Lemon Blueberry Muffins

Want to know the secret to perpetual happiness? Waking up every day to a lemon blueberry muffin. I'm absolutely, positively sure of it.

The great news is that you can wake up to homemade muffins every day because these are so easy! You just need one bowl to make the batter, another small bowl for the glaze, and if you use paper liners, cleaning up the muffin tin is a breeze. Plus, they bake for just 20 minutes.

What I love most about these muffins is the bright lemon flavor. (If you're a citrus lover like I am, you'll want to try even more lemon recipes.) The secret for this recipe is to thoroughly rub the lemon zest into the granulated sugar to release those delicious oils. Then make sure to add the glaze as the finishing touch, for another pop of flavor. I use a little yellow food coloring in the batter to give the muffins a classic sunny color that I love, but you can leave it out if that's not your thing.

Make these and your family will adore you. Promise. You can make a big batch and store 'em in the freezer for later!

Can I make these muffins ahead of time?

Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, these muffins will stay fresh for up to two days. To keep them for longer, store the muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.

Can you freeze lemon blueberry muffins?

Yes! Unglazed muffins can be frozen in an airtight container for up to two months. Let them thaw at room temperature, then add the glaze before serving.

How to Make Lemon Blueberry Muffins

INGREDIENTS

• Sugar: This recipe calls for granulated sugar in the batter, fast-dissolving powdered sugar in the glaze, and crunchy turbinado sugar for sprinkling, but you can skip the turbinado and use granulated instead.
• Lemon: Lemon zest and juice work together to give these muffins a zingy citrus flavor.
• Sour cream: Sour cream makes these muffins moist and very tender. If you don’t have any, full-fat Greek or regular yogurt are great substitutions.
• Butter: Instead of room temperature butter, this recipe calls for melted butter, which is super easy to combine with the other ingredients. You don't even need a mixer!
• Eggs: Eggs add richness and structure to the muffins. They're essential to a fluffy muffin. (If you've ever forgotten the egg in a muffin or cake, you know why!)
• Yellow food coloring: For sunshine-yellow muffins, I like to add some yellow food coloring to the batter. This is totally optional. Add a little, a lot, or none at all! Gel or liquid food coloring works, but I prefer gel because it's more concentrated.
• Self-rising flour: This type of flour already has baking soda (plus some salt) in it, so that's one less ingredient you have to measure and add! If you only have all-purpose flour on hand, you can sift together 2 cups of all-purpose flour with 3 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. It won't give you quite the same tender texture but it'll still work well.
• Salt: Every baked good needs a little salt. In this recipe, it balances out the sweetness and really enhances the other ingredients. I use kosher salt, which is more coarse than table salt. If you use table salt, use a little less. (The grains are so much smaller that a teaspoon of table salt makes a recipe saltier than a teaspoon of kosher!)
• Blueberries: Fresh berries are best, but frozen blueberries will work in a pinch. Be sure to thaw the berries and pat them very dry before adding them to the batter so they don't bleed. Frozen berries may turn the muffins a tiny bit purple, but they'll still be delicious!

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

Start by rubbing the lemon zest into the granulated sugar. This helps release all of those delicious citrus oils so the muffins have a stronger lemon flavor.

Stir the batter together, then it's time to scoop it into a muffin tin. I use liners because it keeps the muffins from sticking to the pan. Fill each one about three-quarters of the way full. A scoop makes filling the cups easy and mess-free!

Before you pop 'em in the oven, sprinkle the muffins with a few more blueberries plus some turbinado sugar. This is a coarse-grain sugar that adds a little crunch and sparkle to the top of each muffin. Now, they're ready to bake for about 20 minutes.

While the muffins cool completely, stir together a sweet glaze with powdered sugar and lemon juice. Drizzle it over the top of each muffin. This adds an extra boost of lemony sweetness to every bite!

A full list of ingredients and directions can be found in the recipe below.