The Best Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (Soft, Fluffy & Easy to Make)

These soft lemon poppy seed muffins are delicious and bursting with fresh citrus flavor. They’re easy to make and perfect for breakfast or snacks!

Why You’ll Love This Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin Recipe

This lemon poppy seed muffin recipe is quick and easy to mix together. Like many muffins, these lemon poppy seed muffins use many pantry staples that you likely already have on hand. This makes them perfect to serve at a brunch or to make in bulk and keep in the freezer for quick snacks. 

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin Ingredient Substitutions

There are a few ingredients that can be swapped in the event you don’t have them on hand or have some dietary restrictions that prevent you from using some certain ingredients. The first two ingredients are the milk and butter. If you need to make this recipe dairy free, you can substitute the milk for water or a plant based milk. The butter can be changed to coconut oil 

The next ingredient you can substitute is the lemon juice. While fresh lemon juice is best because you can also zest the lemons before juicing, bottled lemon juice will also provide a delicious lemon flavor to your muffins.

The last ingredient you could substitute is the all purpose flour. If you need to be gluten free, I would suggest finding a good 1:1 gluten free flour replacement instead of just using a single type of gluten free flour such as coconut or almond flour. Using a premixed gluten free flour that is labeled 1:1 replacement is specifically formulated to perform much like an APF than single ingredient gluten free flours. For example, Almond flour has a higher moisture content than all purpose flour. If you only change out the flour and don’t adjust the wet ingredient ratio, your muffins are likely to turn out very different than what this recipe intends.

Tips for Better Muffins

Tip #1

When you make muffins, there are a few tips that will help you produce a better muffin. The first tip for any muffin you may make is to not overmix!! Over mixing makes gluten develop causing a dense and rubbery textured muffin. If you’re worried about overmixing, have no fear! When stirring the wet ingredients into the dry, mix the ingredients until they are JUST combined. You should mix just until you cannot visibly see any dry spots. Only mixing until there are no visible dry spots should prevent the gluten development and rubbery texture. Just be aware that your batter will likely be lumpy. That’s okay! 

Tip #2

The second tip is to zest your lemons before juicing. While this tip is mainly to improve the efficiency of making the muffins, it’s still a good one! Zesting lemons before juicing allows you to zest easier because you have a bigger piece of lemon to hold on to. If you juice then try to zest, there’s a lot less to hold on to and the half or quarter of the lemon tends to be slippery from the juice. 

Tip #3

The next tip is to fill the muffin cups evenly and about two thirds of the way full. While you may think this tip is mainly for presentation, it does serve a purpose. Baking muffins that are not mostly equally filled can cause uneven baking. This is important to know when you test for doneness. A lesser filled muffin will be done long before a bigger muffin. 

Tip #4

The fourth tip is to check for doneness. The best way to check for doneness is to use a toothpick or something with a small diameter and poke the muffin directly in the middle. If your toothpick or tool comes out with any crumbs, they’re not done yet!

Tip #5

The last tip is to fill your muffin cups and then let them sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes before baking. This allows for the baking soda to start reacting and the final muffin will have a more rounded top when baking.  

Shelf life

Like many fresh bakery items, these lemon poppy seed muffins are best enjoyed as close to the time of baking as possible. Enjoying within 2-3 days will ensure you have the best flavor and texture. 

If you know you will not be able to enjoy all of your muffins within a few days,  you can freeze any leftovers to enjoy later. Freezing these muffins will greatly extend the shelf life up to 6-12 months. 

Storage 

For short term storage of 2-3 days, it’s best to store in an air tight container. These muffins in an air tight container can be placed on your counter or in the fridge.

If you’re looking to store these muffins for longer than 2-3 days, it’s best to store them in the freezer. For the best results when storing in the freezer, I recommend wrapping each muffin individually in a layer of plastic wrap. Each muffin should be snugly wrapped in plastic after they have completely cooled to room temperature. After all muffins have been wrapped, add them to an air tight container like a plastic freezer bag or hard sided food storage container and place in the freezer. 

When you want to enjoy some muffins, simply take them out of the freezer and thaw in the fridge overnight or reheat in a toaster oven until warmed through. 

Ingredients For Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

3 cups All-Purpose Flour

1 ¼ cups Cane Sugar

1 ¼ cups Whole Milk

½ cup Butter, melted & slightly cooled

½ cup Avocado Oil

2 Large Eggs

¼ cup Lemon Juice

1 ½ TBSP Lemon Zest

1 ½ TBSP Poppy Seeds

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 tsp Baking Powder

½ tsp Baking Soda

½ tsp Salt

Tools To Make Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

A Whisk or sifter

A large mixing bowl

A medium mixing bowl 

A muffin pan

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.

