Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins

These Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins are the fluffy, flavorful, sharable treat that beats them all. The sour cream is a secret ingredient — you can’t taste it, but you’ll taste its effects: It makes them light, moist and utterly delicious. 

2024 Update: This recipe was originally shared in May 2015 as a guest post at A Joyfully Mad Kitchen. The recipe has been completely overhauled and the post includes new photos, as well as more tips and tricks. I hope you love these muffins!

Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins Recipe 

You might already know this about me, but I really love a good recipe with a secret ingredient. 

Whether it’s turkey meatballs with zucchini or strawberry scones with hidden freeze-dried strawberries, I love spoiling my friends and family with good food and then have a clever answer to the inevitable question, “What did you put in this?!” 

These Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins are just really damn good blueberry muffins. I guess the sour cream isn’t so secret since I wrote it in the name… but you get the idea. You can’t taste the sour cream in this recipe, so no one has to know if you just call them a classic blueberry muffin. 

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Sour cream isn’t something you normally bake with, but it is a workhorse when you do use it. Even though you can’t taste it, it makes these muffins so fluffy and light. 

Additionally, the orange zest adds a unique pop (since blueberry muffins normally call for lemon zest) and the blueberries are so very juicy AF.

Why I love this recipe:

My family absolutely loves this blueberry sour cream muffin recipe for a few reasons…

• They’re a different spin on a classic and a great way to level up brunch. 
• These are bakery-style muffins, so they’re large!
• They’re perfectly balanced and not too sweet!
• You can’t taste the sour cream, but it makes the muffins moist and utterly delicious.
• They are great for a lazy weekend morning, afternoon snack or a playdate because kids (mostly, sometimes) love fruit-forward muffins like these. 

More homemade muffins recipe to try: Chocolate Chip Muffins | Apple Cinnamon Muffins | Coffee Cake Muffins | Vegan Banana Muffins

What you need to make this recipe:

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• 12-cup muffin pan or tin
• Parchment paper liners for the muffin cups (cupcake liners are the same thing as muffin liners)
• Baking spray
• Zester or microplane
• Citrus juicer
• Kitchen scale
• Mixing bowls
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Whisk
• Rubber spatula
• Cookie scoop or ice cream scoop
• Toothpick or cake tester 
• Wire rack for cooling
• Muffin and cupcake storage container

Here’s what you’ll need to make these easy blueberry muffins:

• Fresh blueberries — personally, I prefer the fresh berries, but you can use frozen berries, too, if you do don’t thaw them. Toss them in straight from the freezer. Be prepared for them to discolor the muffin batter. The taste will be OK, though. 🙂
• All-purpose flour — we like to use unbleached AP flour in our household, but the regular kind works, too. I have not tried this with a gluten free flour blend, however.
• Baking powder — always make sure your baking powder is fresh. Get a new one every few months, even if you haven’t used it all. 
• Kosher salt — medium grain kosher salt is the best salt for baking. I like Diamond Crystal. 
• Sour cream — use a full-fat sour cream for best results, not a light or fat-free sour cream. Plain Greek yogurt is lower in fat than sour cream, but they could probably work as a swap if that’s what you have on hand. Please note that the texture of plain yogurt would change the texture of this matter.
• Granulated sugar — this is also called white sugar. Don’t swap it for brown sugar or the batter won’t set up right. 
• Orange zest — I love using orange zest in this recipe, but you can also try it with lemon zest. Lemon blueberry muffins are some of my faves! 
• Vegetable oil — you can also use any neutral-tasting oil such as avocado oil or vegetable oil. Melted butter could also work as a substitute.
• Milk — whole milk is best, but use what you have. You can also use a non-dairy milk like almond milk or soy milk. 
• Orange juice — fresh squeezed is best. If you’re zesting a fresh orange, might as well use it for juice too! 
• Large eggs — I always say use the best eggs you can afford.
• Vanilla extract — a high-quality vanilla extract makes a big difference in your baking recipes. Another secret ingredient so to speak! 
• Raw sugar — this coarse sugar is for sprinkling over top of the muffins. You can skip it if you don’t have it, but it adds the most crispy, caramelized texture on top of the muffins. 

