These lemon blueberry buckwheat protein muffins are super healthy and very easy to make. They are gluten-free, flourless, refined-sugar free, nut-free and 100% kid approved! There is also a vegan, dairy-free, no-egg version available. Grab one or two of these delicious clean eating muffins for a quick on-the-go breakfast or snack.
Protein muffins, again! Yes I know, I am being a bit redundant this week, but hey, who doesn’t like delicious, cakey and super tasty lemon blueberry muffins? And protein-packed, too!
If you’re like me and you love your muffins “protein-pimped”, make sure to have a look at either my apple protein muffins , or these banana oat protein muffins.
These chocolate protein muffins are also one of my favorite protein snacks.
Ingredients for Lemon Blueberry Buckwheat Protein Muffins
- Buckwheat Flour. This type of flour has a stronger taste than most flours which makes for very interesting recipes. It has the extraordinary benefit of being gluten-free and super healthy, too!
- Vanilla Protein Powder. Use whey for the original version and plant-based for the vegan/dairy-free/egg-free version.
- Baking powder. For cute, puffy and chested muffins!
- Freshly grated lemon zest. An organic lemon would be best. Using a regular lemon won’t affect the taste, though you should wash it thoroughly to get rid of the chemicals as much as possible. Could be replaced with 1 tsp dried lemon zest.
- Eggs! Could be replaced with mashed banana or vanilla yogurt, see instructions below.
- Maple Syrup. Could be replaced with stevia using 1/3 teaspoon liquid stevia and 1/4 cup water for a sugar-free version.
- Coconut oil. Damnnnn… ain’t it trendy these days!? Everybody is raving about it… and they’re right to do so! I love coconut oil, it’s full of health benefits and it tastes so, so good.
- Milk of choice. It could be any type of milk really, as long as it is unsweetened and unflavored. Could be replaced with water.
- Blueberries. Antioxidants-filled, superfood powerhouses!
How to Make Lemon Blueberry Buckwheat Protein Muffins from Scratch
1. Start by preheating your oven to 350F. I used the convection option.
2. Next, line a 12-muffin pan with muffin cups or simply grease the pan using cooking spray or coconut oil. I greased my muffin tin using cold coconut oil.
3. Then, mix all of the dry ingredients (buckwheat flour, protein powder, and lemon zest) in a large mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.
4. Melt coconut oil over low heat. Caution: Do not overheat; it has to stay warm or you may burn the other ingredients (True story!).
5. Combine all of the wet ingredients (eggs, maple syrup, coconut oil, milk of choice) together in a second mixing bowl. Stir until well incorporated.
6. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir until just incorporated.
7. Fold in the blueberries. Stir gently.
8. Pour the muffin batter evenly into the 12 muffin tins. This recipe will give you the exact amount of batter you need for 12 muffins, no more, no less.
9. Transfer to the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. My whey based batch was ready at 18 minutes. My plant-based version, on the other hand, was ready at 23 minutes.
10. Carefully remove the muffin tray from the oven. Place the muffins on a cooling rack to cool down.
11. How to store these: Wrap the muffins in a large dry cloth and place them in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How to store my protein muffins? As said above, these are best kept at room temperature, wrapped in a dry cloth and placed in a sealed container. They can also remain on the cooling rack overnight, covered with a dry cloth.
2. Can I Freeze my protein muffins? Absolutely! Like any type of muffin, these can be kept in the freezer for up to 3 months in a sealed container. In fact, this is a brilliant idea! Simply throw them in the oven or microwave for a quick, guilt-free snack or allow them to thaw for a couple hours at room temperature before munching.
3. How do I make my protein muffins moist? Consistency and dryness in a baking recipe are very dependent on the balance between dry and wet ingredients. This particular recipe will give you delicious, cakey muffins which aren’t too wet but not too dry either. Another very important factor is baking time. Be sure to monitor your muffins closely past 15 minutes of baking by inserting a toothpick in the center of one of these. When it comes out clean, your muffins are ready. It is easy to overcook a batch of muffins, so stay close to the oven for the last five minutes of baking, you’ll thank me later!
