This is my ultimate muffin recipe—starting with a thick and creamy muffin batter, your choice of additions, and two topping options. Customize it with your favorite mix-ins and flavor combinations for endless possibilities like blueberry muffins, lemon poppy seed muffins, and apple cinnamon muffins.
I originally published this recipe in 2017 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, helpful success tips, and additional flavors.
This is my staple muffin recipe, to which I fold in a variety of additions and flavors. I’ve relied on it since 2014 when I developed and originally published my best blueberry muffins. I was so pleased with the taste and texture that I kept experimenting with new flavors—and over time, I’ve realized the possibilities are actually endless.
In fact, I love this mix-and-match ultimate muffin recipe so much that I’m including it in my new cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101! (Including an exclusive-to-the-book birthday cake flavor.)
Can one muffin batter truly make infinite muffin flavors? We haven’t reached the limit yet…
Why This Should Be Your Go-To Muffin Recipe, Too:
- Batter produces soft, fluffy, tall bakery-style muffins
- Endlessly customizable for infinite muffin varieties
- Includes baking instructions for all sizes of muffins—makes 12 standard muffins, 6 jumbo muffins, or 36–40 mini muffins
- Make the crumb topping or simply sprinkle coarse sugar on top for a sparkly crunch
One reader, Karen, commented: “These were the best muffins I’ve ever made. No more store-bought! I can hardly wait to try a new batch every week. This is going to be fun! ★★★★★“
Another reader, Stacey, commented: “Made these tonight in a jumbo muffin tin, and added chocolate chips. Very tender muffin, but still a perfect base for more substantial mix-ins like chocolate. Domed beautifully! Will be making these a LOT going forward! ★★★★★“
Here are 10 of my muffin recipes that I’ve published using this base muffin batter:
- Cranberry Cardamom Spice Muffins
- Blackberry Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- Peach Muffins
- Apple Cinnamon Muffins (pictured)
- Lemon Blueberry Muffins
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (pictured)
- Blueberry Muffins (pictured)
- Strawberry Cheesecake Muffins (pictured)
- Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Crumb Cake Muffins
Today I’m also sharing White Chocolate Raspberry and Chocolate Chip Crumb. Details for making each are in the recipe Notes below!
Ingredients for the Muffin Batter
- Flour: Stick with all-purpose flour. The flour gives the muffins structure and keeps the batter nice and thick so the add-ins (chocolate chips, berries, nuts, etc.) stay suspended.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: For maximum rise, we’re using both leaveners here.
- Salt, Cinnamon, & Vanilla Extract: The flavor enhancers. The cinnamon is optional—leave it out if it doesn’t work well with the other flavors. For example, I use it when I make apple or chocolate chip muffins, but skip it when I make lemon muffins.
- Butter: We’re creaming the butter to make these fluffy, springy muffins, so make sure to use proper room-temperature butter here. If you’re a beginner baker or if you need a refresher, I also have a helpful video tutorial on how to cream butter and sugar.
- Sugar: A mix of granulated sugar and brown sugar sweetens these muffins.
- Eggs: Eggs add moisture and richness, and bind everything together.
- Sour Cream: Sour cream helps keep the muffins tender, soft, and extra moist. If needed, you can use plain Greek yogurt instead.
- Milk: Milk lightens up the crumb. I usually use whole milk, but you can use low-fat or nondairy milk if you prefer.
Expect a creamy, thick batter:
Fold in your additions, such as apples, chocolate chips, nuts, berries, etc. If making something like lemon poppy seed muffins, add the lemon zest and juice when you add the milk, and mix the poppy seeds in with the dry ingredients. I have these details in the recipe Notes below.
This is the chocolate chip muffin batter:
Muffin Topping Options
Before baking, decide if you want to top the muffins. Here are my 2 recommendations:
- Coarse Sugar: Simple, yet bakery-style beautiful! Coarse sugar gives the muffins a sparkly crunch.
- Crumb Topping: A classic choice, my brown sugar cinnamon crumb topping works with a variety of muffin flavors. I have the recipe for you below. If desired, you can use another crumb-like topping such as the easy brown sugar pecan streusel I use on this blueberry muffins version or this lemon crumb topping I use on my lemon blueberry muffins.
