Fresh Strawberry Muffins

If you’re looking for an amazing recipe to use up some of your summer strawberries, my fresh strawberry muffins are just what you’re looking for! There are a few secret ingredients and methods that make these the best berry muffins you’ll ever eat.

Why this is my favorite strawberry muffin recipe

There are a few different herbs or spices that really compliment the flavor of strawberries. Balsamic vinegar is one of the more commonly known ingredients that intensify their flavor, but ginger is the one that really caught my attention. Ginger and freshly ground black pepper!

Yes. Freshly ground black pepper. When you bite into these muffins they are sweet and tender, but when you’re done there’s this tiny hint of something heated. Something spicy. Just a touch!

Expert baking tips & FAQ

• Don’t use “pepper dust” as I like to call it, which is the black pepper you buy that is already ground and you pour into your pepper shaker. Freshly ground is better and essential. You see, if you use freshly ground it’s going to weigh less than packaged black pepper because of the different sized granules. So use your grinder.
• When you cut up your berries, cut them into 1/2-inch pieces. There’s a step in the recipe that suggests simmering and reducing some of the macerated berries to make a jam to swirl into the batter, but you could probably substitute jar jam instead.
• Most baking recipes call for softened butter, however in this case you will be melting the butter. It’s important to let it cool though as it will be combined with the eggs. If the butter is too hot, it could partially cook the eggs, causing little scrambled bits.
• I do not recommend using frozen strawberries for this recipe. If you absolutely must, please thaw them completely and drain a bit on paper towels. You don’t want to squeeze the juice out, but you don’t want them dripping wet either. 
• Mix this batter by hand, not with an electric mixer. Over beating the batter causes the protein strands to combine from the gluten, which will make the muffins tough.

Ingredients you will need

• As I mentioned early, some ingredients you don’t usually see in a muffin recipe include ground ginger, ground black pepper, and balsamic vinegar. But they are key to the amazing flavor you will get from these!
• I use both vanilla and lemon extract in these muffins. If you don’t have any lemon extract, it’s fine to leave it out completely.
• Common pantry items for this recipe include flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, salt, and granulated sugar.
• You’ll need a few items from your fridge too, including milk, eggs, and butter.
• And of course, we can’t forget fresh strawberries and lemons for even more flavor.  

How to make homemade strawberry muffins from scratch

There’s a little planning with this recipe because you will need to macerate some of the strawberries and cook it into a jam that will be swirled into the batter. I promise it’s worth it!

1. Chop strawberries into 1/2-inch pieces. Use a kitchen scale to weigh out 2-ounces of the strawberries and place them into a shallow bowl. Set the other 6 ounces of chopped berries aside. Sprinkle the 2-ounces of berries with 1 tablespoon of sugar, vanilla, and balsamic vinegar and toss to coat.

2. Let sit for about an hour.

3. Run the macerated strawberries through a mini food processor and pour into a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat until it comes to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring often, until thickened, like jam. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.

4. Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin, or line tin with paper or silicone cupcake liners.
5. In a large bowl, whisk together the 3/4 cup of sugar, freshly ground black pepper, flour, baking powder, salt and ginger.
6. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla and lemon extracts, milk, and melted butter (make sure the melted butter is cool before you add it).
7. Fold the wet and dry ingredients together just until combined. It’s important not to over-mix!

8. Drop the homemade jam into the batter by tablespoons.

9. Gently swirl the jam into the batter with a few turns of the rubber spatula. Do not over mix.

10. Divide one half of the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Add a layer of the chopped strawberries.

11. Divide the remaining half of the batter over the layer of berries.

12. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for about ten minutes.

13. Remove from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
14. Mix together the glaze ingredients. If too thick, add drops of milk until you reach drizzling consistency.

15. When muffins are cool, line the work surface with a piece of wax paper. Place cooling rack with muffins over the wax paper and drizzle with glaze. The wax paper will catch the drips. Let the glaze set before serving.

These are some of the tastiest muffins I have ever had. They were a huge hit here when I first made them almost a decade ago and are now a regular addition to spring breakfast. 

