These vegan lemon blueberry muffins are fluffy, moist, and bursting with zesty & fresh flavor! Easily made in one bowl and taking less than 20 minutes to bake, they make for the perfect grab & go breakfast. Take them to the next level by topping them with a streusel crumble topping OR a yummy lemon glaze. Better yet, why not both?!
Jump to:
Muffins are so easy to make, but they are tricky to get just right. It's tricky to get them to have a nice muffin top while not being overcooked and dry on the inside. Well, guess what? These muffins are BOTH fluffy & moist, while being puffy & tall.
The best thing about these muffins (other than the flavor) is that they stay super moist. These muffins are loaded with flavor, vegan, dairy-free, eggless, made without yogurt or sour cream, and can easily be made gluten-free.
Ingredients
- Blueberries: The first star of the show! I prefer to use fresh blueberries here but you can use frozen if you'd prefer. If you're using fresh, make sure you pick through to ensure there's no nasty ones hidden in the bunch and then give them all a good rinse.
- Lemons: We'll need lemon juice AND lemon zest! You can use Meyer lemons or regular lemons, whatever is accessible to you - either produce great results. I do not recommend getting store bought/pre-squeeze lemon juice, it's just not the same. The lemon juice and zest add so much vibrance and freshness to these muffins. Plus, they balance out the sweetness of the berries, making it these a perfect combination of sweet & tangy.
- Flour: I used all-purpose flour, but you can easily use whole wheat flour or 1:1 gluten-free all purpose flour instead.
- Sugar: All you need is good old granulated sugar here! Pssst..refined-sugar free options are in the substitutions & variations section!
- Baking Powder: To help these muffins rise!
- Coconut Milk: We'll be using canned full fat coconut milk. It adds a ton of richness here and keeps this recipe dairy-free!
- Coconut Oil: I used refined coconut oil. You can also use vegan butter or any other mild oil (like vegetable or canola) you like.
- Flax Eggs: I love using flax eggs for baking muffins! Don't like flax eggs? These are my favorite egg substitutes - feel free to use nearly any of these instead.
- Vanilla Extract: I would never leave it out. EVER. If there's a baked good recipe on this site that doesn't have vanilla in it, I'll allow you to fire me.
- Spices: cinnamon and salt to add a touch of flavor and balance.
Instructions
I love that this muffin recipe can be easily and quickly made in one bowl!
First, pick our your blueberries and rinse them! I tried to make sure I had blueberries that were small/medium and were all of similar size. Also, if you're choosing to make the streusel topping, do so now by combining sugar, flour, lemon zest and melted butter in a bowl. Combine until you have a nice crumbly mixture. Place it in the fridge until you're ready to top and bake the muffins.
Start by adding your lemon zest and sugar to the mixing bowl. Using your hands, rub the lemon zest into sugar until combined. This will help release even more of that yummy flavor into the batter.
Now add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt to the same mixing bowl. Whisk until combined. Pour in the blueberries and, using your hands, toss until they are coated with the dry ingredients. This will help prevent your blueberries from sinking to the bottom of the muffins. Instead, they'll be evenly distributed throughout the muffin.
Pour in the coconut milk*, melted coconut oil, lemon juice, vanilla, and flax eggs. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold until just combined. The second you no longer see any streaks of flour, stop mixing. Over-mixing will lead to a tough muffin. The batter will be a bit thick rather than runny - that's okay!
*Because coconut milk naturally separates in the can, I recommend pouring the entire can into a blender and blending for a few seconds. This will get the milk back into one homogenous liquid that you can then easily measure.
Line a standard muffin tin with baking cups. Using an ice cream scooper, evenly distribute the batter into the liners to bake 12 muffins. If choosing to do so, top each muffin with a hefty amount of the streusel crumble topping.
Bake at 450F for 10 minutes, then lower than temperature to 375F (all while keeping the muffins in the oven) for an additional 10 minutes. This technique allows the muffins to quickly rise, giving you that domed top, while still having a soft, fluffy inside.
Top with a sprinkle of fresh lemon zest or lemon glaze and enjoy!
Substitutions & Variations
Make these lemon blueberry muffins gluten-free by using a 1:1 Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour - I recommend Bob's Red Mill. You could also use almond flour, coconut flour, or oat flour! NOTE: be careful with any flours other than all-purpose and 1:1 gluten-free flour, as the others have a tendency to absorb more liquid than regular flour so it's not a simple swap. You may need to add more plant-based milk, another flax egg, or more oil in order to counteract this so the muffins aren't dry.
Swap out the oil with applesauce to make these oil-free.
Let's talk sugar!! To make these muffins refined sugar-free, swap the granulated sugar with either coconut sugar, maple syrup or agave, monk fruit sweetener. All can be substituted at a 1:1 ratio. If you're okay with refined sugar, but just want less - feel free to reduce the sugar by ¼ cup, or as much as you want!
Instead of coconut milk you can use vegan buttermilk, unflavored vegan greek yogurt, or vegan sour cream. Swap these easily at a 1:1 ratio.
Change up the berries! These muffins are awesome with raspberries (lemon raspberry muffins?! I mean come on, they even sound great), but you can really use any berry you prefer. Strawberries and blackberries would be delicious too.
