Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins are legendary! Made with fresh blueberries, they have soft and moist crumbs and sugary crisp tops that are to die for! These Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins were enjoyed by generations for decades at the Jordan Marsh department stores in Boston and New England.
If you are a blueberry muffin lover, you just have to get this recipe. I ain't kidding! It is the best blueberry muffin recipe ever! Check out why!
Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins
The Jordan Marsh Stores were a department store chain that operated from 1841 to 1996. The headquarters were in Boston, Massachusetts, but they also had stores elsewhere in New England.
One of the many things for which that special place was famous in the Boston area was their legendary blueberry muffins.
Even after closing their doors, their baker, John Pupek (known as “the muffin man”) continued to make and sell them in his shop until he retired in 2004.
But if you've never heard of these goodies, make sure and get acquainted! These famous blueberry muffins were the ‘IT” treat for decades and enjoyed by generations of families.
According to the Boston Globe : “For decades, any decent downtown shopping trip ended at Jordan Marsh, where the promise of a sugar-crusted blueberry muffin could make annoying children angelic.”
That summarized how famous those blueberry muffins were! And for good reason… I can attest they are the best blueberry muffins I have ever had.
They have a sweet crisp top and a soft, moist interior that make them richer than most blueberry muffins.
Moreover, this famous blueberry muffin recipe calls for fresh blueberries. Part of them is added whole to the batter while another part is mashed, which makes the batter moister, with a richer blueberry flavor.
Ingredients and Substitutions
The quality of the muffins depends on the quality of the ingredients used to make this famous recipe:
- Blueberries: Fresh blueberries work best in Jordan Marsh’s blueberry muffins recipe because frozen blueberries can add an extra, unwanted amount of water to the batter. Set aside ½ cup of fresh blueberries to mash and stir into the batter. Then, toss the remaining whole blueberries with some cake flour so they don’t sink to the bottom of the muffin tin.
- Butter: Use real butter (never margarine). European butter contains less water and more dairy/fat than American butter, making it a key ingredient for the creaming process, along with sugar.
- Eggs: The Jordan Marsh blueberry muffin recipe calls for 2 whole eggs, at room temperature. Please make no substitute here!
- Sugar: You’ll need granulated sugar both for the batter and tops.
- Flavoring: In one of the comments in this blog Carrie said the secret ingredient was anise extract-- not a teaspoon of vanilla extract, as most recipes out there place in the recipe, according to her Bostonian aunt. If you despise anise like me, don't worry! The flavor is quite subtle. So yes, you can use either anise or vanilla extract without causing a major change in flavor.
- Milk: Use full-fat milk (not reduced or low fat).
- Flour: The original recipe used a combination of flour (bread and pastry/cake flour). Bread flour is easy to find in the USA. But if you live in other parts of the world where it is not easy to find cake flour, you can easily replace cake flour with a combination of all-purpose flour and cornstarch. Cake flour makes baked goods lighter and fluffier. To replace cake flour, measure out 1 level cup all-purpose flour for every cup of cake flour called for in a recipe. Then remove 2 tablespoons of flour from that measurement and return them to the bag of flour. Next, add 2 tablespoons cornstarch to the (1 cup minus 2 tablespoons) of measured flour. Since our recipe calls for ½ cup of cake flour, you will need to replace it with ½ cup of all-purpose flour minus 1 tablespoon and then add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch.
- Baking Powder: Make sure the baking powder is fresh (and not expired) in order to be activated and help the muffins to rise when they are baking.
- Salt: This enhances sweetness!
How to Make Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins
- Preheat the oven to 425° F (220° C). In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together at low speed until fluffy. SEE PIC. 1 Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each one just enough to combine. Mix in the anise extract. SEE PIC. 2
- Add the dry ingredients (bread and cake flours, baking powder, and salt) in 2-3 additions, alternating with the milk. Beat every time just until combined. SEE PICS. 3 and 4
- In a separate bowl, mash ½ cup of blueberries and incorporate them into the batter by folding them in with a spatula. SEE PIC. 5 and 6
- Add the rest of the blueberries (whole) and fold in again. NOTE: If you can, fold the whole blueberries in with a little bit of extra cake flour before adding them to the batter. This will prevent them from sinking while baking. NOTE: Bake the muffins as soon as the batter is ready at a high temperature so they can rise properly!
- Meanwhile, line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper cupcake liners (or alternatively grease the tin cups very well with nonstick cooking spray). Using a cookie or ice cream scoop, fill the liners with the batter until reaches the very top of each muffin cup. SEE PIC. 7
- Divide and sprinkle the 3 tablespoon (or more) of coarse sugar over the tops of the muffins. SEE PIC. 8
- Place the muffin pan on the middle rack and bake for 8 minutes. Then, without opening the oven door, decrease the oven temperature to 375° F (190° C) and bake for an additional 17-22 minutes. The muffin tops will be golden brown and puffy! Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the middle (they must be crumb-free). NOTE: Test and compare! You can bake these muffins from beginning to end in a preheated oven at 375° F (190° C) for 25-30 minutes or until crumb-free in the middle. But they won’t rise as much as when baked at different oven temps.
- Let the muffins cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes. Then carefully remove the muffins from the tin while hot and transfer them to a wire rack to fully cool.
Tips for Making Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins Recipe
- To make this Jordan Marsh recipe, use a blend of bread and cake or pastry flour. If you can’t find cake flour, replace it with a combo of all-purpose flour and cornstarch (see recipe).
