The Best Lemon-Blueberry Muffins
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This is the best lemon-blueberry muffin recipe: sugar-crusted, lemony crumb, loaded with blueberries: what’s not to love? This is a long-time family favorite recipe and always a crowd-pleaser.
Last Sunday morning while purchasing eggs at the San Clemente farmers’ market, I spotted a flat of blueberries and blackberries I couldn’t resist purchasing. This lemon-blueberry muffin recipe, the best I’ve ever tasted, was on the brain.
The recipe comes from my mother via my aunt via The New York Times. A few notes:
- Make the muffins in a 6-well jumbo muffin pan. (Though, update 2020: a 12-well muffin pan works great, too.)
- Ensure your butter is at room temperature. It will make the creaming process go swiftly and smoothly.
- Don’t skimp on the sugar dusting before baking. It creates an irresistible crusty topping. Turbinado and demerera sugar are great here, too.
- Fresh blueberries are best, but you truly can make this year-round with frozen blueberries — no need to thaw first.
I have safely filed this lemon-blueberry muffin recipe in my search-no-further-for-that-ultimate-recipe folder. I hope you approve. And if you love the lemon-blueberry combo, you must try this lemon-blueberry Dutch baby and these lemon-blueberry scones and this lemon-blueberry quick bread.
PS: Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake
More Delicious Muffin Recipes
- Apple Orchard Muffins
- The Best Bran Muffins Ever
- Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
- Coffeecake Muffins with Streusel
- Millet Muffins
All the muffin recipes right here → Muffins
Here’s the play-by-play: Gather your ingredients.
Zest a lemon over 1 stick (8 tablespoons butter).
Cream it with a cup of sugar until light and fluffy. Add an egg and some vanilla, and beat again.
Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, and beat until creamy.
Fold in the blueberries with a spatula.
Transfer batter to a jumbo 6-cup or standard 12-cup muffin pan.
Bake until the tops are golden.
Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving …
… with butter.
Is there anything better??
The original recipe calls for baking the muffins in a jumbo muffin tin, which I have to say is really fun. But, a 12-cup muffin tin may be more practical if you are entertaining for a larger crowd. Here are a few images of the jumbo muffins:
PrintThe Best Lemon-Blueberry Muffins
- Total Time: 52 minutes
- Yield: 6 or 12 muffins
Description
Adapted from The New York Times
This is a long-time favorite recipe. The original recipe calls for making the muffins in a 6-cup jumbo muffin tin, which is especially fun, but which maybe isn’t the most practical if you are feeding a small crowd. A 12-cup muffin tin works beautifully.
Salt: If using table salt or Morton kosher salt, use 3/4 teaspoon. If you are sensitive to salt altogether, use 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups (256 g) all-purpose or cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, see notes above
- 2 cups fresh blueberries
- ½ cup milk or buttermilk
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375ºF. Cream butter with lemon zest and 1 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with ¼ cup of flour; then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the milk. Fold in the blueberries. Note: Batter will be thick. This is OK.
- Grease a jumbo muffin tin (or a 12-cup muffin tin… though the jumbo is really fun) with butter or coat with non-stick spray. Distribute batter among muffin cups. Sprinkle batter with remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 30 minutes (or less if using a 12-cup muffin tin). Check with a toothpick for doneness. If necessary, return pan to oven for a couple of more minutes. Let muffins cool in pan for about 7 minutes before serving.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
666 Comments on “The Best Lemon-Blueberry Muffins”
Thank you so much for this recipe. I added about 1/2 cup ricotta cheese and they made the best blueberry muffins I have ever had. The crumb was closest to bakery-style muffins I’ve ever gotten and the tartness of the lmeons balanced beautifully with the sweetness of the berries.
YUM!
i made these today and used buttermilk vs. regular since it’s what i had on hand.
delicious.
thanks for the recipe!
Jennifer — I never find fault in substituting buttermilk for milk… in fact, I think I should probably edit the recipe. I love buttermilk in all things baked. Glad these worked out for you!
