Easy Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

Name: Easy Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 3/4 cup milk (For dairy-free use unsweetened almond milk. ); 2 teaspoons white vinegar or lemon juice; 1/3 cup butter, softened (For dairy-free use Smart Balance. ); 1 cup granulated sugar (); 2 large eggs (For egg-free use Bob's Red Mill gluten-free egg replacer.); 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract; 1 3/4 cups gluten-free flour all-purpose flour with xanthan gum; 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2 teaspoons gluten-free flour all-purpose flour with xanthan gum; 2 cups blueberries (Fresh or frozen blueberries. If using frozen, do not defrost the frozen blueberries. ); 2 tablespoons turbinado or raw sugar

Published: Mar 25, 2022 · by Audrey

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An easy recipe for gluten-free blueberry muffins. These soft gluten-free blueberry muffins are made with simple ingredients and baked in only 30 minutes!

Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

My easy gluten-free blueberry muffin recipe makes bakery-style muffins with sugar tops. These gluten-free muffins are soft, have a tender crumb, and are bursting with sweet blueberries.

This gluten-free blueberry muffin recipe is also easily made dairy-free and egg-free (vegan). I have included all of the ingredient substitutions in the recipe card below.

You can see just how easy it is to make these gluten-free blueberry muffins in the detailed recipe step photos or in the recipe video.

Ingredients in Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

It only takes a few simple ingredients to make these gluten-free blueberry muffins. I bet you already have everything you need to make these muffins in your pantry.

Milk: Milk not only adds flavor but also protein and moisture to the bread. It is important for a soft crumb and golden crust. This recipe also works well with dairy-free milk.
White Vinegar: It is used to make homemade buttermilk. Soda bread needs an acidic liquid to activate the baking soda and help the bread rise up and have the correct texture.
Butter: The softened butter is used as the fat in the recipe. It’s the fat in the recipe that helps make the muffins not too dense.
Granulated Sugar: Not only does sugar sweeten the muffins, but it helps the muffins be soft and moist.
Eggs: The eggs help give the structure of the muffin. The height and texture of the muffins are determined by the balance between the eggs and the gluten-free flour.
Pure Vanilla Extract, Pure almond extract, Salt: All of these ingredients enhance the flavor of the blueberry muffins.
Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour with Xanthan Gum: Using a gluten-free flour blend made with rice flour, starches, and xanthan gum mimic the taste and texture of traditional all-purpose flour. I bake with Pillsbury gluten-free flour.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda: Baking powder and baking soda are what help these gluten-free muffins rise.
Blueberries: These are the star ingredient for these gluten-free muffins. You can use either fresh or frozen blueberries. When using frozen blueberries, use them when they are still frozen and do not defrost.

How To Make Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners or spray with gluten-free cooking spray.
In a large measuring cup, add the white vinegar (or lemon juice) to the milk and stir to combine. Let stand for 5 minutes in the refrigerator to stay cold. (homemade buttermilk)
In a large mixing bowl cream the softened butter and sugar together with a mixer until fluffy. (photo 1)
Add in the eggs, pure vanilla extract, and pure almond extract and mix until combined and smooth. (photo 2)
Add in the gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and mix together until fully combined and smooth. The batter will be thick. Do not over mix. (photo 3)
Pour in the homemade buttermilk (milk and vinegar mixture) into the batter and mix until smooth. (photo 4)

Sprinkle the 2 teaspoons of gluten-free flour over the blueberries in a medium-sized bowl. Carefully stir the blueberries to coat them with gluten-free flour. (photo 5)
Gently fold the floured blueberries into the muffin batter. (photo 6)
Using a greased ice cream scoop or measuring cup, scoop the batter into baking cups lined/cooking sprayed muffin tin.
Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with turbinado sugar (raw sugar). (photo 7)
Bake on the middle rack for 25-30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Please watch your oven because all ovens are different.
Allow the muffins to cool in the muffin pan for 3-5 minutes then move to a cooling rack. Enjoy! (photo 8)
Store the completely cooled muffins in an airtight container.

How to Make-Ahead, Store, Freeze, and Reheat Blueberry Muffins

To Make-Ahead:

This blueberry muffins batter can be easily made ahead of time. Just don’t add the blueberries into the muffin batter until you are ready to bake the muffins.

Place the batter in an air-tight storage container or cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are ready to bake the muffins.

To Freeze: Once the blueberry muffins are completely cool, place the muffin tin with the muffins in the freezer for 15 minutes. Flash freezing keeps them from sticking together.

Once the muffins are flash-frozen, place the muffins inside a freezer-safe bag or freezer-safe air-tight container.

If you are using a plastic freezer bag, squeeze out all of the extra air in the bag. I have also found that if you double bag the muffins (place that bag inside another freezer-safe bag) it helps prevent freezer burn.

To Thaw Frozen Muffins: The muffins can be defrosted overnight in the refrigerator. The muffins can be thawed in the oven by wrapping them in foil and warming them for 10 minutes at 350°F. The muffins can also be warmed up in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute.

To Store: Store leftovers in an airtight container. Make sure the muffins are completely cooled or any steam trapped in the plastic storage bag or container will create condensation and make the muffins sticky.

Tips for Making the Best Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

Do not skip the step of sprinkling the gluten-free flour over the blueberries. It helps the blueberries not to sink to the bottom of the muffins.
I always use cupcake liners when making muffins.
I always use a greased ice cream scoop to make muffins. Using an ice cream scoop to measure out the muffin batter makes for uniformed muffins.
Bake the muffins on the middle rack.
For bakery-style muffins, sprinkle the muffins with turbinado or raw sugar.

Gluten-Free Flour

These gluten-free muffins were made with Pillsbury gluten-free flour. It is a cup-for-cup all-purpose gluten-free rice flour blend and already has the xanthan gum and starches in it.

Most gluten-free all-purpose flour blends have starches and xanthan gum already in them. The xanthan gum helps replace the elasticity and texture of gluten.

So make sure to check the ingredients of your gluten-free flour as not to add any extra xanthan gum to your flour if it already includes it. If you do, you will get gummy muffins!

My favorite gluten-free flour is Pillsbury gluten-free. Not all gluten-free flours are created equal. You may experience different baking results depending on the gluten-free flour blend you choose.

This gluten-free muffin recipe with not work with almond, oat, or coconut flour.

Tip For Measuring Gluten-Free Flour

It is super important to use a measuring cup made for dry ingredients (not a pyrex liquid measuring cup) to measure gluten-free flour. I measure the gluten-free flour with the “spoon & level” method.

I use a large spoon to scoop the flour into the measuring cup. Then I use the back of a knife to level off the top of the measuring cup.

Please do not scoop the flour directly out of the bag with your measuring cup. If you do, you could end up with more flour than is called for in the recipe.

Ingredient Substitutions for Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

I have test-baked these gluten-free blueberry muffins with several different ingredient substitutions.

For Dairy-Free:

For the milk, you can substitute it with unsweetened almond milk.
For the butter, you can use dairy-free or vegan butter. I like Smart Balance buttery spread.

For Egg-Free:

You can substitute the eggs with Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free egg replacer.