Lemon Crumb Muffins
These lemon crumb muffins make such a nice breakfast or snack! Moist, tender, & citrus-y, with a thick layer of buttery streusel on top.
Hey again! It’s a gorgeous Tuesday afternoon, and my kids are officially DONE with the school year! Hooray!
I’m so looking forward to long, lazy summer days.
They’re outside playing now, so I thought this seemed like the perfect time to share my latest & greatest muffin recipe: Lemon Crumb Muffins!
I’ve got a ton of yummy muffin recipes on this site. These banana nut muffins are a top favorite, and so are these blueberry muffins. And these double chocolate zucchini muffins have summer written all over them!
But I’ve been wanting to create a lemon crumb version for a while now. I just love the combination of bright citrus with a crunchy, buttery crumb topping.
The muffins bake up light, fluffy, and moist, with such a nice delicate flavor. It’s a great way to start your day, or a nice mid-afternoon nibble with a cup of tea.
HOW TO MAKE LEMON CRUMB MUFFINS
The ingredients for these muffins are pretty straightforward.
- Flour
- Sugar
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Lemon Zest
- Butter
- Sour Cream
- Milk
- Eggs
- Lemon Juice
- and Lemon Extract for the muffins.
And for the topping you’ll also need:
- Butter
- Flour
- Sugar
- Salt
- and Lemon Zest.
THE MUFFINS
Making muffins is so easy. Muffins are a quick bread, which means they’re leavened with either baking powder or baking soda, rather than yeast.
All you need to do is stir the dry ingredients together, then stir the liquid ingredients together, mix them up, and bake!
Start with the dry ingredients. Flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest get whisked together in a big bowl.
Then melt the butter in a large liquid measuring cup, and whisk in the sour cream, milk, eggs, lemon juice, and lemon extract.
Pour the liquid ingredients right into the dry.
Fold everything together gently, just until barely combined. The batter will look a little lumpy, and that’s totally ok. It’s best not to overwork it, or your muffins could come out tough and heavy.
This recipe makes 12 generous, bakery-style muffins. It may seem like a lot of batter, but it’s the perfect amount for 12, I promise. If you do more than 12, they will come out smaller and flatter, and you will need to reduce the bake time or else they’ll be dry.
I like to use a 1/4-cup ice cream scoop to portion out my muffin batter. You’ll need about 1 1/2 scoops per muffin.
THE CRUMB TOPPING
Next you can move on to the crumb topping.
Just melt the butter, then stir the flour, sugar, salt, and zest in. I like to do this with a fork- just toss it all around until you have a nice combination of big, boulder-sized hunks, and smaller, finer crumbs.
Sprinkle the crumb topping all over the unbaked muffins. You’ll have enough for a nice, generous layer of streusel.
Now just pop them into the oven!
The bake starts at a higher temperature. This will quickly activate the baking powder, allowing your muffins to puff up sky high!
After a few minutes, you’ll want to lower the heat and allow them to keep baking until a toothpick inserted in the thickest part comes out clean.
After they’re baked and cooled, dust them with a little powdered sugar. It looks so pretty!
GLUTEN-FREE LEMON CRUMB MUFFINS
To make gluten-free lemon crumb muffins, just substitute the all-purpose flour for a gluten-free flour blend. Look for one that that subs 1:1 for regular flour. Here are a few good options:
CAN LEMON CRUMB MUFFINS BE MADE AHEAD?
One of the reasons I love making muffins so much is because they make such a wonderful make-ahead treat. I’ll often make big batches, and stash them in the bread bin, fridge, or freezer. We’ll have grab & go breakfasts for days!
HOW TO STORE LEMON CRUMB MUFFINS
These muffins will last a few days at room temperature. Just keep them loosely wrapped. If they’re completely uncovered they can dry out, but if they’re in an airtight container, they can get soggy. It’s best to cover them, but allow for a little bit of airflow.
If you plan on keeping them around for more than a few days, it’s probably best to refrigerate them. They’ll last in the fridge for about 7 to 10 days.
They can also be frozen. They freeze beautifully- just seal them in a zip-top bag and they’ll keep for a couple of months.
HOW TO REHEAT LEMON CRUMB MUFFINS
There’s nothing nicer than a warm muffin for breakfast. Just zap one in the microwave for 15 to 30 seconds. If they’re at room temp they’ll need less time; if they’re frozen they’ll need more.
