These Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are moist, eggless, and bursting with bright citrus flavor. They are perfectly sweetened and can make a great morning treat!
Eggless Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are tender, buttery, and packed with fresh lemon juice, zest, and poppy seeds. Like my other muffin recipes, this recipe is also effortless and requires only a few ingredients.
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Why Poppy Seeds In Muffins?
Poppy seeds provide a rich nutty flavor to baked goods. Also, it gives a mild nutty aroma and contributes to the crunchy texture. Several varieties of poppy seeds are available, but primarily black ones are used in baking.
About Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Well, I can definitely say that these are bakery-style muffins without eggs. They are tall, tender, moist, and fresh. However, making lemon poppy seed muffins is beyond easy. I have already posted many muffin recipes, and now I am here with another easy and delicious muffin recipe.
Flavor: The muffins are not overly sweet and are lightly tart with a bright and fresh lemon flavor. I have added a teaspoon of vanilla extract to provide sweet and warm flavors.
Texture: Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are fluffy and tender. These muffins are moist and light, have soft crumbs, and a crunchy texture with poppy seeds.
Straightforward: The recipe is manageable and even easy for beginner bakers. We require very straightforward ingredients, and mixing the batter is pretty quick.
Equipment: There is no need for any electric mixer to make the muffin batter. All you need are mixing bowls, a whisk, and a spatula.
Why You Will Love These Muffins
- Easy, Quick, and Eggless Recipe
- No Need For Electric Mixer
- Moist, Tender, Buttery, and Delicious
- Each Bite is Full Of Fresh Lemon Flavor
- Bakery-Style Muffins
Ingredients
- All-Purpose Flour: I have used unbleached all-purpose flour to make these delicious muffins.
- Granulated Sugar: A little more than ¾ cup of sugar is sufficient to make these muffins moderately sweet. But you can use only ¾ cup sugar for less sweetness or a little more to make it extra sweet.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: They are essential as leavening agents and make muffins tall and fluffy. Do not interchange with each other. Also, make sure that they are active and not expired.
- Salt: Adds pleasant contrast to the sweetness of muffins.
- Butter: We need unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled. Do not overheat the butter; you can microwave the butter at high for 30 to 35 seconds. If heating in the pan over the stovetop, heat the butter only until it just starts melting.
- Milk: Use whole milk if possible, but 2% milk will also work. However, do not use skim or fat-free milk. The milk should be at room temperature; if you forget to take it out ahead of time, microwave it for a few seconds to bring it to room temperature.
- Sour cream or Yogurt: Either one can work! Use full-fat sour cream or yogurt. Plain yogurt can work, either store-bought or homemade. Sour cream or yogurt should also be at room temperature. Otherwise, while mixing cold sour cream or yogurt with butter, the butter will get cold and start curdling.
- Poppy Seeds: These seeds provide a delicious nutty flavor that pairs excellently with lemon. I have added two tablespoon of poppy seeds; however, you can add less. Or, to make these muffins only with lemon flavor, skip adding poppy seeds entirely.
- Lemon Juice and Zest: Addin lemon juice, and zest makes these muffins bright and fresh.
- Pure Vanilla: Adds sweet and warm flavors to the muffins.
Step by Step Directions
- Preheat the oven to 425° F.
- Grease the muffin pan with non-stick oil spray or line with paper liners, and set aside. If using paper liners, lightly grease them as well.
- In a large bowl, combine sugar and lemon zest.
- Then, working with your hands, rub the zest into the sugar until well combined.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and poppy seeds to this sugar mixture.
- Whisk until everything is well combined.
- In a separate bowl, take melted butter.
- Add sour cream or yogurt, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla.
- Stir well until everything is combined and the mixture is smooth.
- Pour wet mixture into dry and, using a spatula, mix until just combined.
- Do not overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin tins. Fill each muffin tin all the way up to the top.
- I recommend using an ice cream scoop for easy and even distribution of the batter.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C), and then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C).
- Continue baking for 15-17 minutes or until the cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
- However, every oven is different, so once you reduce the temperature, keep an eye on the oven after 12 minutes of baking time.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool in the pan for 5-6 minutes.
- Then transfer them onto a cooling rack and let them cool completely before serving.
Serving and Storing Suggestions
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are perfect to have for breakfast. It tastes delicious with some butter spread on it.
- We can also have it as a snack or a dessert post-dinner.
- These muffins stay at room temperature for up to 2 days. Cover them tightly and place them in the fridge for up to 5 days if you have leftovers.
Helpful Tips
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Sour cream makes the muffins extra tender and moist. However, you can use plain yogurt instead of sour cream. But, use only a full-fat variety for the rich and moist muffins.
- Milk: You can use either whole milk or 2% fat milk. However, do not use fat-free or skimmed milk.
