Enjoy these deliciously moist and soft, small batch lemon blueberry muffins that are made with fresh or frozen blueberries and lemon zest infused sugar. This recipe yields only six perfectly sized muffins that are ideal for breakfast on any day of the week or as a quick snack on the go.
- Small Batch: This recipe yields 6 bakery-style muffins which is perfect for a quick snack or breakfast.
- Simple ingredients: All the ingredients are pantry staples, which means you can have banana muffins whenever you want.
- Fresh or Frozen: If fresh blueberries aren’t in season, you can easily substitute frozen blueberries and they taste just as delicious! This way, you can enjoy fresh lemon blueberry muffins any time of the year.
Ingredients For Small Batch Lemon Blueberry Muffins
- Blueberries – Fresh or frozen blueberries can be used. If you choose to use frozen berries, don’t thaw them, instead just add the blueberries into the batter while frozen.
- Lemon zest – To offset the tartness from the blueberries and sweetness from the sugar, adding a little lemon zest just ties in the flavours so well. The lemon zest adds a slight acidity and freshness to the muffins. You can even change up the flavour profile by adding in some orange zest!
- Egg – You will need one large egg.
- Oil – Use a neutral oil like canola oil.
- Butter – Choose high-quality unsalted butter and avoid using margarine. If you choose to use unsalted butter, don’t add any extra salt.
- Buttermilk – In this recipe, buttermilk is our key ingredient. Not only does it make the muffins extra moist and fluffy, but the sourness from the buttermilk just elevates the flavour tremendously. If you don’t have buttermilk, just make your own by adding 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar to a 1/2 cup of whole milk and let it curdle for 10 minutes.
- Vanilla – Any strong vanilla extract or essence will work just fine.
- Sugar – I use granulated sugar to keep the muffins moist and slightly sweet.
- Dry ingredients – Nothing complicated is required, just some all-purpose flour, baking powder and sea salt to bake up these delicious muffins.
Expert Baking Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients and measure out your dry ingredients (especially the flour) on a weighing scale.
- To make your buttermilk, mix whole milk with 1 teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice.
- Use frozen blueberries that are directly from the freezer. DO NOT thaw, or else your batter will turn blue.
- Add a tablespoon of all-purpose flour to fresh or frozen blueberries to prevent them from sinking into the muffin.
- Avoid overmixing the batter.
- Let the batter rest for 15 minutes to achieve bakery-style muffins.
- Line every second muffin tin as this allows the muffin to dome.
Instructions
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400 F (200°C) and line a cupcake tray with muffin liners. In a bowl combine the granulated sugar and lemon zest. To infuse the sugar, massage the lemon zest into the sugar as this will help release the oils from the lemon peel.
Step 2: To the same bowl, add the butter, oil, vanilla and an egg to the sugar. Whisk for 1 to 2 minutes or until the mixture is pale in colour. In a separate bowl combine all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine.
Step 3: Optional- Sprinkle a tablespoon of flour onto the blueberries and gently fold the blueberries until all the flour is incorporated.
Step 4: Combine the wet and dry ingredients together and fold the batter for a few seconds. Pour the buttermilk into the batter slowly while continuing to stir. (DO NOT overmix the batter or the muffins will turn chewy). Once the batter is fully combined, add in the blueberries and gently fold it in. Cover the bowl with a kitchen cloth and allow the batter to rest for 15 minutes.
Step 5: Use a large ice cream scoop and fill each muffin liner until the top. Top with blueberries and sprinkle turbinado sugar on top. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes and insert a toothpick to check if the muffins are done. Allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wired rack.
More Small Batch Muffin Recipes
Small Batch Lemon Blueberry Muffin FAQ
Do I need to use fresh or frozen blueberries?
You can use either fresh or frozen but don’t thaw out frozen blueberries. Just toss them with 1 tablespoon of flour and add it to the muffin batter.
How long do these muffins last?
These lemon blueberry muffins can last up to 3 days in a closed container or a zip-lock bag.
Why does the batter need to rest?
It’s best to let the batter rest for 15 minutes to achieve bakery-style domes as it allows the leaving agents to activate. This also allows the muffins to become fluffy and absorb more flavour. Additionally, to help the muffin dome, line every other muffin tin when baking.
Can I double the Recipe?
Yes, you can double up the ingredients to yield a dozen lemon blueberry muffins.
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Small Batch Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
- 3 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (150 grams)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
- 1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen) + extra for topping
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon tubrinado sugar, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F (200°C). Line a cupcake tray with liners.
- In a bowl combine the granulated sugar and lemon zest. Use your hands or a fork to infuse the lemon zest into the sugar.1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
- To the same bowl, add butter, oil, vanilla and an egg. Whisk for 1 to 2 minutes or until the mixture is pale in colour.3 tablespoon canola oil, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter,, 1 large egg,, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl combine all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine.1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (150 grams), 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- Place the dried blueberries in a bowl, sprinkle a tablespoon of flour onto the blueberries and gently fold.1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen), 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients together and fold the batter for a few seconds. Pour the buttermilk into the batter slowly while continuing to stir. Once the batter is fully combined, add in the blueberries and gently fold it in (the batter should be really dense and thick). Cover the bowl with a kitchen cloth and allow the batter to rest for 15 minutes.1/3 cup buttermilk,
- Scoop 1/3 cup of batter into each muffin liner (for larger muffin domes, fill the entire liner with the muffin batter). Top with extra blueberries and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes and insert a toothpick to check if the muffins are done. Allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wired rack.1 tablespoon tubrinado sugar,
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