4. I am not sure I will like buckwheat flour, what does it taste like? Buckwheat has a stronger taste than wheat or oat flour. It has a slightly bitter, hearty taste, which I really like. The combination of ingredients in this particular recipe really alleviates the bitterness.
5. What can I replace buckwheat flour with? Although I haven’t tried it, you could theoretically replace buckwheat flour with oat flour on a 1:1 ratio. I have done it for other recipes with great success as these flours have a very similar consistency. To make your own oatmeal flour, simply pulse gluten-free rolled oats into a thin flour using a blender. 1 cup of rolled oats will give you roughly 3/4 cup oat flour.
6. Got any more questions? Ask away in the comments section below!
Optional Add-ins
- Sliced Almonds. The taste of almonds will pair very well with these, and a little crunch is always welcome!
- Vanilla Glaze. Top these with your favorite (healthy) vanilla glaze!
- Coconut Sugar. Sprinkle a pinch of coconut sugar on top of each muffin before baking!
- White Chocolate Chips. Fold in a handful of white chocolate chips along with the blueberries!
- Got more ideas? Add your suggestions in the comments section below!
***CLICK BELOW TO PIN FOR LATER!***
Lemon Blueberry Buckwheat Protein Muffins
These simple and delicious lemon blueberry muffins are protein-packed and entirely guilt-free.
Ingredients
WHEY VERSION
- 1 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
- 1 cup vanilla whey protein powder
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp lemon zest freshly grated*
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
- 3/4 cup milk of choice unsweetened & unflavored
- 1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen
VEGAN VERSION
- 1 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
- 1/4 cup plant-based vanilla protein powder I used the VEGA brand
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp lemon zest freshly grated*
- 1/2 cup mashed banana about 2 small bananas
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup coconut oil melted
- 1 1/4 cup milk of choice unsweetened & unflavored
- 1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F.
Line a 12-muffin pan with paper muffin cups or simply grease the muffin tins.
Mix all of the dry ingredients (buckwheat flour, protein powder, baking powder, lemon zest) in a large mixing bowl, stir until well incorporated.
Melt Coconut oil in a small saucepan over low heat. A word of wisdom: Do not overheat as you will burn the other ingredients. Make sure it is warm before mixing with the other liquid ingredients.
Mix all of the wet ingredients (eggs, maple syrup, coconut oil, milk of choice) in a second mixing bowl, whisk until smooth.
Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently stir until just incorporated.
Fold in the blueberries. Stir delicately.
Pour the muffin batter evenly between the 12 muffin tins.
Transfer to the oven and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or when a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Important: Increase baking time to 20-25 minutes for the plant-based version.
Remove the muffins from the pan and place them on top of a cooling rack to cool down. Cover with a dry cloth.
How to store: Place a large piece of dry cloth or towel in the bottom of a large sealable container. Place the muffins on top of the cloth and gently fold the cloth over the muffins, then seal the container. They can be stored this way for up to 5 days at room temperature.
Serve warm with a tall glass of your favorite milk, enjoy!
Recipe Notes
* Use organic an organic lemon if possible.
Nutrition information calculated using the whey version.
I made these for my family yesterday morning and everyone loved it! My family had eaten all of them by the time I went for seconds! I’m going to make them again today or tomorrow, and was wondering if I made a double batch if I could freeze some of the batter? These are definitely a new family favorite. Thank you!
These were good! Thanks for sharing.
Love the recipe, will definitely be trying soon! Quick question though, do you have to use buckwheat flour or can you use plain flour? Will it alter the protein content?
Hi! I want to try and make these but I have some questions about the protein powder. I went to the store to check out my options and on the back of the package it said to mix it with water or milk to make the protein shake its intended for. I was wondering if you could use protein powder intended for protein shakes in the recipe or if that won’t work. What “qualities” should the protein powder have if you are to bake with it? Thank you in advance!
Very disappointed. The muffins have no taste or flavour whatsoever and the texture is spongy. The only way to make them better is to add Nutella or something, which completely defeats the purpose of healthy muffins. I would not recommend this recipe.
Same experience. They came out like dried bread. Zero flavor really unpleasant