These gluten free lemon poppy seed muffins are just perfect! Trust me, I've done the research.
Lemon poppy seed muffins have always been one of my favorite breakfast treats. I used to visit a bakery near my house almost every morning to get one of their oversized lemon poppy seed muffins topped with crunchy sugar. Yum!
This easy recipe is a pretty close copy of those delicious bakery style muffins, filled with bright lemon flavor. Hope you love them as much as I do!
If you love baking homemade muffins, make sure to check out all of my favorite gluten-free muffins.
Ingredient Notes
These easy lemon muffins require just a handful of simple ingredients that can be found in any grocery store. The recipe is both gluten free and dairy free as written.
- Gluten-Free Flour Blend - I use Bob's Red Mill gluten free 1-to-1 flour in most of my muffin recipes. You can use your favorite brand, but the results may vary since all gluten free flour blends are a little different in their makeup. If you use another type of gluten free flour, ensure it contains xanthan gum.
- Poppy Seeds - While the poppy seeds don't add anything to the flavor of the muffin, they are one of the main ingredients of this traditional combo.
- Egg - Just one egg in this muffin recipe. I haven't tried an egg replacement, but I think replacing the egg with either applesauce or flax eggs would work.
- Non-dairy milk - I use either coconut milk or oat milk, but any plant based milk will work. If you're not dairy free, use regular milk in the same measure.
- Fresh Lemon Juice and Fresh Lemon Zest - Lemon juice and zest provides all of the fresh lemon flavor in these muffins. One fresh lemon will provide enough zest and juice for this recipe.
See the recipe card for complete list with measurements.
Substitutions
- Not dairy free - If you're not dairy free, use regular milk in place of non-dairy milk in the same measure.
- Make it Vegan / Egg Free - I haven't tried it, but I'd suggest replacing the egg with ¼ cup of unsweetened applesauce or a single flax egg. You won't get the rise that you get from the egg, because there are no bubbles being beaten into the batter so the muffins will be a little more dense after baking. But the flavor should still be wonderful.
- No refined sugar - If you're avoiding refined sugar you can replace the ½ cup of sugar in this recipe with ⅓ cup of honey. You will also need to lower the temperature by 25 degrees, since honey will brown faster than regular sugar.
How to Make Gluten Free Lemon Poppyseed Muffins
With all of my muffin recipes, I always use the muffin method for mixing. The muffin method is a fool proof way to get fluffy muffins with gorgeous tall muffin tops. The best part is, you only need two bowls and a whisk - no electric mixer needed.
Before you begin mixing, line a 6-cup muffin tin with muffin liners.
STEP 1: Combine the gluten free flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, poppy seeds
and lemon zest in a large bowl. Whisk together.
STEP 2: In a separate bowl, whisk the egg until it is frothy like soap bubbles.
STEP 3: Add the oil, milk and lemon juice to the egg and whisk until well combined.
STEP 4: Add the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients.
STEP 5: Fold the batter together about 15 strokes until just combined, being careful not to over mix.
Divide the batter into lined muffins cups and bake. This recipe makes 6 regular sized muffins or 12 mini muffins.
Baking Tip
To check for done: gently poke the top center of one muffin with your finger. If it springs right back it is baked through. If it leaves an indentation, bake another 2 minutes and recheck.
How to Store & Reheat Muffins
Store your leftover muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. To reheat, place one muffin the microwave for about 15 seconds.
You can also freeze these muffins to eat later. Wait until the muffins are completely cooled, then wrap them individually in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag or container. Freeze for up to 3 months. To enjoy, simply defrost overnight in the refrigerator and then reheat in the microwave until warm.
More gluten-free muffin recipes to try:
If you try this recipe, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the comments below.
Recipe
Gluten Free Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 Cup +3Tbsp Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend I use Bob's Red Mill
- 1 ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 1 Tablespoon Poppy Seeds
- ½ Cup Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Zest from 1 lemon
- 1 Egg
- 3 Tablespoon Oil
- 6 Tablespoon Non Dairy Milk
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice from 1 lemon
- 1 Tablespoon Turbinado Sugar optional for the tops
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 °F (191 °C) degrees. Line a muffin tin with 6 paper cups.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, poppy seeds, sugar and lemon zest. Whisk together to mix. Set aside.1 Cup +3Tbsp Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend, 1 ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder, ¼ teaspoon Salt, 1 Tablespoon Poppy Seeds, ½ Cup Sugar, 1 Tablespoon Lemon Zest
- In a second smaller bowl, crack your egg. Whisk the egg until it's frothy, like soap bubbles.1 Egg
- Add the oil, milk and lemon juice to the egg. Whisk to combine.3 Tablespoon Oil, 6 Tablespoon Non Dairy Milk, 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Fold together with a spatula about 10-15 strokes.
- Divide the batter into the 6 muffin cups. Sprinkle the tops with coarse sugar.1 Tablespoon Turbinado Sugar
- Bake in preheated oven for 26-28 minutes until tops spring back when gently poked.
- Cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then serve.
Notes
Tiffany is the recipe developer, stylist and food photographer behind Well Fed Baker. As a lifelong baker who had to go gluten free and dairy free in 2016, Tiffany strives to share allergen friendly recipes that never feel like they are free from anything.
Savannah says
Hey love! Going to make these but was wondering if the sugar could be swapped for honey? If so, what ratio would you suggest?
Swapping sugar for honey can be tricky. I haven't tested this, so I can't promise it will work - but I would start with 1/4 cup of honey, reduce the milk to 5 tablespoons and reduce the temperature by 25 degrees. You may need to adjust the baking time by a couple of minutes.
For reference, the swap is usually 1/2 cup of honey for every 1 cup of sugar. Reduce the liquid by 1/4 cup for every 1 cup of honey used. Lower the temperature by 25 degrees, because honey browns faster than sugar.
Christy Sample says
Easy to make. Very flavorful.