This homemade easy one-bowl Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins recipe is full of flavor with the addition of a crisp cinnamon sugar topping! The recipe is dairy-free but can easily be adapted with dairy ingredients, and notes on how to do this are included in the recipe. With fresh or frozen blueberries, they are the perfect long-time favorite made gluten-free year-round.
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins are the perfect year-round recipe since they can be made with fresh or frozen blueberries. We especially enjoy them in the Spring or Summer when we are thinking about all things berries. If you love blueberries as much as we do, also check out our delicious Gluten-Free Blueberry Scones and Vegan Blueberry Lemon Muffins.
For this recipe, I re-made my childhood neighbor's tried-and-true recipe over and over until the gluten-free blueberry muffins tasted exactly how I remembered them. I experimented with two different gluten-free flours and many recipe trials to get them just right. I am so excited to share the tasty results with you here!
For more tasty gluten-free muffins, check out our popular Gluten-Free Strawberry Muffins, Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Muffins, and Gluten Free Chocolate Muffins. Or, if you're in the mood for cookies, check out our Gluten-Free Monster Cookies, and Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies!
And if you're new to a gluten-free diet, we have a great post on gluten free tips for beginners!
Why you'll LOVE these Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins:
- you can't tell they're gluten-free
- the cinnamon sugar topping is absolutely mouthwatering
- the muffin base is light and fluffy
- they are exploding with blueberry flavor
Jump to:
For those of you baking for yourselves, it's easy to polish off a whole batch (6 muffins) by yourself in just a few days. If you're baking for family and friends, I definitely recommend doubling (or even tripling) the batch!
Ingredients Notes & Substitutions
These gluten-free blueberry muffins use common ingredients that we know well. Here are some ingredient notes to get them just right on the first try:
- milk of your choosing - Dairy milk and dairy-free milk both work excellent in this recipe. If using buttermilk, omit the vinegar because it is acidic already.
- apple cider vinegar - To get a nice rise on gluten-free muffins, we need an acid like vinegar to interact with the baking soda and baking powder to create extra bubbles. White wine vinegar can also be used if you don't have apple cider vinegar.
- gluten-free 1-to-1 style flour - Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour is the best gluten-free flour for making muffins that taste like the traditional versions your remember. Other 1-to-1 gluten-free flour varieties that are rice flour blends will work too.
We also tried Pamela's All Purpose GF Flour. The muffins were still very tasty, but the top had a waxy texture that may alert your non-gluten-free eaters that these are not traditional muffins. - sugar - Use regular white baking sugar for the most traditional gluten-free blueberry muffin taste and appearance. I use coconut sugar most often because it is refined-sugar-free and I like the caramel notes.
- butter - Regular or dairy-free butter both work excellent in this recipe! I like butter instead of oil for the flavor and traditional muffin crumb. If using oil (coconut oil, avocado oil, canola oil, etc), use 2 ½ tablespoons of oil with ½ tablespoon of milk or water. This adjustment is important to maintain the muffin's moist texture since butter is 80% fat and oil is 100% fat. The muffin texture will also be a bit smoother if using oil.
- blueberries - You can use fresh or frozen blueberries in this gluten-free blueberry muffins recipe. I find smaller sized blueberries mix in best, but you can make this recipe with any size. If using frozen blueberries, do not thaw them ahead of time. I like using the small Maine blueberry variety when using frozen blueberries.
See the recipe card for full ingredients and quantities.
Step-by-Step Instructions
This simple gluten-free blueberry muffins recipe takes only 30 minutes. You'll have muffins in no time.
Step 1. Prep: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and grease or line 6 cups of a standard muffin pan.
Step 2. Buttermilk Mixture: Combine the buttermilk ingredients. I do this in a liquid measuring cup so the recipe needs only one mixing bowl. Set aside.
Step 3. Dry Ingredients: Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl.
Step 4. Wet Ingredients: Add wet ingredients and vegan buttermilk to the bowl of dry ingredients. Stir until just combined but do not over mix -- there will still be some small flour lumps in the batter and that's okay.
Step 5. Blueberries: Add blueberries. Mix until just combined.