Hi! Just wanted to let you know I made your recipes for Moms Crazy Cooking Challenge and they’re delicious! https://patitudes.blogspot.com/2012/04/lemon-blueberry-muffins.html
Ok, I finally searched your recipes…I will make these muffins and maybe have a show down between the be cake and these muffins
Hi Tami! So sorry for this delayed response…got behind during vacation with the fam. So glad you have had success with this recipe. It’s one of my faves, too. Thanks for writing in!
Soooo yummy! Would the farmers market be San Clemente CA?? Small world, we live in San Clemente on the Marine Corps base!!
Jaclyn — Yes! We lived in San Clemente for about 3 years. My husband was stationed at Camp Pendleton, but we lived in town just a block away from that farmers’ market. I loved the part of base that you live on (if I am imagining it correctly) — I had a bunch of friends who lived there. Just thinking about the farmers’ market and Camp Pendleton and San Clemente and the Pacific Ocean makes me miss it so so very much. Are you loving it as well?
do you think i can substitute the milk for soy milk?
Milena — I am afraid to say that I don’t know how these sorts of substitutions turn out. Have you tried doing this in the past with other recipes? If you have had success, then I say go for it! It’s only 1/2 cup, so I imagine any milky type liquid would work just fine in place of the milk. Good luck with it! Let me know if you make any discoveries!
We rocked these muffins with earth balance (instead of butter) sticks and rice milk. Still kept in the egg, though. DELICIOUS. My four year old daughter said these were the best muffins were have ever made (we used to bake every Saturday, so she knows:). Yum. We made regular size and a tray of minis for school lunch. Thanks!
Hi again, this recipe looks almost exactly like the blueberry breakfast recipe but in muffin size, is that right? I am very partial to anything lemon, as you can see. I will spend some time looking at your nondessert recipes now :-).
Haha, you are funny 🙂 Yes, almost identical with the exception of milk instead of buttermilk (though buttermilk would be just fine), and about a tablespoon more sugar, though again, I think the difference is negligible.
I made these for my 4 year old niece last weekend. I bought a large container of blueberries – and cleaned them. And without thinking I dumped the flour in the bowl of blueberries..way more than 2 cups of berries. So, I just dumped the berries in the mix anyway, since they were all covered with flour. I made regular size muffins and let them cool a bit longer. They were very blueberry and when I gave one to my niece she didn’t speak or look up until she had polished off the whole muffin. I wish I had taken a video. Obviously these were a hit and I will be making them again. BTW – my sister in law, mother of my niece, is lactose intolerant and I have made all of Alexandra’s muffin recipes with non dairy substitutes, My favorite is coconut milk, light or not depending on whether or not you are watching your weight. You can turn it into “buttermilk” the standard way – with lemon juice or vinegar.
Love this image of your niece! How precious. Great to know about the lactose-free substitutes. I love the flavor of coconut milk. And very interesting re turning it into buttermilk…I did not know this! So cool. Thanks for writing in!
these are uhhmazing!!!!
yay!
WHERE IS THE PRINT BUTTON?
Just added! Sorry, I haven’t gotten all of my recipes in the right print-friendly format. The icon is to the right of the recipe title.
Good morning, Ali! These muffins are so good! I made them for a crew that was resurfacing my fireplace. One of the men said that I could open up a bakery just selling these. Raves from everyone.
Thanks for sharing!
Yay! So fun to hear this. Can we? Open a bakery? How much fun would that be?
Hey Ali, i made these muffins this afternoon and they are delicious!!!!
Love this recipe.:-)
Wonderful to hear this, Lydia!
These worked out just fine with frozen berries.
/in my defense, there’s a winter “storm” in Austin, with “thundersleet” and “ice,” and the whole city is on lockdown ’til 1 pm. 😉
Thank you so much, Alexandra, I’ve been looking for a really good blueberry muffin recipe and my niece shared your blueberry breakfast cake where I found this one. Can’t wait to make them!!!!!! <3
Yay!! So happy to hear this, Roberta!
Is there a way to make these are little more dense for a loaf? I would love to make this into a bread. It is perfect.
Have made these many times in the last few years!!! Always a hit. Have you ever tried making buttermilk with almond milk??
