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Lemon poppy seed muffins are a joy. A good muffin is soft, fluffy, and ideally has a crunchy, sugary top. Believe me, these are good muffins. These lemon poppy seed muffins have the zest and juice of two whole lemons for the brightest, happiest muffins that are perfect for brunch or a tasty snack.
Let’s get to it!
Equipment
One of the many things that I love about muffins is that they are usually a one bowl affair. You will need:
- One medium mixing bowl
- One whisk
- One rubber spatula
- One microplane for zesting
- One 12 well muffin tin
- Muffin cups (optional)
- One #16 scoop (optional, but great)
- One wire cooling rack
With these simple pieces of equipment, your lemon poppy seed muffin dreams can come true in about 30 minutes!
How to Make Lemon Poppyseed Muffin Batter
These are so simple to make. First, melt one stick of butter directly in your mixing bowl in the microwave. Then remember that you forgot to preheat the oven and preheat it to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Add the sugar and zest 2 lemons right over the bowl. Whisk to combine. Add a few drops of yellow food coloring, if using.
Next you’ll add 2 eggs, one at a time. Make sure you incorporate each egg really well so you don’t end up with unpleasant pockets of egginess. Then add your milk and lemon juice. Whisk to combine. Don’t let this mixture sit for very long because the acid in the lemon juice will start to denature the protein in the eggs, chemically cooking them. Move swiftly to the next step and you won’t have any problems.
Directly to the bowl add your flour, baking powder, poppy seeds, and salt. Ditch your whisk and switch to a rubber spatula. If you continue using a whisk, the batter will get all clumpy and stuck in the tines of the whisk. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet by running your spatula along the bottom of the bowl, then bring it up and turn it over, folding the ingredients together (just fold it in!). Continue folding until the batter is completely mixed, but just.
Baking Your Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Either line your muffin tin with paper muffin cups, or spray the wells with baking spray. Then use a #16 scoop to scoop a level scoop (how many times can I say scoop?) into each muffin liner or sprayed well. You want each well to be about 3/4 full. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of turbinado sugar over each muffin to get a crunchy, sugary top, like the one in the photo above.
Place your muffins in a 425 degree oven for 5 minutes. We’ll start these muffins on high heat to really five the baking powder a boost and get a nice, high rise. After 5 minutes, lower the heat to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for another 13 minutes. The muffins are done when you press lightly on the top and they spring back.
Cool your tasty treats on a wire rack as long as you can stand it, then dig in !
These lemon poppy seed muffins did not last long at my house. I think they were gone in about an hour. They’re sure to be a hit at any function you bring them to, whether that’s a baby shower or breakfast on a Tuesday.
Please comment below when you make these and let me know what you think! Also, if you enjoy any of my posts, please share them. We’re here to spread the cooking love!
Happy Cooking!
Carli
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Equipment
- 1 standard muffin tin
- 12 muffin cups optional
- 1 medium mixing bowl
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Rubber spatula
- 1 #16 (2 oz) scoop optional
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- zest of 2 medium lemons
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- juice of 2 medium lemons
- 3 or 4 drops yellow food coloring optional
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 and 1/2 Tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Topping
- 6 teaspoons turbinado sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 435 degrees Fahrenheit
- Either line a 12 well muffin tin with paper muffin cups or spray the wells with baking spray.
- In a medium sized, microwave safe mixing bowl, place 1/2 cup unsalted butter. Cover the bowl with a paper towel and microwave for 60 seconds, or until the butter is melted.
- To the bowl with the butter, add the sugar and zest of 2 lemons. Whisk until combined.
- Add eggs one at a time, whisking to combine well after each egg.
- Add 1 cup milk and whisk to combine.
- Add the juice of 2 lemons. Whisk to combine and move quickly to the next step. If this mixture sits for long, the acid from the lemon juice could start to denature the protein in the eggs.
- Add all of the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, poppy seeds, and salt), and fold them in using a rubber whisk. Mix until just combined.
- Fill each well in the muffin tin 3/4 of the way full. I use a #16 (2 oz) scoop to do this.
- Top each muffin with 1/2 teaspoon of turbinado sugar. This makes a delicious crunchy topping.
- Bake muffins at 425 for 5 minutes, then turn the heat down to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for an additional 13 minutes. Muffins are done when they spring back slightly when pressed.
- Move muffins to a wire cooling rack, cool and enjoy!
