Sweet and Delicate Blueberry Muffins

By
Leah Maroney
Leah Maroney
Leah Maroney
A recipe developer and food photographer, Leah Maroney is an ardent home cook and food blogger who has written over 300 recipes for The Spruce Eats.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 12/13/22
blueberry muffins

The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney 

Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 25 mins
Total: 30 mins
Servings: 18 servings
Yield: 18 muffins

Everyone needs a simple and easy blueberry muffin recipe. They're classic. They're tasty. They're pretty. 

This recipe is super easy. It definitely tastes way better than a mix and is just as easy to make. It only takes one bowl and a measuring cup, so the clean up is also really easy!! 

This recipe makes over a dozen, so it's a great idea to freeze the rest of them. When you are ready to serve them again, just defrost and cut in half and toast! They are just as delicious and stay fresh for up to 2 months!

It's best to use fresh blueberries, and lots of them. The frozen wild ones taste great, but they often turn the whole muffin blue and can raise the moisture level of the muffin.

You can definitely substitute other fruits for the blueberries. Try out strawberries, raspberries, or cranberries! You can also substitute the vanilla extract for other extracts, like orange or lemon. 

Serve these beautiful muffins with some fresh butter, scrambled eggs, and crispy bacon! 

Ingredients

  • For the Muffins:
  • 2 cups blueberries (fresh)
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (unbleached)
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons butter (unsalted, melted)
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs (1 if they are extra large)
  • For the Topping:
  • ⅓ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup flour
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons butter (melted)
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather your ingredients.

    blueberry muffin ingredients

  2. Combine the blueberries, lemon juice, lemon zest, and ¼ cup of the sugar in a small bowl. Cover and allow to sit for 20 minutes to macerate.

    blueberries tossed with lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar

  3. While the blueberries are sitting, preheat the oven to 400F.

  4. Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

    dry ingredients for muffins sifted together in a bowl

  5. In a mixing cup or bowl combine the melted butter, vegetable oil and remaining sugar. Whisk until slightly creamy.

    butter and sugar whisked in a measuring cup

  6. Then add in the sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla extract, and eggs. Whisk until smooth.

    Incorporate the wet mixture into the dry mixture in the large bowl until there are no pockets of dry mixture remaining.

    wet ingredients for muffins whisked in a bowl

  7. Gently fold in the berries along with the sugar and juices.

    blueberries folded into muffin batter

  8. Line 2 muffin pans with liners and fill each liner ¾ of the way full.

    muffin batter in muffin tin

Prepare the topping.

  1. Gather your ingredients.

    ingredients for muffin topping

  2. Mix together the topping ingredients in a small bowl with a fork until large crumbles form.

    muffin crumble topping mixed in a bowl

  3. Top the muffin batter with an equal amount of the muffin topping.

    muffin batter topped with streusel topping

  4. Bake in the center of the oven for 5 minutes. Then lower the oven temperature to 350F and finish baking until the tops are golden brown and then center comes out clean when pricked with a toothpick.

    baked blueberry muffins in a muffin tin

  5. Serve while still warm.

How do you keep blueberries from sinking in muffins?

  • Using fresh blueberries will help prevent them from sinking.
  • The macerating of the blueberries helps keep them plump and juicy. You can also add a few blueberries to the top of each muffin before baking.

How can you prevent flat muffins?

  • The secret is to bake at a higher temperature at first and then lower the temperature to 350F after five or so minutes. The hot air will make them rise quickly and lowering the temperature will make sure they do not burn on the top before cooking in the center. 
  • You can keep the muffin centers from sinking by making sure you are only filling the tins ¾ of the way full. If they are too full they will sink into themselves instead of rising properly.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
166 Calories
11g Fat
13g Carbs
4g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 18
Amount per serving
Calories 166
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 11g 14%
Saturated Fat 6g 29%
Cholesterol 98mg 33%
Sodium 258mg 11%
Total Carbohydrate 13g 5%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Protein 4g
Calcium 113mg 9%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)