- Butter: Melt the butter and let it cool down slightly before mixing with other ingredients. If you want, you can use ¼ cup melted butter and ¼ cup light-tasted oil instead of using only butter.
- Filling The Muffin Tins: Fill the muffin tins all the way to the top for the tall muffin tops. This way, the eggless lemon poppy seed muffins will rise well and have nice domed muffin tops.
- Measurements: For the best results, use the kitchen scale to measure the ingredients.
- Variations: Sprinkle some sugar on the top of the muffins before baking for the sugary crust. Also, you can drizzle some lemon sugar glaze on the top of the muffins once they are cooled down for extra lemon flavor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Poppy Seeds Safe To Eat, or Can I Skip Them?
Yes! Poppy seeds are safe to eat when consumed in the right amount and way. However, leave them out if you still have any concerns or do not enjoy them. You will still have moist, tender, and delicious eggless lemon muffins.
Why My Muffins are Dense and/or Dry?
While mixing wet ingredients into dry, do not overmix. Overmixing the batter develops the gluten, destroys air bubbles and ruins the fluffy texture. And that results in dry, dense, and hard muffins.
To ensure the light and fluffy muffins, mix dry and wet ingredients until just combined and no more dry flour is visible. Also, after removing muffins from the oven, do not leave them in the pan for too long. Once they are slightly cool, transfer them to a cooling rack. Otherwise, they will continue cooking in the pan resulting in dry muffins.
Why Do My Muffins Stick To The Paper Liners?
Sometimes even if we use paper liners to make muffins, muffins still stick to the liners; it’s hard to remove them. To avoid this, grease the paper liners with oil or melted butter before pouring the batter into them. And if you add the batter directly into the muffin tins, make sure to grease the muffin tins well.
More Eggless Muffins
Recipe Card
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (Eggless)
Equipment
- Muffin Pan
- Kitchen Scale
- Mixing Bowls
- Whisk
Ingredients
- 2¼ cups (270g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon poppy seeds
- ¾ cup + 3tbsp (187g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (240g) sour cream or full-fat yogurt
- ½ cup (114g) unsalted butter melted
- ¾ cup (180ml) milk
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425° F.
- Grease the muffin pan with non-stick oil spray or line with paper liners, and set aside. If using paper liners, lightly grease them as well.
- In a large bowl, combine sugar and lemon zest. Then, working with your hands, rub the zest into the sugar until well combined.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and poppy seeds to this sugar mixture. Whisk until everything is well combined.
- In a separate bowl, take melted butter. Add sour cream or yogurt, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Stir well until everything is combined and the mixture is smooth.
- Pour wet mixture into dry and, using a spatula, mix until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin tins. Fill each muffin tin all the way up to the top. I recommend using an ice cream scoop for easy and even distribution of the batter.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C), and then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C).
- Continue baking for 15-17 minutes or until the cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. However, every oven is different, so once you reduce the temperature, keep an eye on the oven after 12 minutes of baking time.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool in the pan for 5-6 minutes. Then transfer them onto a cooling rack and let them cool completely before serving.
Serving and Storing Suggestions
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are perfect to have for breakfast. It tastes delicious with some butter spread on it.
- We can also have it as a snack or a dessert post-dinner.
- These muffins stay at room temperature for up to 2 days. Cover them tightly and place them in the fridge for up to 5 days if you have leftovers.
Notes
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Sour cream makes the muffins extra tender and moist. However, you can use plain yogurt instead of sour cream. But, use only a full-fat variety for the rich and moist muffins.
- Milk: You can use either whole milk or 2% fat milk. However, do not use fat-free or skimmed milk.
- Butter: Melt the butter and let it cool down slightly before mixing with other ingredients. If you want, you can use ¼ cup melted butter and ¼ cup light-tasted oil instead of using only butter.
- Filling The Muffin Tins: Fill the muffin tins all the way to the top for the tall muffin tops. This way, the eggless lemon poppy seed muffins will rise well and have nice domed muffin tops.
- Measurements: For the best results, use the kitchen scale to measure the ingredients.
- Variations: Sprinkle some sugar on the top of the muffins before baking for the sugary crust. Also, you can drizzle some lemon sugar glaze on the top of the muffins once they are cooled down for extra lemon flavor.
Shamla Nurbadh says
Hi Jigna thank you so much for your delicious recipes. I tried the lemon and poppy seed muffins they were absolutely delicious and light in texture. God Bless you for all your excellent recipes.
Jigna says
Hi Shamla, thank you so much for your feedback and kind words! I am glad that you liked the recipe.
Amy says
Can you make this with greek yogurt?
Jigna says
Yes, you can use Greek yogurt for this recipe!