Orange Strawberry Muffins

Muffins are so fun to make because they are so versatile and the flavor options are endless. These Orange Strawberry Muffins are incredibly soft, tender, moist and fluffy, infused with fragrant orange and loaded with fresh strawberries. I top them with a buttery streusel that makes them extra special with a lovely crunch on top. These muffins have the quality you'd expect from a great bakery, except you can make them at home with simple clean ingredients! These muffins are made with butter, yogurt, lots of orange zest and fresh strawberries. They rise high with golden muffin tops and are easy to make. If you love muffins, check out my popular Lemon Blueberry Streusel Muffins too!

WHY YOU WILL LOVE THIS RECIPE:

• Super moist muffins - this recipe makes very tender and very moist muffins with a delicate fine crumb texture.
• Soft and fluffy - the texture of these muffins is so soft and they stay soft even the days after they're made.
• Orange muffins - there is so much orange flavor in the batter from fresh orange zest and there's a special technique to make sure you get the most orange flavor possible without needing extracts. Make sure to read the tips below in the post to find out how.
• Streusel topping - there's a generous pile of sweet buttery brown sugar streusel topping over each muffin.
• Fresh strawberry muffins - I love to use fresh strawberries to make muffins. I wouldn't recommend frozen strawberries because they are hard to chop, and once thawed they lose their texture and can bleed liquid which can discolor the batter.
• Easy to make - all you need is a whisk, a bowl and a spatula to make this recipe. It is so super simple!

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MUFFINS AND CUPCAKES?

The difference between muffins and cupcakes is the method! If you are creaming butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then you are making cupcakes my friend! Muffins are quick breads, NOT cake. Muffins have a soft, moist open, spongy texture instead of a fine, tight crumb structure like cake.

Quick breads are batters that are made by first mixing wet ingredients in one bowl. Then, mix dry ingredients separately in another bowl. Simply combine the two with minimal stirring to form the batter. It is a very simple method.

INGREDIENTS

Here are notes of some of the key ingredients. For a full list of ingredients, see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

• All purpose flour - regular unbleached all-purpose flour works great for spongy-textured muffins. If you have bleached cake flour, then you can replace half of the unbleached all-purpose flour with cake flour and it will actually give you an even more exaggerated muffin top. That's because bleached flour absorbs moisture more readily and sets more quickly.
• Unsalted butter - the muffin batter uses a combination of butter and oil. Butter adds incredible flavor and I highly recommend that you follow this method for the best results, You can use unsalted or salted butter - it won't make much of a difference here. You'll also need butter for the streusel topping, and salted butter works really well for that.
• Oil - liquid oil will keep these muffins extra soft and helps with movement of leavening gases through the batter for a nice tall muffin top. I recommend sunflower for the cleanest taste, but you can use any neutral cooking oil.
• Granulated sugar - simple granulated sugar keeps these muffins moist and helps develop the golden crunchy top.
• Eggs - two large eggs will add nice structure and help with the moist spongy texture.

• Pure vanilla extract - vanilla will elevate and complement the lemon flavor. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.
• Yogurt - use full fat plain yogurt to add tanginess to this recipe and complement the lemon.
• Orange zest - you almost can't have too much! Use a full tablespoon of orange zest which you can get from about 1 large navel orange. You don't need the juice for this recipe, so you can save it for something else.
• Strawberries - I highly recommend fresh strawberries for this muffin recipe because frozen berries can bleed and cause the batter to discolor. That's because the bright red color compounds (anthocyanins) in strawberries turn blue when they become more neutralized by the alkaline batter. They will also be more limp so you won't get a nice juicy pops of berries.

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS

• STEP 1). Make the streusel. Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well until it resembles coarse crumbs.
• STEP 2). Infuse the sugar. Add sugar to a large bowl with the orange zest and rub it together with your fingers or using the back of a large spoon until the sugar is fragrant and takes on a hint of orange. This helps to release more essential oils from the zest.
• STEP 3). Combine dry ingredients. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into the bowl with the lemony sugar and whisk it to blend evenly.
• STEP 4). Combine wet ingredients. Whisk together eggs, melted butter, oil, yogurt, vanilla and milk in a medium bowl.
• STEP 5). Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the liquid mixture. Fold gently to combine the ingredients until mostly combined, but a few streaks of flour still remain (i.e. before completely combined).

• STEP 6). Add strawberries. Add the strawberries and fold them in gently. Do not over-mix. A few small lumps are just fine, but you don't want there to be dry patches of flour.
• STEP 7). Rest the batter. Cover the bowl and let the batter rest at room temperature for 30 minutes while you preheat the oven.
• STEP 8). Pile on the streusel. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups, filling them to the rim. Top each muffin with a generous amount of streusel topping.
• STEP 9). Bake. Bake for 10 minutes, then lower oven to 350°F and bake for another 10-15 minutes until golden brown and firm to the touch. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let muffins cool for 5 minutes before transferring individually to the rack to finish cooling.

