These gluten-free blueberry muffins are so easy to make! The recipe makes light and airy muffins that are loaded with blueberries. If you can’t find fresh blueberries, go ahead and use frozen. You don’t even need to thaw the frozen berries before using!
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins: The Ingredients
Gluten-Free Flour Blend
Guys. I have news. (takes deep breath) For the first time, I’ve started testing recipes using… a gluten-free flour blend. I know. I know. I avoided a pre-made blend for years. But, happily, things change.
In the past, gluten-free flour blends were abysmal. They turned baked goods into bricks. It was like some type of horrible culinary magic. You’d put in good ingredients and the flour blend would turn it into something heavy and tasteless. The worst part? They were e
Today some excellent and easy-to-find blends on the market. And I want to try baking with them. Right now, my favorite is Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour. (Don’t confuse this with their all-purpose gluten-free flour.) I’ve used the blend to make this recipe and gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. I have to admit, both recipes are winning rave reviews!
That said, I only tested this recipe with the Bob’s 1-to-1 Baking Flour. Therefore, I’m not sure if the blueberry muffins will work with other flour blends. If you don’t have Bob’s on hand, be sure to use a blend that includes xanthan gum.
Sugar
Granulated sugar brings sweetness and tenderness to the muffins. Don’t replace the sugar with a liquid sweetener like honey or maple syrup. The recipe won’t work. (If you want a muffin recipe without refined sugar, try my paleo apple muffins.They’re amazing. Heck. Even if you aren’t looking for a refined sugar-free recipe, you should give those a try.)
Since I don’t bake with sugar replacements, such as Splenda, I can’t tell you whether they’d work with the recipe or not.
Eggs
Two eggs make these gluten-free blueberry muffins light and rich. I use large eggs. If you’re baking with eggs from the farmers’ market or your own chickens, always weigh them before baking since they tend to vary in size. You want your egg to weigh 50 grams each out of the shell.
For Egg-Allergies
If you are egg-allergic, try replacing the eggs with a ground flax mixture. For this recipe, replace the eggs with 2 tablespoons ground flaxmeal and 6 tablespoons warm water. Whisk together ground flax and warm water in a small bowl. Allow to stand for about five minutes. Use egg replacer in recipe as you would the traditional eggs.
Milk
Lots of folks ask what type of milk they should use for baking. Unless otherwise directed, just use whichever type of milk you have on hand. This recipe works with everything from fat-free to whole milk. As you might guess, the muffins made with whole milk will taste richer and stale less quickly than those made with fat-free milk. (Fat slows down staling. Pastries made with fat-free milk will dry out faster than those made with whole milk.)
Blueberries
Fresh or frozen blueberries work great in this recipe. If you have the option, grab some wild blueberries. (If you don’t live in an area where they are grown, check the freezer section. Several brands sell them.) Wild blueberries are smaller than cultivated blueberries and the flavor tends to be more intense. I love baking muffins with them because the small size means more berries in the muffin!
By the way, you don’t need to thaw frozen berries before using. Measure right from frozen and you’re good to go!
As for the blueberries turning the batter purple, I say don’t worry about it. Mix the berries into the batter gently. After that, don’t stress about it. In fact, I think it looks pretty to have a little purple staining in a homemade blueberry muffin.
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins: The Method
There’s a joke that muffins are just uniced cupcakes. Hmm…while I appreciate the humor, the baker in me disagrees. A good muffin should be denser and less sweet than a cupcake. Let’s look at that “dense” characteristic first.
Dense and gluten-free baking often go hand-in-hand and I don’t have to tell you that this is not always a good thing. What we want to achieve with this blueberry muffin recipe is a pleasant denseness, not a heavy, dry muffin. There’s a difference.
To achieve a muffin with a hearty texture, don’t overmix the butter and sugar. When butter and sugar are beaten together, air incorporates into the mixture. This air helps to leaven a batter during baking. For muffins, we want to mix the butter and sugar until it’s just combined, no more. In fact, many muffin recipes use oil or melted butter to ensure that the only leavening comes from the baking powder.
What does this gluten-free blueberry muffin recipe contain butter?
Good question! This recipe contains butter simply because it’s based on a beloved recipe from the Jordan Marsh department store. It’s a really tasty recipe and one that several of you requested I make gluten-free. If you are on a dairy-free diet, this recipe easily adapts. Replace the butter 1:1 with a dairy-free alternative like Earth Balance for baking.
When you mix this batter, combine the room temperature butter and sugar and mix on medium-low speed until just combined. That’s it! Then add the eggs, one at a time, and mix, again, until just combined. No need to whip anything until fluffy with this recipe.
Once the butter, sugar, and eggs are added, go ahead and add the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. The batter will be thick. Add the milk. Mix until the batter is smooth, stir in the blueberries and you’re done!
