Lemon Curd Muffins

Lemon Curd Muffins! Bakery-style perfection of these lemon-infused muffins with beautifully domed tops, generously filled with lemon curd, and topped with a layer of lemon icing. This fuss-free recipe eliminates the need for intricate steps or chilling time, making it effortlessly easy to whip up on a bright morning.

Curd muffins are such a fun brunch pastry! Who wouldn't love finding a surprise in the middle of their muffin?? The muffin is packed with lemon zest, the middle is lemon curd, and the top is a layer of lemon icing. Lemon muffins with lemon curd HEAVEN! Check out my white chocolate and blueberry muffins, berry muffins, and orange chocolate chip muffins too!

Why you'll love this recipe

• This lemon muffin recipe makes 8 large muffins, they're the perfect size to eat as breakfast or brunch and have enough space inside for lemon curd. My white chocolate and cranberry muffins recipe makes 8 too.
• The 2 temperature recipe produces a perfectly domed top every time! Starting at a high oven temperature creates a fast rise and then lowering the temperature insures the muffins will not burn before baking all the way through. Banana chocolate chunk muffins have amazing tops as well!
• The flavor! Adding the lemon zest to the sugar before moving on to the other steps is key in releasing the oils making the most out of the citrus! Lemon curd cheesecake no bake has tons of lemon flavor.

Equipment

Microplane Lemon Zester is perfect for zesting citrus because its sharp, fine blades make it easy to remove just the flavorful outer zest without scraping into the bitter white pith. Its precise design ensures you get the best flavor and aroma for your recipes, with minimal effort and mess.

Ingredients

You'll need the following ingredients to make these Lemon Curd Muffins:

• Lemon curd is a must for filling the muffins! Store bought lemon curd is a good choice if you're short on time. If you want to make it from scratch, this is a very popular recipe.
• Lemon zest produces the most lemon flavor! It is the key ingredient in the muffin batter. Rub it with the sugar for the best flavor.
• A combination of all purpose flour, baking powder, and cornstarch makes these muffins rise and super fluffy.
• A mixture of melted butter and vegetable oil makes these moist and gives them great flavor. The oil will help with moisture. I do the same with my cardamom banana bread.
• Salt is a MUST in baked goods, it completely vamps the flavors!!

See recipe card for quantities.

Variations

• Adding blueberries and making them into blueberry lemon curd muffins would be amazing! I would add ¾ cup of blueberries to the muffin batter. Check out my white chocolate and blueberry muffins!
• Lime zest instead of lemon paired with lemon curd would be a citrus explosion!
• Serve these muffins along side a bowl of yogurt and berries for the best brunch.
• If you don't feel like making the icing for the top, sprinkling with powdered sugar would make them look finished!

This muffin lemon curd recipe has not been tested with other substitutions. These are just suggestions.

Instructions

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 430°F. Line a muffin pan with 8 muffin liners.

Step 2: Whisk together the flour, salt, cornstarch, and baking powder, set aside. Beat the lemon zest and sugar until the oils are released, about one minute.

Step 3: Add the eggs, milk, lemon juice, melted butter, and vegetable oil. Mix until combined.

Step 4: Add the dry ingredient, mix until just combined.

Step 5: Mix until no flour pockets remain, do not over mix. Over mixing will create a dense muffin. 

Step 6: Distribute the batter evenly into the 8 muffin liners (they will be full)

Step 7: Place in the oven, shut the door and then IMMEDIATELY lower the temperature to 400°F. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Step 8: Cut a circle in the muffin ¾ way down, and remove the center, which will be roughly the shape of a cone. Using a small spoon, fill the middle of the muffin with as much lemon curd as you can. Slice/tear off the pointed tip of the cone-shaped piece of muffin, and gently press the round piece back on top of the filling. Evenly distribute the icing over the muffins using a spoon.

Hint: Remove the muffins from the pan right when they come out of the oven and place on a rack. This will prevent them from getting over baked.

