Say hello to citrus season with these zesty gluten free lemon poppy seed muffins! They're soft and moist with a little crunch from the tiny poppy seeds. This healthy lemon poppy seed muffin recipe is easy and yes, even better than the Costco famous!
Citrus season is here and I can almost smell these lemon poppy seed treats! I have these AMAZING lemon poppy seed cookies on the blog already as well as this lemon-y bundt cake and a layered gluten free lemon cake. I even have lemon poppy seed overnight oats on the blog! It's safe to say I'm a fan of the citrusy fruit and it's high time we put a lemon poppy seed muffin recipe on the site!
These muffins do the lemon poppy seed flavor justice with their fluffy texture, high domed top, and crunchy poppy seeds. We even drizzle a little extra zesty icing over top of them to make the lemon flavor pop and wow they are something else!
Ingredients
To make these muffins, you need just a few gluten free pantry staples and, of course, lemons and poppy seeds!
- Oat flour - make sure to use gluten-free oat flour to make these muffins gluten-free. You can even make your own by pulsing gluten-free rolled oats in a food processor until they reach a flour consistency.
- Coconut flour - used to ensure a fluffy texture to the muffins. If you don't have coconut flour, tapioca or arrowroot flour will work as well.
- Greek yogurt - this healthy sour cream alternative provides some moisture to the muffins. Fat-free or low fat works best in this recipe. The Fage brand is my favorite.
- Honey - this adds a hint of sweetness to the muffins. Plus, honey and lemons just go together! If needed, you can swap this out for maple syrup or agave syrup.
Step by step directions
These gluten-free lemon poppy seed muffins come together in no time! All you need to get started is a large mixing bowl and a muffin tin.
Step 1 : Mix the wet ingredients. First, whisk the eggs, coconut sugar, honey, almond milk, coconut oil, vanilla extract, and lemon juice together in a large bowl until well incorporated. The mixture should be slightly thick and the coconut sugar should be dissolved.
Step 2 : Add the greek yogurt. Add the greek yogurt to the bowl and mix to incorporate. This is best done with a stiff whisk to break up the yogurt.
Step 3 : Fold in dry ingredients. Next, add the oat flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and baking soda to the bowl and fold into the batter. Be careful not to over mix this step. Just mix until no flour clumps remain.
Step 4 : Fold in lemon zest and poppy seeds. Finally, add the lemon zest and poppy seeds to the bowl and fold to distribute. Again, it's important not to over mix this step. Scrape down the sides of the bowl every now and then to make sure all of the batter gets a little sprinkle of both the zest and poppy seeds.
Step 5 : Pour the muffin batter into liners. You have three options for the muffin liners:
- Traditional muffin liners - This is the easiest option. You can usually find muffin liners at your local grocery store.
- No muffin liners - If you choose this option, make sure to grease each of the muffin cups well with coconut oil or butter. You will also want to allow the muffins to cool completely to room temperature after baking. Be sure to check each muffin with a toothpick for any uncooked batter. Next, run a knife around the edge to lift them out of the pan.
- Home made muffin liners - This is the most fun option in my opinion! Homemade paper liners are easy to make too. Simply cut 5 X 5 squares out of parchment paper. You don't have to be exact with it, it's actually more fun it they aren't all the same size! Press each square into your muffin pans with the bottom of a glass. Any small bottle will work for this. I'm sure if you look in your pantry you'll find one - think ketchup bottles or salad dressing bottles! And that's it!
Scoop the batter into each muffin liner. If you're using a traditional muffin liner or no liner, you will want to fill it up almost to the top, leaving about ½ an inch from the top of the liner. If using homemade liners, fill up the muffin compartment all the way. Because the homemade liners are taller, the muffin will have more room to rise upwards in the oven without spilling over.
Step 6 : Drizzle with glaze. This is the fun part! Prepare the lemon glaze in a bowl and drizzle a little over top each of the cooled muffins. Allow the glaze the sink into the small cracks of the muffin. Sprinkle some extra poppy seeds over top if desired!
Baking tips
- Don't skip the coconut flour. Oat flour, the primary flour base for this recipe can be dense. Coconut flour is used to help maintain a fluffy texture that isn't weighed down. If needed, substitute tapioca flour or arrowroot starch.
