These lemon curd muffins are zesty and spongy muffins topped with a crumbly streusel and filled with an easy homemade lemon curd! They're equal parts sweet and citrusy, making them the perfect breakfast, snack, or dessert.
📖 Recipe
Lemon Curd Muffins
These lemon curd muffins are zesty and spongy muffins topped with a crumbly streusel and filled with an easy homemade lemon curd!
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 1 cup lemon juice fresh
- ½ cup butter unsalted
- 3 eggs large
- 4 egg yolks
- ¾ cup sugar
Streusel Topping
- ⅔ cup flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- pinch of salt
- 5 tablespoons butter cold, chopped into small cubes (see note)
Lemon Curd Muffins
- ⅔ cup sugar
- zest of 1 lemon
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs large, room temperature
- ½ cup butter melted
- ¾ cup greek yogurt plain
- ⅛ cup lemon juice fresh
- lemon curd homemade or store-bought
Instructions
Lemon Curd (see notes)
- Add lemon juice and butter to a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Stir until butter is melted then remove from heat.1 cup lemon juice, ½ cup butter
- In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, egg yolks, and sugar together until smooth.3 eggs, 4 egg yolks, ¾ cup sugar
- Slowly pour the hot liquid from the saucepan into the bowl with the eggs and sugar while continuously quickly whisking.
- Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and set over low to medium heat. Whisk continuously for 5-10 minutes until the lemon curd starts to thicken and coats the back of a spoon. I usually find it thickens up at around 7-8 minutes.
- Once thickened, pour the lemon curd through a mesh strainer into a medium shallow bowl, pressing down with a spatula to get as much of the lemon curd as possible into the bowl.
- Take plastic wrap and press it directly on to the surface of the lemon curd and up the sides of the bowl. Let sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes, then set in the refrigerator to chill and continue to thicken, about 2 hours. Once chilled transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Streusel Topping
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, and a pinch of salt.⅔ cup flour, ⅓ cup sugar, pinch of salt
- Add in the cold, chopped butter and use your fingers to cut in the butter until the mixture has formed into pea-sized crumbs. Set in the freezer while you prepare the muffins.5 tablespoons butter
Lemon Curd Muffins
- Preheat the oven to 425°F degrees and line a standard-size muffin or cupcake tray with 11 liners. To make homemade parchment paper liners cut 5-inch parchment paper squares and press them firmly around the bottom of a narrow drinking glass.
- In a medium bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest, rubbing the zest with your fingers into the sugar. Whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.⅔ cup sugar, zest of 1 lemon, 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- In a separate medium bowl whisk together the eggs, melted butter, greek yogurt, and lemon juice. Slowly add wet ingredients to dry, using a spatula gently to combine, ensuring not to overmix.2 eggs, ½ cup butter, ¾ cup greek yogurt, ⅛ cup lemon juice
- Divide the batter between the 11 liners using a cookie scoop, filling each to the top. Cover each muffin with some of the streusel.
- Bake the muffins for 10 minutes at 425°F degrees, then without removing the muffins from the oven, reduce the heat to 375°F degrees and continue baking for 6-8 minutes until the centers rise and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool the muffins in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove them to a wire rack to continue cooling completely.
- Once cool, use a pairing knife to cut a circle about ¾ of the way down into the muffin, then remove the piece of the muffin. Fill a pastry bag with a large piping tip (or use a spoon) to fill each muffin hole with lemon curd up to the top of the hole. Enjoy immediately!lemon curd
Notes
Total time: The total time to make these muffins includes the time to make and completely chill the lemon curd, so if you use store-bought lemon curd the total time will just be about an hour and a half.
Lemon curd: You can also use store-bought lemon curd if preferred. If you're making this homemade version you can definitely make it in advance so it's all ready and chilled when you're ready to fill the muffins.
Lemon curd leftovers: You will most likely have leftover lemon curd depending on the size of the holes you make, so any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 10 days. There are so many delicious ways to use the leftovers, and my personal favorite is adding it over some vanilla ice cream or gelato!
Butter in streusel topping: If the mixture doesn't seem incorporated enough after adding the 5 tablespoons of cold butter you can add 1 additional tablespoon.
Streusel topping in the freezer: I find that when you use your hands to cut in the butter the crumbs can become a bit warm, so I recommend placing the streusel crumbs in the freezer until you're ready to top the muffins with them so that the butter doesn't melt too quickly in the oven.
Super tall muffins: If you want super tall bakery-style muffins, bake them in 2 batches so that you can spread them out in the muffin tray.
Storage and making ahead: Because of the lemon curd the filled muffins need to be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They're best served right away, but if you're making them ahead of time I would wait to add the lemon curd until ready to serve so that you can store the unfilled muffins at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a few days, then fill them when ready to serve. If storing leftover already filled muffins in the refrigerator, I recommend letting them come to room temperature for about 15 minutes before eating.
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