Art of Gluten-Free Baking

Best Blueberry Muffins, Gluten-Free

by

Greetings!  I’m just back from attending the International Food Bloggers Conference.  I am at once exhausted and elated!  I will be writing a post about that later.

I wanted to share a new recipe for blueberry muffins. It’s the tail end of blueberry season here in Seattle and I’ve been eating them every chance I get.  Everyone in my family loves blueberries, and I’m always on the lookout for new recipes in which to incorporate them.  I already have another blueberry muffin recipe on the site–Blueberry Honey Muffins–but this one is a bit different.  In this recipe, you make a quick jam with some of the blueberries and then swirl that jam into the batter at the last minute.  It creates muffins that are just oozing with blueberry flavor–delish!  And, the crumb of these muffins is fantastic!  Even Girlfriend, who isn’t the biggest fan of fruit in her muffins, loves these.  Yay!

Best Blueberry Muffins, Gluten-Free
-adapted from May/June 2009 Cook’s Illustrated
makes 12 Muffins

Ingredients

Muffins
2 cups (about 285g) fresh blueberries, picked over
1 1/8 cups (225g) plus 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups (360g) Jeanne’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix
2 1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 extra-large eggs
4 tablespoon (1/2 stick; 2 oz; 55g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly (you can also use a butter substitute measured by volume–not weight)
1/4 cup (60ml) neutral-flavored oil (I use Rice Bran oil)
1 cup (240ml) buttermilk (or 1 cup milk or milk substitute w/1 tablespoon vinegar mixed in)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Lemon Sugar Topping (optional)
1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Mix together and set aside.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F/220 degrees C/Gas Mark 7.  Prepare your muffin pans–I use muffin papers in mine.  You can also grease cups with extra butter and flour with extra tapioca flour.

For the jam: in a small saucepan, bring 1 cup blueberries and 1 teaspoon sugar to simmer over medium heat. Cook, mashing berries and stirring frequently, until berries have broken down and mixture is thickened and reduced to about 1/4 C, about 6 minutes (don’t get too worried about the exact measurement). Transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature–about 10-15 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt.

In a large bowl, beat eggs for a couple a minutes–until light.  Add remaining 1 1/8 cup sugar and beat for about 3 minutes more.  Slowly add melted and cooled butter and oil, beat for a few minutes more.  Add vanilla, beat to combine.

Now add flour mixture and buttermilk, alternating between the two–beginning and ending with the flour mixture.  With a large spoon, fold in the remaining 1 cup of whole blueberries.

Divide the batter equally among 12 prepared muffin cups.  The batter should fill each cup and mound slightly.  With a teaspoon, spoon the jam onto the top of each batter-filled mound.  Using a chopstick (or something similar), gently swirl the jam into the batter.

If using, sprinkle a bit of lemon sugar topping onto each mound of batter.  You can also just sprinkle plain granulated sugar on each.  Or not use any topping.  All options are delicious!

Bake at 425 degrees F for about 19 minutes–until tops are golden brown.  Cool in pans for 5 minutes and then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Note:  If you use a different gluten-free flour mix, alter the amount of or eliminate the xanthan gum, use dairy-free or egg-free substitutes, or change any other ingredients in this recipe, your results may not match my results.

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Comments

  1. Anne Kennedy

    These are the best muffins I have ever tasted! Followed recipe exactly. Finally, I can have a treat that tastes so great – only problem is that I may eat too many of them… Thank you so much Jeanne – Now I am looking to trying more of your recipes in my gluten-free world…

  2. Jan

    This is the third recipe I have made using Jeanne’s Gluten Free All-purpose Flour Mix. All of them have turned out great! I substituted coconut oil for the butter and used Lactose Free milk plus 1 Tbsp. of vinegar for the buttermilk. I just added some plain lemon zest on the top before baking. I felt they would be sweet enough and they were. Delicious!

  3. Brenda

    I just started cooking gluten free this past week. I have other food allergies (eggs, milk, soy, garlic and onions) so it is challenging learning to cook differently. and going out to eat is nearly impossible. Thank you for your web site and all of your wonderful recipes! I just got done making these muffins and they were delicious. For the two eggs, I substituted one with a banana and one with flax(1 tbl. flax to 3 tbls. water). I also didn’t make the jam, just stirred in the blueberries. Do you know how long these will store at room temperature? Do you know if they freeze well?

    Thank you again for sharing your recipes and knowledge!

    • Jeanne

      Brenda: I would leave them on your countertop for only a day or two (especially if it is hot where you are). And yes, they should freeze just fine. Place into a zip-top bag, push out all of the air, seal and freeze. Defrost by placing in the fridge for about 24 hours.

