Lemon Poppy Seed Yogurt Muffins
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These Lemon Poppy Seed Yogurt Muffins are super moist, tender, and bursting with a bright citrus flavor and crunchy poppy seeds. Top them with a sweet lemon glaze for double lemon flavor!
These are the best lemon poppy seed muffins! They are so fluffy, moist, and tender in texture thanks to the addition of yogurt. They also have crunchy poppy seeds and fresh lemon flavor in every bite. They are delicious plain or with a simple lemon glaze on top!
With this recipe, you do not need to visit a bakery for the best lemon poppy seed muffins. Serve these Lemon Poppy Seed Yogurt Muffins with a cup of warm tea and coffee for the perfect treat.
Ingredients to Make Lemon Poppy Seed Yogurt Muffins
- Unsalted butter. The muffins made with butter had a richer taste than the ones made with oil.
- Granulated sugar. To sweeten the muffins.
- Lemons. I used lemon zest from 3 lemons and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to give the muffins lemon flavor.
- Eggs. Make sure you use room-temperature eggs because they blend more evenly in batters.
- Vanilla extract. To enhance the flavor.
- Vegetable oil. Adding a little bit of vegetable oil gives extra moisture to the muffins.
- Full-fat yogurt. It makes the muffins moist, light, and tender.
- All-purpose flour. Ideal flour for creating light and tender muffins.
- Baking powder. A leavening ingredient to make the batter rises in the oven and makes the muffins light and fluffy.
- Baking soda. Baking soda will react with acid (yogurt and lemon juice) and release carbon dioxide gas which causes the food to expand and become fluffy.
- Salt. To taste.
- Poppy seeds. They add a delightful crunch.
What Does Adding Yogurt to Muffins Do?
The yogurt helps to keep these muffins moist without adding too much fat. In addition, the acidity in yogurt helps activate the baking soda, which results in light and fluffy muffins.
Yogurt Substitutes
This recipe calls for plain full-fat yogurt. Make sure you avoid non-fat yogurt because it can not only cotan fillers and stabilizers that change the taste and texture of the muffins, but it also just does not have the same rich and creamy flavor as varieties with fat in them.
Sour cream and Greek yogurt is a great substitute for yogurt in baking. It has a similar tangy flavor and creamy texture. You can substitute 1 cup of full-fat yogurt with a half cup of full-fat Greek yogurt or sour cream with a half cup of whole milk.
Pro Tips for Making This Recipe
- Use thick plain full-fat yogurt. Thin yogurt that is way too runny will add too much moisture and cause your batter to spread more than puff. Also make sure you avoid non-fat yogurt because it can not only cotan fillers and stabilizers that change the taste and texture of the muffins, but it also just does not have the same rich and creamy flavor as varieties with fat in them.
- Don’t overmix. Overmixing will result in tough, dense, dry muffins that don’t rise above their muffin liners. This will create rubbery muffins.
- Don’t overbake. Muffins don’t take long to bake. Don’t overbake them to prevent them from drying out.
- Cool down. Once you remove the muffins from the oven, let them sit in their pan for a few minutes before removing them to a wire rack. However, remove them after five minutes otherwise you risk them going soggy as they cool in the pan.
More Muffin Recipes
- Blueberry Crumble Muffins
- Sour Cream Double Chocolate Muffins
- Ham and Cheese Muffins
- Moist Chocolate Chip Muffins
More Lemon Recipes
- Lemon Madeleines
- Lemon and Thyme Yogurt Bundt Cake
- Lemon Cube Pound Cakes
- Lemon Shortbread Cookies
- Lemon Black Tea
Ingredients
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- 1/2 cup (113 gr) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100 gr) granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp lemon zest, from 3 lemons
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 cup (240 ml) full-fat yogurt
- 2 1/4 cups (280 gr) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds
Glaze
- 1/2 cup (63 gr) confectioners’ sugar
- 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- Preheat oven to 425F/220°C. Line the muffin pans with cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl, sift all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add poppy seeds and mix until combined. Set aside.
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter, granulated sugar, and lemon zest until pale and fluffy. Scrape the sides with a spatula.
- Add eggs, vanilla extract, and vegetable oil. Beat on low speed until well combined. Add lemon juice and half the yogurt and beat on low speed until combined.
- Add half of the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just combined. Add the remaining yogurt and beat until combined. Then, add the remaining dry ingredients and beat until just combined. Don't overmix.
- Spoon the batter evenly into each cup or liner, filling each all the way to the top.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425F/220°C. Then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350F/180°C. Bake for an additional 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pans, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Glaze
- In a small bowl, combine confectioners' sugar and 1 tbsp lemon juice. Stir to combine, adding more lemon juice as needed to create a smooth, pourable glaze.
- Drizzle over the muffins that have cooled completely after baking. Let set before serving.
