Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins – Deliciously Fluffy Muffins Made with Buttermilk, Blueberries and a Crunchy Sugar Topping.
I can’t remember exactly when my family’s obsession with blueberry muffins started, but it’s deeply ingrained in our collective family subconscious. Case in point, my stepdaughter named our two cats Blueberry and Muffin. Here they are. That’s Blueberry in the foreground, and pretty princess Muffin in the background.
Blueberry’s not supposed to be on top of the kitchen table, but I had to take a picture before shooing him off. Isn’t he gorgeous?
Considering the names of our pets, I guess it’s only natural that we love blueberry muffins! The buttermilk really enhances the flavor of these wonderful muffins, giving them a richness and a slight tang that perfectly suits the sweet blueberries. I like to sprinkle the muffins with turbinado sugar on top, so they have a light candy-like shell with a soft and fluffy inside, bursting with berry goodness.
A few quick tips–
1) If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can make your own by mixing 1/2 cup of milk and 1 1/2 tsp of lemon juice or cider vinegar. Mix well, and let the milk stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes until it begins to curdle slightly.
2) Don’t overmix the muffin batter! These muffins have a wonderful light texture that can become dense if you mix the batter too much.
3) If you want to make these muffins pareve (dairy free), you can substitute almond, rice, or soy milk for the buttermilk… they’ll still be yummy, but I recommend using buttermilk if you can. It adds a delicious flavor.
4) If you only have access to frozen blueberries, go ahead and use them. Keep them frozen and toss them lightly in a little flour before mixing gently into the batter. Frozen berries can be a bit delicate and may break apart a bit in the batter, turning it a bluish color, but the flavor will still be great. Baking time may be slightly longer due to the frozen berries, so check accordingly.
These muffins are so tasty. They’re just teeming with luscious, juicy berries. We like them for breakfast or brunch with a side of scrambled eggs. Enjoy!
Recommended Products:
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh ripe blueberries (or sub frozen - see note) (12 oz)
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
- Turbinado or coarse sugar for dusting
NOTES
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Pick through the blueberries and discard any over-ripe, very soft or mushy berries. Rinse the blueberries in a colander and drain well. Pat dry with a paper towel. Reserve.
- In a mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil and vanilla.
- Mix wet ingredients into dry using as few stirs as possible; you want slightly lumpy batter, a few streaks of flour are fine. Do not over-mix.
- Fold blueberries gently into the batter using as few strokes as possible.
- Line a standard size muffin tin (12 muffins) with muffin/cupcake liners, or lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Fill each cup all the way to the top with batter. I find the easiest way to do this is by using an ice cream scoop. One generous scoop of batter will fill each muffin cup.
- When the pan is filled with batter, sprinkle the top of each muffin lightly with turbinado or coarse sugar. This will add some sweet sparkle and texture to the top of each muffin.
- Bake muffins for 10 minutes. Turn the muffin tin around (180 degrees) and continue to bake for 5-10 minutes more, or until the muffin tops are golden and springy to the touch. Start testing after 5 minutes, and take them out as soon as they turn springy... don't overcook them, or they'll become dry.
- Let muffins cool for 15 minutes, then gently remove from the tin. Serve. Note: If you only have access to frozen blueberries, go ahead and use them. Just keep them frozen and toss them lightly in a little flour before mixing gently into the batter. Baking time may be longer, so test for springiness to ensure doneness.
meaghan says
I was hoping to make this recipe in a loaf pan to give as gifts for christmas. Any tips about that at all? I added a cup of chocolate chips to the recipe when I made these muffins and they were so yummy!!
Tori Avey says
Hi Meaghan, it should work fine in a loaf pan, but baking time may need to be adjusted slightly (test with a toothpick for doneness) and I’m not sure how many loaf pans this recipe will fill. Glad you enjoyed it!
Katherine says
Hi Tory I really want to make these any tips?
Tori Avey says
All the tips are in the recipe Katherine. 🙂 If you have a specific question let me know and I will try to help!
Lucy Ybarra says
I just made the Blue Berry MUFFIN
The muffinsare
The muffins are delish, just made them for my family.
Shannon says
These were very tasty.
I had a few problems though….I used frozen blueberries and that flour trick never works for me. Probably because my batter was very thick and cake-like, so “folding” in blueberries just caused them to crush and turn the muffins blue. Do you think it’s an altitude problem? I live at 3500+ feet above sea level.
Because the blueberries were frozen, the baking time was about 22 min.
