A few days ago, a reader emailed me a question about Lemon Poppy Seed muffins and I couldn’t get the thought of them out of my mind. So tonight, after the toddler went to bed I hit the kitchen. I was hit by the baking bug! Weird, I know.
I’m calling this take 1 because literally this is my first attempt to make them. I based the batter on my Whole Wheat Banana Muffins and I winged the rest based on smell and taste. I happy to say the muffin texture came out perfect for me, just the right amount of wet and dry ingredients. However, the lemon flavor was a bit weak. Next time I’m thinking about adding some fresh lemon zest.
So this is exactly how I made it. Take it for how it came out, a great poppy seed muffin with a hint of lemon and up the lemon flavor on your own if you are feeling adventurous. I’ll post an update when I make them again. 
- 1 and ¼ cups (150g) of whole wheat flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon of salt
- 2 egg whites
- ½ cup plain non-fat yogurt
- 2 tablespoon honey (42g)
- ½ cup applesauce
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 2 tablespoon poppy seeds
- non-stick cooking spray
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
Mix and double sift the whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside
In a medium bowl add the egg whites, yogurt, honey, applesauce and lemon juice and extract. Whisk until well blended and a bit “frothy”. Mix in the poppy seeds.
Mix the sifted flour with the egg/poppy mixture until just moistened. Don’t over mix!
Evenly distribute the batter in 6 regular sized muffin tin cups sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake for about 18 minutes.
| Servings | Amt per Serving | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 1 muffin | |||
| Calories | Fat | Fiber | WWPs | |
| 159 | 2g | 6g | old: 4 | new: 2 |
| Sugar | Sat Fat | Carbs | Protein | |
| 11g | 0g | 32g | 6g | |
roni says
Honestly, I haven't! Thanks for the reminder.
oh and greek yogurt should be fine.
Suzanne says
Have you tried this recipe again?? I'd like to try them but not sure what would be "too much lemon."
Also I see a lot of plain non-fat yogurt in your muffin recipes...do you think I could use non-fat greek yogurt instead??
Juila says
i like these going to make them tommorow, look so good
roni says
Totally. Should be fine. 🙂
farra says
Hi,
Do you think I could use the whole egg rather then 2 egg whites? I just dont know what I'll do with with the extra yolks:)
Im happy to see a whole wheat lemon poppyseed muffin:D
roni says
Jen - What an awesome idea! Love the flavor combo!
Jen says
After making your fab banana bundt last night, I had to make this recipe today. I DOUBLED it and turned it into a lemon ginger cranberry bundt... YOWZA... SO. GOOD. Thank you for providing a recipe that matches my baking style: whole fours, natural sugars, no added oils/butters. I usually try to change 'regular' recipes and they end up too dry, too moist, etc. Thanks for taking the guessing work out of trying to make a wholesome baked treat!
I used approx:
1C spelt, 1C whole wheat, 1/2 C wheat germ
2 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
4 egg whites (1/2 C from a carton)
1 C yogurt (1/2 C lemon, 1/2 C plain)
3 tbsp honey
1 C applesauce
zest of 1 lemon (~1 tbsp)
~1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
~1.5 tbsp finely chopped crystallized ginger
4 tbsp lemon juice (3 tbsp one lemon + 1 tbsp bottled)
no lemon extract (don't have any)
1/4 C poppy seeds (= 4tbsp)
1/3 C dried sweetened cranberries
Baked at 325 for 50 min
The cranberries and sweetened lemon yogurt made it sweeter so I might cut down on the honey next time since I like my treats more spicy and tart 😉 Thanks again!
roni says
Cayo - I dump it in! The bran bits that is.
As for the fiber powder.. nope, never used it.
cayo says
No poppy seeds around- I had a scant 1/3 cup of pecans and 2 tablespoons of old dried up cranberries. I food processed (is that a verb?) into a kind of chunky paste that I mixed into the wet ingredients. We'll see.
I have a question about sifting the flour- when I sifted it I found that all of my nice fluffy bran was still in the sifter so I dumped it in- don't want to miss out on the fiber! What does everyone else do? Also does anyone add any of that odorless, tasteless, oddly appealing fiber powder to any of their baking?
