Rich and Buttery Corn Muffins

By Melissa Clark

Rich and Buttery Corn Muffins
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
40 minutes
Rating
4(1,334)
Comments
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Made with plenty of melted butter and sour cream, these golden, lightly sweet corn muffins are moist, rich and delicately crumbly. If you can find coarsely ground cornmeal (as opposed the fine stuff that’s on most supermarket shelves), you’ll also get deep corn flavor and a pleasantly grainy texture. Serve these warm from the oven, slathered with even more butter, or halved and toasted under the broiler to crisp the surface. They’ll even keep for a few days if you store them in the fridge, and freeze perfectly for up to a month.

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Ingredients

Yield:12 muffins
  • 1cup/255 grams unsalted butter (2 sticks), melted and cooled, plus more for greasing the pan
  • 2cups/240 grams coarse or stone-ground cornmeal
  • 1½cups/190 grams all-purpose flour
  • ⅔cup/165 grams granulated sugar
  • 1½tablespoons baking powder
  • 1teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ¼teaspoon baking soda
  • 1cup/240 milliliters sour cream or whole-milk Greek yogurt
  • ½cup/120 milliliters whole milk
  • 2large eggs, at room temperature
  • Demerara sugar, as needed
  • Softened butter, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)

387 calories; 22 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 44 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 16 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 257 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 400 degrees, and generously butter the cups and tops of a muffin tin. (The muffins will overflow, and those crisp edges are delicious.)

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.

  3. Step 3

    In a separate bowl, whisk together melted butter, sour cream, milk and eggs. Fold butter mixture into dry ingredients, then scoop batter into muffin tin (it will be very full). Sprinkle each muffin top with Demerara sugar.

  4. Step 4

    Bake until golden on the edges, 18 to 22 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove from muffin tin and cool to room temperature. Serve with even more butter.

Ratings

4 out of 5
1,334 user ratings
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Comments

Dorothy Anguish

Think muffin are grand? Take this batter and make it into waffles. Even more immediate gratification, it's ALL crispy edges, and the perfect side with chili or soup. Or chicken and gravy. Butterscotch ice cream... You're welcome.

elle

You'll get a much better crown if after mixing the batter (leaving in some requisite lumps) you let the batter sit for 10-15 minutes so the liquids get absorbed by the corn meal and flour.

Lauren

A twist for those who prefer savory to sweet: skip the Demerara sugar and add crumbled bacon bits to the batter. Best. Muffins. Ever.

Beth

These muffins are delicious! I had an issue with the muffins sticking. I think I’ll use liners next time, as I had 0/12 muffins not crumble apart. I used cast iron (two 6-cup pans), and have not had this issue with non-corn muffins.

yz

These muffins were fabulous! 5 stars! Threw a few over the hill blueberries, made 1/2 a batch and served with sour cherry jam. Perfectly crunchy tops, not too sweet, (cut back on the sugar a bit).

Sheila K

Is 1 and 1/2 Tablespoons of baking powder correct? I used 1/2 T and they rose nicely.

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