- Use real lemon juice. The juice and zest from real fresh lemons is hard to substitute. All you need is one lemon! I highly recommend going the extra mile and using fresh lemon juice and zest. In a pinch, you can get by with store-bought lemon juice but the flavor may not be as potent so I would add a little more.
- Don't be shy when filling up the muffin liners. Gluten free muffins don't rise and expand like traditional muffins. This is okay as long as you make sure to fill up the muffin liners pretty full. I promise, they won't overflow and create a mess!
- Bake on high heat for the first few minutes. The high temperature will cook the outside of the muffin quickly, allowing it to rise well. Once we lower the temperature, the middle will cook through. This is how to achieve that bakery-famous high dome to your muffins! I learned this from Sally's Baking Addiction.
Storing
These gluten-free lemon poppyseed muffins are best stored in an airtight container. They will keep for up to 5 days on the counter and a week in the fridge. Keep in mind, if you use a powdered sugar style icing, it will soak into the muffin if muffins are in a slightly warm environment (aka next to the stove or toaster). Not to worry though, your muffins will still taste the same. Just know that the icing is still on the muffins, it's just melted into it (umm YUM).
Frequently asked questions
I have not tried this and I don't recommend substituting the egg for a flax egg. My friend, Megan, has a wonderful looking vegan lemon poppy seed muffin on her site though! Be sure to check that out if you're looking for a vegan version.
Yes, any fat-free or low-fat yogurt will work in this gluten-free lemon poppy seed muffin recipe. A dairy-free yogurt like coconut yogurt will work as well. Just make sure the yogurt is unsweetened.
In short, yes almond flour will work in place of the oat flour. However, the muffins may not dome like they do with oat flour. They will still taste great, but your muffins will be flat. I don't recommend wheat flour or all-purpose flour for this recipe.
Yes, you can use a vegan yogurt in place of the greek yogurt to make this recipe completely dairy-free.
For more summer-inspired treats, check out my:
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Recipe
Gluten free Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Ingredients
For the muffins
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoon coconut sugar
- ⅓ cup honey
- ¼ cup almond milk - any nut milk will work
- ¼ cup coconut oil - melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice - about 1 large lemon
- ⅔ cup greek yogurt - plain
- 1 ½ cup oat flour
- 3 tablespoon coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoon poppy seeds - plus extra to top if desired
For the glaze
- 1 cup organic powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon almond milk - any milk will work
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
For the muffins
- Preheat oven to 425 F. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, coconut sugar, honey, almond milk, coconut oil, vanilla, and lemon juice together until well incorporated.
- Add in the greek yogurt and mix well to break up the yogurt.
- Fold in the oat flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Be careful not to over-mix. Simply fold the batter until no flour clumps remain.
- Add the lemon zest and poppy seeds to the batter and fold to distribute. Again, be careful not to over-mix.
- Pour the batter into the muffin liners (see notes below on liner options). Fill the liner up almost to the top, leaving only about ½ inch at the top of the liner.
- Bake in the oven for 7 minutes. Leaving the muffins in the oven, reduce the heat to 350 and bake for another 10 - 12 minutes until the tops of the muffins begin to turn a yellow-ish gold.
- Allow the muffins to cool before drizzling with the glaze.
For the glaze
- In a small bowl, stir together the powdered sugar, almond milk, and lemon juice until the powdered sugar is well mixed. The glaze should be slightly thick. If it's too runny, add another tablespoon of powdered sugar until you reach the desired consistency. If it's too thick, add another tablespoon of almond milk.
- Drizzle the glaze over each of the cooled muffins. Sprinkle a few extra poppy seeds over top if desired and enjoy!
Notes
- Traditional muffin liners - This is the easiest option. You can usually find muffin liners at your local grocery store.
- No muffin liners - If you choose this option, make sure to grease each of the muffin molds well with coconut oil or butter. You will also want to make sure the muffins are completely cool before running a knife around the edge to lift them out of the pan.
- Home made muffin liners - This is the most fun option in my opinion! Homemade muffin liners are easy to make too. Simply cut 5 X 5 squares out of parchment paper. You don't have to be exact with it, it's actually more fun it they aren't all the same size! Press each square into the muffin tin with the bottom of a glass. Any small bottle will work for this. I'm sure if you look in your pantry you'll find one - think ketchup bottles or salad dressing bottles! And that's it!
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