Sourdough Discard Blueberry Muffins
If you’ve got sourdough discard to use up, these delicious muffins use a substantial amount and have wonderful flavors of blueberry and orange. They’re also on the healthier side for muffins!
I’ve always loved muffins, and love that they can range from somewhat healthy to indulgent treats. These Blueberry Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel Topping qualify for the indulgent, but many of my others like Chocolate Muffins, Pumpkin Muffins, and Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are not overly sweet.
Today’s muffins fall on the less sweet side, and you can truly have them for a reasonable breakfast or afternoon snack. The crumb is tender and a little spongey from the sourdough, and there are plentiful blueberries for extra juiciness.
While I do flavors of orange and blueberry here (with notes of sourdough in the base), I’ve done variations of citrus and fruits with great success. Lemon and raspberry is another great combination.
What Works about This Recipe
Quick to make – These take between 5-10 minutes to mix together, then they can go straight into the oven for about 20 minutes to bake.
Substitution friendly – I’ve made numerous variations of these muffins for the past year and a half. My friend who originally gave me my sourdough starter also emailed me a base recipe for muffins that this is based on, and I’ve successfully tried many different kinds of fruits, flour, and flavorings.
Uses a decent amount of discard – You’ll use a full cup of sourdough discard here, which is pretty good considering we’re only making 12 muffins. Any leftover discard can be used for Sourdough Discard Flatbread.
No refined sugar, and dairy free – For this recipe, we sweeten lightly with maple syrup and use coconut oil. I have nothing against dairy, but I’ve tested many variations of fat, and the coconut oil is our family’s favorite.
How to Make Them Step by Step
These muffins are straightforward to make. We will combine the dry ingredients, then the wet, add the dry to the wet, mix in the blueberries, and put the batter into cups to bake.
Combine the dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk to combine all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and orange zest:
Combine the wet ingredients
In a separate bowl, combine sourdough discard, eggs, maple syrup, melted coconut oil, and vanilla extract:
Whisk that well to blend and combine. It will take a little more mixing than your typical wet ingredients, since the sourdough discard is relatively thick. This will be even more true if your discard is cold from the fridge rather than at room temperature.
Add the dry to the wet
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients bowl:
Stop mixing just before the flour disappears
You can start by whisking to combine, but as the batter gets thick, you’ll likely need to switch to a spatula. Right before the flour is all incorporated, stop mixing.
Add the blueberries
Add some fresh or frozen blueberries to the batter, and gently stir them in.
If you’re using frozen blueberries as I am, you won’t want to mix them too much, or it will turn the batter purple. I more “press them in” than mix.
Distribute the batter into paper liners
Use a cookie scoop (affiliate) to portion the batter into paper liners in a muffin tray. The muffin cups won’t be more than 3/4 full.
Bake!
Bake the muffins in the center of the oven for about 22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean of batter (you may get some blueberry juice), and the top of the muffin springs back to the touch.
I let the muffins cool for a few minutes, but I like to serve them while they’re warm and fresh from the oven.
Enjoy, and next time try my Overnight Cinnamon Rolls, Crepes, or English Style Scones. Happy baking!
Substitutions
Blueberries – You may substitute raspberries, blackberries, or cherries. I’ve even done peaches, just make sure you chop into small pieces.
Orange zest – You can change for lemon zest or lime zest.
Vanilla extract – You can try orange extract, lemon extract, or almond extract. In each case, use half the amount.
Flour – I have successfully used einkorn flour and whole wheat pastry flour in place of the all-purpose.
Coconut oil – You may also use melted ghee or butter. If using butter, add an extra tablespoon.
Recipe FAQ and Tips
Absolutely, these freeze wonderfully. Place in an airtight container and freeze for up to 2 months. Let thaw at room temperature when ready to eat.
These may be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days. If you want to keep them longer, freeze them for up to 2 months.
See the post for an extensive list, but you can play with all sorts of berries and fruits, citrus zests, baking extracts, flours, and baking fats.
Did you enjoy the recipe? Please leave a 5-star rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page.
Sourdough Discard Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (3.75oz or 108g by weight)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp orange zest (zest of 1 orange)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup sourdough discard (274g by weight)
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil (79g by weight)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1.5 cups frozen blueberries* (172g by weight)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk to combine the flour, baking powder, orange zest, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk to combine the sourdough discard, maple syrup, coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Be patient with it, as the discard takes a decent amount of mixing to incorporate everything in, especially if it's cold from the fridge and not at room temperature.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix. You may use a whisk at first but will need to switch to using a spatula as it gets thick. Just before the flour is fully incorporated, gently add the blueberries, being careful not to overstir, or it will turn the batter purple.
- Using a large cookie scoop, divide the batter between the 12 paper baking cups. They will be about 3/4 full.
- Bake for about 22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out without wet batter (it may have blueberry juice). You can also check that the top of the muffin springs back to the touch when you press on it.
- Let the muffins cool for a few minutes, but enjoy the muffins while they are warm. Let cool completely before storing.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
6 Comments on “Sourdough Discard Blueberry Muffins”
Super fluffy and delicious muffins, and very easy to make! Thanks so much for this recipe.
Didn’t care for these. Not sweet enough, and taste like coconut.
These are barely edible. Way too many blueberries and the mix was very runny with the amount of flour suggested.
Is the amount of flour right? I weighed mine (which I don’t usually do), but the batter came out much runnier than seemed right. I added quite a bit more to get it closer to the kind of consistency I’m used to.
I love to make muffins and grind my whole grains for the health benefits. I use to keep a sourdough starter but it called for too much sugar and I got tired of feeding the starter or having to pour off some but like the idea of using it in muffins. I would like to try your starter since you said it was not too sweet. I have enjoyed many of your recipes and tips too. Thank you.
You were adding sugar to your sourdough starter? I have never heard of that. We just maintain ours with water and flour. Feeding it is definitely mildly annoying. My husband has now taken over the task lol.