Lemon Crumb Muffins

Tender, sweet muffins flecked with lemon zest are drizzled with a tart fresh lemon glaze to create these super tasty Lemon Crumb Muffins. They're a perfect lemony treat for any breakfast, brunch, or afternoon snack.

CLICK HERE TO PIN THIS FOR LATER

Looking for the perfect little lemony treat for Easter brunch, Mother's Day, or any random Tuesday for that matter? Well, this Lemon Crumb Muffins recipe does not disappoint. They're a perfect lemony treat for any breakfast, brunch, or afternoon snack.

These tasty little beauties have quickly become a family-favorite at our house. Whenever I bake up a batch, they're all our tween daughter wants to eat. -- Breakfast, lunch box treat, afternoon snack, or dessert, it doesn't matter to her! Lemon Crumb Muffins completely occupy her sweet-tooth's mind until they're gone. But hey, they're truly so good, who can blame her really?

Tender, sweet muffins flecked with lemon zest are drizzled with a tart fresh lemon glaze to create these super tasty Lemon Crumb Muffins.

With sour cream in the batter, these Lemon Crumb Muffins bake up with a beautifully tender texture. And a mix of both fresh lemon juice and lemon zest creates a subtle lemon flavor in the muffins themselves that's both lemony and delicious, without being too-over-the-top lemon.

A tart lemon glaze drizzled on while the muffins are warm delivers the perfect lemony punch that beautifully compliments the subtly-lemon muffins below. It's a true lemon lover's delight, for sure.

What's to Love About This Recipe?

• Tender texture - The muffins bake up with a soft and tender texture that's truly wonderful.
• Subtle-sweet lemon flavor in the muffins themselves - Lemon zest and fresh lemon juice in the batter create a subtle lemon flavor in the muffins themselves that's lemony and delicious, without being too-over-the-top with lemon. 
• Tart lemon glaze for a punch of lemon flavor - Tart lemon glaze drizzled on while the muffins are warm delivers the perfect lemony punch that beautifully compliments the subtly-lemon muffins below.
• Family-favorite - These tasty lemon muffins are a beloved family-favorite, for sure.

Lemon Crumb Muffin Ingredients:

Three components come together to create these tasty Lemon Crumb Muffins:

1. The muffin batter, 
2. Crumb topping, and
3.  Lemon glaze.

Aside from the baking basics of flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and eggs, for the muffin batter itself you'll need:

• Sour cream - Brings moisture to the batter to help create the tender texture, and lends a subtle bit of tang to the muffins' flavor.

• Melted butter - Brings wonderful richness to the batter. We do not recommend substituting margarine or oil for the butter.

• Lemon zest - Lemon zest is the grated lemon peel from fresh lemons, and is the element that creates these muffins' fabulous lemon flavor. When zesting lemons, be sure to remove only the bright yellow layer without removing the white pith layer below. The white pith is bitter and will bring an unpleasant flavor to the muffins. 

• Fresh lemon juice - Works with the lemon zest to build the muffin's lemon flavor. For ease, zest the lemons first, and then cut them in half to juice them.

For the crumb topping, you'll need:

• Flour - All-purpose flour forms the base of the crumb topping.

• Granulated sugar - Sweetens the crumbs.

• Butter - Brings the moisture needed to create the crumbs. Slightly-soft butter works best to cut into the flour/sugar mixture to create the topping's crumbs.

For the lemon glaze, you'll need:

• Fresh lemon juice - Pure fresh lemon juice brings the glaze's tart punch that so wonderfully compliments the tender subtly-lemon muffins below.

• Granulated sugar - Brings a hint of sweetness to tone down the fresh lemon juice just a bit.

How to Make Lemon Crumb Muffins:

There are 3 components involved in making these Lemon Crumb Muffins -- the batter, crumb topping, and glaze, -- so they do take a bit more time to prepare than many muffin recipes. But the tasty result is sure worth the time and effort!

To get the batter for a batch started, begin by zesting 2 or 3 lemons. When zesting, take care to remove only the bright yellow portion of the lemon peel, avoiding going into the white pith below it. The white pith has a bitter flavor that's unpleasant to eat. 

Then mix up the muffin batter, incorporating the lemon zest and some fresh lemon juice to build the muffins' lemony flavor.

Spoon the batter into greased muffin cups, filling each cup 3/4 full. I use a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop to make this job super easy and to help evenly portion out the batter.

Mix up the crumb topping, and sprinkle it evenly over the batter in the muffin cups before baking.

Then pop the pan in the oven and bake the muffins for about 20-25 minutes until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the baked muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, and them remove them to a wire cooling rack.