I hope you try them, and if you do, please let me know what you think. Enjoy strawberry season while it lasts!

More Muffin Recipes

I adapted these strawberry muffins from my Sugar Crusted Plum Muffin recipe, which are my friend Tamme’s favorite!

• Blueberry Muffins
• Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
• Hot Cocoa Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins
• Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

I love to bake and cook and share my recipes with you! I know it’s hard to remember to come back and search, so I’ve made it easy for you with my weekly newsletter! You can subscribe for free and I’ll send you delicious recipes every week right to your email. 

Fresh Strawberry Muffins

A beautifully delicious way to use fresh strawberries, these muffins have a few secret ingredients to make them wonderful!

5 from 2 votes

IMPORTANT - There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!

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Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Servings: 12 muffins

2 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Calories: 247

Author: Amanda Davis

Ingredients

Filling

• ▢ 8 ounces strawberries , separated
• ▢ 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Muffins

• ▢ ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ▢ 2 cups all purpose flour
• ▢ 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• ▢ 2 large eggs room temperature
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon lemon extract
• ▢ ¾ cup milk
• ▢ ½ cup unsalted butter melted and cooled

Vanilla Lemon Glaze

• ▢ ½ cup powdered sugar sifted
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lemon juice fresh squeezed
• ▢ 1 teaspoon milk
• ▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Things You'll Need

• ▢
  Mixing bowls
• ▢
  Wooden spoon
• ▢
  Saucepan
• ▢
  Kitchen scale
• ▢
  Mini food processor
• ▢
  Baking cups

Before You Begin

• Don't use "pepper dust" as I like to call it, which is the black pepper you buy that is already ground and you pour into your pepper shaker. Freshly ground is better and essential. You see, if you use freshly ground it's going to weigh less than packaged black pepper because of the different sized granules. So use your grinder.
• When you cut up your berries, cut them into 1/2-inch pieces. There's a step in the recipe that suggests simmering and reducing some of the macerated berries to make a jam to swirl into the batter, but you could probably substitute jar jam instead.
• Most baking recipes call for softened butter, however in this case you will be melting the butter. It's important to let it cool though as it will be combined with the eggs. If the butter is too hot, it could partially cook the eggs, causing little scrambled bits.
• I do not recommend using frozen strawberries for this recipe. If you absolutely must, please thaw them completely and drain a bit on paper towels. You don't want to squeeze the juice out, but you don't want them dripping wet either. 
• Mix this batter by hand, not with an electric mixer. Over beating the batter causes the protein strands to combine from the gluten, which will make the muffins tough.

Instructions

Prep the Filling

• Chop strawberries into 1/2-inch pieces. Weight out 2-ounces of the strawberries and place them into a shallow bowl. Set the other 6 ounces of chopped berries aside. Sprinkle the 2-ounces of berries with 1 tablespoon of sugar, vanilla and balsamic vinegar and toss to coat. Let sit for about an hour.
• Run the macerated strawberries through a mini food processor and pour into a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat until it comes to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring often, until thickened, like jam. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.

For the Muffins

• Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin, or line tin with paper cupcake liners.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the 3/4 cup of sugar, freshly ground black pepper, flour, baking powder, salt, and ginger.
• In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla and lemon extracts, milk, and melted butter (make sure the melted butter is cool before you add it).
• Fold the wet and dry ingredients together until just combined. Drop the homemade jam into the batter by tablespoons. Gently swirl the jam into the batter with a few turns of the rubber spatula. Do not over mix.
• Divide one half of the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups.
• Add a layer of the chopped strawberries, then divide the remaining half of the batter over the layer of berries.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for about ten minutes. Remove from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Glaze

• When muffins are cool, line the work surface with a piece of waxed paper. Place cooling rack with muffins over the waxed paper.
• Mix together the glaze ingredients. If too thick, add drops of milk until you reach drizzling consistency.
• Drizzle muffins with glaze. The wax paper will catch the drips. Let the glaze set before serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 247cal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 53mg | Sodium: 118mg | Potassium: 184mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 306IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 1mg

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This recipe was originally published on June 21, 2012. It was recently updated with new photos as well as helpful baking tips.