Corn muffins go through a transformation with the addition of brown butter and roasted corn.
I have a confession to make. Sometimes after a day of recipe testing and cooking, I have no energy for making dinner. I might take a short cut here or there. And whenever we have chili, cornbread or muffins are a natural side. So I might use a mix that comes in a small box. There is no shame. Everyone is satisfied with dinner and the muffins are happily eaten.
However, with just a little more time, I can make brown butter corn muffins that have a roasty flavor and flecks of fresh corn. The prep work involved pays big flavor dividends.
Roasted corn
Roasting the corn adds a different depth of flavor to a recipe. Shuck an ear of corn and place it over the flame of a burner on a gas stove. Sounding like popcorn, the kernels brown as the ear is rotated. If you don't have a gas stove, you can roast the corn under a broiler. After cooling off, cut the kernels off the cob. They are like little nuggets of freshness in the muffins that snap when you chew them.
Brown butter
Brown butter is one of my favorite ingredients to use while cooking. Speckled bits of roasted milk solids from the butter are a perfect flavor companion to the corn. Also, the muffins are very moist with an enhanced richness.
After you prep these two ingredients, the rest of the recipe is easy. Mix the dry ingredients, whisk together the wet ingredients and then combine everything together. Bake in a 400 degree oven and the muffins are ready in 20 minutes.
Sometimes we have a few muffins leftover for breakfast the next morning. I really enjoy a warm muffin slathered with blackberry black pepper jam. The jam has a hint of spice that compliments the roasted flavors of the muffins.
Recipe
Brown Butter Corn Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ear corn
- ¼ cup brown butter
Dry Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups AP flour
- 1 cup corn meal
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Wet Ingredients
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add liners to 12 cup muffin pan.
- Roast an ear of corn. You can do this directly over a flame of a burner on a gas stove or under a broiler. Once cool, cut the kernels off the cob.Brown ¼ cup of butter. It may be easier to brown a full stick of butter and then save the other ¼ cup. To brown the butter, put the stick in a small saute pan over medium heat. Let the butter melt. You will see a lot of bubbles and the milk solids will rise to the top. Occasionally scrape the bottom of the pan to see if there is any brown reside. Soon the white bubbles will turn into a foam on top of the butter. At this point, the butter should be turning a nutty brown color and there is a lot of residue on the bottom of the pan. Pour the butter into a container off of the heat along with the residue. It will continue to brown because of carryover cooking. Let cool while continuing with the rest of the recipe.
- Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl. In a separate bowl combine the eggs with the cream and buttermilk. While continuing to stir, add the butter and honey.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir just until everything as combined. Throw in the roasted corn and evenly distribute.
- Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Nutrition
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