These easy to make gluten free blueberry muffins are so delicious with wild blueberries and lemon zest! Dairy and egg free options included.
Made with simple ingredients and in under 15 minutes, you’ll love this easy breakfast recipe that is tasty enough to serve on special occasions.
Free from: Wheat, gluten, dairy (optional), casein (optional), soy, peanuts, tree nuts, coconut, fish, shellfish, crustaceans, mollusks, celery, corn (optional), sesame, mustard, lupin, sulfites, nightshades, tomatoes, and more
Soft, fluffy, and totally bursting with flavor, these blueberry muffins are amazing! This is my favorite blueberry muffin recipe because it is so buttery and moist. Make them extra special with a drizzle of icing on top, or enjoy them with a simple sugar topping.
These homemade blueberry muffins are so soft and delicious no one will believe they are gluten free! With a tender crumb and easy recipe, this one is a keeper.
Want some more blueberry recipes? Make sure you check out my blueberry sauce and blueberry oatmeal recipes!
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Why You’ll Love these Blueberry Muffins
- Light, fluffy, and filled with flavor
- Soft and cake like
- Not dense and not gummy texture
- Tall muffin tops
- Quick, easy to make recipe
- Gluten free, dairy free options, and egg free options
Ingredients
Here is a quick rundown of what you need to make these muffins.
- Gluten free flour: I always reach for King Arthur Measure for Measure for this recipe. You want to use an all purpose flour blend. Make sure that your flour blend has xanthan gum included in the blend. For more on what is the best gluten free flour to use, see below.
- Milk: Use either whole milk or a rich dairy free milk. Coconut milk, soy milk, and oat milk all work great.
- Eggs: Eggs help in gluten free baking to not only bind all the ingredients together in place of gluten, but also to provide moisture and help them rise. For more on how to make this egg free, see below.
- Blueberries: Can’t make blueberry muffins without blueberries! Use either fresh or frozen blueberries. No need to thaw them if using frozen. My personal favorite are wild blueberries for their intense flavor.
- Vanilla Extract: This compliments the muffin so well and adds a good depth of flavor.
- You’ll also need: Baking powder, salt, lemon zest (optional), and raw sugar (optional)
Allergy Substitutions
If you are allergic to dairy, you can still make these muffins! Replace the milk with your favorite non-dairy milk. I really like coconut milk or oat milk in this recipe. Use a plant based butter in place of the butter.
If you are avoiding eggs, you can make this recipe with a single flax egg. Combine 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds with 3 tablespoons of boiling water. Mix and let rest for 5 minutes to turn gel like. Add to the recipe in place of the eggs. You may need to add an additional 2 tablespoons of milk.
If you are avoiding corn, make sure that your ingredients like baking powder and vanilla extract are corn free. Some gluten free flour blends also contain corn meal or cornstarch. Always double check that your ingredients are safe.
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Best Gluten Free Flour
Every gluten-free flour blend has slightly different ingredients so not all will get you the same results as you see in this recipe. I have successfully made these muffins with King Arthur Measure for Measure, King Arthur Baking Mix, and my own Homemade Gluten Free Flour.
If you do need to use a different flour than the ones listed above, you may need to change how much liquid is in the recipe to get similar results.
I don’t recommend using a single ingredient of gluten free flour, like almond flour, oat flour, or coconut flour, for these muffins. A blend is really the best way to get the best results.
For more on gluten free baking, make sure you read my gluten free baking guide and guide to gluten free flours.
Instructions
For the full instructions, complete with recipe measurements, please see the recipe card below. You can also use the “jump to recipe” button at the top of the page.
Making muffins is as easy as can be!
Using a muffin tray, line each muffin cup with muffin liners and set aside.
First, whisk together the dry ingredients into a small bowl. Set this aside until ready to use.
Next, add a few spoonfuls of gluten free flour to the blueberries and give them a good mix. Doing this helps the blueberries stick to the flour so they don’t all sink to the bottom. Plus, it prevents the muffin batter from turning totally purple!
Now in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, or a large bowl with a hand mixer, combine the room temperature butter and sugar. Whisk this until light and fluffy.
Then add the eggs (or flax seed egg), vanilla, and milk. Don’t panic if it starts to curdle a little bit! That will fix itself in the next step.
Now add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix it well. This batter will be thick!
Finally, add the blueberries and lemon zest. Use a spatula to mix it all together so you don’t over mix.
Scoop the batter into a lined muffin tray and fill almost all the way to the top. Sprinkle with sugar if you like.
Bake the muffins for 23 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the muffin pulls out clean.
Let them rest in the hot tray for 10 minutes before letting them cool completely on a wire rack. Enjoy!
While I love to sprinkle raw sugar on top, you can also make these a bakery-style muffin with a drizzle of icing sugar on the top of the muffins. Simply mix powdered sugar with some lemon juice and drizzle on the top of each muffin.