Pro tips

• Try not to over mix the muffin batter, stop mixing once the flour pockets are gone. Over mixing muffin batter will make them tough.
• Beat the lemon zest and sugar together first, do not ignore this step. It is the key to that great lemon flavor, lemon cardamom cookies uses the same method.
• The oven temperature must be at 430°F to start and then immediately turn it down to 400°F. If you forget to turn the oven temperature down, the muffins will burn.
• Try not to over bake the lemon curd muffins, over baking will make them crumbly and dry. Check on them a little before 15 minutes, not all oven temperatures are created equally.

FAQ

Storage

Room temperature instructions: These will stay fresh in an airtight container for up to one day because of the lemon curd. I like freezing muffins the day they were made.

Refrigeration instructions: I do not recommend storing the muffins in the fridge, it will completely dry them out!

Freezing instructions: Place them in an airtight container for up to one month.

Related

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:

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📖 Recipe

Lemon Curd Muffins

Amanda Valsamis

Lemon curd muffins are such a fun brunch pastry! Who wouldn't love finding a surprise in the middle of their muffin?? The muffin is packed with lemon zest, the middle is lemon curd, and the top is a layer of lemon icing. Lemon HEAVEN!

5 from 4 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 8 muffins

Equipment

• ▢
  Microplane for zesting
• ▢
  Muffin pan
• ▢
  Muffin liners
• ▢
  Mixing bowls
• ▢
  Whisk or mixer
• ▢
  Rubber Spatula

Ingredients

 

Lemon Muffins

• ▢ ⅔ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon zest from 3 lemons
• ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• ▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 6 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
• ▢ 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• ▢ ½ cup milk buttermilk, 2%, or whole
• ▢ 2 eggs room temperature is best
• ▢ 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
• ▢ 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ▢ 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt

For Filling the Muffins

• ▢ ¾ cup lemon curd homemade or store bought (link to recipe below)

Lemon Icing

• ▢ 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ▢ 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

 

Lemon Muffins

• Preheat the oven to 430°F. Line a muffin pan with 8 muffin liners.
• Whisk together the flour, salt, cornstarch, and baking powder, set aside. Beat the lemon zest and sugar until the oils are released, about one minute.
• Add the eggs, vanilla, milk, lemon juice, melted butter, and vegetable oil. Mix until combined.
• Add the dry ingredients, mix until just combined. Do not over mix. Distribute the batter evenly into the 8 muffin liners (they will be full)
• Place in the oven, shut the door and then IMMEDIATELY lower the temperature to 400°F. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Do not over bake!
• Take the muffins out of the pan and place on a wire rack. Set aside to cool before filling with lemon curd.

Filling with lemon curd

• Cut a circle in the muffin ¾ way down, and remove the center, which will be roughly the shape of a cone. Using a small spoon, fill the middle of the muffin with as much lemon curd as you can. Slice/tear off the pointed tip of the cone-shaped piece of muffin, and gently press the round piece back on top of the filling.

Lemon Icing

• Whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Evenly distribute the icing over the muffins using a spoon.

Notes

I don't recommend making more than 8 muffins, the tops will not get domed and there wont be enough space for the lemon curd filling.

Lemon Curd Recipe

How can I hide the cut out on top of the muffin?

The icing will cover the seam on top of the muffin. There is enough lemon icing to generously cover the muffin tops.

Storage

Room temperature instructions: These will stay fresh in an airtight container for up to one day because of the lemon curd. I recommend freezing muffins the day they were made.

Refrigeration instructions: I do not recommend storing the muffins in the fridge, it will completely dry them out!

Freezing instructions: Place them in an airtight container for up to one month.

How do I measure flour properly?

Use Dry Measuring Cups: When measuring dry ingredients like flour, always use dry measuring cups. These cups typically come in standard sizes (1 cup, ½ cup, ⅓ cup, ¼ cup) and have straight edges for easy leveling.

Avoid Scooping Directly from the Container: Resist the temptation to scoop flour directly from the container using the measuring cup. This method often results in densely packed flour, leading to inaccurate measurements.

Spoon the Flour into the Cup: Using a spoon, carefully scoop the aerated flour into the measuring cup. Be cautious not to shake or tap the cup during this process, as it can lead to compacting the flour.

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