Lemon Crumb Muffins (Bakery-Style Lemon Streusel Muffins)
These lemon crumb muffins are soft, tender, and packed with bright lemon flavor, topped with a buttery, crumbly streusel that bakes up golden and crisp. These bakery-style lemon streusel muffins are made completely from scratch and deliver consistent results every time.
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Why You’ll Love This
If you love a bakery-style muffin with a soft center and a crumbly top, these deliver with a fresh lemon twist.
- Bright, fresh lemon flavor in every bite
- Soft, moist muffins with a tender crumb
- Buttery lemon streusel topping that bakes up crisp
- Simple ingredients, easy to make
- Bakery-style domed tops
If you love homemade muffins and breakfast bakes, try our Mixed Berry Muffins, Blueberry Bread, or Bacon Cheddar Biscuits.
Ingredients Needed (and What They Do)
- All-purpose flour – Provides the structure for the muffins and helps create a soft, tender crumb.
- Baking powder – Gives the muffins lift and helps create those tall, domed tops.
- Baking soda – Reacts with the acidity from the lemon juice and buttermilk to improve rise and texture.
- Kosher salt – Balances the sweetness and enhances the lemon flavor.
- Granulated sugar – Sweetens the muffins and contributes to a soft, moist texture.
- Eggs – Add structure, richness, and help bind everything together.
- Unsalted butter – Adds rich flavor and creates a tender, bakery-style crumb.
- Buttermilk – Adds moisture and a slight tang, helping create a soft texture.
- Fresh lemon juice – Brings bright, fresh lemon flavor and adds acidity for proper leavening.
- Lemon zest – Provides concentrated lemon flavor without adding extra liquid.
- Lemon extract – Rounds out the flavors and enhances the sweetness.
- Streusel – All-purpose flour, granulated sugar, dark brown sugar, melted butter, and lemon zest.
Streusel Ingredients
A simple lemon streusel that bakes up buttery and crumbly on top.
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- Dark brown sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Lemon zest
Please see the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions.
How to Make Lemon Crumb Muffins
Step 1 – In a small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients until crumbly. (Melted butter, sugars, lemon zest, and flour.) Refrigerate until ready to use.
Step 2 – Line a muffin pan with liners or spray with nonstick baking spray. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined. Set aside.
Step 3 – In a large bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest. Using your fingers, rub the zest into the sugar until combined. Rubbing the lemon zest into the sugar helps release the oils in the zest and infuses more lemon flavor.
Step 4 – Whisk in the eggs until they’re thick, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the melted and cooled butter until combined. Whisk in the buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon extract until combined.
Step 5 – Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined. Do not overmix. Let the batter rest for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven to 425ºF.
Pro Tip
Resting the muffin batter allows the starches in the flour additional time to absorb the liquids, causing them to swell. This results in a much better structured muffin, allowing for a nice, rounded dome.
Step 6 – Divide the batter equally into the muffin cups. Sprinkle the top of each muffin with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of streusel. Bake for 5 minutes at 425ºF, then reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean; do not overbake. Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. These are excellent as-is, or drizzle with a simple lemon glaze for extra sweetness.
Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients so the melted butter mixes smoothly and doesn’t seize up.
- Don’t overmix the batter—this keeps the muffins tender instead of dense.
- Use fresh lemon juice and zest for the best flavor.
- Chill the streusel so it stays crumbly and doesn’t melt into the batter.
- Use tall muffin tin liners to hold the streusel in place.
- Don’t overbake—butter-based muffins can dry out faster than oil-based ones, so pull them as soon as a toothpick comes out clean.
Variations
- Lemon Blueberry Muffins – Fold in 1 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen blueberries.
- Add a glaze – Mix 1 cup of powdered sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice. Drizzle over the muffins.
- No streusel – Skip the crumb topping and sprinkle the top of the muffin with coarse sugar.
- Mini muffins – Bake in a mini muffin pan and reduce the baking time to 10-12 minutes at 375ºF.
FAQs
Fresh lemon juice is highly recommended for the best flavor. Bottled lemon juice can work in a pinch, but it lacks the bright, fresh citrus taste that makes these lemon crumb muffins stand out. If you do use bottled juice, be sure to still include the lemon zest for maximum flavor.
Resting the batter allows the flour to fully hydrate and the starches to absorb the liquid. This results in a thicker batter, which helps create taller, bakery-style domed muffins with a softer, more tender texture.
Yes. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make a simple substitute by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to 3/4 cup of milk. Let it sit for 5 minutes before using. This helps mimic the acidity and texture of buttermilk.
Lemon crumb muffins and lemon streusel muffins are essentially the same thing. Both refer to soft lemon muffins topped with a buttery crumb topping made from flour, sugar, and butter, often called streusel.
More Muffin Recipes
Lemon Crumb Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
Streusel
- 2/3 cup All-purpose flour
- 5 tbsp Unsalted butter melted
- 3 tbsp Granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp Dark brown sugar
- 2 tsp Lemon zest about 1 large lemon
Muffins
- 2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour
- 2 tsp Baking powder
- 1/2 tsp Baking soda
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- 1 cup Granulated sugar
- Zest 2 Large Lemons about 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons
- 2 large Eggs room temperature
- 1/2 cup Unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly
- 3/4 cup Buttermilk room temperature
- 1 tsp Lemon extract
- 1/4 cup Lemon juice
Instructions
Streusel
- In a small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients. (Melted butter, sugars, lemon zest, and flour.) Refrigerate until ready to use.2/3 cup All-purpose flour, 5 tbsp Unsalted butter, 3 tbsp Granulated sugar, 3 tbsp Dark brown sugar, 2 tsp Lemon zest
Muffins
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined. Set aside.2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour, 2 tsp Baking powder, 1/2 tsp Baking soda, 1 tsp Kosher salt
- In a large bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest. Using your fingers, rub the zest into the sugar until combined. Rubbing the lemon zest into the sugar helps release the oils in the zest and infuses more lemon flavor.1 cup Granulated sugar, Zest 2 Large Lemons
- Whisk the eggs into the sugar mixture until they’re thick, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the melted and cooled butter until combined. Whisk in the buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon extract until combined.2 large Eggs, 1/2 cup Unsalted butter, 3/4 cup Buttermilk, 1 tsp Lemon extract, 1/4 cup Lemon juice
- Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined. Do not overmix. Let the batter rest for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven to 425ºF. (The muffin batter will thicken upon resting.)
- Divide the batter equally into the muffin cups. Sprinkle each muffin with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of streusel. Bake for 5 minutes at 425ºF, then reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean; do not overbake. Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Resting the muffin batter allows the starches in the flour additional time to absorb the liquids, causing them to swell. This results in a much better structured muffin, allowing for a nice, rounded dome.
- Use room temperature ingredients so the melted butter mixes smoothly and doesn’t seize up.
- Don’t overmix the batter—this keeps the muffins tender instead of dense.
- Use tall muffin cups to hold the streusel in place.
- Don’t overbake—butter-based muffins can dry out faster than oil-based ones, so pull them as soon as a toothpick comes out clean.