2. In a separate large bowl, add sugar and lemon zest together. Use your hands and mix the lemon zest and sugar together. Be sure to use your fingers to press the sugar and zest together. This will release more of the lemon oil from the zest making a more pronounced lemon flavor.

3. After the lemon zest and sugar are well mixed, add the whole milk, eggs, melted and slightly cooled butter, avocado oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk together until combined. The butter may appear to re-harden as you mix, that’s okay.

4. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir together until just combined.

5. Add lemon juice. Stir until just until the lemon juice is fully incorporated. It’s okay to see some lumps.

6. If using liners, arrange paper liners in the muffin pan. Fill muffin cups about three-quarters of the way. 

7. Let the batter rest in the muffin pan for 5-10 minutes (resting the batter is not mandatory but you will get a better rise). Bake for 12-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or with loose crumbs (not wet batter) when inserted in the center of a muffin. For a slightly crunchy crust, let the edges brown slightly.

8. Once they are done, let the muffins cool for 3-5 minutes before transferring onto a cooling rack

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins FAQ:

Can These Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins Be Made Dairy Free? 

If you need to make this recipe dairy free, you can substitute the milk for water or a plant based milk. The butter can be changed to coconut oil 

Can These Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins Be Made With Just Lemon Juice? 

While fresh lemon juice is best because you can also zest the lemons before juicing, bottled lemon juice will also provide a delicious lemon flavor to your muffins.

Can These Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins Be Made With Gluten Free Flour? 

I have not tested this recipe with any gluten free flour. However, if you need to be gluten free, I would suggest finding a good 1:1 gluten free flour replacement instead of just using a single type of gluten free flour such as coconut or almond flour. Using a premixed gluten free flour that is labeled 1:1 replacement is specifically formulated to perform much like an APF than single ingredient gluten free flours. For example, Almond flour has a higher moisture content than all purpose flour. If you only change out the flour and don’t adjust the wet ingredient ratio, your muffins are likely to turn out very different than what this recipe intends.

What Are Some Tips for Better Muffins?

The first tip for any muffin you may make is to not overmix!! Only mixing until there are no visible dry spots should prevent the gluten development and rubbery texture. Just be aware that your batter will likely be lumpy. That’s okay! 

The second tip is to zest your lemons before juicing. Zesting lemons before juicing allows you to zest easier because you have a bigger piece of lemon to hold on to. If you juice then try to zest, there’s a lot less to hold on to and the half or quarter of the lemon tends to be slippery from the juice. 

The next tip is to fill the muffin cups evenly and about two thirds of the way full. Baking muffins that are not mostly equally filled can cause uneven baking. This is important to know when you test for doneness. A lesser filled muffin will be done long before a bigger muffin. 

The fourth tip is to check for doneness. The best way to check for doneness is to use a toothpick or something with a small diameter and poke the muffin directly in the middle. If your toothpick or tool comes out with any crumbs, they’re not done yet!

The last tip is to fill your muffin cups and then let them sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes before baking. This allows for the baking soda to start reacting and the final muffin will have a more rounded top when baking.  

What’s The Shelf Life of Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins?

Like many fresh bakery items, these lemon poppy seed muffins are best enjoyed as close to the time of baking as possible. Enjoying within 2-3 days will ensure you have the best flavor and texture. 

If you know you will not be able to enjoy all of your muffins within a few days,  you can freeze any leftovers to enjoy later. Freezing these muffins will greatly extend the shelf life up to 6-12 months. 

What’s The Best Way To Store Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins?

For short term storage of 2-3 days, it’s best to store in an air tight container. These muffins in an air tight container can be placed on your counter or in the fridge.

If you’re looking to store these muffins for longer than 2-3 days, it’s best to store them in the freezer. Wrap each muffin individually in a layer of plastic wrap snugly after they have completely cooled to room temperature. After all muffins have been wrapped, add them to an air tight container like a plastic freezer bag or hard sided food storage container and place in the freezer. 

When you want to enjoy some muffins, simply take them out of the freezer and thaw in the fridge overnight or reheat in a toaster oven until warmed through. 

Did you try this recipe? I’d love to know! Tag @MissysHomestead on Instagram or comment below