Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins Are Everything
Calling All Lemon Lovers…You are going to love these Gluten Free Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins that are so moist, lemony and oh so easy to make. You can make them dairy free by using your favorite butter substitute or olive oil. And if you’re watching your sugar intake, monk fruit is the trick for a low glycemic sugar that won’t spike your blood sugar! More good news is…who knew all the emerging new benefits from eating poppy seeds! A dessert with benefits! Enjoy these tasty muffins as a snack or treat!
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are a simple-to-make treat. Watch Pegs make these live on Instagram HERE!


Let’s Get Started
There are a lot of gluten free muffins out there. So many, in fact, that it can be difficult to decide which one is right for you. A lot of gluten free muffins aim for the same texture as a traditional muffin, but I prefer these Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins. These ones hit all the perfect marks, moist and with just enough lemon flavor to make them distinctive without being overpowering. And poppy seeds are my favorite. These are amazing!
Ingredients
I’ll be using:
- Pamela’s Pancake & Baking Mix
- coconut flour
- Baking powder
- Sea salt
- Organic cane sugar OR golden monk fruit
- Poppy seeds
- Lemon Zest
- Eggs
- Olive oil, butter or an alternative butter
- Lemon extract
- Milk: hazelnut, almond or coconut
- Lemon juice, fresh
The BEST Baking Mix for more than Muffins
What makes these muffins better than others? It all comes down to one thing: Pamela’s Pancake & Baking Mix. Pamela’s Pancake & Baking mix is one of my favorites ever since going gluten-free — just the right texture and flavor to add to so many baking recipes. These muffins were moist and fluffy, just like they should be. It’s also a great way to make batter for pancakes (obviously!), cookies and more.
Gettin’ Zesty with the Lemon Zest
The lemon zest in this recipe adds a lot of flavor without any extra sugar. Try to find organic lemons so you don’t have to worry about pesticides.
Lemons are one of those ingredients that I always have on hand, especially since I learned that it can be so useful in baking so many different things.
Zest is the colored, fragrant outermost skin layer of citrus fruit (not just lemons). It’s high in vitamin C and packed with antioxidants that help fight free radicals, which can damage cells and lead to premature aging.
If you’re using lemons for a recipe and are going to be zesting them, it’s best to buy organic. Nonorganic lemons may have been treated with pesticides, which can be absorbed by the fruit even if you don’t eat the peel. Organic lemons also have less wax on them than conventional lemons, so they’re easier to zest. You’ll get more flavor out of your citrus this way too!
I used lemon zest for two different reasons:
- First, it added a burst of fresh flavor to the muffin batter. Second, it gave the baked muffin a nice golden color and helped to prevent it from browning too fast during the baking process.
- The best way to zest lemons is with a microplane grater. You can also use a regular box grater if you don’t have one on hand. The problem with box graters is that they tend to produce more fine bits of zest than you really need when trying to grate just enough for one recipe of muffins.
Use baking powder and NOT baking soda
Baking soda and baking powder are both leavening agents, but they work differently. Baking soda is an alkali that reacts with acidic ingredients in a recipe to create carbon dioxide gas. This causes the dough or batter to rise. Baking powder contains baking soda and another substance called an acid salt, which is already partially reacted with water. This means that when you add the powder to a recipe, it immediately begins producing carbon dioxide and causes your baked goods to rise.
Baking soda and baking powder have different functions in recipes: Baking soda is used as a leavening agent in recipes that require an extra boost of airiness (like cookies). Baking powder is used in recipes that don’t need as much lift (like cakes).
Baking soda can make your baked goods taste bitter if not mixed properly or if too much is used. It will also react with acidic ingredients like chocolate or buttermilk if added before they are mixed into the batter — resulting in flat-looking muffins!
Golden Monkfruit Sweetener
Golden Monkfruit Sweetener is a natural sweetener made from the monk fruit. It has a lower glycemic index than sugar and can be used to replace it in recipes.
The sweetness of monk fruit comes from its compounds, called mogrosides, which are not digestible by humans. Monk fruit contains up to 200 times the sweetness of sugar (depending on the specific type of monk fruit or sugar), but has no calories or carbohydrates.
The color of monk fruit sweetener ranges from pale yellow to dark brown depending on the variety and processing method. It is available as a granulated or powdered product that dissolves quickly in liquids, making it very easy to use in baking and cooking.
This Golden Monkfruit Sweetener I recommend is only about twice as sweet as table sugar so you’ll need about half less when substituting for regular white sugar in your recipes (1 cup = 1/2 cup).
One Final Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin Baking Tip
When baking make sure to divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Bake until lightly golden brown on top and cooked through at the center when tested with a toothpick. The tops should be firm to a light touch and not jiggle when moved around. Allow muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before carefully removing them from the pan and placing them on a wire rack to cool completely before glazing or serving.
Pamela’s Products FTW
Make sure to check out all of Pamela’s Products! They recently came out with beautiful new packaging ~ it’s the same products just with a new look 😍 they are gluten free, with lots of dairy free, nut free, and paleo options 🙌🏼 If you have been enjoying our recipes for awhile, then you know how much we love Pamela’s gluten free all purpose and baking flours. They were our savior when were were first diagnosed gluten intolerant back in 2005! But don’t take our word for it… try for yourself!
A huge thank you to Pamela’s for sponsoring this recipe.
Print
Gluten Free Lemon Poppyseed Muffins
- Total Time: 27 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup Pamela’s Pancake & Baking Mix
1/2 cup coconut flour
2 tsp. Baking powder
1/2 tsp. Sea salt
1 cup organic cane sugar or 1/2 C golden monk fruit
1 Tbsp. Poppy seeds
Zest from 1 large lemon
Wet Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/2 cup olive oil, butter or an alternative butter
1 Tbsp.+ 1 tsp. lemon extract
1/2 cup milk: hazelnut, almond or coconut
1/4 cup lemon juice, fresh
Instructions
- Blend the dry ingredients together.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together.
- Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together just until all is incorporated but not over mixed.
- Either use muffin liners or grease muffin tins with oil.
- Fill cups 3/4 full.
- Bake in pre-heated 375-degree oven for 17 minutes until muffins feel firm.
- Let cool and top with lemon glaze. Recipe follows.
Lemon Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-2 Tbsp. Fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp. lemon extract
Whisk all ingredients together.
Drizzle over warm or cool muffins
Garnish with lemon zest curls
Notes
NOTE: Store muffins in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Variations: Dairy Free: Omit butter and use oil or butter alternative. // Paleo: Use grain free blend or fine ground almond flour // Vegan: Use egg substitute
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 17 minutes
Curious about some of our other gluten-free baking recipes? Checkout our gluten free sugar cookies for the holidays or our gluten free french macaron recipe!
By the way, in addition to our recipes, we also offer health coaching and courses to help you go gluten free. Also, check out Peg’s new book, Damn Good Gluten Free!