Berry and Cherry Muffins with Coconut Topping

Today I was thinking about contrast. In foods contrast is great. These muffins have tangy cherries and berries and a splash of lemon in them, paired with a sweet coconut topping. Delicious.


In life, some contrast can also be tasty. Today I woke up sleepy and stayed sleepy all while cooking and cleaning this morning. After lunch I thought about drifting off for a nap, but decided to push myself instead into some contrast. I put a leash on my miniature dachshund, and we went on a 2 mile adventure together, enjoying some sun. Recently it has been raining, raining, raining, cutting our daily walks short. I've had to watch the weather for a good window, and then drop everything when it's finally dry enough outside. Today the sun finally came out for a good time, so I carpe diem-ed it, dropped everything, and just walked for awhile. It was so much better than just trying to make do with exercise DVDs inside! And since my long walk I'm finally over being sleepy. The contrast of being outside is sweet.
The contrast of the sour cherries and sweet coconut are also a great pair.




Moist, fun, and whole wheat. I love that these have tangy berries and cherries in them and a sweet coconut topping. They also have Greek yogurt for some protein in your breakfast while adding moisture to balance the whole wheat flour.

Yields 48 mini muffins or 18 regular muffins

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups white flour--reserve 1 tablespoon to coat dried berries and cherries
2/3 cup dried berries and cherries
1 1/2 cups wheat flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk--I used 2%
1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup melted butter
2 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2/3 cup shredded coconut

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 400 F and grease muffin tins--48 mini muffins or 18 regular muffins.
2) Measure flour into a large bowl, reserving about 1 tablespoon. Put the reserved flour in a small dish with the dried fruit and stir to coat. This will help your berries and cherries stay in your dough instead of sinking to the bottom.

I found this mix of dried cherries and berries at Safeway, but you can mix your own or pick your favorite berries if needed.

Coating the dried berries and cherries in flour

3) In the large bowl with the flour, add the wheat flour, packed brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir and sift out lumps.
4) Mix milk, Greek yogurt, melted butter, eggs, and lemon juice in a medium bowl. I melted my butter in the microwave. If you're feeling really lazy, you can substitute oil for the butter so you don't have to melt anything.
5) Mix the milk mixture with the flour mixture until just combined. It will be thick. Set aside 1 cup or the batter in a small bowl.

Don't forget to pull out 1 cup batter before adding your cherries and berries!
Thick batter.

6) Mix the coated cherries and berries into the large bowl of batter, and the shredded coconut into the small bowl of batter.


For Mini Muffins:
Scoop about 1 tablespoon berry and cherry batter into each greased mini muffin cup. Top with 1 teaspoon coconut batter. Smooth and bake 9-12 minutes, or until slightly browned.




For Regular Muffins:
Scoop about 3 tablespoons berry and cherry batter into each greased muffin cup. Top with 1 tablespoon coconut batter. Smooth the tops and bake 15-19 minutes, or until slightly browned.