Cottage cheese muffins differ from a standard batter mostly in texture: the cheese gives the crumb a noticeably moister, denser bite than an oil-only batter, and its gentle tang keeps the muffins from tasting too sweet even with berries folded in.

Either curd-style or smooth cottage cheese works here — if it’s on the lumpy side, blending it or pushing it through a sieve first gives the muffins an even crumb without little pockets of cheese. It’s worth mixing the batter only until the dry and wet ingredients come together; overworking it develops too much gluten and leaves the muffins chewy rather than tender.

Tossing the berries in flour before folding them in keeps them suspended through the batter instead of sinking to the bottom as the muffins bake. Frozen berries don’t need thawing first — going in frozen actually helps them hold their shape and keeps them from bleeding color through the batter.

These muffins work well for breakfast or as a snack alongside tea, and thanks to the cottage cheese, they stay moist longer and don’t go stale as quickly as a standard oil-based muffin.