Ditch the expensive boxed mixes or pricy bakery muffins! This easy, homemade muffin mix recipe allows you to make big, bakery-style muffins that can be flavored any way you like. Make several batches of mix and bake all kinds of muffins whenever the craving hits, saving you time, money, and hassle.
There are so many great ways to vary this basic muffin recipe. Be sure to try our luscious Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins for a zesty twist or the very best Chocolate Chip Muffins (with Lime and Coconut!) You will love our simply sweet Vanilla Muffins as well as whatever combinations you dream up!
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Homebaked muffins are hard to beat – unless you add more sugar and frosting and call them cupcakes!
Muffins are easily portable and have no need for utensils or even a plate in order to enjoy them. They make for delicious breakfasts and snacks that are easy on the budget.
And the best muffins are made from a homemade muffin mix!
Why Make This
It works. At Good Cheap Eats we don’t mess around with recipes that only sometimes work. A fail in the kitchen costs money. This homemade muffin mix recipe turns out every single time.
It’s the only muffin recipe you’ll ever need! This Homemade Muffin Mix recipe has endless possibilities. It’s one basic batter that you can customize however you like. Talk about versatility! Mix up the dry ingredients and when you add the wet team, toss in whatever fruit, nuts, or flavorings you have on hand. Make blueberry muffins in summer and cranberry orange muffins in fall and anything else you have on hand the rest of the year.
It’s efficient. Making a homemade muffin mix is a great way to save money, control ingredients, and enjoy the best homemade muffins whenever you like. A homemade mix is so easy and cheap to make! You are definitely gonna want to mix up several bags of the mix for later use once you taste how yummy these muffins are.
It’s very make-ahead. This make-ahead muffins recipe can be stored as a mix, or you can bake and freeze muffins. You can even freeze unbaked muffins to bake later!
It makes a great gift. This recipe is great for freezer meal prep but also makes a fantastic gift for someone. Alternatively, you can fill a basket with baked muffins. You’ll be Friend of the Year whichever way you go.
Ingredients
I was inspired by a Joann Chang recipe for bakery-style muffins, but have tweaked it to fit the schedule of a busy mom. Who has time to separate eggs when there’s so much to do on any given day? I’ve also healthified it by substituting plain yogurt for the sour cream and a little whole wheat flour for the white.
Here’s what you’ll need to make your own homemade muffin mix:
unbleached, all-purpose flour – This is the type of flour I typically use in all my recipes. You can also use the bleached variety or whole wheat pastry flour which is a whole grain with a softer texture that isn’t so wheaty.
sugar – You can use whatever dry sweetener you typically use in baking, such as granulated sugar, brown sugar, or sucanat (dehydrated sugar cane juice).
whole wheat flour – This is optional but I like the earthiness it adds to the muffins. You can use regular flour if you prefer.
leavenings – You’ll need baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Don’t omit any of these, but do remember you can make your own baking powder substitution if you need to.
eggs – I’ve made these muffins with whole eggs, egg whites for more protein, (use 3 tablespoons for each whole egg in the recipe) or even flaxseed meal egg substitute.
milk and yogurt – My default liquids are milk and yogurt for this recipe because they are regular grocery staples, but you can use any combination of milk, plain yogurt, cottage cheese, buttermilk, or ricotta. Shop your kitchen to save money! If you have a plant-based item you prefer, that should work as well. Just make sure you’re adding 1 ½ cups of liquid in addition to the oil.
neutral oil – I use avocado oil, but you can use whatever oil you typically use as well as melted butter, margarine, or a plant-based butter.
vanilla extract – Vanilla adds flavor to these homemade muffins. You can use any flavor extract you prefer as long as it goes well with your mix-ins.
mix-ins for muffins – Here’s the part where you can really get creative! You can use any combination of nuts, seeds, chocolate, fruit (such as mashed bananas, whole blueberries or raspberries, finely chopped apples, or coarsely chopped cranberries) or veggies (such a mashed and cooked sweet potato, pumpkin, squash, or shredded raw carrot, zucchini, or summer squash).
You can make so many fun flavor combos with this homemade muffin mix!
Muffins are delicious plain, but you can make them so much better by varying the fruits and flavorings that you stir in. Consider:
- blueberries and nutmeg
- lime zest and chocolate chunks
- shredded carrot and spices
- berries and ricotta
- pineapple tidbits and flaked coconut
- chopped strawberries and rhubarb
There are so many delicious combinations of fruits, nuts, spices, and extracts, you could probably make a different type of muffin every day of the month!
For Protein Muffins:
I particularly like to boost the protein content in my homemade muffins. To do this:
- substitute ½ cup of the flour with ½ cup quinoa flakes or ½ cup whey protein powder
- swap the eggs out for egg whites (6 tablespoons total)
- use cottage cheese for the yogurt
To avoid dry muffins, check them a few minutes earlier in the baking time. (Quick breads are done when they reach an internal temperature of 200 degrees F. Use an instant read thermometer to verify.)
Step-by-Step Instructions
The process is super simple to make your homemade mix:
- Collect containers you’d like to use to store the mix. This can be mason jars with lids, plastic containers with lids, or ziptop quart size bags.
- Label the containers with the baking instructions as well as what wet ingredients should be added. You’re only going to put dry ingredients in your jar.
