Gluten-Free Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins with Coconut Butter Icing

These aren't just any lemon poppy seed muffins! This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, oil-free, and refined sugar-free, but you’ll never miss any of those ingredients because they’re also perfectly sweet, with a tender crumb, bright citrusy flavor, and light, fluffy texture. Could these be the best muffins ever?!

(Well, maybe they’re tied with my Healthy Blueberry Muffins, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins, or Carrot Cake Blender Muffins. How can I choose?!)

What You’ll Need

Both the poppy seed lemon muffins and the icing are made with a handful of ingredients you likely have on hand. Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card below for measurements.

For the muffins:

• Mashed banana – The riper the banana, the sweeter your muffins will be.
• Eggs – Let these come to room temperature; they’ll hold more air that way, giving your lemon poppy seed muffins more lift.
• Coconut yogurt – Or your yogurt of choice.
• Honey or maple syrup
• Lemon juice
• Almond milk – Or your favorite plant-milk.
• Vanilla extract
• Flour – You'll need almond flour, quinoa flour, and coconut flour for these muffins.
• Coconut sugar
• Baking powder
• Sea salt
• Lemon zest – Zest the lemons first, then juice them.
• Poppy seeds – Although these are lemon poppy seed muffins, you can leave the poppy seeds out if you’re not a fan.

For the icing:

• Coconut butter – Don’t substitute coconut oil here! Coconut oil is made from the fat of the coconut, while coconut butter is made from pureed coconut meat. It’s solid at room temperature, creamy and smooth when heated, and has a fantastic coconut flavor.
• Unsweetened almond milk – Or whatever plant milk you choose to use for the muffins.
• Lemon juice – Adds a pop of lemony flavor to the icing.
• Honey – Sweetens the glaze.

How to Make Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

It’s time to start baking! Here’s what you’ll need to do.

• Prepare. Preheat your oven to 350ºF and line a muffin tin with paper liners.
• Make the batter. Place all of the wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat them until they’re smooth and creamy. Stir the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients, then fold in the lemon zest and poppy seeds.
• Bake. Fill the muffin liners 3/4 of the way full; you should have enough batter for 9 to 10 muffins. Fill any empty tins with a splash of water, then bake on the center rack for 21 to 23 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
• Make the icing. While the muffins cool, melt the icing ingredients in a small saucepan set over low heat. Whisk constantly until smooth, adding more almond milk if needed. Drizzle the icing over the cooled muffins.

Tips for Success

• Measure the banana. If you just mash a medium banana and add it to the recipe, you may have more or less than you actually need. Mash the banana, then measure it to make sure you have the right amount.
• No zester? You can use a box grater instead, or use a paring knife or vegetable peeler to remove a piece of peel from the lemon, being careful to avoid the white pith underneath. Use a chef’s knife to finely mince the peel.
• Don’t frost the muffins while they’re hot. The icing will simply absorb into the muffins because coconut butter liquefies when it’s warm.

How to Store

• Room temperature. Store these muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 4 days.
• Freezer. Freeze lemon poppy seed muffins in a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature before serving, or warm them up in the microwave.

More Muffin Recipes To Try

• Blueberry Muffins with Blueberry Icing
• Double Chocolate Muffins
• Chocolate Chip Zucchini Quinoa Muffins
• Banana Bread Muffins
• Carrot Cake Blender Muffins
• Honey Applesauce Blender Muffins