Here I’m topping the chocolate chip muffin variety with the crumb topping:
The Trick to Tall Muffin Tops
I’ve been using this muffin trick for years and SWEAR by it. Nearly all of the muffin recipes you see on my website and in my cookbooks also use it.
Make sure your muffin batter is thick (this one is). Fill your muffin cups/liners with the batter all the way to the top. Bake the muffins for just 5 minutes at a high temperature. Reduce the temperature for the remaining bake time. This burst of hot air lifts the muffins straight up, creating a solid dome. The rest of the time at a lower baking temperature cooks the center of the muffin.
Optional Finishing Touches
If you want even more ways to jazz up your muffins, try finishing them with a topping:
- Vanilla icing
- Lemon icing: you can find the recipe with my lemon poppy seed muffins. This is also fantastic on the muffin varieties that have berries.
- Orange icing: you can find the recipe with my cranberry orange muffins.
- Maple icing: what we use to top maple brown sugar cookies.
- Brown butter icing: what we use to top pistachio cookies.
- Salted caramel sauce: this is so good on the apple cinnamon muffins!
Even More Muffin Flavors
- Cinnamon Pecan Muffins: ultimate muffin batter + 3/4 cup (100g) chopped pecans + 3/4 cup (135g) cinnamon chips. Add the crumb topping.
- White Chocolate Nectarine: ultimate muffin batter + 1 and 1/4 cups (about 230g) peeled finely chopped nectarine + 1/2 cup (90g) white chocolate chips. Add the crumb topping or try the pecan streusel topping from the blueberry muffins.
- Pear Spice Muffins: ultimate muffin batter + 1 and 1/4 cups (about 230g) peeled finely chopped pear + 1/4 teaspoon each ground nutmeg and allspice
- Banana Nut Muffins: ultimate muffin batter + 3/4 cup (170g) mashed banana + leave out sour cream + 1 cup (130g) chopped walnuts.
- Ginger Peach Muffins: ultimate muffin batter + 1 and 1/4 cups (about 230g) peeled finely chopped peaches + 2 Tablespoons freshly grated ginger. Add the crumb topping or try the pecan streusel topping from the blueberry muffins.
- Pineapple Coconut Muffins: ultimate muffin batter + 1 cup (100g) sweetened shredded coconut + 1 cup (225g) finely chopped pineapple (fresh or canned, drained)
- Cranberry Apple Muffins: ultimate muffin batter + 1 cup (about 120g) peeled chopped apple + 1 cup (120g) fresh or frozen cranberries (do not thaw).
P.S. Looking for a chocolate muffin base? Use the batter from these double chocolate muffins.
Print
Ultimate Muffin Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Use this base muffin recipe to make any flavor of muffin you can dream up! They’re easy, delicious, and freezer friendly. See Notes section below the recipe for my 5 favorite flavor variations, plus baking instructions for jumbo and mini muffins.
Ingredients
Optional Crumb Topping
- 1/3 cup (67g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 Tablespoons (56g) unsalted butter, melted
- 2/3 cup (83g) all-purpose flour
Muffin Batter
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional, depending on your add-ins)*
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup (60ml) milk (any kind), at room temperature
- add-ins of your choice (see Notes)*
- optional if not using crumb topping: 2 Tablespoons coarse sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- Make the crumb topping, if using: In a medium bowl, mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon. Stir in the melted butter. Using a fork, gently work in the flour just enough to combine. Do not overmix; the mixture should have large crumbles. Set topping aside or refrigerate until ready to use.
- Make the muffins: In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon (if using) together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute, then turn up to high speed until the mixture is combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until just about combined. Add the milk and continue to beat on low speed until combined. Fold in your chosen add-ins. (See flavors/details in the Notes below.) The batter should be thick.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them all the way to the top. Sprinkle the tops with coarse sugar or spoon on the crumb topping and lightly press the crumbles so they stick to the batter.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C); then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15–18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 22–23 minutes, give or take. Allow the muffins to cool for 10 minutes in the muffin pan set on a cooling rack, then transfer the muffins from the pan to the rack to cool completely.
- Store muffins covered tightly at room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- White Chocolate Raspberry Muffins: Omit the optional cinnamon. Fold 1 cup (125g) raspberries + 3/4 cup (135g) white chocolate chips into the batter as instructed in step 5. Sprinkle muffins with coarse sugar before baking as instructed in step 6.
- Apple Cinnamon Muffins: Keep the optional cinnamon in the base recipe, and add another 1 teaspoon with the dry ingredients in step 2. Fold 1 and 1/2 cups (180g) peeled chopped apples into the batter as instructed in step 5. Sprinkle muffins with crumb topping before baking as instructed in step 6.
- Blueberry Muffins: Mix the optional 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon with the dry ingredients in step 2. Fold 1 and 1/2 cups (210g) fresh or frozen blueberries into the batter as instructed in step 5. (If using frozen berries, do not thaw.) Sprinkle muffins with coarse sugar or crumb topping before baking as instructed in step 6.
- Chocolate Chip Muffins: Mix the optional 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon with the dry ingredients in step 2. Fold 1 and 1/2 cups (270g) semi-sweet chocolate chips into the batter as instructed in step 5. Sprinkle muffins with coarse sugar or crumb topping before baking as instructed in step 6.
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins: Omit the optional cinnamon. Mix 2 Tablespoons poppy seeds with the dry ingredients in step 2. Add 1 and 1/2 Tablespoons fresh lemon zest and 3 Tablespoons (45ml) fresh lemon juice when you add the milk. Sprinkle muffins with coarse sugar before baking as instructed in step 6. If desired, top cooled muffins with lemon icing.
- Freezing Instructions: Place muffins in an airtight freezer container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature, or warm up in the microwave if desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Coarse Sparkling Sugar | Cooling Rack
- Jumbo Muffins: 425°F for 5 minutes, then reduce to 350°F for 22–25 minutes for a total of 27–30. Makes about 6.
- Mini Muffins: 350°F for 12–14 minutes (no initial higher oven temperature). Makes about 36–40.
- Chocolate Muffins: If you’re looking for a chocolate base muffin recipe, use this recipe for double chocolate muffins.
Share Your Muffin Masterpiece!
I love hearing from readers who have used this muffin recipe to make up their own varieties. Here are a few:
- Meg’s version: “Today this master muffin recipe is going to make us some tropical muffins with mango and coconut milk. I assume these will be a major hit as usual, your recipes always are in this house. ★★★★★“
- Helen’s version: “After looking on the internet for awhile I could not find an almond poppy seed muffin recipe to my liking!… So I decided to use your master muffin recipe, and they turned out amazing!!! I omitted the cinnamon, added a teaspoon of vanilla and almond extract, and 3 tablespoons of poppy seeds and topped it with sanding sugar… Oh my they were heaven! ★★★★★“
- Jackie‘s version: “Just made these with pear and spices. Came out so nice, fluffy, crispy. Love this recipe! Will definitely use it again. I did add about 3/4 cup walnuts as I really like nuts in muffins. ★★★★★“
- Lorri‘s version: “Outstanding is all I can say! This basic recipe will be my go-to basic muffin recipe going forward! I made blueberry orange and kept the cinnamon in! ★★★★★“
- Lana‘s version: “You’ve done it again! Wow! I baked a white chocolate nectarine version with fresh nectarines tonight! Fantastic! I’m excited to try other versions as the seasons change. ★★★★★“
Reader Comments and Reviews
The best muffins I have tried yet! I made lemon poppyseed since it is my all time favourite, and the crumb is loose, fluffy, and moist. With a smear of your lemon curd and a sprinkling of coarse sugar on top before they bake, these muffins are heavenly. As many muffins outside are, these are NOT very filling, nor are they heavy and dense. I have already made these muffins at least three times, and am making it again this coming Friday. Thank you Sally. I love your recipes!
Haven’t made these yet. I have a lot of raspberries and blueberries in the freezer. Is it okay to use frozen fruit?
Hi Marla, Frozen berries work! Do not thaw before using.
The best pumpkin muffins! Moist and tasty. I added a third tablespoon of maple syrup to the glaze… just because! I didn’t use cupcake papers and had no issues of sticking. Thanks for sharing this!
I love this recipe! My favorite is a cardamom and rosewater muffin. I replace the cinnamon with a tablespoon and a half of cardamom and I replace the vanilla with rosewater. I also add walnuts. Thank you!
Hi there, I’m a real fan of all your recipes but your muffins are really super delicious! I wanted to ask you if you have any ideas on how to incorporate maple syrup taste in the muffins. something like a french toast kind of taste. Do you have any ideas? Thank you in advance!
Hi Ellie, We haven’t tested this exact recipe with maple syrup. You can try to replace some of the brown sugar with maple syrup and/or adding maple extract. Or what about making these Baked Maple Glazed Donuts in a muffin pan (see recipe notes for directions)? You could also make Overnight French Toast (with or without the blueberries) as individual servings in a muffin pan. Let us know what you try!
Hi again, thanks for the kind reply! I tried a few things (the donuts in the muffin pan etc) and I finally found the taste I thought was really “french toast” so I just wanted to share with you.
I took up on your advice and reduced the sugar to 100g and added 25ml of maple syrup + maple essence. Then I used the recipe for maple glaze in the Baked Maple Glazed Donuts with the maple essence. The sweetness of the glaze went perfect with the muffins and the entire house smelled so nice! Thank you SO MUCH for your recipe! I love it!
A few years ago I went through a phase of making muffins almost every weekend (I was single!) But I didn’t have the recipe anymore so I found yours and I’ve now made it twice. The first time raspberry and white chocolate, the second time caramel apple with your crumb topping. I have to say my chubby heart is very happy to have found such a simple and delicious recipe, with literally infinite possibilities! Thanks so much <3
Hi there! I’m so excited to try these, but I want to incorporate carrots instead. Carrot cake traditionally uses oil instead of butter, what would you suggest as method for adjustment?
Hi Mo, For a carrot muffin made with oil, I recommend using this recipe for Morning Glory Muffins and replacing the apple with more shredded carrot (the raisins and pecans are optional).
Hi There! How does the timing/temp change with mini muffins? Do you still recommend the initial 425° in that size or is that only for jumbo muffins?
Hi Julie, No, bake them the entire time at 350F. See recipe notes for details!
Quick question — assuming this recipe would be good as a mini loaf as well ? A pear ginger spice loaf with a crumb topping for the fall is what I am dreaming about.
That sounds delicious, Janis! Yes you can use this recipe for mini loaves – the bake time will vary depending on the size of your loaf pans but bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Do you have instructions for temp and time if I bake in a loaf pan?
Hi Suzie! Yes, follow the same baking time and temperature as this blueberry muffin bread. (Which is a similar recipe.)
I started baking around April this year. This is the best bake I’ve done since I started and I am so happy. They’re so delicious, so soft and such a fantastic flavour ❤️.
Will definitely be trying more recipes from you Sally. Thank you.
delicious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
EXACTLY what I was looking for! Jumbo sized muffins that can rival a bakery! I just made the banana walnut jumbo sized muffins and ate the first of the 6. It is literally taking everything out of me to not eat a second one! It’s so soft, the flavor is amazing, and it looks just like a professional bakery, I topped mine with banana slices! Thank you Sally!
Hi Sally! I seriously love you. I’ve made a ton of your recipes, and they have all turned out amazing on my first try! I started out with these muffins, then scones, cookies, pies, and cheesecakes. I’m selling them in my home based store and they’ve been a huge hit. I really appreciate all the baking tips. You’re very detailed and thorough. I’ve been professionally trained and worked as a chef for several years, but I didn’t do much baking before, besides making some pies at a truck stop. I’ve learned so much from you! I told my husband I needed to post a glowing review, and he literally said “no you don’t, just make more of these”…as he was eating the white choc rasp cheesecake bars.
Hi sally, can i use oil in place of butter?
Hi Kathy, We don’t recommend oil for this recipe. You could likely replace the butter with the same amount of softened coconut oil (since it must be creamed).
This recipe is perfect! I made cinnamon crumb muffins and chocolate chip crumb muffins yesterday with this recipe and they were SOOOOOO delicious! Thanks so much for providing such an amazing recipe!
Hi, Sally! I’ve been following your site and using your wonderful recipes for years. I do have one question, and when I search the internet, there are so many different opinions on it…I would rather trust your judgment! When I bake muffins, do they go on the top rack or middle rack? And, if I start them on the top rack, do I move them to the middle when lowering the temperature?
Hi Kristy, Bake your muffins on the middle rack. It’s best not to open the oven door in the middle of the bake time if you can help it, so just keep them in the middle when lowering the temperature!
These were AMAZING and still delicious and fresh a week later when kept in an airtight tin. Yum. Thank you Sally! These were the best muffins I’ve ever made, and I love to bake. Can’t wait to try the new varieties – by request, strawberry cheesecake for today.
What a fantastic recipe, the sour cream really takes it to the next level (even if I did substitute it with plain Greek yoghurt as that’s all I had.. oops)! I made the chocolate-chip version but I cannot wait to make others.. lemon poppy seed, white chocolate raspberry, pecan cinnamon… Yum! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe 🙂 The directions and ingredient amounts are spot on!
Wow. I added orange purée, honey and poppy seeds and they were gone within 3 hours between my dad and me. Highly recommend
Yum.
After many attempts at making muffins that ended in rubbery, baking-soda flavoured results, I found this recipe and decided to give it a try. I was not disappointed – the muffins were wonderful! They were moist, flavourful, and the best muffins I’ve made by far. I put in some blueberries and tried the pecan-brown sugar topping from your other recipe. Absolutely tasty!
Hi Sally,
Thanks for this master recipe “without boundaries”. There are so many variations that could be churned out from this one recipe!
Playing safe for a start, I made 2 variations (banana walnut and blueberry) following your suggestions into jumbo muffins. Despite following the baking temperature suggested, my oven did not domed it high enough. They are still jumbo-sized and tasted great!
I also tried once with cocoa powder, which actually works out fine too (maybe I was lucky? haha).
PS: I’ve also tried your triple choc muffin and super moist chocolate cupcake recipes too, and both were as great. My cousin’s friends who ate the triple choc muffins thought it was store-bought from the S-brand coffee chain.
I have been skeptical about muffins recipes (which never turned out the way I wanted). Yours on the contrary, turns out exactly how I wish it would be.
Also thanks for providing metrics measurement which we are used to.
Cheers and love from Singapore!
this is my go to muffin recipe (of course!), but what if i wanted to use rhubarb in them (with streusel or crumb topping of course). any thoughts on best to handle the rhubarb and how much? thanks !!!!
Hi Lauren! I recommend using fresh rhubarb, slicing very thin, and folding into the muffin batter like any other add-in. I don’t find pre-cooking rhubarb necessary in muffin recipes. 1 – 1 and 1/2 cups of sliced rhubarb is plenty. Fold into the batter after you add the milk.
just made this tonight and DAMN its soo gooood!! Before I added the dry ingredients, the batter looks curdled (probably because I use greek yoghurt? no idea) and I was real pessimistic about its outcome but after mixing everything in it looks so creamy! I made the cinnamon crumble muffin and it turns out to be soo light fluffy and bursting with flavor! Thanks again for sharing this absolutely amazing master muffin recipe <3 cheers from Indonesia!
Hi Sally
I want to make coffee muffins. Any advice on how much to add and when. Thanks for great recipe.
Hi Penny, though I haven’t tested this– you could try adding 2 teaspoons of espresso powder in with the dry ingredients.
Hi Sally,
For lemon poppy seed muffins, would buttermilk work here instead of regular milk? Thank you!
Hi A– it would, but I recommend replacing the sour cream/yogurt AND milk with buttermilk.
You’re always the first person I come to when I’m looking for recipes since I’m picky about what recipes I use. Your recipes are amazing and you do so much research when making them. I just want to say your muffins came out fantastic! They tasted so good and delicious
I was just wondering why mine wasn’t as dense as I wanted them to be. Is there anything I could do to make them denser?
So glad you enjoyed these! I recommend a different recipe for dense muffins, as these are quite cakey. (Though you could try reducing the milk for a thicker batter and denser muffin.) Here are my denser bakery style muffins. You may like those more!
It turned out amazing! I put different things in different muffins (mixed out a bit of the batter in a small bowl with the toppings). I tried with blueberries, chocolate chips, white chocolate and cranberries, dark chocolate chips and macadamia nuts, and then i made a couple of muffins with everything mixed together! Thank you for this recipe!!
This is a really great recipe. I am a baker who finds many recipes online and am careful about the ones I choose (I have wasted many ingredients following faulty recipes). Thank you Sally. I have made two versions. One with vanilla and chocolate chips and one with apple, raisins and cinnamon. Both came out 100% perfectly. I will continue to use this