Raspberry Lemon Ricotta Muffins (Printable)

Moist muffins with fresh raspberries, lemon zest, and creamy ricotta. Perfect for breakfast or snacking.

# What You'll Need:

→ Wet Ingredients

01 - 1 cup ricotta cheese
02 - ½ cup whole milk
03 - ⅓ cup mild vegetable oil (canola or sunflower)
04 - 2 large eggs
05 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
06 - Zest of 1 large lemon
07 - Juice of ½ lemon

→ Dry Ingredients

08 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
09 - ¾ cup granulated sugar
10 - 2 teaspoons baking powder
11 - ½ teaspoon baking soda
12 - ¼ teaspoon salt

→ Fruit

13 - 1 ½ cups fresh raspberries (or frozen, unthawed)

→ Topping (Optional)

14 - 2 tablespoons coarse sugar

# Step-by-step:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or lightly grease with butter or oil.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together ricotta, milk, oil, eggs, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice until smooth and well incorporated.
03 - In a separate medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly distributed.
04 - Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir gently with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix.
05 - Gently fold in the raspberries, being careful not to break them apart. A few streaks of flour are fine.
06 - Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with coarse sugar for a crunchy finish, if desired.
07 - Bake for 20 to 24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
08 - Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer muffins to a wire rack to cool completely.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The ricotta keeps these muffins softer and more moist than any muffin has a right to be, and they stay that way for days.
  • Lemon zest and juice wake up every single bite without making it taste like a lemon dessert, just bright and alive.
02 -
  • Overmixing is the fastest way to turn these into rubbery hockey pucks, so stop folding while the batter still looks slightly uneven.
  • Frozen raspberries work perfectly but adding them frozen, not thawed, prevents them from turning the batter a muddy purple.
03 -
  • Toss the raspberries in a small spoonful of flour before folding them in, which helps keep them suspended in the batter instead of sinking to the bottom.
  • Let the batter rest for 5 minutes before scooping it into the tin, because that short rest gives the flour time to hydrate and makes an even more tender crumb.

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