When we moved to our new (older) house right after I turned 10, the abundance of lemon trees excited our entire family. The main one in the backyard looked more like an overgrown bush. The second one, a traditional tree, grew right next to it and produced lemons the size of footballs, and the third dormant tree sat quietly in the front yard.
While we occasionally picked one to squirt into fresh salads or pasta dishes for a bright citrusy note, the majority of the lemons made their way into baked goods and desserts. My dad and brother adore lemon treats (it’s all they ask for on their birthdays!), so we tried plenty of recipes.
Our favorite was a lemon bundt cake with lemon glaze, which usually appeared at least one birthday dinner each year. Sweet, light, and sunshiny—we rarely ended up with leftovers, even with just 5 of us celebrating! I must have inherited my sweet tooth from my family…
Not everything turned out quite as nicely as that cake. The popsicles we attempted one year tasted like pure lemon juice, no matter how much sugar we added, and the recipe for 100% whole wheat lemon muffins I tried turned out drier than the desert. We left them off of our brunch menu that weekend!
However, I decided to create my own recipe for Brunch Week here on AHB, one that was moist and tender and bright and cheerful and put those previous desert-cactus-muffins of my childhood to shame. The result? These Lemon Blueberry Muffins, which have the same texture as cupcakes!
True to my word, I made these 100% whole wheat. Instead of regular whole wheat flour, I went with whole wheat pastry flour because it’s lighter texture and milder wheat-y flavor. This means that the muffins will definitely stay moist and tender, and it also allows the lemon flavor to really shine.
Greek yogurt also adds to the muffins’ tender texture. It’s my favorite secret weapon in healthier baking! Greek yogurt adds the same moisture of butter or oil for a fraction of the calories. Bonus: It gives your baked goods a little protein boost too!
The citrus flavor comes from two sources: lemon juice and lemon zest. The latter actually provides the majority of the iconic taste because the oil in the lemon peel contains a more concentrated flavor than the juice. Don’t skip it! You’ll need about 1 medium lemon, and try to pick one that’s completely yellow. Any green spots tend to taste bitter.
And of course, the blueberries! Although I almost always bake with frozen (they’re cheaper and readily available year-round), I went with fresh for these muffins. Frozen blueberries usually bleed and turn muffin batter slightly gray, and I wanted these muffins to have a pretty yellow hue, just like the sun.
Yes, I added a lot of blueberries! I prefer a high fruit-to-muffin ratio, so these muffins are positively packed. It’s always disappointing to bite into a blueberry muffin and not get a single piece of fruit, so these are the exact opposite. I want at least two berries per bite instead!
Even better? All of that juice from the berries helps the muffins taste even more tender!
Because various members of my family are trying to eat fewer baked goods (and thus have me somewhat questioning whether we’re related…), I intentionally designed this recipe to yield half a batch—just 6 muffins. Enough for one week’s worth of breakfasts or snacks, or the perfect amount for one weekend family brunch. No tempting leftovers to worry about!
Because with all of those gorgeous juicy berries? My self-control would fly straight out the window!
| Small-Batch Lemon Blueberry Muffins | | Print |
- 1 cup (120g) whole wheat pastry flour
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (5g) lemon zest (about 1 medium lemon)
- ½ tbsp (7g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg white, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60mL) agave
- ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp (30mL) lemon juice (about half of 1 medium lemon)
- 2 tbsp (30mL) nonfat milk
- ¾ cup (125g) fresh blueberries
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 6 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg white, and vanilla. Stir in the agave and Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Stir in the lemon juice. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk to the egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour, and stirring until just barely incorporated. Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Divide the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 20-22 minutes, or until the tops feel lightly firm to the touch. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack.
White whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the whole wheat pastry flour.
I recommend using fresh blueberries since frozen tend to bleed and turn the batter gray. However, if using frozen, the bake time may need to be increased.
{clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
More lemon muffin recipes from other food bloggers…
♥ Raspberry Lemon Muffins by Crunchy Creamy Sweet
♥ Meyer Lemon Muffins by French Press
♥ Lemon Streusel Yeasted Coffee Cake Muffins by The Sweet {Tooth} Life
♥ Vegan Meyer Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins by Minimalist Baker
PLEASE let us know how to lower the carbs in your recipes without using a sugar substitute. They’re all varying degrees of horrible!
I’ve made these muffins twice already and they were delicious! My son loves them too. I’m happy you offer small batch muffin recipes; they make the perfect amount of muffins that we can eat fresh without needing to freeze them.
I’m so glad you and your son love the muffins Renee! That means a lot to me that you’ve made these twice already. Thank you for sharing that with me!
Could I use frozen blueberries instead of fresh?
Yes, you can! The baking time may be slightly longer, but you shouldn’t need to make any other adjustments. I can’t wait to hear what you think of the muffins Michelle!
I love lemon blueberry muffins and was looking for a “healthier” recipe to use. I will probably sub raw honey for the agave nectar, so should I thin it out a bit (with a bit of water perhaps ?) so it more closely resembles the consistency of agave?
Also we have some lemon flavored Greek yogurt in the fridge right now I’d like to use; since flavored yogurt is sweetened should I cut down the amount of honey? or possibly totally eliminate it?
Thanx, can’t wait to make/try these!
Substituting honey for the agave is a 1-to-1 substitution; you don’t need to do anything differently! Even with your lemon-flavored Greek yogurt, I’d recommend making the recipe exactly as written. Since different brands of flavored Greek yogurt contain different amounts of sweetness, it’s safer to bake the muffin recipe as is and adjust future batches to suit your tastes, if you feel the muffins are too sweet. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of the muffins Stacey!
Thanks Amy! I’m gonna make ’em today and I will post again after they’re done,
You’re welcome Stacey! I can’t wait to hear how they turn out! 🙂
Thanks for the recipe! I used coconut oil and it started getting lumpy as I was stirring it since it was cooling. Any suggestions for this? Also, the batter was way thicker than expected so I added in another tbsp of milk. Is it supposed to be like this? Thanks in advance for the tips.
I appreciate your interest in my recipe Ivy! Yes, the batter is supposed to be very thick, almost like an overly wet cookie dough rather than thin like cake batter. Does that make sense? If your egg white was fully at room temperature, along with your agave, and you still saw the coconut oil turn lumpy, then try bringing your Greek yogurt to room temperature too before mixing together the batter. That will prevent the coconut oil from rapidly chilling and turning lumpy. 🙂
One word: delicious? Made them over the weekend and they were great! Gone so quickly though, will need to double the recipe next time ?
I’m so glad you enjoyed these too, Katja! That means so much to me that you want to make a double batch next time — thank you!! 🙂
Hi Amy ,
This looks delicious and I can’t wait to try it out . I just wanted to know if the coconut oil would lend a coconutty smell to the muffins ? I’ve extra virgin coconut oil and would love to use it rather than butter .
Yes, coconut oil will be fine in place of the butter! I can’t wait to hear what you think of these muffins Vinita! 🙂
Hello Amy,
Lovely recipe indeed – may I know if I can substitute agave with maple syrup please?
Yes, maple syrup will work in place of the agave! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these muffins Veda!
Hello Amy,
Tried making the first batch today – taste was wonderful. Particularly liked the lemon – works magic with the blueberries! Maple syrup does the job too. Will definitely try making a bigger batch next time. Reckon I may use a cake tin instead of muffin cases, you think it will work too?
Thanks tonnes! ?
I’m so glad you enjoyed them Veda! If you’d prefer to use a cake tin instead of muffins, then I’d suggest using this recipe of mine so you know how long to bake it for! 🙂
Perfect! Both tart and sweet. Awesome recipe! Will definitely be taking a look at your others! Thanks for a winner!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins Aly! I can’t wait to hear what you try next! 🙂
Just made these! Only changes I made were using whole milk and adding in some rehydrated strawberries because I didn’t have quite enough frozen blueberries. SO delicious! Thank you for a healthier recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins Emily! 🙂