Strawberry Sour Cream Muffins
Muffins are definitely one of my favorite ways to feed my kids. A fun, kid-friendly baking activity that results in both a yummy snack and a ready breakfast is always welcome in my house. Plus muffins are so adaptable to seasonal produce! Since springtime means strawberries, we’re making these muffins on repeat all month long!
In case you’re a sceptic, sour cream is a secret ingredient to any good quick muffin or bread. I’ve learned that all recipes that use sour cream result in bakes with that perfect hit of extra flavor and moisture in the crumb. Take my grandmother’s banana bread recipe for example. It’s simple, but it’s truly the best banana bread, and sure enough, it has ample amounts of sour cream.
These strawberry sour cream muffins have a beautiful tender crumb, juicy bursts of ruby strawberry, and a sweet, buttery streusel topping. What more could you want on a spring morning?
Some tips for this recipe. First, line the muffin tin with paper liners. This helps prevent sticking, and it makes storing the baked muffins so much easier. Second, use salted butter. I don’t usually bake with salted butter, but in this recipe the extra salt really makes a difference for the flavor!
Third, use fresh strawberries in season. They have a huge impact on the end result. Be sure to cut the strawberries into small, pea-sized chunks. Then gently fold the strawberries by hand into the batter with a rubber spatula, mixing only until they are evenly incorporated. You don’t want to over mix them because their juices will seep into the batter and color the muffin crumb. This isn’t bad from a flavor perspective, but it definitely ruins the pretty contrast between the red strawberries and the yellow crumb that I always look for in a fruit muffin.
Finally, I call for a stand mixer, but you can definitely mix this recipe by hand. Just be sure to thoroughly cream the sugar and butter before adding the eggs, vanilla, flour, and sour cream.
If you’ve tried my best blueberry muffin recipe, then you will love this recipe! It’s just the same but uses fresh strawberries in place of the blueberries. It’s a small change, but a huge win for strawberry season.
Strawberry Sour Cream Muffins - Makes 12 muffins
Equipment:
Muffin tin
Stand mixer (optional)
Streusel Ingredients:
2 TBS. salted butter, melted
2 TBS. sugar
1 tsp. brown sugar
1/4 cup + 2 TBS. all-purpose flour
Muffin Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
Zest of 1 lemon
1 stick (8TBS.) salted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup fresh strawberries, diced into pea-sized cubes (+ 2-3 extra diced strawberries for topping - optional)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF, and line the muffin tin with 12 liners. I use convection bake and set the rack in the middle of the oven.
Make the streusel. Combine all the streusel ingredients in a small bowl and mix until evenly incorporated and little balls form. Place the streusel in the refrigerator while you make the muffin batter.
Make the batter. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Cream together the sugar and the softened butter using the paddle attachment fitted into the stand mixer. Mix until the sugar is dissolved and the butter is nice and fluffy. Then add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly in between each addition. Once the eggs are fully mixed in, add the vanilla extract and mix again.
Add half the flour mixture to the batter, and mix on medium low until it’s fully incorporated. Then add half the sour cream, and mix again until the sour cream is incorporated. Then add the remaining flour and mix to incorporate. Finally add the remaining sour cream and mix fully. You may need to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to get all the flour mixed in.
Remove the bowl of the stand mixer, and add the strawberries to the batter. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the strawberries into the batter by hand. Mix only until the berries are evenly incorporated.
Scoop 1/4 cup of the batter into each prepared muffin liner. Add a few of the additional diced strawberries on top of each muffin. This is optional, but results in those pretty, juicy berry gems in the muffin top. Then top each muffin evenly with the prepared streusel. Bake the muffins in the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the tops are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool for at least 5 minutes before enjoying. Store covered at room temperature for up to three days.