Make these into mini lemon blueberry muffins by dividing the batter across a mini muffin pan and baking for 10-13 minutes.
Expert Tips
- Mix the blueberries with the dry ingredients! This coats them in flour and prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the muffins. Instead, they'll be nicely distributed throughout!
- Do not over-mix! The moment there are no more streaks of flour in the batter, stop mixing! Over-mixing your batter will lead to a tough, dry muffin rather than a soft, tender and moist muffin.
- Start high, then go low: Be sure to follow the instructions of starting your oven temperature high at 450F and then lowering it to 375F! Using two temperatures will give you bakery style muffins that have that signature tall, domed muffin top and a pillowy-soft center. The initial 425°F oven temperature promotes a fast rise, allowing the top to puff up and set. When the temperature is lowered, it allows the center to bake through without burning the outside.
- Use an ice cream scoop to divide your batter across the muffin tin. Not only will this be clean and easy, but it ensures that your muffins will all be the same size and bake evenly.
- For the best and most accurate results, use a kitchen scale to weigh your ingredients or use the spoon and level method. This means using a spoon to fluff the flour first, then spoon it into your measuring cup.
- Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature! The melted coconut oil will harden and solidify when if comes into contact with any cold liquids.
- Shake the can of coconut milk WELL so that you don't have the separated cream on top. If that doesn't work, dump the entire contents of the can into a blender and blend for 30 seconds before measuring.
Storage Tips
Refrigerator: Store these muffins in an airtight container for up to 1 week. You can eat them chilled or pop them in the microwave or oven to warm them up.
Freezer: These lemon blueberry muffins are freezer friendly! Allow the muffins to cool completely first then freeze them in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw at room temperature before enjoying.
Room temperature: Because they're chock full of blueberries, making them susceptible to mold, I don't recommend storing them at room temperature. But, if you'd like to and know they'll be eaten quickly, store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
FAQ
Yes! There are just a few things to keep in mind. If you leave them frozen, you'll need to increase the baking time by 5-10 minutes. Also, the blueberries may bleed coloring into the batter, tinting your muffins blue. Make sure you coat the frozen blueberries in the dry ingredients or you can thaw and rinse them well to prevent tinting the batter/muffins.
Yes, you can make the batter for these lemon blueberry muffins up to 1 day ahead of time! Be sure to cover the bowl that your batter is in with plastic wrap and refrigerate it until you're ready to bake.
Other recipes you might like!
Be sure to leave a comment and rating down below if you try this recipe! Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Instagram for more recipes and updates.
📖 Recipe
Vegan Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
Lemon Blueberry Muffins
- ¾ cup (160 g) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons (8 g) fresh lemon zest ~2 large lemons
- 1 ¾ cups (225 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (3 g) salt
- 2 ½ teaspoons (9 g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup (50 g) coconut oil, melted
- ½ cup (117 mL) canned full fat coconut milk
- 2 flax eggs 2 tablespoons (14g flax seed meal + 6 tablespoons (70mL) water)
- 2 tablespoons (24 g) fresh lemon juice ~1 large lemon
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (250 g) fresh blueberries
Streusel Topping
- ½ cup (110 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (33 g) all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons vegan butter
- 1-2 tablespoons (4-8 g) fresh lemon zest
Lemon Glaze
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons (18 g) 18g lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon (2 g) 2g lemon zest
Instructions
- Streusel Topping (optional but highly recommended)
- Combine the sugar, flour, lemon zest, and melted butter until crumbly. Place in the fridge until you're ready to top and bake the muffins.½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup all-purpose flour, 1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest, 3 tablespoons vegan butter
Lemon Blueberry Muffins
- Preheat the oven to 450 F and line a standard 12 well muffin tin with liners.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the sugar and lemon zest. Using your hands, press the lemon zest into the sugar until fully combined.¾ cup granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest
- Add the flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder to the mixing bowl and whisk until combined.1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- Pour in the blueberries and toss until fully coated.1 ½ cups fresh blueberries
- Create a small well in the dry ingredients and pour in the coconut milk* (see notes!), melted coconut oil, lemon juice, flax eggs and vanilla. Using a rubber spatula, fold together all of the ingredients until just combined.¼ cup coconut oil, melted, ½ cup canned full fat coconut milk, 2 flax eggs, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Using an ice cream scoop or a ¼ cup measuring cup, evenly distribute the batter across the lined muffin tin, filling each liner ¾ of the way.
- Sprinkle a generous amount of the streusel topping on top of each muffin.
- Bake for 10 minutes then, while keeping the muffins in the oven, drop the temperature to 375F and bake for an additional 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for at least 20 minutes.
- Optional: while they muffins are cooling, feel free to make the lemon glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest.1 cup powdered sugar, 1 ½ tablespoons 18g lemon juice, ½ teaspoon 2g lemon zest
- Top with lemon zest or the lemon glaze and serve! Enjoy while warm, at room temperature, or chilled.
Jess
Immediately made these and they were PERFECT. I used vegan butter instead of coconut oil and Bob Red Mills replacement egg instead of flax egg and they were great.
Pinch of Parsley
JESS!! You are quick! So glad you liked these!
Bianca
OBSESSED. I had the privilege of taste testing these and they are superb! Will definitely be making these often.
Pinch of Parsley
Yay!!! So glad you love them 🙂