While the muffins are still warm, drizzle the tops with a lemon glaze made from just fresh lemon juice and granulated sugar. 

To make clean up easier, I lay wax paper underneath the cooling rack before drizzling the glaze. That way the wax paper catches the drips, instead of those sticky sugary drips landing on the countertop.

Then you're ready to devour the lemony deliciousness! Enjoy Lemon Crumb Muffins warm or cooled to room temperature -- either way, they're one super tasty little lemony treat.

Recipe FAQs:

• Can I substitute yogurt for the sour cream in this Lemon Crumb Muffins recipe? - Yes, you can. Plain regular or plain Greek yogurt work as a good substitute for sour cream when making these Lemon Crumb Muffins, and will still yield nice-textured, tender muffins.

• Can these Lemon Crumb Muffins be frozen? - Yes, Lemon Crumb Muffins freeze well. Place a few in a gallon-sized zip-top baggie, squeeze out any excess air, and seal well. Freeze the muffins for up to about 2 to 3 months.

• Can I make Lemon Crumb Muffins as mini muffins, instead of regular-sized muffins? - Yes, you can prepare Lemon Crumb Muffins as mini muffins. Spoon the batter into a mini muffin pan and top with the crumb mixture, as directed in the recipe. Reduce the baking time and bake until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. -- Baking times will vary depending on the size of your mini muffin pan and your oven. We recommend beginning to check the muffins after 10 minutes, and estimate baking time would range from 10-16 minutes.

Check out these other tasty muffin recipes:

• Oatmeal Muffins
• Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins
• Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
• Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins
• Applesauce Muffins
• Refrigerator Bran Muffins
• Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins
• Buttermilk Jam Muffins
• Cinnamon Sugar Donut Hole Muffins
• More breads & muffins

Thank you for stopping by The Kitchen is My Playground. We'd love to have you back soon!

lemon muffins, fresh lemon muffins, lemon crumb muffins recipe, lemon muffins with crumb topping

Muffins

American

Yield: 20-21 Muffins

Author: Tracey | The Kitchen is My Playground

Lemon Crumb Muffins

Tender, sweet muffins flecked with lemon zest are drizzled with a tart fresh lemon glaze to create these super tasty Lemon Crumb Muffins. They're a perfect lemony treat for any breakfast, brunch, or afternoon snack.

Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 55 Min

Ingredients

Muffin Batter:

• 3 c. all-purpose flour
• 2 c. granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 4 eggs
• 1 c. sour cream
• 1 c. butter, melted
• generous 2 T. grated lemon peel (about 2-3 lemons)
• 2 T. fresh lemon juice

Crumb Topping:

• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• 3 T. butter, very slightly softened

Lemon Glaze:

• 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 T. fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Prepare Muffin Batter:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, sour cream, melted butter, grated lemon peel, and lemon juice. Whisk until well mixed.
3. Stir egg mixture into dry ingredients until just combined and flour mixture is just moistened (do not overmix).
4. Spoon batter into 20 to 21 paper-lined or greased muffin cups, filling each 3/4-full.

Prepare Crumb Topping:

1. In a small bowl, combine the 1/4 cup flour and sugar.
2. Cut butter into small cubes. Then use 2 knives, a fork, or a pastry cutter to cut butter into flour/sugar mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Sprinkle crumb topping over muffin batter, dividing evenly amongst the muffins.

Bake Muffins:

1. Bake at 350℉ for 20-25 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
2. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove muffins from pan to a wire rack.

Glaze Muffins:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the glaze's sugar and lemon juice until sugar is dissolved.
2. Drizzle glaze over warm muffins.
3. Enjoy muffins warm or cooled to room temperature. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-4 days.

TRACEY'S NOTES:

1. You'll need about 4 or 5 lemons total for this recipe. Zest 2 or 3 of the lemons first, and then slice in half to juice them.
2. A 3-tablespoon cookie scoop makes scooping the muffin batter into the pan super easy and helps evenly portion out the batter.
3. To make clean up easier, I lay wax paper underneath my cooling rack before drizzling the lemon glaze over the tops of the muffins. The wax paper catches the drips, instead of those drips landing on the countertop.

Similar Recipes

Oatmeal Muffins

Glazed Poppy Seed Muffins with Strawberry Butter

Family-Favorite Applesauce Muffins

Images and text ©The Kitchen is My Playground

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @kitchenplaygrnd on instagram and hashtag it thekitchenismyplaygroundblog

CLICK HERE TO PIN THIS FOR LATER

Affiliate links are included in this post. As an Amazon.com associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

This post is linked with Weekend Potluck.