Blueberry Muffins
112 comments » 
Muffins are a dangerous thing in my kitchen. I don’t make them all too often because when I do, I can’t stop eating them. For breakfast, for snacks, pretty much any time I walk past the kitchen and spy the container. It may all go back to college when our dorm room was regularly adorned with those slabs of muffins from Sam’s Club. If I remember correctly there was blueberry, banana nut and chocolate. Before long, a serious muffin addiction was formed. There are a couple homemade varieties that I have an especially hard time resisting: Pumpkin and Cream Cheese Muffins and Banana Muffins. And now these blueberry muffins need to be added to that list. They are, without a doubt, the most amazing, the most perfect blueberry muffins I have ever eaten. I love them so much that I think I’m going to break my self-imposed rule and keep these stocked in the freezer for a morning when the mood for a blueberry muffin strikes (and I guarantee there will be many of those mornings!).
These muffins are extremely tender and moist, and packed with a seemingly endless supply of fresh, juicy blueberries. The batter is quite thick and there’s no skimping – the muffin cups are packed full which makes for generous-sized muffins once they come rolling out of the oven.
Some muffins have a glaze, streusel or cinnamon-sugar topping, but I didn’t feel that these needed anything at all. They are awesome enough to stand on their own – no dressing up required. Just a classic, delicious blueberry muffin. These are the best of the best when it comes to blueberry muffins.
How amazing do all of those pockets of fresh, juicy blueberries look?! YUM! I could eat three more right now 
What are your favorite types of muffins?
One year ago: Buttermilk Biscuits
Two years ago: Cobb Salad
Blueberry Muffins
Yield: 12 muffins
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup granulated sugar
4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1¼ cups sour cream
1½ cups frozen or fresh blueberriesDirections:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F*. Grease a standard 12-cup muffin tin (or line with paper liners) and set aside.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl untill combined. Whisk the egg in a separate medium bowl until well-combined and light-colored, about 20 seconds. Add the sugar and whisk vigorously until thick, about 30 seconds. Add the melted butter in 2 or 3 additions, whisking to combine after each addition. Add the sour cream in 2 additions, whisking just to combine.
3. Add the berries to the dry ingredients and gently toss just to combine. Add the sour cream mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until the batter comes together and the berries are evenly distributed, 25 to 30 seconds. Small spots of flour may remain and the batter will be very thick. Do not overmix.
4. Using a large spoon or a cookie scoop sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, divide the batter amount the muffin cups. Bake until the muffins are light golden brown and a toothpick or thin knife inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating the pan from front to back halfway through the baking time. Immediately remove muffins to a wire rack and cool for at least 5 minutes. Serve immediately or at room temperature. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.
(Recipe adapted from Baking Illustrated)
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your muffins look awesome!
my fave muffin?
yours are top vote on my list
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The perfect mid-morning snack! YUM!
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Beautiful muffins!
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Blueberry muffins are one of my weaknesses too. I’ve never made one as good as one I used to buy from a local bakery. These look gorgeous though. I love how the berries have stayed whole yet still gone all juicy. yum
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you made me laugh when you say that muffin is dangerous thing in your kitchen, because it is the same situation here at home lol…
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Oooh! And I have 6 blueberry plants that are getting ready to offer me some goodies in the next month or two, too! (That is, if I can keep the birds away!) I keep seeing amazing recipes featuring Baking Illustrated. May have to pick this treasure up….
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Michelle on May 31st, 2011 at 10:18 pm
Paula – Baking Illustrated is pretty much one of my handful of baking bibles. If I am looking for a “classic/perfect” recipe of anything, it is always the first place I look. I highly recommend it!
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a cup and 1/2 of blueberries for 12 muffins…that is A LOT! I thought I had the perfect muffin recipe but your endorsement of a muffin without a topping has me second guessing myself. As for the freezer rule…that doesn’t work for me so well. 30 seconds in the microwave is not a big enough deterrent for me. I can still down blueberry muffins quicker than just about anything else.
