they do not result in that clearly corny flavor profile, they are really quite good and I thought the crumb was admirable. The almond flour obviously softens the corn flavor. I’m not really a fan of the pre-packaged gluten-free flours because they often have a myriad of ingredients I don’t like. Remember, always look at what you switch in for what you switch out! Read the labels of your gluten-free products!
Try them, though – and, play with the recipe!
My Gluten-Free Corn Muffins
1 cup organic stone ground yellow corn meal
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/4 tblsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 tblsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 ex large eggs, room temp
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract
zest of one half lemon
Preheat oven to 375F. Line a cupcake tin with paper liners and set aside.
In a bowl, whisk together the flours, corn meal, baking powder, salt, sugar and lemon zest. In a measuring cup, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, butter and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and working with a wooden spoon, mix, just until the dry ingredients are incorporated. Scoop, with an ice cream scoop into the prepared pan. Bake 20 minutes or until nicely browned and just firm to the touch. Serve with sweet cream butter.
Enjoy!
