The Best Blueberry Lemon Muffins
The BEST bakery-style blueberry lemon muffins are tender, light and filled with bursts of blueberry and hints of lemon. The crunchy muffin top makes this muffin a show-stopper. Perfect for brunch or just when you are craving that lemon-blueberry combination!
Ingredients
- 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar plus a few Tablespoons for sprinkling on top of the muffins
- ½ cup milk
- 1 medium lemon zested
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all prupose flour about 10 oz
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups blueberries fresh or frozen see note
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray muffin pans with non-stick cooking spray or line with muffin liners and spray with cooking spray.
- To a mixing bowl, add softened butter and cream cheese. Using a hand mixer, mix together until combined. Add the sugar and mix with the hand mixer.
- Continue adding the ingredients and mixing with the hand mixer: eggs, lemon zest/juice and vanilla extract. Mix for about a minute until fully incorporated, glossy and smooth.
- Pour 2 cups of flour on top of the liquid mixture. Don’t mix yet! Add the baking powder, baking soda and salt right on top of the flour. Use a fork to fluff together. Alternatively you can mix all of these dry ingredients together in a bowl and add them to the top of the liquid mixture. I just like saving myself from washing another bowl.
- Use a kitchen spoon/spatula (no mixer!) to gently fold the flour mixture into the liquid mixture. Right before the flour has completely incorporated, add the 2 cups of fresh blueberries. Gently mix until the blueberries are spread throughout the batter. The key here is not to OVER-mix the batter. If using frozen blueberries: Mix frozen blueberries with 2 Tablespoons of flour before adding to the batter. This keeps the berries from sinking to the bottom of your muffins.
- Scoop about 1/3 cup batter in each muffin tin. Sprinkle tops of muffins with a little bit of granulated sugar if desired. I also fill any unused muffin tins with a little bit of water to help with even baking.
- Bake muffins at 425 degrees for 5 minutes. Then decrease the temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking for 15 more minutes. Allow muffins to cool in the tins for about 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack. Enjoy!
Notes
Original Version: I posted this recipe a few years ago. In the original version, I used 4 Tablespoons of butter instead of 8 Tablespoons. This still works well for everyday muffins. If you want a more luxurious taste, add the full 8 Tablespoons.
Blueberries: Fresh or frozen blueberries both work well in this recipe. If you using frozen blueberries, do not thaw. Give them a quick toss in a Tablespoon or two of flour before adding to the batter. This helps them bake throughout each muffin and not all end up at the bottom of the muffin. Frozen blueberries will also turn the muffin batter more "blue" than fresh blueberries.
These muffins stay moist and flavorful, thanks to the cream cheese. They don’t dry out easily. Keep well covered or in a ziplock bag on the counter for a day, and then freeze for later.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!