It’s hard to say if folks would love gluten free lemon poppyseed muffins as much without the poppy seeds — they just seem to go hand-in-hand. There’s something about those little flecks and tiny crunches of seeds that makes these muffins extra special.
Of course, that’s not to underplay the main reason these gems are hard to resist: the unique sweet-tart lemon zing that makes you want to savor every last moist, soft, yummy bite.
These tangy treasures always make me smile, even on cloudy days. They’re just so bright and cheerful; they almost make me want to get out of bed on a Saturday (… almost!). And baking them as jumbo muffins means I’m not as tempted to sneak a second muffin, which makes me feel a bit better about my breakfast habits.
I hope you enjoy this jumbo gluten free lemon poppyseed muffin recipe as much as my family does — it’s something special everyone seems to love!
I suppose this is the appropriate time to ask: if it’s a JUMBO gluten free lemon poppyseed muffin, do you use a fork??? Or do you just dive right in? Inquiring minds want to know.
I actually don’t think there’s a wrong answer. I mean, when they’re this good … could there really be a wrong answer?
Sunshine in a muffin cup, that’s what I love to call any kind of lemon muffin. It cheers you up on a cloudy day, a winter day, a sad day, a regular day … a jumbo version is just cheerier. So fork or no, dive in. That’s what I say.
Jumbo Gluten Free Lemon Poppyseed Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups gfJules™ Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 2 Tbs. poppy seeds
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tbs. lemon zest
- 3/4 cup sour cream (dairy or non-dairy or plain yogurt – coconut, almond, soy, etc.)
- 2 eggs (or substitute)
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup butter or vegan alternative (Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
- 3 Tbs. lemon juice
- 2 Tbs. milk (dairy or non-dairy)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Bring all ingredients to room temperature and gently melt the butter. Line large muffin tins with papers or lightly oil and flour with more gfJules Flour.
Whisk together gfJules Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and poppy seeds, then set aside.
Pour measured sugar into a small bowl and zest lemon over the sugar, then work it into the sugar by rubbing together with your fingers. Pour lemon-sugar into dry ingredients bowl and whisk.
In a large mixing bowl, combine sour cream, eggs, vanilla extract, melted butter, lemon juice and milk. Slowly stir in dry ingredients, mixing only until blended.
Spoon batter into the prepared muffin tins.
Bake for 23-25 minutes (less for regular muffins) or until an inserted toothpick comes out dry or with crumbs and the muffins are lightly browning on top. Remove to cool on a wire rack.
Makes 6 jumbo muffins; 12 regular muffins.
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This lemon poppyseed recipe is one of your best. Light and fluffy. How can I change the flavor to orange/ cranberry but still keep the fluffiness.
Hi Phylis, I’m thrilled you love this recipe so much!! To make this recipe orange-cranberry instead, you could try subbing the vanilla extract for orange extract, subbing the lemon zest for orange zest, subbing the lemon juice for milk and adding about 1/2 cup chopped frozen cranberries. You could also make my gluten free Cranberry-Orange Bread into muffins and see which you like better! Let me know!
~jules
Can I make these muffins with regular flour? My husband loves the muffins & wants to eat all of them! I’m the one that can’t eat regular flour muffins. I want to eat them!
LOL so you don’t want to share, is that what’s going on here? I think it’s fantastic that your gluten free lemon poppyseed muffins are so great that your non-gluten-free hubby wants to eat them all! My gfJules Flour is designed to be very similar to regular wheat flour, so the 1:1 should be pretty spot-on if you want to reverse-engineer the recipe to bake them with regular wheat flour for him to enjoy some, too. Hope it works out so you can save the gluten free ones for yourself!
~jules
I’m going to try these tomorrow morning. I usually make 1/2 recipe when making something new like this in case they don’t turn out so well. Hopefully, these will. I didn’t know about your egg substitute page so I checked it out. Thanks for the info.
Great! I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you and these muffins! 🙂
~jules
Can I make these without the poppy seeds? I don’t do well with seeds as they make my stomach hurt. Also, I haven’t had very good luck making GF muffins of any kind, not just yours. I have to use egg substitute & am wondering if I need more liquid. Sometimes they turn out hard. I usually use Ener g egg substitute. I don’t really like using flax seed. I know you sometimes recommend Aquafaba but I don’t want to use chickpeas. Thank you.
Hi Carolyn, you can absolutely skip the poppy seeds! Have you checked out my article on vegan egg substitutes to see if there’s another one that you can tolerate that would be well-suited for muffins?