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins: Baking, Cooling and Storing
Here’s a question for you. Do you like to line your muffin pan with paper liners or not? Since I’m a bit of a lazy baker, I always line my pan. If you prefer a naked muffin, be sure to take the time to grease each muffin cup well. You don’t want the muffins to stick to the pan. In fact, I like to give the top of the pan a light spray of cooking oil. This prevents the tops of the muffins from sticking to the pan as the muffin bakes and reaches the top edges of the pan.
To ensure even baking time, scoop the same amount of batter into each muffin cavity. A large ice cream/muffin scoop makes this job easy.
The recipe calls for a generous sprinkling of sugar on top of each muffin. I included this because the original Jordan Marsh recipe called for coating each muffin with a little sugar. The sprinkling of sugar adds a little crunchy sweetness to the muffins. If you don’t want the added sugar, feel free to skip this step.
The muffins take about 25 minutes to bake. As with all recipes, the baking time varies depending on your oven. You can tell the muffins are done when a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Or you can tap the top of the muffin. If it feels firm, the muffins are done!
Once the muffins are baked, allow them to cool in the pan for about five minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. When the muffins have cooled, place them on a plate and wrap with plastic wrap. They’ll keep about two days on the counter. Or you can freeze them. Place the muffins in a freezer bag and freeze for up to two months. Allow the muffins to thaw at room temperature. If you have a microwave with a reliable thaw function, you can thaw in the microwave. Take care not to overheat the muffins while thawing or they will get hard.
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins: Variations
Gluten-Free Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Add the finely chopped zest of one lemon to the batter along with the milk.
Gluten-Free Blueberry Walnut Muffins
Reduce blueberries to one cup. Stir 1/2 cup chopped walnuts into the batter before adding the blueberries.
Shop the Recipe
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Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Baking Flour Mix
Muffin Pan
Ice Cream Scoop
The Best Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups Bob's Red Mill 1-to1 Baking Flour* (9 3/4 ounces / 275 grams)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter, softened (4 ounces/ 113 grams)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar (6 ounces/ 170 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup milk (4 ounces / 150 grams)
- 2 cups blueberries
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar optional, for topping
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 15 muffins cups or line them with paper liners.
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Whisk together the flour blend with the baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
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In a large bowl, combine butter and granulated sugar. Beat on medium-low speed until thick. With the beater still running, add the eggs. Beat until combined.
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Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed. Mix until thick. Stop the mixer and add the milk and vanilla extract. Mix until a thick batter forms.
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Gently fold in the blueberries with a rubber spatula.(If you are using frozen or cold blueberries, the batter will get VERY thick. This is totally normal.)
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Spoon batter into prepared muffin pans. Fill each cavity about 2/3 full. Top each muffin with about 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar. (The sugar topping is optional.)
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Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean, about 25 minutes.
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Allow muffins to cool in the pan for five minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe Notes
This recipe has not been tested with other flour blends. For the best results, use the flour recommended.
Vanetta says
This is my new favorite GF muffin recipe. I made the recipe as written and my kids wanted more but I didn’t have anymore blueberries so I substituted chopped strawberries and they were equally delicious. My only problem is that the berries sank to the bottom of the muffins both times. Do you have a tip for keeping them afloat as the muffins bake?
Elizabeth says
Yes. I do. It’s a bit of a trick. Spoon some batter–with no berries– into the bottom of the muffin cavity. Then, fold the berries into the rest of the batter. Drop batter into pans. That should do the trick.
Keli says
Use about 1 tablespoon or so of the combined dry ingredients to sprinkle over the berries & toss to coat before folding them into the batter. ????
Elizabeth says
Keli–
This doesn’t work. I’ve tested it numerous times with different gluten-free flours. (And, in fact, it’s unreliable with wheat flour too.) The berries sink just the same.
Rebecca says
I want to thank you for posting this recipe! I have made it about 3 times with Compliments brand gluten free flour mix and it works great! I usually add about 1/4 extra coconut almond milk (that mix really sucks up liquid I find), and orange or lemon zest, as well as a dash of cinnamon. Heavenly, and nobody can believe they’re gluten free. 🙂
Elizabeth says
Glad you liked it!
Julia says
Hey from Germany 🙂
I tried this recipe because I didn’t found a german one that sounds good to me. I obviously don’t have the recommended flour and took the one you can buy here and it worked so great.
It’s a mix out of cornstarch and riceflour and some other ingredients.
The muffins are awesome and I will bake them again.
Thank you for that recipe.
Julia
Diane says
I made these muffins using Krusteaz Gluten Free All Purpose Flour as that was the only brand available at my grocery store. They were a huge hit. Even the guests that don’t normally eat gluten free dishes loved these and asked for the recipe. I have older muffin tins that aren’t very deep, so I ended up with 24 muffins. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.
EJSE says
I just made these to serve for Easter brunch tomorrow. I’m sampling one as I type. Can I say, SCRUMPDILLYISH! They look perfect, taste perfect. Just lovely. I used Mykanos vegan butter because I’m allergic to milk protein (even ghee irritates my system). I also used almond milk. Otherwise, as written with Bob’s Red Mill flour. Pretty miraculous considering I live over 5 K feet as well. So, high altitude peeps, this will work for you! Oh! I picked up a little trick from the Great British Baking show. Toss your blueberries in additional GF flour before putting them in the batter. This prevents some sinkage. Not, perfect, but better. Thanks for the recipe!!