- Use room temperature, good-quality butter, and cream with the sugar until the sugar and butter mixture is fluffy. How long you cream the butter and sugar together will depend on weather conditions, such as humidity. You will have to adjust the time depending on your situation.
- Using an electric mixer, add the eggs, one at a time, beating the batter in between each addition, but just enough to combine them. Do NOT overmix!
- Alternate the addition of dry ingredients (such as flours) with the milk.
- Mash ½ cup berries and stir them into the batter to make these domed blueberry muffins extra moist.
- These are NOT blueberry muffins with frozen blueberries! Fresh berries work best in this recipe. Toss the whole blueberries with some extra cake flour before adding them to the batter so the blueberries are distributed throughout the muffins and don’t sink to the bottom of the muffin.
- Bake the muffins as soon as the batter is ready at a high temperature so they can rise properly!
- Use an ice cream scoop to scoop the batter into the muffin tins. This helps to produce rounded tops. Also, use a pan with large muffin cups (standard-size) instead of a mini muffin tin.
- Either use paper liners or grease the tin cups generously with nonstick cooking spray before scooping the batter into it.
- Sprinkle sugar on top of each bakery-style muffin generously before baking.
- You can bake these easy blueberry muffins from beginning to end in a preheated oven at 375° F (190° C) for 25-30 minutes or until crumb-free in the middle (like in the original Jordan Marsh blueberry muffin recipe). But they won’t rise as much as when baked for the first 8 minutes in a preheated 425° F (220° C) oven and the next 17-22 minutes at 375° F (190° C).
- Let them cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes before transferring each one of them to a cooling wire rack.
What to Serve with These Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins
They need nothing else! But you can serve them with a pat of butter on top for breakfast, brunch, or a snack.
Or you may accompany them with coffee, tea, milk, ice cream, fresh fruit salad, a quiche, or more as part of brunch.
Storage
Store these cool, to-die-for blueberry muffins in a sealable bag or airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
They keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
To thaw Jordan Marsh blueberry muffins, simply place the muffins on the counter until defrosted.
If you want to eat them warm, you may reheat them for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave.
Other blueberry recipes to enjoy
Other muffin recipes to try
- Apple Crumble Muffins
- Keto Egg Muffins
- Cinnamon Muffins Recipe
- Mango Coconut Streusel Muffins
- Flourless Pumpkin Coconut Muffins
PIN & ENJOY!
Jordan Marsh Blueberries Muffins
Equipment
- Mixing bowls
- 1 spatula
- 1 Ice cream scoop
- 1 12-cup muffin tin standard size
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar Measure and level the cup with a knife
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 2 cups bread flour Measure and level the cup with a knife
- ½ cup cake flour Measure and level the cup with a knife. TO REPLACE IT: Measure out ½ level cup all-purpose flour and then remove 1 tablespoon of the flour from that measurement and return it to the bag of flour. Next, add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to the ½ cup of all-purpose flour minus 1 tbsp. and stir to combine.
- 4 teaspoon baking powder Measure and level the spoon with a knife
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup whole milk
- ½ teaspoon anise extract The secret ingredient Replace with vanilla extract if you prefer
- 2 ½ cups fresh blueberries
- 3 tablespoon sugar for the tops only
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425° F (220° C). In a stand mixer, cream butter and 1 cup of sugar together at low speed until fluffy. Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each one just enough to combine. Mix in the anise extract.
- Add the dry ingredients (bread and cake flours, baking powder, and salt) in 2-3 additions, alternating with the milk. Beat every time just until combined.
- In a separate bowl, mash ½ cup of blueberries and incorporate into the batter by folding in with a spatula. Add the rest of blueberries (whole) and fold in again. NOTE: If you can, fold the whole blueberries in with a little bit of extra cake flour before adding them to the batter. This will prevent them from sinking while baking.
- Meanwhile, line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper cupcake liners (or alternatively grease the tin cups very well with nonstick cooking spray). Using a cookie or ice cream scoop, fill the liners with the batter until reaches the very top of each muffin cup. Divide and sprinkle the 3 tablespoon (or more) of coarse sugar over the tops of the muffins. NOTE: Bake the muffins as soon as the batter is ready so they can rise properly!
- Place the muffin tin on the middle rack and bake for 8 minutes. Then, without opening the oven door, decrease the oven temperature to 375° F (190° C) and bake for an additional 17-22 minutes. The muffin tops will be golden brown and puffy!
- Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the middle (they must be crumb-free). NOTE: Test and compare! You can bake these muffins from beginning to end in a preheated oven at 375° F (190° C) for 25-30 minutes or until crumb-free in the middle. But they won’t rise as much as when baked at the different oven temps outlined above.
- Let the muffins cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes. Then carefully remove the muffins from the tin while hot and transfer them to a wire rack to fully cool.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- Store these cool, to-die-for blueberry muffins in a sealable bag or airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- They keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- To thaw Jordan Marsh blueberry muffins, simply place the muffins on the counter until defrosted.
- If you want to eat them warm, you may reheat them for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave.
Nutrition
** Nutrition labels on easyanddelish.com are for educational purposes only. This info is provided as a courtesy and is only an estimate, since the nutrition content of recipes can vary based on ingredient brand or source, portion sizes, recipe changes/variations, and other factors. We suggest making your own calculations using your preferred calculator, based on which ingredients you use, or consulting with a registered dietitian to determine nutritional values more precisely.
Please note that health-focused and diet information provided on easyanddelish.com is for educational purposes and does not constitute medical advice, nor is it intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. Consult with your doctor or other qualified health professional prior to initiating any significant change in your diet or exercise regimen, or for any other issue necessitating medical advice.
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