Blueberry Muffins

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease each cup thoroughly with butter. If you have a second muffin tin, place it underneath the first one — the double layer insulates the bottoms and prevents over-browning while the high heat builds those dramatic domed tops.

In a large bowl, whisk together the 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and sea salt until evenly combined. Set aside.

In a separate medium bowl, whisk the melted butter and granulated sugar together vigorously for about 30 seconds. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Stir in the milk, sour cream, vanilla extract, and lemon zest until the wet mixture is smooth and uniform.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients all at once. Using a rubber spatula, fold the batter together with slow, deliberate strokes — no more than 15 to 20 folds. The batter should look lumpy and slightly shaggy with visible streaks of flour remaining. Overmixing develops gluten and produces tough, dense muffins.

Toss the blueberries with the 1 tablespoon of flour in a small bowl, then fold them gently into the batter with 3 to 4 additional strokes. The flour coating helps prevent the berries from sinking to the bottom during baking.

Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups, filling each one nearly to the top — about three-quarters to completely full. The generous fill is what creates the oversized bakery-style tops. Sprinkle the turbinado sugar evenly over the tops of each muffin.

Place the muffin tin in the oven and bake at 425 degrees for 5 minutes. This initial blast of high heat causes rapid steam production inside the batter, which is what pushes the tops up into dramatic domes.

Without opening the oven door, reduce the temperature to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and continue baking for 18 to 23 minutes until the tops are deeply golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached.

Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then brush the warm tops with the tablespoon of melted butter. This adds a subtle shine and an extra layer of richness. Transfer the muffins to a wire rack to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.