EXPERT BAKING TIPS FOR ORANGE STRAWBERRY MUFFINS

• Infuse the sugar with orange flavor. To get the most out of your oranges, rub the sugar with the zest first before mixing with the liquid ingredients. The friction will release the essential oils in the orange zest and they will coat sugar crystals to carry all of that wonderful flavor through the batter!
• Sift the dry ingredients. This is optional, but it will minimize the amount of mixing needed to combine the ingredients evenly so that you do not over-mix the batter.
• Do not over-mix the batter. Once the flour is mostly combined (with a few light streaks), then the batter is ready for baking. Since muffin batter is more lean with less sugar than cake batter, it is more likely to develop gluten and result in a tougher texture.
• Fold the berries in gently. Mixing too vigorously will cause juices from the berries to bleed and can cause the batter to turn grey.
• Let the batter stand for 30 minutes before baking. This will give you such a nice fluffy texture and it will create those nice tall high muffin tops. This time allows the flour to fully hydrate to keep the moisture locked in so that they stay moist and fluffy.
• Be generous with the streusel. Make sure you use up all of the streusel even though it will seem like a lot. As the muffins bake, they will rise and push away the streusel to cover a greater surface area, so what seems like a lot will actually be the perfect amount after baking.

RECIPE FAQ

What causes muffins to be dry and dense?

Too much flour and not enough sugar is the main reason why muffins can turn out dry and dense. It is important to have the right proportions of liquid to dry ingredients in a muffin recipe. A lower and slower baking process will also dry them out so follow the baking instructions carefully. Do not over-mix, I repeat... do not over-mix! How can I achieve a domed muffin top?

Muffins with super tall pointed tops look nice but are often dry. That's because the batter needs to be quite dry and dense to get that way. A denser batter will dry out quickly on the surface and crack. Nice soft moist muffins will have a flatter top and be DELICIOUS! If you want a pointed top for these muffins, there are two things you can do:

• Rest the batter for 1 hour, covered, before baking. This will allow the flour to hydrate further so there is less evaporation through the surface during baking.

• Bake at a high temperature - bake at 400°F for the first 5-10 minutes. This will give the batter an initial bolt to kick-start that baking powder and set the surface quickly.

STORAGE AND FREEZING

How do I store orange strawberry muffins?

Store these muffins in an airtight container for up to 2 days. If you will store them longer than 2 days, then keep them in the refrigerator due to the fresh berries.

Can I freeze orange strawberry muffins?

Yes, you can certainly freeze these muffins. For best results, wrap them individually in plastic and then store in a resealable freezer bag, then store frozen for up to 3 months.

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Orange Strawberry Muffins

Christina Marsigliese

Soft, tender and fluffy, moist Strawberry Muffins infused with orange and vanilla, then topped with buttery streusel! These muffins are good enough to be behind the glass case of your favorite bakery! Enjoy this homemade treat with your coffee for breakfast or as an afternoon snack.

5 from 5 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Rest Time 30 minutes mins

Servings 12 muffins

Ingredients

  

Streusel topping:

• 5 tablespoon 45g all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoon 45g packed light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoon 28g soft salted butter (or use unsalted butter and add a pinch of salt)

Muffin batter:

• 1 cup 200g granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 2 cups plus 1 tbsp 295g all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• ½ cup 120ml full fat Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup 60ml sunflower oil
• ¼ cup 56g unsalted butter, melted
• ¾ cup 180ml milk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon 5ml pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups 300g chopped fresh strawberries, hulled and cut into small pieces plus extra for topping

Instructions

 

• Make the crumb topping. Combine flour, sugar and salt (if you're using unsalted butter) in a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly so that there are no lumps of brown sugar. Add soft butter to the dry ingredients and blend with your fingertips to form crumbs. Cover the bowl and set aside.
• Make the muffin batter. Place sugar and orange zest in a large bowl. Rub the orange zest into the sugar until it becomes fragrant and the sugar takes on a hint of orange color. Sift 2 cups of flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into the bowl and whisk until very well blended so the sugar is evenly combined with the dry ingredients.
• Combine eggs, yogurt, oil, melted butter, milk and vanilla in a medium bowl and whisk until completely smooth.
• Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour int the wet ingredients. Gently fold it all together being sure to get down to the bottom and bring up any dry pockets. Stop right when the batter is fully combined and be careful not to over mix. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of flour over the strawberries and toss to coat them. Fold them into the batter.
• Cover the bowl and set aside for 30 minutes while the oven preheats. The dry ingredients in the batter will hydrate during this time to make nice spongy moist muffins. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
• Use an ice cream scoop or large spoon to divide the batter evenly among lined muffin cups, filling them right to the top. Place a few extra chopped strawberries on top. Top each muffin with a generous pile of streusel. For extra tall muffin tops, use two muffin pans and bake only 6 muffins per pan so there is room for air to circulate around each muffin. This cooks the edges first and forces the batter to cook up through the center.
• Bake at 400°F for 10 minutes. Then, with the oven door still closed, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake for another 15 minutes until golden on top and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Let muffins cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then transfer muffins to a cooling rack.