FAQs
You can use either! I personally prefer frozen wild blueberries. This is because I can purchase them any time of year, plus, I find that wild blueberries are smaller and with a more intense flavor. But if it is blueberry season, fresh blueberries would taste amazing!
No need to defrost frozen blueberries before using them in this recipe. Just bake them with the frozen blueberries and they are delicious!
Start with having room temperature ingredients. Having the eggs, butter, and milk (even if they are non-dairy) helps to trap air better while mixing in the mixer. The trapped air expands in the hot oven, making for fluffy muffins.
For sure! Here are the recipe times for different muffins.
For a jumbo muffin pan: 350F (177C) for 28-30 minutes. Makes about 7 jumbo muffins.
For mini muffin pan: 350F (177C) for 12-14 minutes. Makes about 45 mini muffins.
Top Muffin Tips
- Use the spoon and scoop method for measuring out gluten free flours. Dip a spoon into the bag of flour and spoon it into the measuring cup. Use the back of a knife to level the flour before adding to the recipe. This gets you a more accurate measurement.
- Add some raw sugar on top for a sparkly and sweet topping.
- Let the batter rest for 5 minutes before baking. This helps to hydrate the flours making for a softer crumb.
- Let the muffins rest in the hot muffin tray for 5-10 minutes before letting them cool on the wire rack. This helps to keep them moist by letting them cool more slowly.
How to Store
Countertop: This is the preferred method of storing these. Keep the blueberry muffins in an airtight container on the countertop for up to 3 days. By day 3 they may start to dry out.
Fridge: Not recommended as they dry out too quickly.
Freezer: Store the fully baked and cooled muffins in a freezer safe container for up to 2 months. Defrost the muffins in the fridge overnight before enjoying after freezing.
More Muffins to Love
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Recipe
Equipment
- mixing bowls
- mixing spoons
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- hand mixer or stand mixer
- whisk
- muffin tray
- Paper liners (optional)
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten free flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter can be plant based or dairy
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup milk dairy or plant based, coconut highly recommended
- 1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen mixed with 2 spoonfuls gluten free flour
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons raw sugar optional for sprinkles on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C. Line a muffin tray with paper liners, silicone liners, or spray with cooking oil. Set aside.
- Whisk dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, sift or whisk together the dry ingredients of gluten free flour, salt, and baking powder. Set this aside.
- Coat the blueberries. In another small bowl, coat the blueberries in a few spoonfuls of gluten free flour. This helps them to stick in the batter and not fall to the bottom of all the muffins. Plus, it helps to prevent the batter from turning purple.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl with a hand mixer, or in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, vanilla, and milk. Mix again. Don’t worry if it curdles slightly.
- Combine. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl so that all the ingredients are fully incorporated. Finally, add the blueberries and lemon zest. Mix gently with a spatula or wooden spoon, making sure not to overmix.
- Transfer. Carefully use a spoon to fill each muffin cup about ¾ of the way full. For larger muffin tops, you can fill these muffin cups all the way. Sprinkle each with sugar if desired.
- Bake. Bake the muffins for 25 to 28 minutes or until done. They will be slightly golden in color, not look wet, and a toothpick inserted into the center should pull out with only a few baked crumbs on it.
- Cool. Let the muffins cool in the hot muffin pans on the countertop for 5 to 10 minutes. This helps to keep the muffins moist. Let them finish cooling on a cooling rack. Enjoy!
Notes
- For a jumbo muffin pan: 350F (177C) for 28-30 minutes. Makes about 7 jumbo muffins.
- For mini muffin pan: 350F (177C) for 12-14 minutes. Makes about 45 mini muffins.
- Allergy Substitutions
- If you are allergic to dairy, you can still make these muffins! Replace the milk with your favorite non-dairy milk. I really like coconut milk or oat milk in this recipe. Use a plant based butter in place of the butter.
- If you are avoiding eggs, you can make this recipe with a single flax egg. Combine 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds with 3 tablespoons of boiling water. Mix and let rest for 5 minutes to turn gel like. Add to the recipe in place of the eggs. You may need to add an additional 2 tablespoons of milk.
- If you are avoiding corn, make sure that your ingredients like baking powder and vanilla extract are corn free. Some gluten free flour blends also contain corn meal or cornstarch. Always double check that your ingredients are safe.
- How to Store
- Countertop: This is the preferred method of storing these. Keep the blueberry muffins in an airtight container on the countertop for up to 3 days. By day 3 they may start to dry out.
- Fridge: Not recommended as they dry out too quickly.
- Freezer: Store the fully baked and cooled muffins in a freezer safe container for up to 2 months. Defrost the muffins in the fridge overnight before enjoying after freezing.
- Nutrition calculated for dairy milk and dairy butter with chicken eggs.
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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