Cheers,
Cayo
Lauren says
I finally got around to making these this week (long list of baking "to-dos") and LOVED them, using a couple substitutions mentioned in the comments: I increased the lemon extract to 1.5 teaspoons, used non-fat lemon yogurt (just bought the Whole Foods store brand), and used 1/4 cup sugar.
They turned out HUGE, fluffy, moist and just the right amount of sweetness and lemon flavor. My husband even liked them, which is amazing - he's a huge lemon-poppyseed-muffin fan so I was looking for a healthier alternative for him.
Thought I'd share!
Chrissy says
Hi roni-
i made these today... they are yummy. i didn't up the lemon extract, but i did add some lemon zest and used lemon yogurt instead of the plain yogurt. i sprinkle a tiny bit of splenda/ sugar mix on top as well.
thanks for sharing the recipe!
-chrissy
Donna says
I've made variation of these using NF lemon yogurt, lemon juice, lemon zest and lemon curd for the lemon flavor--sounds like a lot but these muffins end up having a nice mellow, lemon flavor.
I love making muffins but I'm not always good with not overmixing the batter which gives me 'tough' muffins *very sad* when that happens! I try so hard - not sure why this happens to me! Any tips to get the right batter consistency?
roni says
Teresa - Great question!
I always use unsweetened but either would work that's kind of why I don't specify but I guess I should!
Blayne - So glad you liked them!!
Blayne says
I made these this weekend!! They were fantastic!! So filling and yummy 🙂 Thank you for the great recipe!!
Teresa says
Roni,
I have a general question... When your recipes call for applesauce, is that sweetened applesauce or applesauce with no added sugar? I've been using "naked" applesauce with no sugar, but just want to ask in case you've used sweetened applesauce.
I have these lemon poppyseed muffins in the oven right now. Can't wait to try them!
Teresa
roni says
Jenni - AWESOME!
I haven't revisited that recipe in A LONG time. Thanks for the additions and ideas for people!!
Glad to Help!
Jenni says
I tried this about a month ago - following the recipe exactly, I believe, but thought sweetness was a little lacking. I just made these again - didn't sift the flour (sifter actually broke), used 1/4 cup sugar (instead of honey), and used only lemon extract (~1.5tsp) for the lemon flavor. They turned out very well! Thanks for the 100% whole wheat recipe!
Noel says
Hi Roni. Thanks for another awesome breakfast idea. I just wanted to say thanks for the fact that your muffin recipes just make 6 muffins. A person could get into trouble with too many extra tasty muffins lying around, but 6 works great. You don't see many recipes with built in portion control like that, esp for baked goods -- so I really appreciate it!
Erin says
Thanks Roni!
These sound delicious! I'll make them next time I get to the store.. have you ever tried using Garbanzo bean flour? It's a bit richer than regular flour. I used it in my banana-oat muffins and they were delicious (well, I used 1 cup of garbanzo bean flour and 1 cup unbleached flour... it would still be good mixed with wheat flour.) I love experimenting with the weird stuff supermarkets have in their Natural Foods sections. Plus, I'm a vegetarian, so I check out that aisle anyway. 🙂
Can't wait to try the Lemon-Poppyseed muffins!
Thanks for the great video posts! Your toddler is SO cute!
Cheers,
Erin
Athens, Ga
Laura Brandon says
these sound really good! i've been totally craving muffins, i'll have to try them. does whole wheat flower taste really wheat-y?
Rochelle says
I tried these along with your whole wheat banana muffins today. I used 1 1/2 tsp of lemon extract and they turned out really good. The recipes both make 6 very nice size muffins. Both kinds were nice and moist. I think next time I make the banana ones I might add some cinnamon and possibly nutmeg. Great healthy muffins with a great taste to!
LisaRene says
I can relate to getting "the baking bug". There are times when I just can't wait to get home to make a recipe that has been on my mind. Sometimes I'll get an idea for a recipe in my head where I'll "tweak" it and ruminate over it until I can bring it to fruition, once that happens I have to make it NOW. Glad to know I'm not alone 🙂
Kalyn says
Sounds very tasty. I love to use whole wheat pastry flour which I think would be perfect for this.
roni says
6 regular sized. Sorry I kind of take real close up pictures to show detail bu it makes everything look bigger! LOL
Donna says
those look great!
do you mean giant muffin tins?
or do they just make six regular sized?
thanks, i'm going to have to try
these for a breakfast muffin