These classic gluten free blueberry muffins are crisp on the outside, soft and tender inside. So easy to make, and they taste just like they came from your favorite bakery!
What makes this gluten free blueberry muffins recipe special
These are my favorite gluten free blueberry muffins, studded with big fresh blueberries. They're made with plenty of butter, buttermilk, and granulated sugar for the most tender, decadent type of muffin.
Sometimes, I replace the lemon juice with pure vanilla extract. But I prefer the lemon juice because it helps to balance the sweetness of the sugar and berries.
The taste is perfect, but the incredibly tender texture and perfectly craggy top are the real reasons I love these muffins. Resist the urge to add more blueberries, or they'll take over the whole muffin. You want to taste that sweet, moist muffin crumb for your gluten free breakfast.
Should I defrost frozen berries before using them to make muffins?
No! Never defrost frozen berries before using them in baking.
Fresh berries are always best for for baking. Frozen berries tend to bleed color into the muffin batter, turning it rather blue.
Frozen berries also tend to collapse easily when you mix them into the raw batter. But, if you don't have fresh berries, you can still make blueberry muffins with frozen berries.
How to prevent frozen berries from bleeding and being crushed
Don't defrost the frozen blueberries. Simply rinse them with cold water before tossing them in a bit of the dry ingredients.
Keep them in the freezer until right before you're ready to add them to the muffins. Working quickly, toss the rinsed berries in the dry ingredients and add them to the prepared batter.
Finally, fold the frozen berries into the soft gf blueberry muffin batter. Treat them like you would whipped cream or egg whites.
Can you use other fruit in these gf blueberry muffins?
If you don't have blueberries, but you do have raspberries, you can make these into gluten free raspberry muffins. If your raspberries are fresh, follow the recipe as written, only substituting that one ingredient.
If your raspberries are frozen, follow the instructions above for frozen blueberries. You might be able to make this recipe with fresh strawberries if you slice them into chunks about the size of a blueberry.
You cannot make them with frozen strawberries. They can't be sliced into proper chunks without defrosting them first, and they will add way too much moisture to the raw batter.
How to make healthy gluten free blueberry muffins
This gluten free blueberry muffin recipe started out as a “lighter” recipe when I first published it. I even gave nutrition information for the lightened up version.
The muffins were so skimpy that I moved away from that recipe. If you're looking for a whole grain version of gluten free blueberry muffins, you might prefer our oat flour blueberry muffins recipe.
If you're still interested in the original “lighter” recipe, it's lower in fat and sugar. In place of the butter, sugar and eggs in the amounts listed in the recipe below, use the following:
- 7 tablespoons (98 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature (in place of 10 tablespoons butter)
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar (in place of 1 cup (200 g))
- 3/4 cup (170 g) Greek-style plain yogurt, at room temperature (addition)
- 1 egg (50 g, weighed out of shell) + 2 egg whites (50 g), at room temperature (in place of 2 eggs)
Leave the rest of the recipe completely unchanged. The muffins will be a bit smaller, and somewhat less tender.
Sugar and fat tenderize muffins. But the choice is yours!
Gluten free blueberry muffin recipe ingredient substitutions + tips for making perfect blueberry muffins
Can I make gf blueberry muffins using regular milk?
No. Honest-to-goodness buttermilk from the dairy case at your grocer isn't just regular milk that's been soured.
Real buttermilk is thicker and creamier than milk that's simply had some lemon juice added to it. But you can still replace it if you don't have buttermilk…
Can I freeze these gluten free blueberry muffins?
Yes! You can freeze these muffins after they're completely cooled.
Place the baked and cooled blueberry muffins on a small flat surface, like a rimmed baking sheet, in a single layer. Freeze until solid, then pile into a freezer-safe bag or container.
To refresh a frozen muffin, microwave it for 30 to 45 seconds at 50% power or until even the berries are defrosted. For that just-baked texture, bake at 250°F in a toaster oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
How to keep berries from sinking to the bottom of muffins
Some of your berries will, indeed, sink to the bottom of the muffin. But there are ways to prevent all of them from sinking.
First, toss the berries in some dry ingredients. It won't fix everything, but it will help the rest of the muffin batter cling to the berries, so they stay put.
Second, be careful about how you scoop your muffin batter into the wells of the tin. The top of the scoop becomes the bottom of the muffin, so avoid having lots of berries down there!