~jules
Awesome! I substituted coconut sugar, and used vegan alternatives and egg replacer, and even forgot the zest and they still turned out great. Thanks for sharing!
YAY! SO glad to hear it, Clair!!! Which vegan egg replacer did you choose to use?
~jules
can we use your muffin mix to make these or no?
Hi Monique, I’ve actually adapted a different gluten free lemon muffin recipe to use with my muffin mix — I think you’ll find this one easier to use with my mix. You can still bake as jumbo muffins with adapted baking time, and of course, add poppyseeds if you like!
~juls
Couldn’t wait so I had a muffin and boy was it everything I hoped it would be. Thanks so much for this recipe.Can’t wait to try the bread recipe that so sent me.I love this website so much and that I can have muffins again.
Just made these went with the 6 Jumbo and boy are they huge and the smell is so wonderful can’t wait to try them in the morning for breakfast. Did not have your flour but I had some expandex and subed 1/2c mix for 1/2 c expandex and they look so fluffy may not wait until tomorrow.
What do you think of making some extra lemon sugar to put on top.of each muffin before baking? Maybe a sprinkle more of poppy seed?
Lemon sugar is DIVINE! It would be an amazing addition to these already scrumptious gluten free lemon muffins, Marilyn! And of course, more poppy seed is always a yummy crunch and pretty, too!!
~jules
Is the batter supposed to be thick and gooey? I could barely spoon it into the muffin tins. I am just learning to bake with GF flour and I feel like I’m doing it wrong.
I have high hopes for these muffins! They smell amazing as they are baking. Can’t wait to try them.
Hi Pea, I hope they turned out well for you after baking! The batter isn’t supposed to be so thick, so I’m wondering if you’re using my gfJules Flour? The thing about gluten free flours is that all the blends are so very different! Check out this article on gluten free flours and this one on gluten free baking, in general. I hope that helps you get started on the right foot!
~jules
I just made this recipe I love it absolutely wonderful muffins thank you for your recipe I will be taking some to my Doctors office tomorrow for the staff and Doc .👍👍👍
What a nice surprise for them all, Sharon! You are quite generous!!!
~jules
Hello. I was wondering about the nutritional breakdown for this recipe. Thanks!
Hi Dawn, I don’t have a nutritional calculator on my site yet (working on it!) but you should be able to paste the ingredients into an on-line calculator and find the info you need. Enjoy the recipe!
~jules
Very tasty! My sons usually ask me before indulging in my creations, if it’s gluten-free, sugar-free and taste-free, but this time I didn’t say anything and had them test for themselves . . . they loved the muffins, so this one’s a keeper 🙂
That’s when you know it’s a great recipe! Congratulations on a GF recipe win!
~jules
Is there a conversion of this recipe using your muffin mix?
Hi Juleigh, I actually just made this Gluten Free Lemon Berry Muffin Recipe into Lemon-Poppyseed Muffins with my Muffin Mix last weekend! Yum!
~jules
Jules, does your mix contain xanthum gum?
It does contain a small amount of xanthan gum – just enough, so don’t add more! I hope that helps!
~jules
Wow, Jules! I just made these lemon poppy muffins and cannot give you enough stars or compliments. The flavor is better than a regular muffin, the texture is beautiful and the recipe very easy to make. My Daughter came up allergic to gluten after her kidney transplant and I have been testing every gluten free product since, mostly with disappointment. Until your flour and your bread mix. Now I can bake almost anything I did before needing it to be GF, and it is as good as a regular recipe with regular flour. You have no idea what that means to the whole family because I make your recipes with your GF products for us all now and nobody can tell the difference!! Amazing!! A million thanks from your baker friend in Towson. : )
Oh Barbara, that brings me such joy to hear! I remember your story from the time you called in and we spoke at length about your family’s journey. I’m so happy to know that the whole family can enjoy delicious foods again, together. It’s an experience not to be overlooked, as your daughter doesn’t have to feel isolated on her GF journey and her support network at home is behind and with her all the way (and without having to suffer through yucky foods to do it!). Thanks so very much for letting me know how much you enjoyed this recipe and are enjoying my products. Hearing these personal victories through stories like yours is what keeps me going!
All the best to you and your family!
~jules
I was just wondering the same thing as Brenda.
How do these turn out using your muffin mix?
Could these be made using your muffin mix?
Hi Brenda, you should be able to use my Muffin Mix in place of the dry ingredients in this recipe, with the following additions: add another 1/3 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of my gfJules Flour. Other than that, it should turn out well using the mix. I hope this helps! Let me know if you try it!
~jules