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Home Bread

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

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By: Nicole 1 Comment
Posted: 04/19/22 Updated: 06/01/22

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

There is nothing more fitting to usher spring in than filling your home and palate full of the smells and flavors of citrus. Bright lemon-infused sauces, freshly dressed greens with simple lemon vinaigrette and my favorite lemon poppy seed muffins are all signs in our home that cold days are almost forgotten and warmer days are ahead.  

Light and airy, slightly sweet and full of bright citrus, Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are the perfect spring snack or breakfast.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

While I am admittedly not a baker at heart, I truly enjoy coming up with baked goods and desserts that reflect my style of baking – quick and easy. And that’s exactly what these lemon poppy seed muffins are. Simply mix the dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, mix the two together and bake. That’s it.

Lemon flavor in our muffins comes through in two ways, first with the addition of lemon zest and next, with the addition of AE Whole Milk Lemon Custard Yogurt. Many muffin recipes call for yogurt as ingredient so choosing a flavor that compliments the rest of the muffin is something I love to do. Plus, the whole milk yogurt from AE is high in protein (12g/serving) and probiotics, in addition to its authentic lemony flavor.

Even though most muffin recipes could probably double up as a cupcake, I actually prefer mine to be a little bit less sweet than a typical cupcake. Don’t get me wrong, they will still satisfy your sweet tooth but they won’t give you a sugar crash later In the day.

We finish them off with a super quick lemon glaze and enjoy!  

Light and airy, slightly sweet and full of bright citrus, Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are the perfect spring snack or breakfast.

Ingredients in Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

Flour. You don’t need fancy flour here, simply all-purpose flour will work great.

Baking soda + baking powder. We use a combo of the two because whenever you have an acid like yogurt, you need to use baking soda. The baking soda reacts to the yogurt making it rise and brown. Baking powder simply makes the muffins rise.

Salt. I have never created a baked good recipe or dessert without adding a little bit of salt. It balances out the sweetness and I love a little hint of salt.

Lemon. We use two ways. First, the zest for the muffin itself and second, the juice for the glaze.

Poppy seeds. I am obsessed with poppy seeds in baked goods. I love the little bit of texture they give and they look so darn pretty.

Mix wet ingredients with the dry ingredients.

The Wet Ingredients

AE Yogurt. As we mentioned before, to add even more lemon flavor and a little bit of acid, we use AE Whole Milk Lemon Custard Yogurt. It’s smooth, slightly sweet, the perfect amount of tart and a great way to add a little bit of fat and acidity to the muffins.

If you haven’t heard of AE, you’re likely not in the Midwest. Check out their full list of products at the link above. We use all their dairy products (their Sea Salt Cottage Cheese is a family fave) because they’re delicious but also because they are committed to the best quality raw milk sourced directly from Iowa family dairy farmers

I’ve seen firsthand after a tour at their facility in Des Moines how dedicated they are to their milk products. Everything delivered fresh within hours to local grocers. We haven’t had a product we don’t love!

Milk. Again, we’re use AE Milk. We like using their whole milk but you could also use 2%.

Oil. For muffins, I prefer canola oil for the fat component. They make for very moist, airy muffins and the outside of the muffin gets nice and crisp because of it.

Vanilla. You’ll always find a (big) splash of vanilla in our baked goods.

Let’s make Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

Mix the dry ingredients. Grab a large bowl and mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, lemon zest and poppyseeds. Whisk to combine.

Mix the wet ingredients. I like to use a really big measuring cup to mix everything so I don’t have to dirty up more dishes than necessary but if you don’t have a large liquid measuring cup just use a medium bowl. Measure the oil and milk, then add the eggs, yogurt and vanilla together.

Combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently mix the batter until it’s combined.

Bake! Spoon the batter into a muffin tin and bake until golden brown and cooked through.

Batter in muffin tinns

Do I have to use Lemon Custard Yogurt?

No. If you can’t find the AE Lemon Custard Yogurt you could use a regular lemon yogurt. I’ve even tried it with their French Vanilla flavor and while it wasn’t as lemon forward, it was delicious.

Why don’t you use muffin liners?

This is a personal preference. Here I like to skip the muffin liners because I like the edges of the muffin to get nice and crisp in the pan. Of course, if you’d prefer, you can absolutely use muffin liners.

Baked Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins in the muffin tin

Tips

  • Don’t over mix the batter! Use a spatula to gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until no flour streaks remain.
  • Generously grease your muffin tin if you aren’t using muffin liners.
  • Fill the cups ¾ full of batter. Any more and you risk them running over the top.
  • You can drizzle the glaze right away but it will melt into the muffin a little bit. I prefer them warm with the drizzle but if you want the glaze to solidify, wait until the muffins are room temp.
Light and airy, slightly sweet and full of bright citrus, Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are the perfect spring snack or breakfast.
Light and airy, slightly sweet and full of bright citrus, Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are the perfect spring snack or breakfast.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Prep: 10 minutes minutes
Cook: 15 minutes minutes
Resting time: 5 minutes minutes
Total: 30 minutes minutes
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There is nothing more fitting to usher spring in than filling your home and palate full of the smells and flavors of citrus. Bright lemon-infused sauces, freshly dressed greens with simple lemon vinaigrette and my favorite lemon poppy seed muffins are all signs in our home that cold days are almost forgotten and warmer days are ahead.  
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12 muffins

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tsp lemon zest
  • 2 tbsp poppy seeds
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 5.3 oz container AE Dairy Lemon Custard Whole Milk Yogurt
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup AE Whole Milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1-2 tsp lemon juice (from the lemon you zested)

Equipment

  • Mixing bowl
  • Muffin tin

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 12-count muffin tin with non-stick spray.
  • Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, lemon zest and poppy seeds to a large bowl. Whisk to combine
  • Add eggs, vegetable oil, yogurt, sugar, milk and vanilla to another medium bowl. Whisk to combine.
  • Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold the batter with a spatula until no flour streaks remain.
  • Fill each muffin tin ¾ full of batter.
  • Place in the oven and bake 12-15 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. A wooden toothpick should come out with a few moist crumbs attached to it.
  • Let the muffins cool for two minutes in the pan and then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.
  • While the muffins cool, make the glaze. Add powdered sugar to a small bowl. Whisk in lemon juice. Start with one tablespoon and then add a little bit more to get to your desired thickness. Drizzle on top of muffins.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1muffin, Calories: 261kcal (13%), Carbohydrates: 35g (12%), Protein: 4g (8%), Fat: 12g (18%), Saturated Fat: 1g (6%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 7g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 34mg (11%), Sodium: 188mg (8%), Potassium: 123mg (4%), Fiber: 1g (4%), Sugar: 19g (21%), Vitamin A: 74IU (1%), Vitamin C: 1mg (1%), Calcium: 76mg (8%), Iron: 1mg (6%)
© Author: Nicole

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Meet Nicole

Welcome! My lifelong passion for delicious food and cooking has evolved over time into an equal love of showing you an elevated meal can be easy, approachable and most importantly, tasty. Dive in and find something perfect for you and your family!

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  1. Darlene McQuinn says

    Posted on 7/8/22 at 8:15 pm

    Lemon Poppyseed Muffins I’m just making sure before I make them that they are moist. Every recipe I’ve made are not. I’m going to try these today, They look amazing!!!

    Reply

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Welcome! My lifelong passion for delicious food and cooking has evolved into an equal love of showing you easy elevated meals can be approachable and most importantly, tasty.

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