Finally, use the right muffin batter, like in this recipe. This batter is thick, and not like a liquid at all, so the berries don't float to the bottom!
How to make gluten free dairy free blueberry muffins
If you've run out of buttermilk, use half plain yogurt or sour cream + half milk by volume. This recipe calls for 6 fluid ounces buttermilk.
To replace the 6 ounces of buttermilk with dairy, you can use 3 fluid ounces milk + the rest of the volume with yogurt or sour cream. Just mix well.
For a dairy-free buttermilk replacement, use half plain nondairy yogurt and half unsweetened almond milk.
In place of butter, try using Melt or Miyoko's Kitchen brand vegan butter. Earth Balance buttery sticks might also work, since we're melting the butter. Use less salt, though, since Earth Balance is quite salty.
How to make gluten free egg free blueberry muffins
This recipe only calls for 2 eggs in 12 generously-sized muffins. You should be able to replace each with a “chia egg.”
For each chia egg, place 1 tablespoon ground white chia seeds plus 1 tablespoon lukewarm water in a small bowl. Mix and allow the mixture to sit until it gels.
How to make gluten free corn free blueberry muffins
This recipe calls for an all purpose gluten free flour blend, specifically Better Batter, that's lightened into more of a gluten free cake flour by adding cornstarch. If you can't have corn, try using arrowroot or potato starch.
If you're using a high-starch all purpose gluten free flour blend like Cup4Cup, use an extra 36 grams Cup4Cup in place of cornstarch.
Gluten free blueberry muffins: the method
Bakery-Style Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
For the muffin batter
- ¾ cup (6 fluid ounces) buttermilk at room temperature
- 10 tablespoons (140 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 2 tablespoons (1 fluid ounce) freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 2 (100 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs at room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (350 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend (I used Better Batter; click link for details)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons xanthan gum omit if your blend already contains it
- ¼ cup (36 g) cornstarch
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ cups (250 g) fresh or frozen blueberries (See Note)
For the optional topping
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) unsalted butter melted
- Coarse sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
Make the muffin batter
- Preheat your oven to 400°F. Grease a standard 12-cup muffin tin, and set it aside.
- In a medium-size bowl or measuring cup, place buttermilk, melted butter, lemon juice, and eggs, and whisk to combine well. Set the mixture aside.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar, and whisk to combine well.
- Transfer 1 tablespoon of the dry ingredients to a small bowl, add the blueberries and toss to coat. Set the berries aside.
- If using frozen berries, set the tablespoon of dry ingredients aside to use after the rest of the batter has been prepared.
- Create well in center of large bowl of dry ingredients and add the wet mixture. Mix until just combined. The batter will be quite thick, but soft.
- Add the blueberries and reserved dry ingredients, and gently fold the berries into the batter just until they are evenly distributed throughout.
- If you’re using frozen berries, remove them from the freezer, rinse them quickly and toss in the reserved dry ingredients. Fold them carefully into the batter, working quickly.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 12 prepared muffin wells, filling the wells almost completely. Smooth the tops with wet fingers.
Add the optional topping
- Brush the tops lightly with the optional melted butter, and sprinkle the tops lightly with the optional coarse sugar.
- Place the muffin tin on the top rack of the preheated 400°F oven, and bake until the muffins are beginning to dome (8 to 10 minutes). Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
- Finish baking the muffins at 350°F until a toothpick inserted in the center (and not in a blueberry) comes out with no more than a few moist crumbs attached (10 to 12 minutes more).
- Remove the muffins from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Bakery-Style Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
For the muffin batter
- ¾ cup (6 fluid ounces) buttermilk at room temperature
- 10 tablespoons (140 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 2 tablespoons (1 fluid ounce) freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 2 (100 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs at room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (350 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend (I used Better Batter; click link for details)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons xanthan gum omit if your blend already contains it
- ¼ cup (36 g) cornstarch
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ cups (250 g) fresh or frozen blueberries (See Note)
For the optional topping
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) unsalted butter melted
- Coarse sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
Make the muffin batter
- Preheat your oven to 400°F. Grease a standard 12-cup muffin tin, and set it aside.
- In a medium-size bowl or measuring cup, place buttermilk, melted butter, lemon juice, and eggs, and whisk to combine well. Set the mixture aside.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar, and whisk to combine well.
- Transfer 1 tablespoon of the dry ingredients to a small bowl, add the blueberries and toss to coat. Set the berries aside.
