Fresh strawberry muffins are a staple in my house during strawberry season. They’re soft, almost cake-like, and generously studded with juicy strawberries. With a generous yield of 18 muffins, you can make enough muffins to freeze some for later, so you can pull out a few whenever the mood strikes! Plus, my well-tested recipe is easy to adapt to your taste! I share plenty of ideas in the post for you to add different mix-ins, toppings, and even flavorings.
A reader, Vanessa, says: “This is a frequent request from my kids. Beautifully soft muffins with a delicate strawberry flavor. I add a tiny bit of almond extract and sprinkle coarse sugar on top.” ★★★★★
Table of Contents
My Secret To Fluffy Strawberry Muffins
While many muffin batters are stirred together, I borrowed a cake technique for this recipe: the creaming method of whipping butter and sugar together. During testing, my team and I found that this method made tender, super fluffy muffins that were more cake-like. It also created a thicker batter, which helps suspend the strawberries throughout the muffins so they don’t sink to the bottom during baking.
The strawberry muffin batter is also slightly drier than other types, like banana muffins, because the diced strawberries contain a lot of moisture. The batter will absorb that moisture as the muffins bake, baking up into the perfect texture.
Easy Strawberry Muffin Ingredients & Substitutions
These are the main ingredients you need to make these simple strawberry muffins. You can find the full list of ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.
Strawberries — diced fresh strawberries go into the muffin batter and bake up wonderfully jammy. When picking out fresh strawberries, give them a smell. Generally, if the berries are very fragrant, they will be flavorful and sweet.
Unsalted butter and salt — I prefer using unsalted butter and adding my own salt so I know exactly how much salt is going into the muffins. Salted butter has a varying amount of salt among different brands.
Eggs — large eggs add richness to the batter and also act as a binder to hold all the elements together.
Milk — not only does milk tenderize the crumb, but it also adds moisture to strawberry muffins. Use whole or 2% milk for the best texture. A bit of fat in the dairy helps the muffins stay moist and tender.
Baking powder — baking powder gives strawberry muffins the perfect rise. Check its label to make sure it hasn’t expired, or it will not work as well.
Variations
These muffins are easy to adapt in a variety of ways!
- Add a glaze: Make the glaze from my strawberry bread. Drizzle it over once the muffins are completely cool for a very set glaze, or while slightly warm so some of the glaze soaks into the muffins.
- Add a crumb topping: For a crisp, cinnamony, sweet topping, make my easy streusel topping and sprinkle it on top of the muffins before baking.
- Add flavorings to the batter: If you want a citrusy kick that plays so nicely with the sweet-tart strawberries, add the zest of 1 lemon, 2 limes, or 1 orange to the butter and sugar when creaming them together. You can also include a splash of almond extract along with the vanilla extract.
- Other fruit: Swap the strawberries for other juicy fruits like blackberries, pitted cherries, or diced peaches or plums. Cut any larger berries or cherries in half or quarters before adding them to the batter.
Pro Tips For The Best Strawberry Muffins
Make sure to measure your flour correctly. Too much flour will make the muffins dense. I highly recommend always using a scale to measure flour. However, if you don’t have a scale, fluff your flour with a spoon and spoon it into your cups before leveling it off with a knife. This method is best for measuring flour without overpacking the measuring cup.
Set your refrigerated ingredients out on the counter for 30 minutes to 1 hour before you start. You want to bring cold ingredients to room temperature before starting the recipe. Room temperature ingredients help everything mix together evenly without overmixing. If you’re short on time, use my tricks to soften butter quickly, and soak the eggs in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes.
Avoid dense muffins by mixing just enough. Stop mixing the batter once it has only a few streaks of flour remaining. When you add the strawberries, the rest of the flour will get incorporated. Overmixing the batter will lead to dense strawberry muffins or large holes in the crumb.
How To Make Strawberry Muffins
Below, I’ve highlighted portions of the recipe in step-by-step process images along with instructions for making homemade strawberry muffins. You can find the full set of instructions in the recipe card below.
1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
2. In a large bowl using an electric mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the unsalted butter and granulated sugar together on medium-high until light and fluffy.
3. Reduce the speed to medium and add the room temperature eggs one at a time. Remember to beat each one until well incorporated before adding the next. Then add the vanilla extract.