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What a great post! It’s so easy to take a good blueberry muffin for granted this day.
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Classic blueberry muffins are actually my favorite! These look wonderful and I love that they are full of blueberries.
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Blueberry muffins are definitely one of my favorites for spring. In the fall, it has to be apple muffins.
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OMG, I remember those huge slabs of muffins – we used to have them in my house all the time and one of my Sunday morning routines would be to eat one of those muffins while my dad would make his oatmeal before we all left church – ah, memories!!
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i absolutely love blueberry muffins…they’re my favorite! i love how golden and delicious yours look; i could DEFINITELY eat about 3 in a row
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I have a serious muffin weakness too, especially blueberry muffins. These look so delicious and full of blueberries
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I LOVE this idea. Must try!
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I can’t stay away from muffins after I make them also and it’s hard for me to not smother them with butter, so I typically stay away. These look fabulous and have the perfect amount of blueberries in them!
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Muffins hardly last long in my kitchen as well. I like to put a slight bit of lemon zest in my blueberry muffins, for an interesting twist.
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Blueberry muffins are my all-time favorite muffins. I just received six pound of blueberries on Friday, so I will be needing some recipes to use them all up!
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I agree with you, muffins are hard to pass up around here as well! My favorite type would probably have to be the basic chocolate chip muffin. So easy to make yet soooo delicious.
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I love muffins too (they might even be taking over my blog
). I have had some really excellent blueberry muffins in the past (and made some too) but these are a must try, your pictures are fantastic. When I was working in retail my breakfast every morning was a blueberry muffin and a bottle of Nestea. But my favourite muffins by far have to be raisin bran (or just bran depending on the day 
). I actually baked up a batch of low fat banana bran muffins a few weeks ago and was amazed at how good they turned out (sometimes removing the fat ain’t so great 
).
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Our local blueberries won’t be ready for picking for another little while. Your photographs of these muffins almost look 3D and have me wishing I could snatch it off the plate.
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These muffins look gorgeous. I love when the fruit flavor in the muffin really comes through. I was WAY too familiar with those 12 packs of oversized muffins in my college days. I walk past them now and shutter.
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Michelle on May 31st, 2011 at 10:22 pm
Haha, I know, right?! Me too! Oh how far we’ve come
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Diane on June 1st, 2011 at 11:32 am
We had a “muffin man” who would bring these to our office almost every morning and sell them. I wouldn’t always buy them, but those “once in a whiles” added up and I blame them for causing me to slowly regain 20 pounds of the 30 I’d lost and kept off for 3 years. =( I was wearing lots of loose comfy clothing and had given up my scale addiction, so I didn’t really notice till it was that much! Now I regard those muffins with FEAR. =P
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I am like you – i can’t have muffins in the house or they dissapear very quickly. So i have been trying to make a few more healthy ones
As usual your muffins just look fabulous!
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Michelle,
Your blueberry muffins look absolutely delicious! If I only have frozen blueberries on hand and I want to use them in this recipe…how should i go about that? Thaw them first then add them in or will the muffin be too watery? Thanks!
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Michelle on May 31st, 2011 at 10:25 pm
Hi Diana, Add them frozen to the dry ingredient mixture in the first step, then proceed with the rest of the recipe. Enjoy the muffins!
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Wow, I am drooling just looking at these, I think it might be a good thing that there is a computer screen between us!
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These look amazing! We love muffins at our house! They have to end up in the freezer or I will eat them all. But then my son loves that, because he gets a warm muffin any morning he wants for breakfast!
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Love a great blueberry muffin recipe! Yours look so tasty!
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Oh man! I now have 3 blueberry muffin recipes bookmarked, each proclaiming to be the best!! I guess I’ll have to have a bake off and decide but what will I do with 3 batches of muffins?!?
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Michelle on May 31st, 2011 at 10:26 pm
Oooh bake off sounds like fun! If you do it, come back and share the results!
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Mmm, I love blueberry muffins! And pumkin muffins. And banana nut. Well okay, I just love muffins. These look delicious.
