Easy blueberry muffins: a one-bowl recipe with bake times and variations

The short answer: these blueberry muffins are tall, tender and ready in about 35 minutes from one bowl, baked at 375°F for 20 to 25 minutes.

• Makes: 12 standard muffins
• Dry: 2 cups of flour, ¾ cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, ½ teaspoon of salt
• Wet: melted butter, 2 eggs, milk and vanilla, stirred until just combined
• Bake time chart for mini to jumbo pans, plus eight variations
• Next step: Plan it with the Family Recipe Binder ($6.99).

These blueberry muffins are tall, tender and ready in about 35 minutes from one bowl. Whisk 2 cups of flour with ¾ cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons of baking powder and ½ teaspoon of salt, stir in melted butter, 2 eggs, milk and vanilla until just combined, fold in 1½ cups of blueberries and bake at 375°F for 20 to 25 minutes. The recipe makes 12 standard muffins. Below are the exact amounts, a bake time chart for mini, standard and jumbo pans, eight flavor variations, and how to keep frozen berries from turning the batter purple.

A pan of blueberry muffins is one of the easiest ways to make an ordinary morning feel like a weekend.

Easy blueberry muffin recipe

Makes 12 standard muffins. Prep 10 minutes, bake 20 to 25 minutes.

1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or grease it well.
2. Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
3. Mix the wet ingredients. In a second bowl or a large measuring cup, whisk the melted butter, eggs, milk and vanilla.
4. Combine gently. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and stir with a spatula just until no dry flour shows. A few lumps are fine. Overmixing is the most common reason muffins turn out tough.
5. Add the berries. Toss the blueberries with 1 tablespoon of flour and fold them in with a few strokes.
6. Fill the cups almost to the top, about ⅓ cup of batter each, and sprinkle the tops with the extra tablespoon of sugar.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops spring back and a toothpick in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
8. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then move the muffins to a rack so the bottoms don't steam and go soggy.

The batter contains raw flour and raw eggs, so skip the taste test. The FDA explains in handling flour safely that flour is a raw ingredient that should be baked before eating.

Blueberry muffin bake time chart

Ovens vary, so start checking 3 minutes before the low end of the range.

Fresh vs. frozen blueberries

Tossing either kind in a spoonful of flour helps keep the berries from sinking to the bottom.

Eight blueberry muffin variations

Toppings

• Streusel: rub together ⅓ cup flour, ⅓ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon and 3 tablespoons cold butter, then sprinkle over the batter.
• Lemon sugar: rub the zest of 1 lemon into the sugar before mixing, and brush the warm tops with a simple lemon glaze.
• Coarse sugar crust: use turbinado sugar on top for a crunchy bakery look.

Batter swaps

• Sour cream or Greek yogurt: replace half the milk for a richer, moister crumb.
• Oil instead of butter: use ½ cup neutral oil for muffins that stay soft for days.
• Whole wheat: swap up to 1 cup of the flour for white whole wheat flour.
• Banana blueberry: replace ¼ cup of the milk with 1 mashed ripe banana.
• Lower sugar: cut the sugar to ½ cup; the muffins will be less sweet and slightly less tender.

Storing and freezing blueberry muffins

• Room temperature: keep cooled muffins in a container lined with a paper towel for up to 2 days.
• Refrigerator: up to a week, though the crumb dries out faster in the cold.
• Freezer: wrap them individually and freeze them in a zip-top bag. The USDA's freezing and food safety guide explains that freezing keeps food safe almost indefinitely and that storage times are about quality. For the best texture, eat frozen muffins within about 3 months. Rewarm a frozen muffin for 20 to 30 seconds in the microwave or 10 minutes in a 300°F oven.

Muffins are an easy make-ahead for a holiday morning too. Bake a batch the weekend before and pair them with our Christmas breakfast ideas or a Christmas breakfast casserole. If muffins are your first bake, these easy baking recipes for beginners cover more simple things to bake with oven temps and times.

Plan your baking week

A muffin recipe that works deserves a permanent home, and a planned baking day is how the blueberries get used before they go soft.

• Family Recipe Binder, $6.99. Save this recipe with your own notes, like the oven setting and bake time that work in your kitchen.
• Meal Planner & Grocery List, $3.99. Put muffin morning on the weekly plan and add the berries, butter and milk to the shopping list.
• Meal Planner & Grocery List: Thanksgiving Edition, $4.99. Plan the Thanksgiving breakfast, pies and the big dinner with a holiday grocery list.
• Holiday Season Bundle, $15.99 (regularly $25.94 for the six items bought separately). The meal planner plus the Christmas Budget & Gift Planner and savings trackers for the busy season.

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Looking for a muffin with vegetables baked in? Our easy zucchini bread batter bakes as 12 muffins in 18 to 22 minutes.