Sourdough Blueberry Muffins Made with Natural Sugar

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These sourdough blueberry muffins are subtly sweet, soft, and so delicious! These muffins are proof that healthy can taste just a good. Enjoy dessert guilt-free with natural ingredients and only natural sugar!

Sourdough in Sweets

If you are new to sourdough or you have only ever tried sourdough in bread it may sound a bit odd to find it in the ingredient list of sweets like muffins or cookies! Adding sourdough starter to your recipes gives them such a nice texture and adds probiotics into the food. Making sweets with sourdough starter does not automatically make them healthy! However, it does give them a better quality and the added health benefits.

How does adding sourdough benefit me physically?

Sourdough starter is loaded with probiotics. When you add it into foods, even sweets, you are automatically getting benefits that you would not get in other recipes. Needless to say, when you add other bad ingredients (sugar, chocolate chips, ingredients with corn syrup, etc.) the sourdough starter does not eliminate all the bad. What am I saying?

When you use sourdough starter, along with other healthy ingredients you can be guaranteed that you are providing a healthy, gut supporting food to your family! Even sweets!

Does adding sourdough impact the taste?

Adding sourdough almost 100% of the time impacts the texture of your food for the better. However, it can effect the taste of the food if too much is added. I would recommend starting slow. Adding 1/4-1/2 a cup of sourdough starter to a recipe you want to convert is the best way for experimenting with taste. Sweet and salty always offset sour. If you find that recipe are having too much of a sour taste adjust by adding a bit more sweetener and salt to bring balance.

Natural Sugar vs. Processed Sugar.

In our from scratch kitchen we choose to use only natural forms of sugar. This decision came by research and our personal health journeys. For many reasons we have decided that natural sugar is the best option for us.

What is the best kind of natural sugar?

There are about five main natural sugars that are commonly used in the U.S. and widely available to everyone…

• Honey. Probably the most widely available and healthy of the natural sugars is honey. You can find it in some form in just about any grocery store and due to the revival of homesteading many can find local, fresh honey nearby. It is also very affordable.
• Maple Syrup. Maple syrup is another very pure source of natural sugar that can be found commonly in the U.S. and Canada. It’s robust flavor is a great option for replacing brown sugar in recipes!
• Agave Nectar. This is a more expensive, less available natural sugar from the agave plant.
• Monk Fruit Sweetener. This is natural, plant derived sweetener is another great source of natural sugar and closely mimics the taste of processed sugar in sweets. it is becoming more widely available.
• Cane Sugar. Another great source of natural sugar is cane sugar, however it can be a bit tricky to find a trustworthy source that does not over-process it and add fillers, chemicals, and preservatives.

To answer the question, “Which is best?”, it really depends on what you are making and on personal taste. I think the closest to the taste of processed sugar you will get is mixing different kinds of natural sugar. Things that require brown sugar tastes bast when you mix honey and maple syrup because it produces a much more robust flavor. Cane sugar tastes the closest to processed sugar, it is just a bit more course and a bit sweeter (use less!).

Baseline- experimentation is key!

Sourdough Blueberry Muffin Ingredients

The ingredients required for sourdough blueberry muffins are simple. You can keep your kitchen stocked with quality, organic ingredients when you shop at Thrive Market! They are my number one go to for all the organic, clean label ingredients that I can eat peacefully knowing they are good for my body. Use my link below to get 40% off your first order!

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Sourdough Starter

You will need active or discard sourdough starter. Active starter is best and will give your muffins a more fluffy texture. However, discard can also be used effectively when an extra teaspoon of baking powder is added.

Water

Honey

Honey or another sweetener of choice will be required to replace the processed sugar in these muffins. Cane sugar is also another great option that will produce a similar taste.

Maple Syrup

Maple syrup gives these muffins a burst of flavor!

Butter

Eggs

Salt

Baking Powder

All-purpose Flour

Fresh or Frozen Blueberries

Click here to check out our recipe for Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Muffins!

Sourdough Blueberry Muffin Tips

Fermentation

Fermenting the muffin batter is optional in this recipe. However, fermenting will give it a better texture and flavor when baked. Add the fermentation step by allowing your batter to sit for serval hours (4-8 hours) or overnight in the refrigerator (8-12 hours).

Adding this step will also allow the gluten from the flour to break down better. The breakdown of the gluten makes it best for those with gluten sensitivities. This is because the body does not have to do the work of breaking the gluten down. The work has already been done by the fermenting process.

Adding Berries

If you are using a stand mixer or hand mixer to mix your batter I highly recommend adding the blueberries in by hand. The use of a mixer will break your berries and give the batter a blue/green color that does not look as pleasant. When they are added gently by hand the result is much more appealing!