I swear these gluten free lemon muffins are so incredibly soft and fluffy. They can totally be enjoyed on their own, but also pair so well with cream cheese frosting for a more decadent treat.
Hope you enjoy them! 🙂
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HOW TO STORE THEM
Store plain muffins (without frosting) in an airtight container, in a cool dry place. Don’t refrigerate them as it will change the texture and dry them out fast.
As cream cheese frosting requires refrigeration, I recommend only adding it fresh, when the muffins are ready to be eaten. Keep leftovers plain, in an airtight container at room temp, and put the rest of the cream cheese frosting in the fridge, ready to use at a later time.
CAN I MAKE THEM WITHOUT TAPIOCA STARCH?
Technically yes, but tapioca does play a key role in creating a perfect texture so the result won’t be the same at all. It’s a fantastic gluten free flour that greatly improves gluten free baked goods by providing a much softer and elastic texture than standard gluten free flour blends.
I know it’s a pain to source single ‘weird’ flours like that, but I promise you it’s well worth it. You only ever have to add a little bit so a small bag will last you a very long time. 🙂
WHERE CAN I FIND TAPIOCA STARCH?
Chinese/Asian supermarkets are the best for this. They often have a few different brands and nearly always at least one certified gluten free.
You can sometimes find it in mainstream supermarkets, especially the world food section.
Otherwise, you can easily order it online from a vast array of shops.
WHAT ABOUT THE ANGEL SLICES? WHERE ARE THEY FROM?
You can find my RECIPE HERE.
Gluten free angel slices are also available in supermarkets here in the UK. So if you’d like to decorate yours like this too, but don’t have the time and patience to make them from scratch, there are a few options out there. 🙂
- 75g all purpose plain gluten free flour
- 15g tapioca starch
- 40g caster sugar
- 1 + ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp xanthan gum
- Pinch of salt
- 1 egg
- 35g plain Greek-style yoghurt
- 30g butter
- 25g whole milk
- 1 lemon (zest and juice)
- 50g plain cream cheese
- 20g butter
- 30g icing sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla essence
- Cornstarch / cornflour (the type you use to thicken sauces)
BAKING TIME: 20 mins
* This is a small batch, MULTIPLY AS NEEDED.
Directions
PREPARE THE MUFFIN BATTER:
- Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl and make a well in the centre.
- Separate the egg, add the yolk to the dry ingredients and place the egg white in another mixing bowl. Then whip the egg white until it forms stiff peaks. Note: whipping the egg white is totally optional, but it does create a fluffier texture in my experience.
- Add the yoghurt, butter (melted in the microwave first) and milk to the dry ingredients and mix with a spoon or spatula. Only mix it briefly, you don’t want to over-mix the batter.
- Then add the whipped egg white and fold it into the batter gently.
- Finally, add the zest and juice of a lemon and mix gently.
BAKE YOUR GLUTEN FREE LEMON MUFFINS:
- Pre-heat the oven to 180C (356F).
- Grease a muffin tray with cooking spray or butter and line it with 4 or 5 muffin cases. Note: this recipe yields 4 muffins (or 5 small ones).
- Spoon in the batter. Note: fill about half to two third of the cups for small muffins or fill them all the way to the top for larger ones.
- Bake for about 20 minutes until springy and golden. Note: to check if they’re fully cooked, poke the center with a metal knife or skewer. If it comes out clean, they’re done. If not, put them back in the oven a little longer.
- Take them out of the oven and let them cool down briefly for just a couple of minutes. Then carefully take them out of the muffin tray and transfer them onto a drying rack or plate to fully cool down.
HOW TO MAKE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- With a whisk, mix the butter (softened/room temperature, not melted) into a bowl until creamy.
- Whisk in the cream cheese.
- Then add the icing sugar (ideally run it through a sieve first) and vanilla and whisk until smooth and lump free.
- Then whisk in some cornflour, one spoonful at a time, until you have a thicker consistency that isn’t runny and keeps its shape.
Kimi x
