These muffins get a ton of flavor from steeping the corn in milk, and it’s worth the extra step when sweet corn is at its peak. This cake makes a superb base for strawberry shortcake.
Ingredients
- 2 ears yellow sweet corn, shucked and cleaned
- 1 stick (113 g) unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
- ½ cup (118 ml) whole milk
- 1¼ cups (156 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ cup (80 g) fine-ground yellow cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 finely grated orange zest
- 3 cups (375 g) fresh or frozen raspberries
- Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling (optional)
How to Make It
- Cut the kernels from the corncobs by cutting the tips off of the ears of corn, standing the ears on the flat ends, and running a sharp knife in between the kernels and the cobs. This is best done inside a shallow bowl or on a rimmed baking sheet.
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the corn with the butter and milk. Gently scrape the cobs with the back of a spoon over the saucepan to release any corn milk trapped inside. Discard the cobs. Heat the corn until the butter has melted and steam just starts to rise from the surface of the milk. Remove from the heat and let the corn cool to room temperature in the milk.
- Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter a 12-cup standard-size muffin pan, or line with individual muffin papers.
- Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Add the cornmeal and salt and whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Combine the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat vigorously until the mixture is pale in color and creamy looking; you can use an electric mixer for this step if you want. Add the corn kernels and their milk along with the orange zest, and mix thoroughly.
- Incorporate the flour mixture, mixing just until no dry bits of flour remain. Add the raspberries and gently fold in until they are well dispersed throughout the batter.
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups and sprinkle the tops evenly with coarse sugar, if desired. Bake the muffins until a cake tester inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool the muffins in the pan to warm room temperature before diving in. They keep well in a sealed container for up to 1 week.
