Strawberries and Cream Muffins

The other weekend I went to a local farmers market and bought some locally grown strawberries. Unfortunately when I got home, they didn't taste near what I expected for homegrown. So when something like this happens with produce, the next best thing is to bake with it! Here is my first stab at Strawberries and Cream muffins. Don't worry, they're not too bad for you - especially since I modified my Blueberry muffin recipe and substituted milk for buttermilk. I wish I could say I tried one of these before I gave them away, but the family has said good things so far!

1-1/2 C. All-purpose flour

1/2 C. sugar

1/4 C. powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

1/3 C. vegetable oil
1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/3 C. milk

1 C. fresh strawberries, cut into itty-bitty pieces

4 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature

2 Tbsp. sugar

2 Tbsp. milk

Gather 3 mid-sized bowls and whisk together the dry ingredients in the first bowl: the flour, sugars, salt, and baking powder. Next, combine the wet ingredients in the second bowl: the oil, egg, vanilla, and milk. Last, combine the cream cheese topping mixture in the last bowl. Whisk the cream cheese, sugar, and milk until smooth. Set aside.

Quickly combine the flour mixture, the wet mixture, and the strawberries. Stir about 5 times until just moistened. Scoop the batter into paper-lined baking cups and fill about two-thirds full. Next, place a heaping tablespoon full of the cream cheese mixture on top of the batter. Using a toothpick, poke around the batter so that the cream cheese mixture begins to soak in. Sprinkle with the sparkling sugar and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 5 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake another 10-13 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool.