A classic flavour combo made even better with fresh ricotta and tangy buttermilk. Moist, fluffy, and crowned with golden, crunchy tops, these lemon blueberry ricotta muffins come together in 35 minutes with no mixer.
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I’ll admit — I’m a muffin sceptic. Too often, I find them to be dry, not sweet enough, and they make me wonder why I didn’t just make cupcakes instead.
So as I’ve been expanding my baking repertoire, I’ve been challenging myself to develop muffin recipes that I actually want to eat. Ones that are soft, moist, fluffy, and perfectly sweet. With a big crunchy top of course. Because we all know, the top is the best part of a muffin (top of the muffin TO YOU!).
The key to a truly delicious muffin is moisture. Ingredients like oil, buttermilk, sour cream, yogurt, and ricotta help lock in hydration without making muffins dense or heavy. These lemon blueberry ricotta muffins combine bright lemon, juicy blueberries, fresh ricotta, and a splash of tangy buttermilk for the most heavenly texture and flavour combination.
I love how easy these muffins are to make! They take about 35 minutes all up, so it’s totally doable to whip up a fresh batch for breakfast or brunch without having to set your alarm for the crack of dawn. They’re also a great way to use up leftover ricotta.
If you’re looking for more blueberry breakfast ideas, my blueberry coffee cake is another easy and delicious option.
Why Add Ricotta to Muffins?
First of all — these muffins don’t taste like cheese! Ricotta has a pretty mild flavour similar to mascarpone or quark, making it suitable for both sweet and savoury baking.
Ricotta works in muffins the same way it does in other baked goods, such as Italian ricotta cakes and ricotta pancakes. It brings plenty of moisture to the batter, because unlike milk and water which evaporate out, ricotta contains proteins and fats that help hold onto that moisture during baking. The result is a soft, tender crumb that stays moist for days.
The best type of ricotta for baking
Use a full-fat, fresh ricotta with a firm consistency. In Australia, you can get this from a deli counter or buy the prepackaged ricotta that comes in a plastic perforated basket.
Before adding ricotta to your batter, make sure you strain off any separated liquid. If the ricotta is particularly lumpy, you can mash it with a fork first. I don’t typically bother with this step, as any large lumps break up during whisking, and smaller ones mostly blend into the muffins, leaving behind just a few creamy white specks.
What to avoid: ricottas labelled “smooth and creamy” or “whipped” that come in a standard tub. These varieties are made to be soft and spreadable, meaning they’ll make your batter too wet and will affect the texture of your muffins.
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
- Plain flour: also known as all-purpose (AP) flour.
- Baking soda: reacts with the lemon juice and buttermilk to help these muffins rise. It also encourages browning, so the tops develop those golden, crispy edges!
- Baking powder: works alongside baking soda to make these muffins light and fluffy.
- Salt: acts as a flavour enhancer!
- Melted butter: I prefer the flavour of butter over oil in this recipe. The ricotta and buttermilk do the heavy lifting to keep these muffins soft and moist, so you won’t miss the oil.
- Sugar: any variety of white, granulated sugar will do.
- Ricotta cheese: full-fat, fresh ricotta works best in this recipe. If you’re unsure which type to buy, I’ve covered exactly what to look for (and what to avoid) in the best type of ricotta for baking section above.
- Eggs: bring your eggs to room temperature before baking by letting them sit on the countertop for about an hour. For a quick shortcut, you can submerge them in a bowl of lukewarm water for 10 minutes or so.
- Buttermilk: this keeps the muffins tender, adds a tangy flavour, and reacts with the baking soda to help them rise. If you don’t have any on hand, you can make my 5-minute buttermilk substitute by mixing milk with lemon juice or vinegar and letting it sit at room temperature until it curdles.
- Vanilla: you can use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
- Lemon juice + zest: lemon juice adds brightness and acidity, while lemon zest is where most of the lemon flavour comes from. When zesting your lemon, be careful not to get the white pith under the skin, as it’s very bitter.
- Blueberries: use fresh blueberries or frozen ones straight from the freezer. I always choose the smallest blueberries I can find, so there’s some in every bite. If you’re in North America, wild blueberries are great for this!
- Coarse sugar: this is what makes the muffin tops sparkly and crunchy! Use anything with large crystals, like Demerara, turbinado, or raw sugar. Technically it’s optional, so you can skip it if you prefer a soft muffin top.
*For the full list of ingredients with measurements, see the recipe card below
How to Make Lemon Blueberry Ricotta Muffins
Here’s a quick rundown of how to make these lemon blueberry ricotta muffins. They’re mixed entirely by hand, so you can leave your mixer in the cupboard!
1. Prep – Preheat your oven to 220°C (200°C fan/425°F). Line your muffin pan with paper liners or lightly grease the cups with butter or neutral flavoured oil. I prefer paper liners because it makes for easier removal and cleanup.
2. Combine the dry ingredients – In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Make the lemon sugar – Add the sugar and lemon zest to a large mixing bowl. Rub together using your finger tips to release the lemon oils (a quick trick to enhance the lemon flavour).
4. Combine the wet ingredients – Pour the melted butter into the lemon sugar, then whisk by hand until the mixture is smooth, slightly thickened, and pale yellow (about a minute). Whisk in the ricotta, then add the eggs, buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla, and whisk until just combined.
5. Add the dry to the wet – Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet until a few streaks of flour remain.
6. Fold in the blueberries – Toss the blueberries with 1 tsp of flour, then gently fold them into the batter. Stop mixing as soon as the flour is fully incorporated. The batter should be very thick, and it’s okay if it’s a little lumpy.
7. Divide the batter – Spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling each at least 3/4 full. If you’d like, you can press a few extra blueberries into the top of each. Finish with a generous sprinkle of course sugar to get those nice crunchy tops!
8. Bake – Bake for 5 minutes, then turn the oven temperature down to 180°C (160°C fan/350°F) and continue baking for a further 15-20 minutes. The muffins should be golden on top, and a toothpick inserted into the centre should come out mostly clean, with just a few moist crumbs attached.
9. Cool & serve! Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool for at least another 5–10 minutes. The blueberries get incredibly hot so try not to dig in too soon!
Tips for Moist and Fluffy Muffins
- Weigh your ingredients (especially flour!): If you’ve had the displeasure of choking down a dry muffin, there’s a good chance it was caused by too much flour. Weighing your flour ensures you use the right amount. If you only have cups, make sure you spoon the flour into the cup, then level it off with a knife.
- Don’t thaw frozen berries: If using frozen berries, add them straight from the freezer to avoid adding excess moisture to the batter and creating purple streaks. If your berries are covered in a thick layer of ice, quickly rinse them under cold water, then pat completely dry before using.
- Careful not to overmix: When it comes to muffins, a few small lumps in the batter are not only OK — they’re encouraged! Mix only until the flour is just combined, as overmixing develops too much gluten and can make the muffins tough and gummy.
- Fill the cups generously: Each cup should be filled at least 3/4 of the way, but if you have enough batter, don’t be afraid to fill them all the way to the top. The thick batter helps them rise upwards rather than spreading out.
- Start with a very hot oven: Baking the muffins at 220°C (425°F) for 5 minutes creates a rapid rise, helping to form beautiful golden-brown domes. This is the same technique I use for my bakery-style chocolate chip muffins. Because this batter contains heavier ingredients like ricotta and blueberries, the domes will be rounder and less dramatic, but the trade-off is an incredibly soft, moist crumb!
How to Store Lemon Blueberry Ricotta Muffins
Like most muffins, these are best enjoyed on day one — better yet if they’re still slightly warm from the oven! That said, you can store leftovers on the countertop for up to 3 days in an airtight container. Make sure the muffins are completely cool first, then line the top and bottom of the container with paper towel to help absorb any excess moisture. The sugar on top will soften over time, but the muffins themselves will still be moist and delicious.
* Please note: all cup measurements are approximate and based on Australian standard cups (250ml). For best results, weigh your ingredients with a kitchen scale.
Equipment
- 12-cup muffin pan
Ingredients
- 260 g (2 cups, spooned and levelled) plain flour, plus a little extra for coating the berries
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt, reduce to ¼ tsp if using salted butter
- 125 g (½ cup) butter, melted and cooled
- 220 g (1 cup) granulated sugar, add up to 2 tbsp more for tart berries (see notes)
- 240 g (1 cup) fresh/firm ricotta cheese, drained of any excess liquid (see notes)
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- zest of 1 large lemon
- 80 ml (⅓ cup) buttermilk, or buttermilk substitute
- 180 g (1 ¼ cups) blueberries
- coarse sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220℃ (200℃ fan/425℉). Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or lightly grease the cups.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, massage the lemon zest into the sugar, until fragrant and the sugar feels slightly damp.
- Add the cooled melted butter and whisk by hand for about 30-60 seconds, or until the mixture thickens and lightens to a pale yellow. Add the ricotta and whisk until combined, breaking up any large clumps as you go. Whisk in the eggs, buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla until smooth.
- Carefully fold in the dry ingredients until mostly incorporated and only a few streaks of flour remain. Be very careful not to overmix.
- Toss the blueberries with 1 tsp of flour, then fold into the muffin batter until evenly distributed and no dry streaks remain. For frozen berries: add straight from the freezer — do not thaw!
- Divide the batter among the 12 muffin cups, and sprinkle the tops generously with coarse sugar.
- Bake for 5 minutes, then without opening the oven door, reduce the temperature to 180℃ (160℃ fan/350℉). Continue baking for another 15-20 minutes, until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow the muffins to cool for 10 minutes in the tin, before transferring to a wire rack. Cool for a further 10 minutes before serving.