- If using frozen berries, set the tablespoon of dry ingredients aside to use after the rest of the batter has been prepared.
- Create well in center of large bowl of dry ingredients and add the wet mixture. Mix until just combined. The batter will be quite thick, but soft.
- Add the blueberries and reserved dry ingredients, and gently fold the berries into the batter just until they are evenly distributed throughout.
- If you’re using frozen berries, remove them from the freezer, rinse them quickly and toss in the reserved dry ingredients. Fold them carefully into the batter, working quickly.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 12 prepared muffin wells, filling the wells almost completely. Smooth the tops with wet fingers.
Add the optional topping
- Brush the tops lightly with the optional melted butter, and sprinkle the tops lightly with the optional coarse sugar.
- Place the muffin tin on the top rack of the preheated 400°F oven, and bake until the muffins are beginning to dome (8 to 10 minutes). Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
- Finish baking the muffins at 350°F until a toothpick inserted in the center (and not in a blueberry) comes out with no more than a few moist crumbs attached (10 to 12 minutes more).
- Remove the muffins from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Linda says
Quick update to my comment:
Forgot to mention, had no buttermilk, so used half greek yogurt and half milk mixed well.
Also, made in mini muffin tins because, hey, for me, it helps with portion control. These are so delicious, I would devour them all! :)
Love this recipe, Nicole!! Thanks!
Nicole Hunn says
So glad you enjoyed them, Linda! If you use Greek yogurt, I’d recommend using more milk than yogurt for the proper balance. It’s less important with the minis, but for future reference. Just try to mimic the texture of buttermilk. :)
Linda says
Took them out of the oven 20 min ago, and my husband has inhaled a few already. Okay, so have I . LOL. They are scrumptious!
Loretta says
I have powdered buttermilk. Can I reconstitute it and use it just as fresh?
Nicole Hunn says
No, I’m afraid that won’t work, Loretta. I love using powdered buttermilk as an ingredient, sometimes in place of powdered milk, but it doesn’t make anything approaching the consistency of buttermilk when reconstituted.
Emelia says
My son has to eat gluten free. He doesn’t like blueberries, can I substitute raspberries instead of the blueberries ?
Nicole Hunn says
Yes, Emelia. I discuss that specifically in the post. You can read through the post itself, or just search “raspberries.”
Donna says
I’ve got these in oven right now. Batter looked good. Can’t wait to taste!
Lizzie says
Hi Nicole!
I made these today with frozen blueberries and they were amazingly light and moreish! The recipe is easy to follow and pretty quick to make – no-one would know that these are gluten free! Thank you so much! xxx
Nicole Hunn says
Well that’s absolutely lovely to hear in every way, Lizzie. Thank you so much for letting me know!
Candice says
These are in the oven and they smell SOOOOO good!! Mine are not as light since I used full fat milk and yogurt as that was what I had. But excited about the less sugar for the kiddos. And if they taste half as good as they smell, they will be inhaled like cupcakes:) Thanks for another great recipe. Keep ’em coming!
Stacy says
Yum! Just made these for my office staff tomorrow….had to do some quality control tasting and they are fabulous! Light, slightly sweet with a nice crunch from the sugar on top. Made as listed with cup4cup (given to me as a gift…too $$$ for me). Thanks for another winner!
Shruti Nath says
Just made these!!
I substituted the eggs with egg replacer. They rose beautifully in the oven but did fall flat a bit when I took them out. Super fluffy tho! I didn’t use liners coz I didn’t have any, just buttered the muffin tin and these popped out quite nicely.
Thank you so much! I’ve always loved baking but haven’t been able to since going gf. Thank you for bringing back baking to me!!
Jenn F. says
Do you have an approximate calorie count?
Jennifer S. says
Yummy! I just bought a big container of blueberries so I’ll be making these today I think – I hope they freeze well for breakfasts on the go! :) I’ll let you know how it goes….
melissa says
Have you tried this with an egg substitute?
Jennifer S. says
I do a lot of Nicole’s recipes with egg beaters with great success – just note that you have to use a little bit more than directed to get the rise you want.
Donia Robinson says
Reference gotten.
Jennifer S. says
Me too and dang it I thought that hair band was in the 90’s not the 80’s. I’m not ready for the 80’s to be retro.
Anneke says
I got it, too, but I think I am actually older then all of you, including Nicole! Can I use the excuse that my kids love that song?