Blueberry Beet Honey Oat Muffins

Blueberries and roasted beets are sweetened with honey in a multigrain muffin

Blueberry muffins are one of the most iconic types of muffins.  [You won't find any icons on this blog, other than my teeny tiny social media icons next to the print button at the bottom of this post.] I was shocked to realize that of the 26 muffin recipes I've posted on this blog, only one of them contains blueberries.

It also contains beets, and it's a pretty sweet muffin what with the white chocolate chips and all (Red, White and Blue Muffins recipe here). I wanted to share a less 'treat' muffin.

 I've got beets from the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm share, and adding some roasted beets to the party in the blender [not to be confused with this party in a blender] accentuates the color of the blueberries without overwhelming the flavor.

Why do I use a blender? My son is not a big "whole blueberries in baked goods" fan, so for these muffins, just like these Sweet Corn and Blueberry Waffles, I use my blender.  We all get the goodness of blueberries without anyone biting into an undesired big fat berry.

I'm glad to announce my 27th muffin recipe, and second beet+blueberry muffin in a row, Blueberry Beet Honey Oat Muffins.  I use honey, not sugar, in this recipe, which makes me think about how "real sugar" is now a valued item in soft drinks, yet perversely still taboo in "healthy" recipes. Whatever. While they are lightly sweet on their own, these muffins also taste delicious served warm with lemon curd.
These soaked oatmeal muffins require at least an hour long pre-preparation soak, but you can always prep a container of oatmeal and buttermilk days ahead and store in your fridge like I've shown here.

Blueberry Beet Honey Oat Muffins

1 cup rolled oats (old fashioned is how I roll, but it doesn't make a difference)

1 cup buttermilk

⅔ cup roasted beets

⅔ cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)

1 egg

¼ cup honey

¼ cup cooking oil (I use vegetable oil)

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 ounces (1 cup) whole wheat flour

2⅛ ounces (½ cup) unbleached all purpose flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon baking soda

optional--lemon curd for serving

In a large bowl (or, save dishes and use your blender--I used my Vitamix) combine oats and buttermilk.  Let soak for an hour. Add beets and blueberries to the blender and blend to an even consistency.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a muffin tin with vegetable oil or line with paper muffin cups. Dump contents of blender into a large bowl and add egg, honey, oil and vanilla.  Mix well. Dump dry ingredients (I weigh my flour for consistency) on top, then stir until just combined. Scoop** muffin batter into prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes, then cool for 5 minutes in the pan before turning onto a rack to finish cooling. Serve warm or at room temperature. Good with lemon curd.

**My scoop holds 3 Tablespoons (1 ½ ounces) by volume, though the muffin batter is mounded in the scoop so I'm pretty sure I'm putting a good 3 ½ Tablespoons into each muffin well.  The muffin wells in my regular muffin pans each hold 3 ounces by volume.

This post is shared with Hot Fun in the Summertime What's Cookin' Wednesday, Fresh Foods Wednesday, Clever Chicks Blog Hop, Tasty Tuesdays