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I’m wrestling with the desire to leap up right now and use the blueberries in the fridge to make a batch of these.
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These do look like awesome muffins. I don’t know if I have ever met a muffin I don’t like, so I agree that they are a dangerous thing to keep around the house. But you only live once so I am partial to pumpkin streusel muffins.
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I lilke the rounded top on the muffins. Some recipes recomment to start with high temperature to achieve this. Did you bake at 350F from start to finish of baking? Thank you.
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Michelle on May 31st, 2011 at 10:27 pm
Yes, 350 degrees F from start to finish, no alteration to the temperature.
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I also can’t stop eating them. I especially love Blueberry Muffins, Pumpkin Muffins, and Double Chocolate Muffins. I bake muffins pretty often as my son eats them for breakfast. I make him either Banana Muffins or Chocolate Chip.
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I’ve made TONS of blueberry muffins and these are by far the BEST!!!! And they don’t even have the streusel topping. I just finished eating one and if it weren’t bed time then I would probably eat them all!!! Thanks for the recipe!!!
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your muffins are the BEST!
i love all fruit muffins as well as those that contain dark chocolate…& peanut butter!
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I am a sucker for a really good blueberry muffin and these certainly look like they fit the bill. Great recipe, Michelle!
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Funny, I was just talking about blueberry muffins this morning. They look fresh and wonderful!
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These muffins look perfect! I think my favorite are pumpkin muffins. I can eat them all year round!
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Oh Wow! I was just talking to my students today about those addictive muffins from Sam’s Club. I want to try your recipe, I’m sure the flavor is much better than the commercial ones.
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What is it about muffins that inspire us to eat them in multiples? I do the same thing! I always end up eating 3 the first day I make them! Will definitely be giving these a try.
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This recipe is also awesome with 8 oz lemon yogurt substituted for sour cream & about 1 tsp grated lemon rind !
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You weren’t kidding that this batter is thick! My muffin cups were overflowing and I was afraid to pile on more, so I made an extra mini loaf in a small Pyrex refrigerator dish.
I should have kept piling. They turned out delicious, but not nearly as tall and golden as yours. Good excuse to make them again!
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unfortunately I haven’t any blueberries,,but I have a bag of 3-blend berries in my freezer (blackberries,raspberries,blueberries) think they will come out as good ??
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Michelle on June 2nd, 2011 at 3:05 pm
Hi Cathy, That should work, but if the blackberries are extra large, I might just measure out the blueberries and raspberries (if you have enough).
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Congrats sweetie on top 9!!!! I love these muffins that you presented and shared with us!!! Wonderful mouthwatering photos!!!!
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These look delish. I’ve never made them with sour cream before, but I will give them a try! Lovely photo too.
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thanks ! i’ll let you know how they come out..hope they look as YUMMY as yours !
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Classic blueberry muffins are always a winner! I love the huge muffins from Costco–basically ALL that flavors. I love to eat the chocolate ones straight from the freezer
.
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Oh wow, those look awesome. You’re right, muffins are the worst to have around, they fool you into eating them with their semi-healthiness!
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I just put these in the oven! I’m excited to try them. Although, I mixed EVERYthing together.
( So I hope they turn out okay. That’s what happens when you have the kids help you… you get sidetracked. :-/
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I just pulled these out of the oven about 30 mins ago and my hubby has already had four of them! Which is very unusual for him, he will usually limit his consumption of bad foods. So…when he had four before I was able to have one, I decided this has to be a keeper! And yes they are really yummy and so easy to make. I have a gallon of fresh blueberries in the fridge and now I know exactly what I will do with them.
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With a small few tweaks this is my basic blueberry go to recipes. Very nice!!!!
http://delishhh.com/2011/06/27/blueberry-muffins/
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These muffins are awesome! I subbed in 1 1/2 cups of Stoneyfield Vanilla Lowfat yogurt instead of the sourcream, and had to bake them a little longer than the 30 minutes recommended time….But other than that PERFECT! Will definitely be making again! <3
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im currwntly in the making of this recipe. (literally)
i just turned them around in the oven to be exact. i have one concern so far is that they are very doughy compared to battery i felt as if i were making cookies almost. (although i have never made muffins before) i hope they turn out magnificent.
