Sometimes, I see a recipe and I want to make it, but I only have half of the ingredients on hand. On some occasions, I'll go to the market for the rest. On others, I'll scour my refrigerator and pantry, see what I can find, and cross my fingers for some successful substitutions. This recipe, which originally called for rhubarb and sour cream, created a problem for me. I don't care for rhubarb and I didn't have sour cream, but I love coffee cake muffins. What to do?

I had blueberries, which are my favorite in any type of coffee cake, pears, and crème fraiche. Since the recipe called for sour cream, crème fraiche would make a nice substitute. Crème fraiche is the French version of sour cream, but less tart than its American counterpart. The pears added an extra touch of moisture and sweetness to the cake. Using whole wheat pastry flour makes the muffins incredibly light with a fine crumb.

The end result is a very light, fresh muffin where the sweet tartness of the blueberries is tempered by earthiness of whole wheat pastry flour. The streusel is perfect and I like to use a big pinch of nutmeg to give it a little more spiciness. Although the muffins are light and fluffy, they run on the slightly drier side. To increase moistness, reduce the amount of whole wheat pastry flour by 1 or 2 tablespoons.

 

Blueberry Pear Streusel Muffins 

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

 

Streusel

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

 

Muffins

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg 
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm
3/4 cup crème fraiche
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup pear, diced (approximately one small pear)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.

To make the streusel, use a fork to stir together flours, sugars, spices and salt. Add melted butter and stir together until mixture resembles a coarse mixture of pea-sized particles. Break apart larger chunks. Set aside.

To make muffin, mix dry ingredients together. Whisk egg with the dark brown and granulated sugars. Mix in butter, then crème fraiche. Stir dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mixing until combined. Do not overmix. Gently mix in blueberries, pears, and 1/3 of the streusel mixture.

Using a large scoop or a large spoon, scoop the batter into each lined well of the muffin tin. Spoon a portion of streusel on top, then gently press into the muffin. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center of muffins comes out clean. Rest muffins in tin until cooled enough to handle, then carefully remove from muffin tin and cool completely on a rack.