How to Make Bakery-Worthy Lemon–Poppy Seed Muffins

Name: How to Make Bakery-Worthy Lemon–Poppy Seed Muffins
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 75 min
Ingredients: 200 g granulated sugar (7 ounces; 1 cup), divided; 170 g unsalted butter (6 ounces; 1 1/2 sticks), room temperature, cut into 1/2-inch cubes; 32 g (1/4 cup) lemon zest plus 3 tablespoons (45 ml) lemon juice from 4 lemons; 340 g all-purpose flour (12 ounces; 2 1/3 cups); 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder; 1/4 teaspoon baking soda; 3/4 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume; 2 tablespoons (18 g) poppy seeds; 2 large eggs, room temperature; 1 tablespoon vanilla extract; 3/4 cup (180 ml) whole milk, room temperature; 2 tablespoons (30 ml) lemon juice; 57 g confectioners’ sugar (2 ounces; 1/2 cup), plus more as needed

Lemon poppy seed muffins stacked on a wooden surface, with a partially sliced muffin showing the interior — Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Why It Works

Rubbing lemon zest with the sugar helps draw out its fragrant oils, resulting in a more flavorful muffin.
Creaming room-temperature butter with sugar aerates the cake batter and helps it rise in the oven.

When I graduated from college and was at my first office job, I tried setting myself up for success by preparing breakfasts, lunches, and dinners ahead of time. On days when I had nothing left in my fridge or freezer, though, I often zipped across the street from my office to a popular bakery to load up on snacks before heading out for the day. They had many delicious offerings, including a chocolate and almond croissant, savory cheese scones, and tender cinnamon rolls. However, the item that called out to me the most was their lemon–poppy seed muffin. Studded with crunchy poppy seeds and packed with the fresh, zesty flavor of citrus, the muffin was sweet and tart enough to feel like dessert, but because it was a muffin, I decided it could pass for breakfast.

Lemon poppy seed muffins on a cooling rack, with glaze being drizzled on top of one muffin — Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Though it has been many years since I’ve frequented that bakery, I still think of those muffins often, and I recently decided to recreate them in my kitchen. It’s a relatively straightforward batter that comes together with the help of my stand mixer. (Though I like using my stand mixer for ease, a hand mixer will work just fine.) For a muffin that truly packs a punch, I toss a hefty quantity (32 grams!) of lemon zest with sugar, which helps draw out the zest’s fragrant oils, then beat the citrus sugar with room temperature butter. I incorporate baking powder and baking soda to help leaven the muffins, and adequately creaming the sugar and butter together also helps aerate the batter, resulting in an even rise and a fine crumb. A couple of tablespoons of poppy seeds provide just the right amount of crunch, and a simple glaze of lemon juice and confectioners’ sugar gives the muffins an additional boost of bright citrus flavor.

Lemon poppy seed muffins on a wooden surface, one cut in half to show texture — Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

I may no longer live off of coffee shop pastries, but these lemon–poppy seed muffins, which are tender, tangy, and wonderfully zesty, are ones I’d happily keep on my kitchen counter to snack on each day.