Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (Printable)

Moist muffins infused with lemon zest and crunchy poppy seeds, perfect for breakfast or snacks.

# What You Need:

→ Dry Ingredients

01 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 cup granulated sugar
03 - 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
04 - 1 teaspoon baking powder
05 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
06 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

→ Wet Ingredients

07 - 2 large eggs
08 - 2/3 cup whole milk
09 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
10 - 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
11 - Zest of 2 lemons
12 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

→ Optional Lemon Glaze

13 - 1 cup powdered sugar
14 - 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

# How to Make It:

01 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease lightly.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly blended.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, milk, melted butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract until fully incorporated.
04 - Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and gently fold with a spatula until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
05 - Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each approximately three-quarters full.
06 - Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, until tops are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
07 - Allow muffins to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
08 - Whisk powdered sugar with lemon juice until smooth and drizzle over cooled muffins.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • They come together in under 35 minutes, making them perfect for a weeknight impulse bake.
  • The lemon flavor is genuine and bright without tasting artificial or over-powdered with extract.
  • One batch gives you breakfast sorted for several mornings, or emergency snacks when friends drop by.
02 -
  • Overmixing the batter is the single biggest mistake—it creates tunnels and dense crumbs instead of the tender structure you're after.
  • Fresh lemon juice and zest genuinely transform these; bottled juice tastes flat by comparison, so don't cut corners here.
  • Melted butter that's still hot will scramble your eggs when you combine the wet ingredients, so let it cool for a minute first.
03 -
  • Zest your lemons before juicing them—it's so much easier, and you don't risk losing the zest when the lemon falls apart.
  • Keep an eye on the muffins in the last minute or two of baking; ovens vary, and you want them golden, not brown.
Go back