4. Reduce the speed to low and add a third of the dry ingredients mixture to the wet ingredients.
5. Add half the whole milk. Alternate the flour mixture and milk to finish both, then mix just until a few streaks of flour remain.
6. Fold in the chopped strawberries with a rubber spatula.
7. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with 18 paper liners. Divide the batter evenly among the paper liners.
8. You can top each muffin with diced strawberries and a sprinkle of coarse sugar if you would like. Bake at 375°F for 18 to 20 minutes, until golden brown. Let the strawberry muffins cool for a few minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Strawberry Muffin Recipe
Video
Equipment
- Muffin pan
- Mixing Bowls
- Electric hand or stand mixer
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (360g)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened (226g)
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar (300g)
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole milk room temperature, (240mL)
- 1¾ cups diced fresh strawberries (328g)
- Coarse sugar, for sprinkling on top (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with 18 paper liners. (Fill any empty wells half way with tap water to keep the muffins next to them from over baking!)
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
- Reduce the speed to medium. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until well combined before adding the next. Beat in the vanilla.
- Reduce the speed to low. Add the flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk. Once all is added, mix just until a few streaks of flour remain. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the strawberries.
- Divide the batter evenly among the paper liners (about ¼ cup/85g ea; they will be almost full). If desired, top each muffin with additional diced strawberries and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan, then remove and finish cooling on a wire rack. Muffins can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days or frozen or up to 1 month.
Notes
- Make sure you chop the strawberries into small pieces. This way, you get a little bit of strawberries with every bite. Also, larger chunks are heavier and more likely to sink in the batter during baking.
- An ice cream or cookie scoop can help portion the batter evenly into the muffin tin. I used a #16 (¼ cup) scoop to portion my muffin batter.
- If you fill your muffin papers with less batter, you can get up to 24 muffins. They will be a bit less tall, but it’s an easy way to stretch the recipe out! Reduce the bake time by about 3 minutes.
Nutrition
Storing and Freezing Muffins
Storing: Store cooled strawberry muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Freezing: Once completely cooled, wrap each muffin in a layer of plastic wrap. Place in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 1 month so the muffins don’t dry out. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight or on the counter for a few hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you only have frozen strawberries, you could use them in a pinch! Make sure to drain them well after thawing to avoid a watery batter. Keep in mind that the texture of the thawed strawberries will be softer compared to using freshly diced strawberries, which will have more of a bite even after baking. They are also much softer when thawed, so be gentle when you fold them into the batter, or they can completely fall apart.
Leaving them in the muffin tin to cool for too long will cause the muffins to steam and turn soggy instead of cooling to the perfect fluffy texture. Leaving them in the pan can also cause the paper liners to stick to the muffins. So only cool them in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
While I haven’t tested a gluten-free strawberry muffin recipe, you can try swapping the all-purpose flour for a 1:1 gluten-free flour. Some readers have commented saying they have tried this with great results! Use a blend that contains xanthan gum, which mimics the effects of gluten in gluten-free baking.
More Muffin Recipes To Try
If you’re in the mood for more fruit- or veggie-packed muffins, give one of these easy recipes a try next!
Blueberry muffins are generously studded with plump blueberries so you get juicy bursts in every bite! They’re a wonderful breakfast treat.
Bakery-style raspberry muffins are topped with crisp streusel for extra sweetness. They have a hint of lemon that takes their flavor to the next level.
Cozy, comforting apple muffins have a lovely cinnamon flavor and a sweet brown sugar topping. Use good baking apples like Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Pink Lady apples.
Sneak some extra veggies into your diet with my moist zucchini muffins. They take less than 10 minutes to stir together.
Pumpkin muffins have fall flavor in every bite! Lots of pumpkin and autumnal spices make these muffins irresistible.
If you’ve tried this strawberry muffin recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Vanessa says
This is a frequent request from my kids. Beautifully soft muffins with a delicate strawberry flavor. I add a tiny bit of almond extract and sprinkle corse sugar on top.
Sarah says
Not my favorite PK recipe. They sunk and are very one note in flavor. Never had a muffin sink on me before, and I was very careful not to over mix. My best guess is maybe there was too much moisture in my chopped strawberries.