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ok so i finished those muffins and i have to honeslty say they are completely not what i was hopping for, they basically suck almost. They looked nothing like above, almost underdone looking and they had a underdone taste even though they were done cooking inside and was somewhat brown, barely. It was the first thing i have made off this website and lets say i was not impressed….. at all. i am very disappointed.
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eli on November 11th, 2012 at 1:34 pm
I had the same problem and I followed the recipe basically exactly. The only change was I didn’t have quite enough sour cream, just about a cup. The muffins came out dense, bland and pale
what did I do wrong?
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Does anyone know if these muffins have a prominent sour cream flavor? I’m not really a fan of the flavor, but I’m fine with it in baked goods! Thanks.
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Michelle, these muffins look like they can be eaten right off the internet – and blueberry muffins have always and I mean always (which is about 75 years) been my favorite – as soon as I pick up some sour cream they will be baked and enjoyed. Many thanks for yet another great addition to my collection.
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I dont have sour cream on hand and need to make this ASAP. Can I substitute with buttermilk? If yes then what will be the quantity…
Thanks much!!!
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Michelle on July 21st, 2011 at 12:33 pm
You can use plain yogurt in a 1:1 ratio to replace the sour cream. I personally have never substituted buttermilk for sour cream, so I can’t vouch for how the results would turn out. If you want to give it a try you can use this substitution chart for the quantities (you need to adjust the butter as well): http://www.cookingforengineers.com/article/52/Ingredient-Substitutions
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I tried making your blueberry muffins and substituted splenda for sugar. It did not turn out the same. boo hoo.
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mary rosenbaum on August 22nd, 2011 at 10:27 am
Splenda website suggests only substituting part of the sugar with Splenda. Otherwise, the muffins won’t rise correctly (and the texture won’t be similar).
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I have found the Holy Grail of BB muffins. I have literally tried about a dozen different recipes for BB muffins and these are by far the best.
Not only do they look great but taste great as well. Will definitely be my go-to recipe for BB muffins from now on!
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Love, love, love this recipe! My son and I cannot stop eating them! I have never been a lover of the blueberry muffin until now!!!
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We are currently cooking these blueberry muffins for a business event. The batter was soooo thick that we panicked and added a splash of milk. Now, we are wondering since we have read some of the other post if we caved in to soon. Time will tell.
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Superb recipe! I subbed Splenda for half the sugar (I’m diabetic) and it made no difference in the finished product. I find that if I sub no more than half the sugar for Splenda, I can get away with it without a difference in virtually any recipe. I did cheat, however, and sprinkled the tops with just a bit of Demerara sugar for sparkle, and it added a delightful crunch. The sour cream aids in keeping qualities and imparts a lovely flavor. They freeze beautifully, packed in zip-locks. I take one out of the freezer at night, and then it’s ready to enjoy first thing in the morning. This will be my go-to recipe forever more. Thanks for posting it!
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I own the cookbook that these are from, and just made them (again) a couple of days ago. I have made many recipes in the past, and this is by far the best one for blueberry muffins! To answer someone’s question from above, no, they have no sour cream taste at all. The sour cream just makes them sooooo moist! I usually like streusel topping on muffins, but these don’t need it. I gave several to my friend, and she said they were the best she had ever eaten! Enjoy!
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To EVERYONE: MAKE THESE MUFFINS! Most BB muffin recipes I’ve tried are too dry. These are amazing! Not too sweet and SUPER moist! I actually have the cookbook these came from and went for the cinnamon/sugar topping which really set them over the edge; but as Brown Eyed Baker said, it’s really not needed. SO GOOD. THANK YOU!! My mom doesn’t even really care for baked things and cannot stop talking about how good they are!