    • Jeanne

      Melinda: I usually store them at room temperature covered by a paper towel for the first 24 hours, and then at room temperature in a plastic bag.

  5. Julie

    I made these for a brunch today and OMG! I can’t even believe how good they were. The texture and flavor were *perfect*. FYI to other readers, I used Bob’s Red Mill GF all-purpose flour and a pinch of xantham gum and it was fine.

  6. Meghan

    OMG! These are so scrumptious! Made them last night for Boyfriend, he is very anti-health food and could barely keep his hands off of them.
    I used Texas size muffin tins (you know the gigantic muffins) so after 10 minutes i bumped the heat down to 400 degrees and baked for another 20 minutes to ensure the middle was done without burning the tops. Huge hit in this divided house!

  7. Jenny Zachry

    I have been gf for almost ten years, and have tried literally every blogger’s recipes. These muffins were amazing, my gluten eating husband said they are the closest I’ve gotten to “real” ones yet (and I live at 6500 feet and I saw lots of questions on this on your FAQ….I simply reduce my baking powder.)

    I just have two questions:

    1) my kids are small and so full size muffins are usually too much for them. What do I need to change time/temp wise to cook in a mini muffin pan?

    2) I finally bought my oven thermometer, and as you and all the others predicted, my oven is off by about 25 degrees. Does this mean I up the oven temp until I get it to where the thermometer reads correctly (so for example in this recipe where it cooks at 425, do I up it all the way to 450 if that’s what it takes to get the thermometer to read 425?)

    Thank you! I already have a list of your recipes that I plan on trying over the next several weeks!

    • Jeanne

      Jenny: I would reduce the baking time for the muffins by about 10 minutes. But, since you’re baking at altitude–I would recommend watching them carefully the first time you do the little muffins to see how they behave since I’m not sure how the temp will adjust. Also, yes: adjust your oven temp a bit higher until your thermometer reads the temp you want to bake at. Then make notes for next time. 🙂 Happy baking!

  8. Rina

    I attempted this recipe, in the process, I found out I am out of baking soda, I mix my own “baking powder”. Muffins tasted great, but totally lacked the sponginess, they looked on the “under cooked” side. I will attempt these again though!! Thanks for all your research and for graciously sharing with the rest of the world!! God Bless you! : )

  9. Michelle

    Great muffins! I was intrigued by this recipe when I saw it in Cooks’s Illustrated, so I am really glad you adapted it! I may try to make it Christmasy by using cranberries + a little more sugar as the jam part (pureed for texture) and orange juice-plumped craisins in the batter.

  10. Jamie

    I am using this but “changing” for the season….made butternut squash soup (aka pumpkn pie soup to my wee ones) for a day trip tomorrow…wanted a bread/muffin to travel with…so, instead of bluberries for jam I used some of my fresh pumpkin butter & sprinkled with cin/sug mix…oh and added nuts to batter…..they are awesome!!! Can’t wait for tomorrow! Also taking the nut and jam bars on trail & the chocolate zuc bread as a car treat/dessert. I know I have said it before but I love your site and am so very thankful for you! God bless!!

    • admin

      Jamie: Oh, wow–that sounds delicious! I love that you made the muffin recipe your own. And the other treats–yum! You chose all of my favorites! 🙂

  11. Danielle

    I just made these muffins and the were perfect! I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance in June and found myself in a food funk. Cooking was a pain and baking seemed hopeless. But you have brought the joy back with your recipes! Thank you so much!

    • admin

      Danielle: I’m so glad my recipes are helpful! Yay! And I totally know how you feel–I went through that when I was first diagnosed, as well. Bleh. It does get better!

  12. Yelitza

    Hi. Just a quick comment on the egg replacement issue. My kids are severely allergic to eggs (the full egg). For baked goods bananas work well as egg replacement – plus hmmm yummy. Use about half of a large banana for each egg needed.

    • admin

      Yelitza: Yes, this is an awesome idea. There are so many different ways to substitute for eggs–and it’s neat to hear people’s ideas. Thank you!

