This easy lemon blueberry muffin recipe makes truly incredible muffins! It’s quick to make and yields muffins with a lemony crumb bursting with blueberries.
This recipe makes eight large, big-topped muffins, ten standard muffins, or 20 to 22 mini muffins.
1 medium lemon
1 ½ cups (195g) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for muffin tops
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/3 cup (80ml) neutral-flavored oil, like safflower, avocado, or vegetable oil
1 large egg
1/3 cup (80ml) milk or non-dairy milk, use more as needed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 to 8 ounces fresh or frozen blueberries, generous 1 cup
Very thin lemon slices, optional for tops
Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Line muffin cups with paper liners (8 for big muffins, 10 for standard, or 22 for mini).
Lightly grease or spray the tops of the muffin tin with oil to prevent the oversized tops from sticking. High-quality nonstick pans may not require this.
Use a microplane or citrus zester to remove the zest from the lemon. Add the zest (about 1 tablespoon) to a small bowl with the sugar. Rub the zest into the sugar until the lemon perfumes it.
Whisk the flour, lemon sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Choose a measuring jug that holds at least 1 cup. Add the oil to the jug, and then crack in the egg. Pour in enough milk to reach the 1-cup line on the jug (this should be about 1/3 cup of milk). Add the vanilla extract and whisk until everything is combined.
Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir gently until the batter comes together. Be careful not to overmix! The batter will be thick, see tips below.
Gently fold in the blueberries and about 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice.
Divide the batter between muffin cups. If making big-topped muffins, the batter will come to the tops of the paper liners. Sprinkle a little sugar on top of each muffin. You can also add a very thin slice of lemon to the top and add more sugar on top of the lemon slice.
Bake muffins for 15 to 20 minutes or until the tops are no longer wet and a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out with crumbs, not wet batter. Transfer to a cooling rack.
To store, place them in a plastic bag, seal them, and store them at room temperature for up to 3 days. To freeze, wrap them tightly in aluminum foil or freezer bags and freeze for up to 3 months.