These easy vegan lemon muffins are light, fluffy and bursting with fresh lemon flavour. Made with simple ingredients and topped with a sweet lemon icing, they're perfect for lunchboxes, afternoon tea, picnics or a treat with a cup of tea or coffee.
The combination of fresh lemon juice and zingy zest gives these dairy-free muffins a lovely fresh citrus flavour. For more fruity muffins, try these Vegan Raspberry Muffins or these Vegan Strawberry Muffins.
Unlike some lemon muffins that rely on eggs or dairy, these muffins use plant-milk and lemon juice to make vegan buttermilk and have a soft, tender texture. Easy for kids and new bakers to make and freezer-friendly too.
At-a-Glance - Vegan Lemon Muffins
⏲️ Ready in: 30 minutes
👪 Serves: 12
🍽 Calories: 180
🧾 Main ingredients: Fresh lemon juice and zest, oat milk (or your regular milk), vegetable oil (or any mild oil), plain flour (all-purpose flour), cornflour (corn starch), caster sugar, baking powder
👩🏻🍳 Suitable for: Vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, egg-free, vegetarian
These are so light and fluffy and not too sweet; you will make them again and again.
Summarise & save this recipe:
Jump to:
- At-a-Glance - Vegan Lemon Muffins
- ⭐ Why You'll Love these Lemon Muffins
- 📋 What You Need
- 🍋 Why use Lemon Juice & Lemon Zest?
- 🍋 Which Lemons are Best for Baking?
- 🍋 How to Get the Best Lemon Flavour in Cakes
- 🥛 What is Vegan Buttermilk and Why is it so Important?
- 👩🏻🍳 How to Make Vegan Lemon Muffins
- 💭 For the best muffins
- 🧁 Muffin Variations
- 👪 Lunchbox Tips
- 🧁 More Easy Vegan Muffins to Try Next
- ⭐ Sign up for a free recipe sent to your inbox every morning
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
⭐ Why You'll Love these Lemon Muffins
- Light and fluffy muffins
- Fresh lemon flavour
- Simple store-cupboard ingredients
- No eggs or dairy
- Made in 30 minutes
- Freezer-friendly
- Perfect for lunchboxes
- Easy enough for new bakers or kids to help make
📋 What You Need
These dainty little lemony muffins are made with a few simple ingredients; make some this week.
The full ingredient list and method are in the recipe card.
I sometimes add a teaspoonful of turmeric to the flour mixture to give a nice yellow colour, but that is optional, and you don't taste it.
The toppings are optional, but make these little dairy-free lemon muffins a bit more special.
🍋 Why use Lemon Juice & Lemon Zest?
Don't use bottled lemon juice if you can help it; you get a much fresher flavour by zesting and juicing a fresh lemon.
Lemon Zest
- Contains natural lemon oil
- Gives a stronger lemon flavour
- Adds to the lemon fragrance as they bake and when you eat your muffin
Lemon Juice
- Adds a fresh citrus flavour
- Helps to make buttermilk when added to milk (even plant milk)
- Reacts with baking powder to produce a light sponge
🍋 Which Lemons are Best for Baking?
| Lemon type | Best for |
|---|---|
| Standard unwaxed lemons | Everyday baking |
| Organic lemons | Best for zesting (no pesticides) |
| Large juicy lemons | More juice |
| Small lemons | Often have more flavourful juice |
Whether you buy waxed, unwaxed or organic lemons, remember to wash them thoroughly before zesting to remove any wax or unwanted nasties from the skin.
🍋 How to Get the Best Lemon Flavour in Cakes
- Use fresh lemons and add finely grated zest as well as juice
- Brush warm cakes (just out of the oven and pricked) with lemon sryup (more lemon juice mixed with sugar)
- Make the icing with lemon juice and zest, not water
- Always use fresh lemons and not bottled juice.
🥛 What is Vegan Buttermilk and Why is it so Important?
As I said, when you mix lemon juice with plant milk like oat milk, it thickens it and makes buttermilk.
The buttermilk, when used in a muffin batter, gives a lighter, softer cake, and it interacts with the baking powder to give extra lift.
You can also make buttermilk by adding white wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar) to milk instead of lemon juice. I use this method in nearly all my Vegan Loaf Cakes and my other vegan muffins like my Vegan Jam Doughnut Muffins and my Vegan Blueberry Muffins.
👩🏻🍳 How to Make Vegan Lemon Muffins
These step-by-step photos will show you how easy it is to make these citrus-flavoured muffins. Keep scrolling for the recipe card.
Step 1
Step 1 - Preheat the oven and line 1 x 12-hole muffin tin or 2 x 6-hole muffin tins with muffin cases, then add the milk to a jug.
Step 2
Step 2 - Add lemon juice and zest to the milk, then add the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl.
Step 3
Step 3 - I sometimes add a teaspoon of turmeric to add a nice yellow colour without the flavour, but that is optional. Mix the dry ingredients well.
Step 4
Step 4 - Add the oil to the milk, then pour the liquids into the dry mixture.
Step 5
Step 5 - Fold the liquids into the dry mix until just combined. DO NOT OVERMIX; then spoon into the 2 muffin cases. I use an ice cream scoop.