  13. Anile | Girlfriday

    Dear Jeanne! These are phenomenal!! The recipe has a few more steps than your average muffin recipe but it is totally worth it. I used almond milk (with the vinegar as you suggested) and frozen blueberries. Used regular butter, but will try with butter substitute next time. Turned out great. Gorgeous texture and I love the crunchy-sweet lemony topping. Also, your all-purpose mix is a staple in my fridge at all times. Thanks very much for sharing these with the rest of us! Can’t wait for your book 🙂

  14. Rachael

    Used your flour recipe for banana choc chip muffins for my daughter and they turned out great! I got brave and didn’t add the cocoa powder I usually use (to mask the taste of the soy flour in my previous flour recipe). Wonderful flour recipe. My son (who doesn’t usually eat gf) thought they tasted great too! Will definately be trying some more of your recipes. Thanks so much for all your experimentation – definately worth it!.
    The Nancy I was referring to was the previous comment poster who was having problems with egg-free baking. My daughter was egg, dairy, gluten and yeast free for a while. Fortunately she is now just dairy and gluten free (a lot easier!) Anyway replacing the egg with mashed banana worked for me in lots of cake/muffin type recipes.
    Thanks again
    Rachael

    • admin

      Rachael: Ah, got it. And bean flours are always very strong. That’s why I never use them. Also, they make me feel bad.

      And thanks for letting me know how the muffins went!

  15. Rachael

    Hiya, came across your website after much frustrating searching for a gf flour recipe that tastes nice! Like the look of yours, have just bought all the ingredients I need, so planning to give it a try.

    I just thought I’d mention to Nancy that using 1 mashed banana for each egg needed can work really well in some recipes. I’ve used it sucessfully in other cake and muffin recipes.
    Ok, off to do some baking!

  16. Nancy O'Toole

    Hi.Hope you can help!
    I tried these muffins today, and was so looking forward to them…but had a disaster! Hockey pucks my husband called them..they fell and went into the garbage unfortunately..maybe you can help(?)
    My son has been put on a Gluten free, also dairy,
    egg free (can have just yolk), plus soy, and sugar free to name just a few! I used your flour mix, & all other ingreds etc..but subsituted the rice milk with vinegar, & used the soy free earth balance margarine..Also used Xylitol sugar substitute( but did cut down on this by 1/4 cup) ! I think it may be the egg replacement that was the problem(?)I tried gelatin mixed with water ( 1 Tbsp gelatin + 1 tsp to 4 Tbsp’s water )..as I read in egg substitutes, plus the 2 egg yolks as an egg replacement!
    Also as I have a convection oven( hotter) I did reduce the temp & baked them at 400 for 19 mins! I know that with convection it could be less baking time, but though brown, they didn’t look cooked! They seemed to be rising OK and then fell! They were very heavy and a gummy mess inside!
    Do you think it was the egg replacement, lower heat or both.. or is there anything else that you can think of that may work better?
    I appreciate any help you can give!
    I tried making a bran muffin yesterday..different egg replacement ..also went into garbage! I am really quite a good cook and inventive with traditional ingred…but seem to be having bad luck lately with this diet!
    Many thanks for any help!
    Nancy

    • admin

      Nancy: Yes, I think your main problem was the egg. Eggs provide structure to baked goods, so the lack of egg results in flatter products. That’s why they rose and then fell. Also, convection often flattens thing because the air presses too hard on the tops. Can you turn that function off in your oven? I am not much of an expert with egg replacements, but gelatin isn’t a good one. And 4 TBL of water is too much–that added too much liquid to the recipe and contributed to the gummy, wet mess part. I would try ground flaxseeds mixed with water. 1 TBL of groud flax seeds mixed with 3 TBL of warm water equals 1 egg. Stir to mix and then let sit for a few minutes to gel. You still won’t get the loft you get with eggs, but you will get a better result I think than with the gelatin. Also, be sure to beat the sugar and “eggs” until they are light and fluffy. That will help add loft to the muffins.

      Good luck!

  18. Hayley

    I made these after searching online for a GF blueberry muffin recipe.

    I made a couple changes-
    Instead of making the jam, I just threw the blueberries into the batter whole.
    I used Bob’s Red Mill Allpurpose GF flour blend for my flour, plus 1 tsp xanthan gum for each cup (as instructed)
    Instead of using a flavorless oil, I used coconut oil.
    I used Earth Balance soy-free blend for the butter.
    I used Whole Foods brand rice milk plus 1 tbsp lemon juice for the buttermilk.
    Sprinkled brown sugar on muffin tops.

    They turned out delicious!!! Spot on taste and texture.

    • admin

      Haley: Awesome! I love it! Thanks for letting me know exactly what you used–so helpful for me should anyon asked questions about the ingredients. Yay!

  19. Heather Stepniewski

    These muffins were AMAZING! Thank you so much for posting these. My family and I hadn’t had a muffin in a year.

      • Heather Stepniewski

        I made these again this morning. Fantastic! The crumb on these is amazing. I sprinkled the muffins with orange zest sugar. My son’s tutor (who isn’t GF) said the muffins rocked. I am so glad I found your blog.