Make Ahead

Game-Changing Muffin Mix

by:
February  4, 2019
4.5
13 Ratings
Game-Changing Muffin Mix
Photo by Rocky Luten
  • Prep time 20 minutes
  • Cook time 22 minutes
  • Makes Enough muffin mix to make 3 batches (or 36) standard-sized muffins
Author Notes

This homemade muffin mix makes super flavorful, richly textured, crunchy-capped muffins attainable on even the busiest weekdays. And the recipe is endlessly adaptable because of the weights in grams. Don’t have rye flour? Double up on the whole-wheat flour. Have Greek yogurt? Use it instead of sour cream. Even better, the basic recipe lends itself so well, flavor-wise, to virtually any type of add-ins, from fresh fruit to chocolate chunks. See below for a few of my favorite variations. —EmilyC

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: This Game-Changing Muffin Mix Is the Key to Better Breakfasts —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For assembling muffin mix:
  • 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (135 grams) (or substitute an equal weight of oat flour)
  • 3 cups all-purpose unbleached flour (360 grams)
  • 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour or traditional whole wheat flour (180 grams)
  • 1 1/2 cups dark rye flour (180 grams)
  • 2 1/4 cups light or dark brown sugar (444 grams)
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder (29 grams)
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
  • For making 1 batch (12) muffins:
  • 448 grams muffin mix
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil (112 grams)
  • 1 cup full-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt (240 grams)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • Optional add-ins (see below for ideas)
  • 2 tablespoons coarse sugar for sprinkling on top
Directions
  1. For assembling muffin mix:
  2. In a food processor, blitz the oats until they are finely ground.
  3. Combine the oats and all of the other dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk until evenly combined. Store the muffin mix in an airtight jar, container, or gallon-sized ziploc bag at room temperature until ready to use. Alternatively, evenly portion the muffin mix into three bags or containers. For one batch of muffins, you'll need 448 grams of muffin mix. (This roughly equals 3 cups minus 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon, but I'd highly recommend measuring by weight.)
  1. For making 1 batch (12) muffins:
  2. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat oven to 350F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper or foil liners (or generously grease each cup with butter or oil).
  3. Add 448 grams muffin mix to a large bowl; whisk to aerate. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, olive oil, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, and with a rubber spatula, gently fold just until blended. The batter will be thick; set aside for a few minutes to let the flour hydrate.
  4. Gently fold in optional add-ins (see suggestions below). No need to coat berries or other additions in flour; the nicely thick batter prevents sinkage!
  5. Using an ice cream scoop (or 2 spoons), fill each cup with batter (it should almost reach the top). Sprinkle the coarse sugar evenly over the 12 cups.
  6. Bake until the muffins are golden brown and the tip of a paring knife or toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 18 to 24 minutes. The middles should spring back lightly to the touch. Let the muffin tin cool on a rack for about 15 minutes, then remove the muffins.
  7. MY FAVORITE VARIATIONS:
  8. For lemon-blueberry muffins: add 1 cup blueberries + the finely grated zest of 1 lemon + 1 tablespoon lemon juice to the batter. (An equal amount of raspberries or blackberries can be substituted!)
  9. For cinnamon-chocolate chunk muffins: add 1 cup chopped dark chocolate (or chips) + 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon to the batter. (Or add 1/4 cup chopped nuts and reduce the chocolate to 3/4 cups!)
  10. For orange, currant, & poppy seed: add 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest + 1 tablespoon orange juice + 2/3 cup currants + 4 teaspoons poppy seeds.
  11. Or create your own variation with different combinations of fresh fruit, dried fruits, nuts, and spices! As a rule of thumb, I like to stay around 1 cup (total) of mix-ins.
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See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Lucy Gluck
    Lucy Gluck
  • Taylor Stanton
    Taylor Stanton
  • Mithu Lahiri
    Mithu Lahiri
  • Em
    Em
  • EmilyC
    EmilyC
EmilyC

Recipe by: EmilyC

I'm a home cook. I love salads. Two things you'll always find in my refrigerator are lemons and butter, and in my pantry good quality chocolate and the makings for chocolate chip cookies.

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17 Reviews

Lucy G.
Lucy G. February 23, 2022
Can buttermilk be substituted for the yogurt?
 
Taylor S.
Taylor S. April 17, 2020
I made a few modifications based on what I had so ended up using mostly whole wheat flour and some white flour (and kind of half-measuring the amounts). Then I misread the amount of sour cream as only 1/2 cup instead of 1 cup - ended up putting in some water because the batter looked dry to me (without realizing my mistake!). Also stirred in frozen cranberries, orange zest, and poppy seeds. OMG wow these are SO GOOD! Despite all my subs!
 
EmilyC
EmilyC April 18, 2020
So glad you liked these, Taylor, and to know just how forgiving the recipe is! Sounds like you course-corrected well. Thanks for trying them — hopefully you have enough mix left for a few more batches!
 
Mithu L.
Mithu L. January 14, 2020
Can whole wheat pastry flour be used?
 
EmilyC
EmilyC January 15, 2020
Hi Michu: I haven’t tried it but I think it should work if you’re measuring by weight! Please report back!
 
EmilyC
EmilyC January 15, 2020
Sorry, Mithu! (Typing too fast!)
 
sfitzgerald
sfitzgerald May 14, 2019
I just made a batch of these (and did half lemon/blueberry and half chocolate/cinnamon because I couldn't decide) and they turned out great! I'm curious how long you think they will last in an airtight container and at what point their longevity and freshness would benefit from being in the fridge or freezer. Thanks!
 
EmilyC
EmilyC May 15, 2019
Glad you liked them, sfitzgerald! I think they keep well for two days, but after that, they start to get soft and lose their crackly texture. So probably best to freeze at that point!
 
TR
TR March 9, 2019
Making these today for the 2nd time. The 1st was a hit with the family. The only comment I got was regarding the rather strong olive oil flavor. Can a more neutral tasting fat ( eg, avocado oil) be used instead?
 
EmilyC
EmilyC March 9, 2019
Hi TR! Absolutely on using another oil. Or you can use melted butter, as well. Re: olive oil, I love the California Ranch brand. It’s got a nice mellow flavor, meaning it won’t taste strong in the muffins (and it’s available in pretty much any grocery store.) You could try that, too! Glad you liked batch 1! : )
 
TR
TR March 9, 2019
I will try butter. Same amount by weight? Thanks.
 
EmilyC
EmilyC March 9, 2019
Just use a whole stick of butter, melted and cooled!
 
Joanne
Joanne March 8, 2019
Thank you for this recipe! I've tried numerous muffin recipes and am always disappointed. Thought I just don't like muffins. With all the interesting ingredients in this one, I had to give muffin baking another try. So glad I did! To me it was perfection. Not too sweet, a beautiful muffin top, healthy ingredients, just hearty enough for breakfast, but still tasted like a treat. The bonus for me is that I now have some interesting flours available in my kitchen for other creations. Thanks again!
 
EmilyC
EmilyC March 8, 2019
Joanne: what a lovely note to get! So glad these muffins hit all of the right notes for you! Thanks so much for trying them and circling back. : )
 
Em
Em March 7, 2019
Any good substitute for the greek yogurt/sour cream for making these vegan?
 
EmilyC
EmilyC March 8, 2019
Hi Em: Maybe try a nut milk yogurt, or a vegan sour cream? If you like coconut milk, I've read that a good substitute for 1 cup of sour cream is 3/4 coconut milk + 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar. I haven't tried any of these things, so I'm not absolutely positive how they'll work out. Please report back with results!