Lemon Blueberry Muffins with a Crunchy Sugar Topping
Tender, bakery-style blueberry muffins made extra moist with sour cream and bright with fresh lemon zest, finished with a crunchy lemon-sugar top.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 37 minutes
- Yield: 14-16 muffins 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
Muffins:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream, room temperature
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)
Lemon Sugar Topping:
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and lightly spray the liners and the top of the pan.
- Make the topping: In a small bowl, rub 1/4 cup sugar and 2 teaspoons lemon zest together with your fingertips until fragrant. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the sour cream, 6 tablespoons melted butter, eggs, and remaining 2 teaspoons lemon zest until smooth.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold gently with a spatula just until no dry flour remains. The batter will be thick; do not overmix.
- Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Use a 1/3-cup scoop to divide the batter among the muffin cups.
- Brush the tops with the 2 tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle generously with the lemon sugar.
- Bake 20–25 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.
Notes
Frozen blueberries: Add them straight from the freezer to keep the batter from turning purple. Add 2–3 minutes to the bake time if needed.
Prevent sinking: Toss the blueberries with 1 tablespoon of the flour mixture before folding them in.
Taller tops: Let the scooped batter rest 15 minutes before baking.
Lemon glaze (optional): Whisk 1 cup powdered sugar with 1 1/2–2 tablespoons lemon juice and drizzle over cooled muffins.
Storage: Keep in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days, or freeze up to 3 months.