Nina says
Thanks for this recipe. Both my children loved it – one has coeliac disease, one doesn’t, and it’s very hard to bake something that pleases them both. Will definitely make these again. I used the Aldi brand GF plain flour, dough was very thick indeed – thanks for the advance warning, otherwise I might have been tempted to add more liquid, but the finished product was perfect.
Elizabeth says
Glad you enjoyed it!
Luke says
I didn’t have Bob’s Red Mill 1:1, the good news is that the recipe works just fine with Bob’s GF All Purpose flour. I also did a cup of blueberries and a cup of Marionberries, absolutely heavenly!
Donna says
Thank you for a great recipe! Even my (adult) children wanted more & more! I forgot to dust the blueberries with the flour, before I folded them into the batter, so I sprinkled them with sugar……who doesn’t like sugar? I used Costco berries, so they were pretty good size; so, so yum yum! I wouldn’t want to use the small berries after using these!
Christina Robertson says
I made this blueberry muffin recipe with krusteez gluten free flour and they turned out absolutely wonderful. Ty for sharing this recipe!!! My daughter and I very much appreciate it.
Nancy says
I made this recipe this morning for my husband. I uses King Arthur gluten free flour. My husband ate 4 muffins while they were cooling. Great recipe!
Elizabeth says
Glad he enjoyed them!
Lisa in Austin says
Perfect!! And I love how you upped the blueberries but decreased the sugar compared to other recipes. Thank you for introducing me to the BRM 1:1 GF flour, it really is the best one I’ve ever tried!! These muffins were a big hit with my non-GF family. Going to double the recipe and attempt a bundt today for a party, planning to decrease the temp and increase the cooking time, fingers crossed it will release— will report back!
Lisa in Austin says
Ah I should add that I added the zest of a whole orange and accidentally melted the butter and it was still divine.
Lisa in Austin says
Update! The bundt cake turned out perfectly— doubles the recipe, baked at 350 for about 60min. I greased the bundt pan with a canola oil spray followed by a sprinkle of the GF flour then I used a pastry brush to get it in all the nooks and crannies. I let it cool about 15-20min before turning it out- it came out well with no cracks at all. Then I frosted with an orange cream cheese frosting (1 package cream cheese and 1/4c butter at room temp, 1.5c powdered sugar, 1T orange zest and juice, ~2T OJ- just put it all in the food processor and it comes out smooth). Was a big hit at the party, thanks!
Harv says
Used King Arthur Measure for Measure flour and whole milk plus fresh blueberries we picked this morning. Best muffin I’ve ever had, gf or otherwise. Thanks.
Julie says
Outstanding, you would never know that these are gluten free. I used xylitol instead of sugar to male them sugar free and they wete perfect! Well done!ill certainly make these every week!
Robin says
This recipe is awesome – I will be making these muffins again!! My son who doesn’t have to eat gluten free loved them. He ate 2 of them after they cooled. I stored them in a container in the fridge and when we wanted one Just put it in the microwave for 15 seconds – delicious!
Jacquie says
I just made these muffins a second time in one week, both times using fresh mulberries from our trees. Everyone in the family loved them including the teenager! Nobody could tell they were gluten free. Thanks for sharing this recipe! It’s definitely a keeper!
Sabira says
They’re really good muffins, light and fluffy. I made a batch this morning and they passed the test with my husband and son who are not fans of gluten free baking.
Julia says
Can I use Bob’s Red Mill Almond flour?
Elizabeth says
No, sorry. You can’t swap the grain-based flours for almond flour in this recipe. It won’t work.
Tiffany says
This was my first attempt at using gluten free flour, I used the Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 as recommended. I did add peel from half a lemon and will up it to 1 whole lemon in the future. I made the mistake of using 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract before realizing what I did and finished up the other half with vanilla….we were not disappointed with this mistake one bit!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe, there are only 2 muffins left from the 18 muffins I made yesterday and it’s just my bf and I in the house!
Elizabeth says
Almond extract sounds wonderful! What a happy accident!
Eliane says
Hello
I didn’t find the same brand gluten free flour. So I am going to try a different one.
Question: can I use all purpose gluten free or do I need to use the specific baking flour?
Thank you so much.
Elizabeth says
Different brands or blends of gluten-free all-purpose flour can give different results. So it’s hard for me to say for sure.
As long as it’s a grain-based gluten-free flour and isn’t made from coconut flour or almond flour, it should work. If it doesn’t contain any xanthan gum, I’d add 1/2 teaspoon to the mix.
I hope this helps!
Loretta says
What can I use instead of the sugar?
Elizabeth says
I’m sorry. I haven’t tested this with a sugar replacement. So I don’t have anything to recommend.