These Mini Blueberry Muffins are super soft and fluffy with a tender crumb and loaded with fresh blueberries. Thanks to a few tricks, this recipe delivers and is ready in about 30 minutes, including baking time. You’ll fall in love with these bite-sized treats!
I wanted to make mini blueberry muffins that would not only burst with fresh blueberries but also result in a light and fluffy texture.
Mini breakfast recipes, like the mini waffles or mini banana muffins, are a favorite among kids and adults alike, thanks to their small size that's perfect to be gobbled up in one bite.
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Why this recipe works?
Mini muffins present a unique challenge, as they tend to have a slightly higher level of moisture evaporation than their regular-sized counterparts, which have a better ability to retain moisture.
Blueberries, with their inherent juiciness, compensate for any potential moisture loss. However, an excessive amount can lead to sogginess and the muffins falling apart. A modest ½ cup did the trick.
Vegetable oil, 100% fat, has a higher capacity to retain moisture when compared to butter, which contains approximately 16 to 18% water content. In addition, egg yolks and sour cream further enhance the richness and contributes additional fat to the recipe.
To overcome the challenge of dividing an egg precisely in half, I devised this recipe to accommodate either an egg yolk or an egg white, providing flexibility in ingredient measurement and ensuring optimal results (more details below).
As I explained in my lemon blueberry muffins recipe, lemon juice loses its brightness in the oven's heat. However, adding more juice can increase moisture content and potentially result in a soggy texture.
To pack in a more lemony punch, I use the thin, yellow layer containing the floral, lemony oils, which perfume the batter with a sweet aroma.
Ingredients
Scroll down to the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and amounts.
- All-purpose flour - It offers the perfect balance between providing ample structural support and yielding a delicate crumb, resulting in a tender texture.
- Sugar - White granulated sugar is best suited when paired with blueberries and lemon, like in lemon drizzle cupcakes.
- Baking powder - It combines an acid and baking soda, along with starch to prevent clumping. When the baking powder is mixed into the batter, it begins forming gas and then it expands and rises in the oven.
- Blueberries - I like using smaller berries, which have less moisture and are more suitable in the recipe.
- Lemon - Freshly squeezed lemon juice and finely grated lemon zest add flavor and a hint of brightness.
- Sour cream - Use sour cream or plain thick yogurt.
- Vegetable oil - Oil has 100 percent fat and adds tenderness.
- Egg - Use one egg yolk, egg white, or ½ an egg. I like using egg yolk for its richness. Refer more details below.
Egg white or yolk?
Mini blueberry muffins made with egg yolk are yellowish in color, have a soft crust, rich tasting, and have a super soft texture. Yolks are relatively high in fat and contain lecithin, which is a natural emulsifier.
Mini blueberry muffins made with egg white are white in color and have a firm crust with a light and slightly drier texture, because egg white is mostly water, along with a few proteins.
How to make?
You can find full printable recipe below, but here is a quick overview of the procedure along with step-by-step photos.
1. Add all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt into a small bowl and whisk to combine.
2. Add egg yolk, sugar, and oil into another larger bowl and whisk for 60 seconds until thick and creamy.
3 & 4. Add sour cream, lemon juice, and zest.
Tip: The white pith under the yellow layer of the lemon has a bitter taste, whereas the thin outmost yellow skin contains essential oils and aromatic compounds that provide the bright, citrusy flavor. So, make sure not to grate any white pith.
5 & 6. Whisk all ingredients until smooth and creamy.
Tip: Sour cream adds moisture, depth of flavor, and richness, resulting in ultra-soft texture.
6 & 7. Add dry ingredients and fresh blueberries, and fold gently until combined.
Tip: It is always important not to over-mix your mini blueberry muffins batter. Fold gently until it barely comes together.
9. Divide batter into a 12-cup mini muffin pan lined with mini paper liners. Top with more blueberries and bake at 400 degrees for 21 to 24 minutes, or the tops become golden.
Storage instructions
Allow the mini blueberry muffins to cool completely before storing them in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
To freeze: Freeze the mini blueberry muffins for up to 2 months. Cool completely, then place them in a freezer-friendly zip lock bag or container. When ready to eat, thaw at room temperature on the counter for a couple of hours. To warm up, air fry at 350 for 2 to 3 minutes or bake at 300°F for 4 to 6 minutes.
Helpful tips
- Sour cream - I like to use full-fat or reduced-fat sour cream. Plain yogurt makes a good substitute.
- Choose your egg - Use one egg yolk or white egg for the mini blueberry muffins recipe. Egg yolk creates a rich-tasting and ultra-soft muffin, whereas egg white produces a lighter and comparatively drier texture.
- Make 24 muffins - Double the recipe to make 24 muffins.
Recipe FAQs
You can, but it needs a few modifications to produce an amazing result. Please refer to the lemon blueberry muffins recipe made in a standard muffin pan with slight modifications of ingredients, baking time, and results in a beautiful crusty top.
If you don't have mini muffin liners, you can grease the mini muffin pan with butter, oil, or cooking spray to prevent sticking. Other options are to cut small squares or circles of parchment paper and place them in the mini cups. The parchment paper will help prevent sticking and make it easier to remove the muffins.
Yes, you can use a standard muffin pan. To achieve the desired results, fill the cups only to about ⅓rd to ½ capacity. This adjustment ensures the recipe works as intended, resulting in slightly shorter and wider muffins than their standard counterparts.
More muffin recipes
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Mini Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons All purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg yolk or use 1 egg white (refer notes for details)
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon sugar, white
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup sour cream or plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- zest of ½ lemon
- ½ cup blueberries, plus more for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F and line a mini muffin pan with 12 mini paper liners
- Add all purpose flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
- Add white sugar, oil and egg white or yolk into a larger bowl and whisk for 60 seconds, until it gets smooth and creamy. Tip: Vegetable oil, 100% fat, has a higher capacity to retain moisture when compared to butter, which contains approximately 16 to 18% water content.
- Add sour cream, lemon juice and zest and whisk for a few secopnd untl ,it is creamy. Tip: The white pith under the yellow layer of the lemon has a bitter taste, whereas the thin outmost yellow skin contains essential oils and aromatic compounds that provide the bright, citrusy flavor. So, make sure not to grate any white pith.
- Add the combined dry ingredients and bluebrries, gently stir until just combined.
- Divide batter evenly into theprepared pan and bake for 22 o 24 minutes, or the tops get golden in clor.
- Place pan on a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information, based on third-party calculations, should be seen as estimates, not guarantees, as various factors like product types, brands, processing methods, and more can alter the nutritional content in recipes.
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