These still tasted very good and I would attempt these again, tweaking it with fresh berries and a little less flour to see how they fare with my altitude and oven.
The muffins weren’t dry at all and were the perfect subtle sweetness. Thanks!
Tori Avey says
Hi Shannon! I don’t think it’s an altitude thing… though altitude can definitely vary the cook time and temp, it shouldn’t affect the berries. Frozen berries are simply more delicate than fresh and will break up more in the batter. They won’t look as nice, but they shouldn’t alter the flavor. I definitely suggest using fresh next time if you can. Glad you enjoyed the flavor of the muffins!
Shannon says
I made these today with fresh blueberries and they were amazing! The batter is still thicker/cakey than what the photos show, but it didn’t matter. My 4 year old picky eater can’t stop eating them!
Tori Avey says
Great Shannon! Thanks for reporting back. 🙂
Alex says
Very lovely kitties. I can tell that Muffin is a ragdoll. What about Blueberry? (I have a ragdoll myself. What a great breed).
Tori Avey says
Both Ragdolls with different color points. 🙂
Susie says
Loved the mufffins. They were so easy to make and I had all the ingredients handy. They lasted half a day!
Tori Avey says
So happy you liked them Susie!
Marina says
Thank you for the recipe, blueberries came out very tasty but a little dry for some reason 🙁
Tori Avey says
Hi Marina– you likely overmixed the batter and/or baked them too long. Even baking a few minutes longer than they need can result in tough muffins. Next time, try testing the muffins a few minutes earlier and take them out as soon as they turn springy to the touch. Also, put a baking tin of water on the bottom rack of the oven with the muffins on the rack above– this will help with the dryness issue. When you’re measuring your flour, don’t pack it down tightly into the measuring cup– stir the flour in the bag with a spoon, then use that spoon to scoop it loosely, spoonful by spoonful, into the measuring cup. Level the flour off with a knife. Packing the flour can cause too much flour to be added to the batter, which will result in drier muffins. If you continue to have the same problem, let me know so I can help you troubleshoot.
Patricia says
I will surely be trying a cheese fondu soon. And the blueberry muffins as well.
Your kitty is beautiful, just like our Tony.
Tammy says
is it possible to use dried or feeze-dried blueberries? that’s all I can find. do I need to rehydrate? any suggestions?
ALana D says
These look delicious and not real time consuming.
Kita says
Put another tick mark down for someone obsessed with blueberry muffins (and I love the cats names by the way!). There’s just something about a blueberry muffin that’s a bite of perfection every time.
Peggy says
Your cats are absolutely gorgeous! And these muffins sound like the perfect way to start anyone’s day =)
Christine says
Congrats on Foodbuzz top 9!
Gabby says
Do you know if I can use cranberries instead? I have them in my freezer so I can make these tonight!
Tori Avey says
Hey Gabby, yes! Again, they are much tarter than blueberries, so I would use less berries– 1 1/4 cup or so– and sprinkle the top of the muffins generously with sugar, this will counteract the tartness.
RavieNomNoms says
Congrats on the Top 9! Completely deserved!
I adore blueberry muffins. They are by far one of my favorite things to make AND eat 😉
Alice K. says
Here in the northeast I don’t see blueberries in the markets this time of year. I’ll save this recipe for next spring when they appear in the stores. For now: is there another fruit you’d recommend or do you think those of us on the “other coast” should try frozen ones?
Tori Avey says
Hi Alice! Frozen will work fine, just toss them lightly in flour before you add to the batter. You can also use 1 1/2 cup of chopped strawberries, or try cranberries (use 1 1/4 cup of cranberries and extra sugar on top to counteract tartness).
PJ says
To make a healthier muffin, I used 1/2 of the flour as whole wheat flour and oat bran and walnuts. Of course, I off set that with the buttermilk.
Tori Avey says
Great suggestion PJ, thanks!
Happy When Not Hungry says
These muffins look fantastic!
Kristy says
These would be a hit in our house as well! We love our blueberries! I like the addition of the turbinado sugar as well. And what beautiful cats! So majestic looking. 🙂
a woman called Sam says
Hi,
I have frozen farm raspberries, will these work?
Tori Avey says
Hi Sam, they should work, but the muffins will be more tart because raspberries have natural tartness. Keep them frozen and toss them in flour before folding them into the batter, and you might want to sprinkle extra turbinado/coarse sugar on top of the muffins to counteract the tartness of the berries.