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First time I made these, they were amazing, but I only had about half the proper amount of Sour Cream. Second time I made them I did the whole amount, and they tasted off. They didn’t rise nearly at all, and within about 3 days they had gone bad (not visibly moldy, but you could taste it as soon as you bit in). I had them in Tupperware and everything. Any idea what I could have done wrong? Was it the sour cream or something else? I have a chef friend and when I asked him he just said “too much oil” but there is none in this recipe. I absolutely adored the first batch I made but I don’t want to risk such a flop if I make them for others.
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Michelle on August 24th, 2011 at 10:38 am
I’m sorry you had some problems! Unfortunately I’m not sure what the problem might have been if all of the ingredients were fresh. That being said, these muffins won’t stay “fresh” for more than a couple of days because they are so moist. If you don’t finish them the day after they were baked I would recommend freezing them.
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These are currently sitting on my oven..from which they just came out of. I’m seriously pumped :0)
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Just tried these and loved them. Thank you for the recipe! Next time when I double it I need to make sure I have enough sour cream, but otherwise, went perfectly with frozen blueberries! Yum!
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I love these muffins! Your photographs look a little better than mine turned out, but they’re still yummy. I prefer using fresh blueberries too.
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These muffins were SOOO good!!!! Really – they were truly perfect! I have been looking for a recipe like this for such a long time so I am so thrilled that I found this one. I just love your site!
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Made these muffins last week and brought them into the office. In an office of about 7 people, the entire dozen was picked clean, and I only had one! (ok two). But in all seriousness, these were delicious! Love your site!
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This is about the fifth recipe I have used from your site…really wonderful stuff!
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I love you! SUPERYUM! Thank you for sharing.
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These are seriously amazing. I used whole wheat pastry flour in place of the AP flour and it worked beautifully.
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I just volunteered to make muffins for my son’s second grade holiday breakfast party. I’d love to use this recipe and make half with blueberries and half with chocolate chips. Do you think this recipe will work with chocolate chips instead of blueberries? I hope that’s not a stupid question ..!!
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Michelle on November 29th, 2012 at 10:18 pm
Hi Dee, Not a stupid question at all! I have not made these with chocolate chips, but would love to hear how yours turn out! I think the fresh blueberries might add some moisture, but you can probably do a swap. Let me know how they go!
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I made these this morning at high altitude (7,000 feet). I followed the usual high-altitude baking advice of omitting about 1/8 of the baking powder & these muffins are beautiful and delicious! I love how they are so moist without being oily. YUM! Thank you.
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Can you make these in a mini-version? Any alterations required?
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Michelle on January 3rd, 2013 at 6:21 pm
Hi Ann, Sure you can make them smaller, just reduce the baking time. I’d start checking around 10 minutes.
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I was jonsing last night and tried your recipe. I’ve made ho-hum blueberry muffins forever. This recipe was the best ever. I used a giant muffin tin and made 6 instead of 12. They rose in the pan like soccer balls, HUGE. Then again I only use White Lily self rising flour, maybe that helped. This recipe is fantastic. Thanks so much.
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These look absolutely perfect. Can you replace the sour cream with greek yogurt?
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Michelle on January 24th, 2013 at 3:09 pm
Hi Vicky, Yes, you could substitute plain yogurt (not flavored) for the sour cream.
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Okay just made these, I’m confused. After baking I still had small pockets of flower in the muffins (ewwwww). They didn’t rise at all. They stayed lumpy like the batter. They never smoothed out like you pictures. Did you roll thm nicely or something when you put them in the tins. I don’t know what happened. I was so excited too
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Michelle on January 27th, 2013 at 2:09 pm
Hi Laurie, I’m sorry you had some problems with the muffins. I didn’t roll (?) the batter at all. You should basically be mixing them like pancake batter – just until mostly combined, with some lumps remaining. Just like with pancakes, this keeps them light and fluffy and the flour dissolves and bakes in.