Step 6 - Bake until golden and baked through, then leave to cool in the tin. If you are adding icing, add the lemon juice and icing sugar (confectioner's sugar) to a small bowl.
Step 6
Step 7
Step 7 - Mix the icing and drizzle over the cake when they are cool. Add sprinkles if you want to and enjoy!
Jac's Top Tip
💭 For the best muffins
Make sure your baking powder is fresh and don't overmix the batter, as it will make the muffins heavy; fold in until just combined (don't worry about a few wee lumps) for light and fluffy muffins.
🧁 Muffin Variations
- Lemon poppy seed muffins - add 1 tablespoon of poppy seeds to the dry mixture
- Blueberry lemon muffins - toss a punnet of washed and dried blueberries in the dry mixture before adding the liquid
- Coconut lemon muffins - remove 2 tablespoons of flour and add 3 tablespoons of desiccated coconut instead
- Raspberry Lemon Muffins - toss a punnet of rinsed and dried raspberries to the dry mixture before adding the liquids
👪 Lunchbox Tips
- Cool completely before adding to lunchboxes (make them the night before and store them in an airtight container).
- Skip the icing for lunchboxes; it will just get messy.
- Pack them in a tub; don't wrap them as they will get squidged.
- Make them ahead and freeze them; take one straight from the freezer and pop in a tub in lunchbags, they will defrost by lunchtime.
- Add some fruit or crunchy veg to the lunchbox too, to balance things out (something healthy and a treat).
🧁 More Easy Vegan Muffins to Try Next
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Lemon Muffins
Ingredients
- 200 g oat milk or your regular milk
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon lemon zest finely grated peel from 2 lemons
- 50 ml vegetable oil or other pale, mild oil
- 200 g plain flour
- 2 tablespoon cornflour
- 4 tablespoon caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch salt
Lemon Icing & Sprinkles (optional)
- 150 g icing sugar confectioner's sugar
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180c/160c fan/350f/gas mark 4 and fill a 12-hole muffin tray or 2 x 6-hole muffin trays with paper cupcake or muffin cases.
- Measure the oat milk into a jug or bowl, add 2 tablespoon lemon juice and the lemon peel and stir. Set aside.
- Add the flour into the bowl and add the other dry ingredients cornstarch, baking powder, sugar, salt and turmeric, if you are
adding it). Mix well. - Add the oil to the milk and stir. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients then mix lightly until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the muffin cases and bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes until a skewer or toothpick come out clean and they are springy to the touch.
- Leave to cool in the muffin tray for a few minutes and then move to baking rack to cool completely.
- While the muffins are cooling, make the icing. Add 2 tablespoon of lemon juice into the icing sugar and mix well until you have a thick, smooth icing. If it needs a little more lemon juice if you need it. It will need less than you think.
- Spoon the icing onto the cooled muffins and add
some sprinkles. - Enjoy!
Notes
- DO NOT OVER MIX THE CAKE BATTER. You will end up with rubbery muffins. Don't worry if there are some lumps or stray flour, it will all be fine.
- The cool muffins can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
- The muffins (before they are iced) can be frozen for 3-4 months in an airtight, freezer-proof tub for 3-4 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight.
Francine says
I made these without the turmeric for color and they were just as good. I love me a lemon dessert.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Oh me too, I love lemon flavoured things and yes the turmeric is definitely optional.
Branwen says
Made these without the icing but with a teaspoon of lemon curd as filling. I stole this idea from your strawberry muffin 🙂 Guess what? They were lovely.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Oh I bet they were, what a fabulous idea. Yum!
Tricot says
My muffins didn’t rise-I must have done something wrong. Could it be my oven wasn’t hot enough?
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Sorry, just spotted your comment. It could be a few things. Oven not preheated, the tray knocked and air knocked out, over-mixing or baking powder that's not fresh.
Tricot says
Thanks for the advice Jac - Am going to give them another go. And I have a thermometer for my (old!) oven now.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Hope it works out well. Crossing my fingers for you.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Oh yes it is a nice finishing touch but totally optional
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Yes I think so too. Glad you liked them.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Thank you and yes a treat for breakfast.
Anita says
These are so good even without the icing. I think I'm going to skip it when I don't have the time, though it does add flavor and makes the muffins look so pretty.
April says
These were so moist and fluffy and had the perfect amount of lemon flavor.
MArie Charlotte says
These muffins look spectacular! Love me a good lemon muffin in the morning
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Oh good, I hope you both enjoy them.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Oh yes just perfect for your daughter
If she likes lemon I am sure she'll enjoy them.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Haha I am the same I love lemon cakes, bakes and desserts.
Sue/the view from great island says
I adore lemon flavored cakes and muffins, and these sound amazing. I love that even my vegan daughter can enjoy them 🙂
Jess says
Give me all the lemon! Love these!
Jeannette Johnson says
Can the cornflour be subbed?
Jacqueline Meldrum says
You can just use flour. The cornflour just makes them a bit lighter.
Anonymous says
These look so good Jacqueline. I think my daughter will love them. I'm going to make some for her this weekend. Jill