Customizations and substitutions

Gluten-free muffins: I haven’t tried this recipe with a gluten-free flour blend, but a 1:1 mix should work fine. Let me know if you try it! 

Vegan muffins: Follow this recipe for vegan blueberry muffins! Just add some orange zest into the mix. 

Fruit muffins: This sour cream muffin recipe is a great base for other berries and fruits. Try it with cranberries, strawberries and mixed berries. 

Mini muffins: Use a mini muffin tin to make tinier muffins. These are great for a party with more guests. You’ll need to adjust the baking time, as they won’t need as long as regular muffins. 

How to make Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins

Let’s get into this easy blueberry orange muffins recipe! 

First, preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a muffin tin with baking cups, then spritz with baking spray. Set the tray aside.

Toss the blueberries with a tablespoon of flour in a small bowl, and set aside. This will prevent the berries from sinking to the bottom of the muffins.

Measure the rest of the flour (2 cups), baking powder and kosher salt in a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside. These are the dry ingredients.

In another bowl, combine the sour cream, vegetable oil, sugar and orange zest. Whisk together until fully incorporated and smooth.

Pour in the oil, milk, orange juice, eggs and vanilla extract into the sour cream mixture.

Whisk it all together until well combined.

Slowly sprinkle the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, mixing with a rubber spatula until just combined.

Overmixing could cause your muffins to become tough.

Fold the blueberries gently into the batter. You don’t want to overmix them, or you risk popping the blueberries and ending up with totally purple muffins. 

Divide batter evenly between the prepared baking cups, filling them about 3/4 of the way full. (I added 3 tablespoons of batter to each.) 

Sprinkle the raw sugar over the tops of the muffins. You can also add a few extra blueberries on top of each muffin for extra blueberry flavor.

Transfer to the preheated oven, and bake for 25-28 minutes, or until the tops turn golden brown and an inserted toothpick in the center of the muffins comes out clean.

Let cool for 15-20 minutes, then enjoy with your favorite breakfast beverage!

Might I recommend something orange? We love prosecco mimosas and a sunrise mocktail.

How to store and freeze

Store Orange Blueberry Muffins with Sour Cream in a food-safe, airtight container and keep at room temperature for up to 5 days. 

You can also freeze fully baked and cooled muffins. Place them on a baking sheet and flash freeze for one hour — this prevents them from sticking. Th​en put them in a zipper-locking freezer bag.

To reheat, heat in the microwave for about 45 seconds to 1 minute. 

Erin’s Easy Entertaining Tips

We love sharing delicious muffins with the people we love. Playdate hangouts in the morning hours are always lovely, and kids are sure to love this homemade muffin recipe with juicy berries.

Here are some ways I’d make these muffins to share with our people:

• Make a double batch for a big group. Or make them into mini muffins! 
• Serve them warm in a basket or bowl lined with a kitchen towel. This helps to preserve some heat. 
• Bring them to a party or gathering in a muffin storage container. They’ll be an instant hit. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Quick tips and tricks to making the best Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins

• Use full fat sour cream for the best flavor.
• Only mix until everything is just combined. Don’t over mix them. 
• Use muffin liners to prevent sticking. Or follow these tips for greasing a muffin tin. 

More blueberry breakfast recipes:

Love a blueberry baked good? Try out Lemon Blueberry Bread and Blueberry Chia Seed Muffins.

Want something unique? These Blueberry Breakfast Sausage Pancakes are the perfect sweet-salty-savory combination.

Into coffee cake? This Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake and Sour Cream Blueberry Coffee Cake are both utterly delicious!

Just want to make these muffins? Scroll on down to the recipe card below…