If you don’t have a microwave, these muffins can be reheated in a 170 degree F oven until warmed through.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH LEMON CRUMB MUFFINS
These lemon muffins are delicious as is, but if you’re looking to jazz them up a little, try spreading them with a dab of soft butter, blackberry jam, or lemon curd.
Hope you enjoy!
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Lemon Crumb Muffins
Ingredients
For the Lemon Muffins
- 2 1/2 cups (312.5 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest, (zest of 1 lemon)
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (230 g) sour cream*
- 1/4 cup (59.15 ml) milk
- 2 eggs , (large)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice, (juice of 1 lemon)
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
For the Crumb Topping
- 6 tablespoons (88.72 g) unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups (187.5 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest , (zest of 1 lemon)
- powdered sugar, (optional garnish)
Instructions
To Make the Lemon Muffins
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and line a muffin pan with papers.
- Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest in a large bowl, and whisk to combine.
- Melt the butter in a large liquid measuring cup, then whisk in the sour cream*, milk, eggs, lemon juice, and lemon extract.
- Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry, and fold together gently until just barely combined (it's ok if the batter is lumpy).
- Divide the batter equally between all 12 wells of the muffin pan, then top with crumb topping.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425 degrees F, then lower the oven temperature down to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the thickest part of a muffin comes out clean.
- Garnish with powdered sugar, if desired.
To Make the Crumb Topping
- Melt the butter in a small pot, then add the flour, sugar, salt, and lemon zest.
- Toss together with a fork, until crumbly.
This question is about the cupcake pan liners. Where can I buy them? They make the muffins look so pretty.
I want to say I got them from Cake Me Pretty, but it was 5 years ago so I’m not 100%. You could also try Amazon? Good luck!
Oh. My. Just yummy! Had raspberries
Sounds wonderful! So happy you enjoyed!
Have egg allergy. What can I substitute with? Thanks!
Hey Joan! I’d recommend using any kind of plant-based egg substitute that can sub 1:1 for large chicken eggs. Or, for every egg called for in the recipe, stir 1 tablespoon of ground flax or chia seed together with 2 tablespoons of warm water, set aside for about 5 to 10 minutes, and allow to gel before adding to the batter. Hope this is useful info!
Did these as part of breakfast for dinner. Oh. My. Just yummy! Had raspberries and blueberries alongside. I did have extra streusel so that’ll get frozen for another use. I happened to have some ricotta that was a bit old so mixed that with milk to a sour cream consistency. Milk was a little old, too, so I felt frugal for using those (helped offset butter guilt, lol!) Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!
Hi there! What type of milk do you use? Whole milk, buttermilk, etc?
Whatever kind of milk you put in your cereal should work fine, but not buttermilk. Just regular milk- whole, 2%, skim…
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I used homemade yogurt instead of sour cream and it turned out well. And those crumb toppings are sooo delicious. Everyone loved the muffins.
Greetings from Turkey!
Greetings Evrim! I’m so happy you enjoyed the muffins and I love that you made them with homemade yogurt!
My family is extremely hard to please when it comes to muffins. Made these lemon crumb muffins for the family and they will a hit way over the top! Thank you! Always a struggle baking to please. Nice to bake a winner once in a while. Thank you!
Greetings from Canada!
Oh that’s terrific! My family is hard to please too, especially my kids, so I know where you are coming from. Making something they like feels like a huge win! I’m so happy these worked for you!
These muffins were good, definitely not too sweet
The recipe calls for WAY too much crumble. Â I halved
The recipe & still had lots for the muffins.
I made these today and everyone loved them! They are not too sweet (which is perfect for what our family likes). The addition of the crumb topping, makes it perfect with just the right amount of sweetness. Good recipe!! Thanks.
My pleasure Stephanie! I’m so glad you liked them. Thanks for the great feedback!
So moist, lemony and delicious! Used full fat greek yogurt and they turned out great. Will definitely add this to my favorites list to bake again. Thank you!
My pleasure Adriana! I’m so happy you enjoyed!
I have changed to LEMON LOVER!?I am definitely going to try this Lemin Crumb Muffin. Hope I can do this right! It sounds DELICIOUS?
That’s fabulous Christopher! Hope you enjoy!
Hi! What would you suggest as an alternative for sour cream? Thanks for sharing, this recipe is pure deliciousness!
Greek yogurt is a good substitute for sour cream.