So happy to hear this, Joyce! I have not tried making the buttermilk with almond milk, but I know people have used almond milk in place of the buttermilk in the buttermilk blueberry breakfast cake recipe, so I don’t see why that wouldn’t work here.
Could I sub the butter for coconut oil do you think
You could try! Coconut oil has a stronger taste, so just keep that in mind.
I have made these twice, now. And, they are great. I always add some lemon juice and double the receipt.
Thanks, liz
Two questions. To convert to gluten free is it gluten free baking mix used or gluten free flour? The difference is very important. Also, instructions state to fill batter ABOVE rim. Just HOW to fill the batter ABOVE the rim I might ask? Normally batter will drip or run out. Are you SURE this is the correct instruction?
I would use a gluten-free mix (not gluten-free brownie mix or something like that; and not almond flour or quinoa flour, etc.) like Cup4Cup or King Arthur Flour’s all-purpose gluten-free mix. Fill the batter to the rim.
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I LOVE this recipe!! I’ve made it twice in the last two weeks – it’s been such a hit. Definitely one of my favorite recipes on your blog! They are so easy to make and turn out delicious. Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear this, Cara!! You amaze me. (Very jealous of your recent San Fran/North Cali visit :))
All that I have is regular size muffin tins.. How long do you think they would bake?
I would start checking at 20 minutes — so hard to say … every oven is different. They should be golden on top and a toothpick should come out clean.
This recipe sounds wonderful. Can these be mixed the night before and put in muffin tin unbaked and then baked in the morning? Thanks in advance.
Yes! Batter can be made ahead of time, but I wouldn’t portion it into the muffin tins till the morning you bake.
Wow, Thank You So Much for the great recipe! I just pick some of my blueberries last evening and after letting them rest inside for about 10 hours, I’m ready to whip up something awesome and this recipe is just the thing! My blueberries were Huge so I baked them a little longer, but the lemon zest with the blueberries made this recipe Delicious! I know when our son comes in this evening, he and his father are going to be in a battle over these scrumptious goodies. BTW, you absolutely need to let them cool in order to get them out of the tin If you haven’t put them in the paper muffin cups.
I pinned this recipe and will be making it again very soon when family comes in town!
So happy to hear this Allison! What a nice Father’s (and son’s!) Day treat 🙂 Hope you had a wonderful weekend.
I’ve made this several times, in fact twice this week as muffins…. huge hit with family and friends at work! Hope to try a few other recipes on your page!!
I’ve made this several times, in fact twice this week as muffins…. huge hit with family and friends at work! Hope to try a few other recipes on your page!!
PS … I added extra lemon zest … even more yummy!
So happy to hear this, Kristie!! Extra lemon zest is never a bad idea 🙂 🙂 🙂
Any nutritional facts available for this recipe pls?
Sorry … if you plug the recipe into ” myfitnesspal dot com”, you should get what you’re looking for.
Just made these with a couple alterations. I used aluminum free Baking Powder, which IDK if that matters or not, but I think it made my batter a little dry. SO… ended up adding more buttermilk. Probably 3/4 cup total. Did them in regular muffin cups with paper cups and cooked for about 26 minutes. Probably could have done 20. But they are beautiful and moist and OMG delicious.
Angels are singing…
Yay!!! Oh this all sounds so good … nice call on adding more buttermilk. The batter definitely is on the thick side 🙂 🙂 🙂
Hi! Do you prefer all-purpose or cake flour in these? I am in search of the perfect blueberry muffin and, as a huge fan of your oatmeal muffins, I think these are the likely winners. Thank you!
Hi! I always use all-purpose flour for these (and most recipes actually). Hope you love these … they are one of my favorites 🙂 🙂 🙂
Made these muffins this morning. Loved the texture. Light and fluffy! I used 11/2 tsp of kosher salt and unsalted butter. I would use 1 tsp next time, as they seemed too salty for my taste.
Yay! Re: salt, I can see that! Going to make a note in the recipe now 🙂 🙂 🙂
I absolutely love this recipe, it’s got the perfect consistency and blueberry to lemon ratio. They look beautiful and I got exactly 12 muffins out of it. Thank you for sharing your recipe !
So happy to hear this, Gabby!