These bakery-style Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are tall, moist, and fluffy—packed with fresh lemon flavor and bursting with juicy blueberries. The poppy seeds add a delightful crunch, and each muffin is finished with a tangy lemon glaze for the perfect citrusy bite.
Bright, tangy, and bursting with flavor, these Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are a delightful treat for breakfast or a snack. Moist and fluffy, each bite is packed with fresh blueberries, a hint of zesty lemon, and a subtle crunch from the poppy seeds. Made with simple ingredients, these muffins come together quickly and easily for the perfect grab-and-go option!
These muffins are a great twist on the classic lemon poppy seed muffins with the added sweetness from fresh blueberries.
For more muffins try my cinnamon streusel muffins or banana chocolate chunk muffins
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Bursting with Flavor: The combination of juicy blueberries, fresh lemon zest, and poppy seeds creates a beautifully balanced muffin.
- Moist and Tender: Made with buttermilk and fresh ingredients, these muffins stay moist for days.
- Quick and Easy: No fancy equipment or techniques required—just mix, bake, and enjoy!
- Versatile: Perfect for breakfast, brunch, or a snack, and they’re freezer-friendly for make-ahead convenience.
- Freezer-Friendly: Bake a big batch and freeze them for a grab-and-go treat whenever the craving strikes
Ingredient Notes
- Blueberries: Fresh blueberries work best for this recipe, but frozen blueberries can also be used (don’t thaw them to avoid discoloring the batter).
- Lemon Zest and Juice: Use fresh lemons for the best flavor. The zest adds a vibrant citrus note, while the juice enhances the tanginess.
- Black Poppy Seeds: Add a delightful crunch and nutty flavor—perfectly paired with lemon!
- Buttermilk: Creates a tender crumb and adds a subtle tang. If you don’t have buttermilk, mix 1 cup of whole milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar and let it sit for 5 minutes. You can use sour cream or greek yogurt in case buttermilk is not available.
- All-Purpose Flour: Provides structure to the muffins. Be sure to measure it properly for the best results.
- Butter: Use unsalted butter for a rich, buttery flavor in the muffins.If using salted butter omit the salt in the dry ingredients.
- Eggs: I like to use room temperature large eggs.
- Confectioners sugar or powdered sugar: Used to make the glaze.Make sure its sifted to prevent lumps.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here is how to make these blueberry lemon poppyseed muffins.You can use a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer or a sturdy whisk.
Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, poppy seeds, baking powder, and salt.
Mix butter and sugar: In a large bowl rub the sugar and lemon zest together until it resembles wet sand and smells aromatic. Add the softened butter to the lemon sugar mixture and cream together for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
Add eggs and vanilla: Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until smooth.Next add the buttermilk and lemon juice.
Combine Ingredients: Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
Add Blueberries: Toss the blueberries with 1 tablespoon of flour, then gently fold them into the batter.
Rest the batter: Cover and let the muffin batter rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a 12 count muffin pan with paper liners. For taller muffins, use two muffin pans and only fill every other muffin cup. Once the batter has rested, do not stir.
Fill Muffin Cups: Using an ice cream scooper, gently scoop the batter into the prepared cups, filling them all the way to the top.
Bake: Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425 F. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 for the remaining time, about 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean with a few moist crumbs.
Cool: Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the lemon glaze: Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl until smooth.Drizzle over the cooled muffins.
Tips & Tricks
- Don’t Overmix: Overmixing the batter can make the muffins dense. Mix until just combined for light and fluffy muffins.
- Coat Blueberries in Flour: Toss the blueberries in a tablespoon of flour to prevent them from sinking to the bottom.
- Use a Muffin Scoop: For evenly sized muffins, use a large ice cream scoop to fill the muffin cups.
- Test for Doneness: Insert a toothpick into the center of a muffin; if it comes out clean or with a few crumbs, they’re ready!
- Rest the muffin batter for about 30 -60 minutes: This is a little trick to get those beautiful bakery style muffins. Allowing some time for resting allows the batter to hydrate, thicken and rise, making these the best cinnamon streusel muffins
- Cool on a Rack: Allow the muffins to cool slightly before removing them from the pan to avoid soggy bottoms.
- Gently scoop the batter. Be gentle when scooping the batter into the liners so you do not deflate the batter.
- Fill the liners to the top. No need to leave any space!
- Start with a hot oven. Baking the muffins at 425 degrees for 7 minutes creates steam quickly which lifts the batter more.
- Only bake 6 muffins at a time. The hot air that is able to circulate between the muffins when the pan is not full allows them to bake more evenly. This is not required, just another tip if you want super tall muffins.
FAQs
Yes, you can! Just add them straight from the freezer to avoid streaking in the batter.
Yes, the muffins will still be delicious without poppy seeds.
Although I haven’t tested these with alternative flours you can try to substitute the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.
This is probably due to over working the batter. Mix your muffin batter as little as possible in order to achieve a light, tender crumb. Overmixing the batter not only crushes air bubbles, but also overworks the gluten, which can lead to tough, dense muffins.
Yes use any other fresh berry such as raspberries or chopped strawberries.
Storage & Freezing
Storing: Store any leftover lemon poppy seed blueberry muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. If refrigerated, they’ll last for up to 5 days.
Freezing: To freeze muffins, let them cool completely. Wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. Freeze for up to 2-3 months. To thaw, unwrap the muffins and let them sit at room temperature for a few hours or overnight. You can also gently reheat them in a low oven or microwave.
More Quick Bread Recipes To Try
Recipe
Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Equipment
- 2 12-cup Muffin Tin
Ingredients
For the Muffins:
- 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest Zest of 2 lemons
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ tablespoons black poppy seeds
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (if using frozen, do not thaw)
For the Lemon Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and poppy seeds. Set aside.
- In another bowl rub the white sugar and lemon zest together until it resembles wet sand and smells aromatic. Add the softened butter to the lemon sugar mixture and cream together for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until smooth.Add the buttermilk and lemon juice.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Toss the blueberries with 1 tablespoon of flour, then gently fold them into the batter.
- Let the muffin batter rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a 12 count muffin pan with paper liners. (Option: For taller muffins, only fill every other muffin cup (six total).)
- Once the batter has rested, do not stir. Gently scoop the batter into the prepared cups, filling them all the way to the top.Overfill the batter into the muffin liners.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425 F. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 for the remaining time, about 17-20 minutes.until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.
- Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While muffins cool, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice for the glaze. Drizzle over cooled muffins.
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