"What can be better than a fresh, out of the oven, still warm, homemade buttermilk blueberry muffin? Not much unless it's a super easy recipe chock full of fresh blueberry with a crisp sugar topping!"
What you need to make these delicious tender blueberry muffins
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Blueberries - fresh is best, but you can use frozen. Just thaw and pat dry.
- Buttermilk and sour cream. You can use just buttermilk, but i like the flavor combination of both of them together. Or you could use buttermilk and unflavored yoghurt. These will be slightly more 'tangy'.
- Unsalted butter . Why unsalted? Well, you can always add salt, but it's hard to take it away and since I only cook with unsalted butter, my proportions are correct as written. If you use salted butter, perhaps you only need ⅛th teaspoon of salt, but I'm not positive on that.
- A large egg. Color doesn't matter. Best at room temperature.
- Lemon zest adds a nice lemony tang and is perfect with blueberries. If you don't have, try orange zest, or omit.
- Baking powder, soda, and salt. These all act as a levening agent, but they all react to the buttermilk differently. So use them all for a light, tender muffin.
- Sugar. I don't add a lot to the muffin, but the sprinkling on top gives it a nice sweet crunch.
Blueberries, as you may know, are a nutritional powerhouse providing 24% of your daily requirement for Vitamin C, 36T of Vitamin K, and 25% Manganese in a 1 cup serving.
Wait Lindy, Manganese? Don't you mean Magnesium?
No, I mean Manganese which is a trace mineral that helps the body form connective tissue, bones, blood-clotting factors, and sex hormones.
Step by step instructions to make these Homemade Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins
- I like to use a large muffin tin for this recipe, only 6 cups rather than 9 to 12. But whichever size you use you need to either grease them well or line them with cupcake liners. Colorful ones are always fun.
- Next melt the butter in a microwave safe bowl. After allowing it to cool slightly (you don't want scrambled eggs and curdled milk), whisk in the sugar, zest, buttermilk, sour cream (or yogurt) , and egg.
- After whisking your dry ingredients together, take ½ cup and mix it in with the blueberries. This will help keep them from 'bleading" into your muffin mix.
- Now mix the dry ingredient into the wet ingredients. The batter will be very stiff.
- Gently fold the blueberries into the batter, gently so you don't mash up the blueberries.
- Spoon into your muffin tin, sprinkle with sugar, and pop into a preheated 375ºF (191ºC) oven for 25 to 30 minutes for the larger muffins, 20-25 for smaller tins.
- Eat and Enjoy
Do I have to use fresh blueberries?
No, you don't have to, although I think fresh is best. Frozen blueberries will also work, just make sure to allow them to defrost and then pat them off to remove excess moisture.
Do I have to put sugar on the tops?
No, you don't have to, although the sugar does add a nice satisfying sweet crunch to the muffin. But if you are watching your sugar intake, you can either omit the sugar or cut down on the amount you use.
Storing Leftover Homemade Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins
These blueberry muffins are BEST fresh but you can store them for a couple of days in an airtight container on the countertop.
Can I freeze Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins?
You can, but I don't recommend it. If you do, reheat wrapped in a paper towel on medium (50% power) in your microwave.
Want more muffin recipes? Try one of these...
The Best Fresh Homemade Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter 70g
- ½ cup granulated sugar 100 g
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- ½ cup low-fat 2% Buttermilk
- ¼ cup sour cream or unflavored plain yogurt
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour 195g
- 1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen. If frozen, thaw and pat dry
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar for the tops
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375ºF.Line an oversized muffin pan with 6 liners, if using a standard-sized muffin pan line with 9 liners. If not using liners spray with non-stick cooking spray. Set-aside.In your microwave, melt the butter in the bottom of a large microwave-safe bowl. Let cool slightly. Whisk in the sugar, zest, buttermilk, sour cream, and egg. In another bowl, whisk together the baking powder, soda, salt, and flour. Remove ½ cup, toss with the berries. Gently fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, then gently fold in the blueberries with the remaining flour mixture. Batter will be very thick.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cups, they will be full. Then sprinkle the sugar over the top of each muffin, be generous with the sugar. It won't be as sweet as it seems it will be, but will give a nice crunchy top. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the tops are nicely browned and a tester when inserted in the middle, comes out clean - it may show blueberry juice but should not show raw batter. Let cool and enjoy.
Rhonda
Love, Love, Love this recipe. I made no adjustments to the original recipe. Not too sweet, slight crunch on the top, nicely fluffy inside and it really highlights the blueberries. Hummmm
LindySez
Thanks! And yes, I agree. It's all about the blueberries, but the crunch sure does help. Muffin tops are the best. Thanks for commenting.
Cheers ~ Lindy