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Laurie on January 27th, 2013 at 4:05 pm
Thanks for the reply, by roll I mean shape them into balls before filling the cups. My cups filled lumpy and the batter stayed that way then it cooked. It was weird. It never really baked together. The flower didn’t dissolve or bake in. Maybe my baking powder was old…this was my first attempt at blueberry muffins..they just look unmixed. Maybe I didn’t mix enough. I focused on not overmixing and folding rather then mixing it. Anyone else have this problem??? Oh well, thanks for the reply
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These are the best blueberry muffins I’ve ever made and ate. Will be making them over and over again. I put a lemon glaze on the top because my hubby loves anything lemon!! Excellent! Thank you I will be trying more recipes from the Brown Eyed Baker.
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Thank you for sharing this recipe! These are the BEST blueberry muffins. I included them in my suggested brunch menu recipes (http://wondermomwannabe.com/effortless-entertaining-host-a-brunch/) so that even more people can enjoy these yummy breakfast treats.
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Hi, I’m wondering if I can add oatmeal to this recipe. How would I need to alter it in order to do so? Thanks!
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Michelle on March 24th, 2013 at 9:49 am
Hi Emily, I would not recommend adding oats to this recipe.
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Unfortunately these muffins turned out flavorless (some vanilla extract would have helped, but they were already in the oven) and dry (actually more like a cake, not crumbly like muffins).
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Made these this morning and we thought they were delicious. I used plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream because that is what I had available, added the zest of one orange and sprinkled some decorator sugar before baking. Keeping this as my go to for blueberry muffins. Thanks, BEB, I can always depend on you for the best !!!
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My first try in baking and I made this muffins for my son preschool potluck sports day! It was a hit and especially at home with my in laws:)
Can I use the same recipe for bananas or chocolates instead of blueberry?
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Michelle on April 10th, 2013 at 9:48 am
Hi Yvonne, I’m so glad that you enjoyed these muffins! I would actually recommend that you only substitute other berries (raspberries, blackberries) for the blueberries in these muffins to ensure that they turn out well. I do have other recipes for chocolate and banana muffins on the site, if you’re interested: http://www.browneyedbaker.com/category/recipes/breakfast-brunch-recipes/muffin-recipes/
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Yvonne on April 24th, 2013 at 11:19 am
Thanks Michelle! I tried with fresh green grapes the other day, it turned out great! That’s my 3rd attempt with this recipe or with baking! Loving it!
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I really love that many of your recipes use ingredients that I usually have on hand. Of course not every refrigerator in America has sour cream in it all the time…but ours does
The only minor adjustment I made was to sprinkle some coarse sugar on top of the muffins before baking…made the tops look great and added a sweet crunch. These muffins make a great take-a-long breakfast when you are on the go.
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This is a fantastic recipe!
They turned out to be a hit with my husband and friends! I made them last night and they’re almost gone today.
There were a few things that I substituted/changed, which I thought made them tastier. I subbed sour cream with 2% greek yogurt, which I think tastes pretty similar. I also used frozen blueberries and lightly coated them with flour to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the batter. Lastly, I used 4 tbspn of butter, just because
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Just made these today, they were so good! Made them with fresh blueberries and followed the recipe exactly. Goodbye boxed muffin mix!
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I really love your blog Michelle, but I tried making these muffins today, and I have to say they weren’t good. I followed the recipe exactly and they looked great, but tasted bland and dense. I don’t know what I did wrong :S
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I wanna know 1 cup of flour is how many germ ?
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Carol on May 15th, 2013 at 3:28 am
Sorry, type wrong… I mean grams
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Michelle on May 15th, 2013 at 11:54 am
Hi Carol, 1 cup of all-purpose flour is approximately 120 grams.
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This recipe is ridiculously addictive! I’ve been searching for the perfect muffin recipe and this is it! I had leftover raspberries in my fridge so I used them instead and it was still phenomenal! Thank you so much for sharing all of these lovely recipes with us. I look forward to making the allspice muffins next!!
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Yummiest recipe ever! I substituted sour cream with sour yogurt and it turned out fantastic, bouncy and soft. I used cocoa powder and orange essence instead of blueberry and vanila essence.
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