Step 6. Muffin Tin: Portion the batter between the muffin cups. I like to use an ice cream scoop for this.
Step 7. Cinnamon Sugar: Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top. Mix 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar with cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the tops of the muffins.
Step 8. Bake and Cool: Bake at 425 degrees F for 7 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 400 degrees F. Bake at 400 degrees F for 8 minutes. At this point, the muffins should be perfectly cooked! But you can insert a toothpick in the center of a muffin to make sure it comes out clean if you like. Cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan. Then gently remove the muffins and set on a wire cooling rack for an additional 10 minutes before eating.
Expert Tips
- Apple cider vinegar is key to beautiful rise and round muffin tops! If using regular or plant-based milk, definitely don't skip it. You won't taste the vinegar in the final muffin. If you don't have apple cider vinegar on hand, they will still taste great but will be a bit denser.
- Starting at a higher cooking temperature is also part of getting these picture-perfect fluffy muffin tops. Wait for the oven to fully preheat before putting them in -- the first 5 minutes of baking are crucial for fluffiness. Lowering the temperature after the first 7 minutes prevents the muffins from drying out.
Recipe FAQs
Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container lined with paper towels (to absorb moisture and prevent sogginess) for up to 5 days. Replace the paper towels when they get moist. Freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
Freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
To make light and fluffy gluten-free muffins, make sure to choose a trial-tested gluten-free recipe. Substituting gluten-free flour 1-for-1 in traditional recipes does not work. Apple cider vinegar helps to create a fluffy gluten-free muffin, as well as a rapid rise cycle where you start your muffins baking at a higher temperature for the first 5-7 minutes to encourage rise.
A gluten-free rice flour blend that includes xanthan gum or guar gum and is labeled "1-for-1" or "measure-for-measure" is the closest to traditional all-purpose flour. For muffins, we find that Bob's Red Mill 1-for-1 gluten-free flour is the closest.
Other related gluten-free bakes with fruit to consider...
Looking for more fruity treats? Try these:
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & if you really like it, consider a comment in the field further down. Thank you!
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
Buttermilk Mixture
- ½ cup + 1 tablespoon milk of choice (133 ml, I used unsweetened almond milk)
- ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup + 1 tablespoon all purpose gluten-free flour with xanthan gum (160 grams )
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (62 grams)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter or vegan butter, melted but not hot
- 1 egg
Mix-Ins and Topping
- ⅔ cup fresh or frozen blueberries (110 grams, do not thaw if frozen)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and grease or line 6 cups of a standard muffin pan.
- Buttermilk Mixture: Combine the buttermilk ingredients. I do this in a liquid measuring cup so the recipe needs only one mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Dry Ingredients: Thoroughly mix all dry ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl.
- Wet Ingredients: Add wet ingredients and buttermilk mixture to the bowl of dry ingredients. Stir until just combined but do not over mix -- there will still be some small flour lumps in the batter (about pea or blueberry-sized) and that's okay.
- Blueberries: Add blueberries. Mix until just combined.
- Muffin Tin: Portion the batter evenly between the muffin cups. I like to use an ice cream scoop for this.
- Cinnamon Sugar: Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top. Mix 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar with cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the tops of the muffins.
- Bake: Bake at 425 degrees F for 7 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 400 degrees F. Bake at 400 degrees F for 8 minutes. At this point, the muffins should be perfectly cooked! But you can test for done-ness by inserting a toothpick in the center of a muffin to make sure it comes out dry, or with just a few moist crumbs.
- Cool: Cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan. Then gently remove the muffins and set on a wire cooling rack for an additional 10 minutes before eating.
Notes
Nutrition
I hope you enjoy this juicy year-round favorite as much as I do!
xo, Jamie
Kat
I don’t know if I could taste the vegan buttermilk but I do think it made them fluffier. When I combined ingredients the baking soda bubbled a little before mixing. This will be our go-to recipe! The coconut sugar was really good in this too!
Jamie
That's exactly right -- the buttermilk helps the muffins to stay nice and fluffy, not dense like some gluten-free baked goods. Thank you so much Kat!
Anya
I love how fluffy these muffins are! The small batch was perfect and we gobbled them up in two days.
Jamie
Thank you so much Anya!