This recipe makes the perfect Vegan Blueberry Lemon Muffins with a crumbly texture, round top, and a cinnamon sugar topping. They are bursting with flavor and sure to please a crowd. I used gluten-free flour, but they also work nicely with regular all-purpose flour.
There is no better flavor than lemon and blueberry when it comes to muffins -- don't you agree? Something about the zesty lemon and sweet gushy blueberries hit the spot every time.
This recipe is tried and true: 5 rounds of recipe testing went into making the perfect vegan, eggless, and dairy-free muffin.
Why I had to get these muffins right:
- Many of you requested egg-free and vegan baking recipes so you can eat the batter and/or manage an egg intolerance.
- Once you have a good base muffin recipe, you can simply replace the blueberries and lemon zest for more tasty flavors!
- When baking on my camp stove using the omnia oven, there is no room for error or recipe trials.
Related: Van Life Kitchen Essentials
Why you'll love these Vegan Blueberry Lemon Muffins
- crumbly and chewy and sweet and zesty -- they have it all!
- the cinnamon sugar topping looks beautiful and adds that extra somethin' special
- they are gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, egg-free, soy-free, plus nut free if you choose a nut-free vegan milk
Eggless baking tip for muffins
Expect a heavier texture.
I made 5 rounds of these Vegan Blueberry Lemon Muffins to get the perfect texture. I found the best taste and texture in round 4, when the vegan muffins were slightly denser than blueberry muffins with eggs.
Round 5 had a light texture and a puffy top, but light texture with a flax egg had a 'gummy' feel to it.
The denser texture tastes better -- you will still get rise and a round top with this recipe.
Gluten-free and vegan baking tip
These muffins can be made with regular all-purpose flour or gluten-free 1-to-1 flour. If you are making vegan and gluten-free muffins, read the tip below.
Double check the gluten-free 1-to-1 flour ingredients.
Cup4Cup brand has dairy in the ingredients already. Your muffins will not be vegan if using this mix.
The vegan gluten-free flour blend I use and recommend is Pamela's Gluten-free All Purpose Flour mix.
What to know before you start
Don't one-bowl this one.
I am a big fan of one-bowl recipes because I hate washing dishes. However for this recipe, mixing that vegan buttermilk ahead of time and letting your flax egg gel is super important for a lighter texture. Otherwise vegan muffins can be too dense.
Mix the batter less.
With vegan baking, I recommend the traditional method of just barely mixing the ingredients together. Otherwise you will end up with a weird final texture and none of the anticipated crumbliness.
Note that generally with gluten-free baking, I recommend that the batter is well-mixed. This is usually specific to gluten-free baking only.
If you replace the flax egg with a real egg, mix the batter well before folding in the blueberries and zest.
If you're interested in gluten-free baking tips, I recommend this informative post from America's Test Kitchen on gluten-free baking.
This recipe has two baking temperatures.
Starting the muffins at a fully pre-heated 425 degrees F for the first 7 minutes will create a "rapid-rise" cycle that will allow the muffin tops to rise.
If you do not fully preheat the oven, or you bake the muffins for the full time at a lower temperature, you will get a flatter denser muffin.
This is a handy trick for any muffin recipe 😉
A Note on flax egg substitutions
You will need to use an egg replacer so the muffins don't get too crumbly.
I think a flax egg is the easiest and most reliable type of vegan egg replacement. A chia seed egg works nearly the same in its place. Simply replace 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed with 1 tablespoon of chia seeds.
I have not tried using aquafaba (the liquid from a can of beans) for this recipe yet.
Vegan Blueberry Lemon Muffins Recipe
PrintVegan Blueberry Lemon Muffins
The perfect vegan blueberry lemon muffin with crumbly texture, round tops, and a cinnamon sugar topping. These are bursting with flavor and sure to please a crowd.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 muffins 1x
- Category: Baking
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
Vegan Buttermilk
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons dairy-free milk
- ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons avocado or canola oil
Flax Egg
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon flax
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup flour, I used gluten-free 1-to-1
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Fresh Ingredients
- ⅔ cups blueberries
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest (1 tablespoon = zest of ½ medium lemon)
Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease 6 spots in a muffin pan with oil of your choosing (or use muffin liners).
- In a jar or bowl, mix vegan buttermilk ingredients and set aside. In a separate small dish, mix flax egg ingredients and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, add all dry ingredients. Whisk together well. Once other ingredients are added, there will be little mixing so break up large clumps and mix well now.
- Add vegan buttermilk, flax egg, and lemon zest to the dry ingredients. Stir just enough to mix ingredients together but do not over-mix. Small clumps are fine. I aim for less than 15 mixing strokes with a spatula. Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Distribute batter evenly amongst the 6 muffin cups using an ice cream scoop if possible. They should be filled nearly to the top. Mix the cinnamon sugar topping and sprinkle it across the top of the muffins.
- Bake on the middle oven rack for 7 minutes at 425 degrees F, then decrease the temperature to 400 degrees F for the remaining 8 minutes. Let muffins cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Muffin texture is best once cooled completely.
Notes
I recommend using an ice cream scoop to spoon batter into the cups to help create round muffin tops. Vegan muffins do not rise as much as non-vegan ones do, so this helps with the final appearance.
Flax egg substitutions: You will need to use an egg replacer or the muffins will be too crumbly. I think a flax egg is the easiest and most reliable type of vegan egg replacement. A chia seed egg works nearly the same in its place. Simply replace 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed with 1 tablespoon of chia seeds. I have not tried using aquafaba (the liquid from a can of beans) for this recipe yet.
Keywords: vegan blueberry muffins, gluten free blueberry muffins
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Enjoy this fresh and healthy treat,
Jamie
Cassie
The muffins have a hearty texture and make for a really great on-the-go breakfast for those busy mornings!!
★★★★★
Jamie
I love hearing that! Thank you for the rating 🙂