- Layer in the ingredients in the jar: flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Store the mix in a cool dry place until ready to use. For longest shelf life, store the mix in the freezer.
When you’re ready to bake your muffins:
- Preheat the oven to 375°. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin papers or spray with nonstick cooking spray. For smaller muffins, you will want 18 cups prepared.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the muffin mix to eliminate any clumps.
- In a separate bowl, combine the milk, oil, yogurt, eggs, and extract, if using. Whisk to blend.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry. Fold gently until mostly moistened, but still lumpy and with a few dry spots. Fold in mix-ins of your choosing.
- For 12 large muffins, fill muffin cups completely, even mounding past their tops. For 18 kid-size muffins, fill almost full.
- Bake 20 – 30 minutes, depending on how much you fill them. Bake until a tester comes out clean and/or the internal temperature has reached 200 degrees F. Cool on a wire rack before serving.
Freezing Tips
If you don’t have the time to bake the muffins right before serving, no worries! You can cool them on a rack, wrap them well, and freeze them. (Remember you can also freeze muffins unbaked!)
When ready to serve, pull out as many muffins as you’d like and let them sit at room temperature for an hour or two until thawed.
Best Muffin Tools
After years of weekly (sometimes daily?!) muffin baking, I’ve come across a few tools that I absolutely LOVE for making homemade muffins:
- parchment muffin papers – I prefer using muffin papers since we’re such an on-the-go household. Muffin liners make it easier for transport as well as serving. I’ve found that parchment is the best for not sticking to the muffin.
- USA muffin pan – Whether you use papers or not, the USA pan is the best for easy clean up since there’s no need to grease the pan. Everything cleans up easily.
- Rubber spatula – I like to get every last bit of batter to make sure my muffins are big. A rubber spatula makes that easy.
A few notes about this recipe:
A few things of note about this recipe. Originally, back in 2009, I baked these muffins at 350, but since raised the heat to 375 and reduced the baking time a bit. I like the crunchier texture of the baked muffin this way. If you prefer, you can bake at the reduced temperature.
Keep in mind the cups do get VERY full. That’s okay. Just spray the top of the pan to make sure they don’t stick. If you want smaller muffins, go for it. Just reduce the baking time.
The Cost of Homemade
We often assume that homemade is cheaper than a store-bought mix. Surely, homemade tastes better and allows you to control which ingredients are used, but it’s always good to crunch the numbers to see if it’s worth any price difference.
Here’s what it costs to make the homemade mix (not including wet ingredients or add-ins) when you buy the ingredients at a mid-range grocery store:
- all-purpose flour – $0.45 ($2.69/5# bag)
- sugar – $0.22 ($1.97/4# bag)
- whole wheat flour – $0.13 ($3.99/5# bag)
- baking powder- $0.09 ($1.49/8.1 oz)
- baking soda – $0.01 ($0.99/16oz)
- salt – $0.02 ($2.99/26 oz)
A homemade mix that yields 12 extra large muffins costs 92 cents! This does not account for the wet ingredients, the oil, eggs, milk, yogurt, or mix-ins. You will easily be able to keep the cost per muffin quite low!
A similar commercial mix that makes 6 muffins costs $1.79. This does include the eggs and oil, however, even accounting for the cost of those ingredients, homemade is way cheaper, making it more than worth your while to make your own homemade muffin mix.
FAQs
With a homemade mix, it will already be fantastic. But, if you’re purchasing a boxed mix, you can enhance it by using butter instead of oil, adding an extra egg, and stirring in some fun mix-ins like fresh or frozen blueberries or chocolate chips.
Muffin batter should be wet, but still thick enough that you can scoop it and it stands up in the cup, similar to ice cream that has slightly softened.
Buttermilk adds tang and texture to your muffins. In the presence of baking soda in your baking recipe, buttermilk helps the leavening react. Be sure to add some acid such as white vinegar or yogurt.
Favorite Muffin Variations
Tell us what you think!
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Homemade Muffin Mix Recipe
Equipment
- large airtight container
- large mixing bowl
- wire whisk
- rubber spatula
- parchment muffin papers
- USA muffin pans
- wire rack
Ingredients
- 3 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar brown sugar or sucanat can also be used
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- 4 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 egg
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup neutral oil
- ½ cup plain yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or any flavor you prefer
- 1 ½ cups mix-ins for muffins any combination of nuts, chocolate, or fruit, such as mashed bananas, blueberries, finely chopped apples, raspberries, or coarsely chopped cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin papers or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl or airtight container, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.3 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour, 1 cup granulated sugar, ½ cup whole wheat flour, 4 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- Store until ready to use.
- In a separate bowl, combine the oil, milk, yogurt, eggs, and extract, if using. Whisk to blend.2 egg, 1 cup milk, ½ cup neutral oil, ½ cup plain yogurt, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry. Fold gently until mostly moistened, but still lumpy. Fold in mix-ins of your choosing.1 ½ cups mix-ins for muffins
- For 12 large muffins, fill muffin cups completely, even mounding past their tops. For 18 kid-size muffins, fill almost full.
- Bake 25 – 35 minutes, depending on how much you fill them. Bake until a tester comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack before serving.
Notes
- substitute 1 cup of the flour with ½ cup quinoa flakes and ½ cup whey protein powder
- swap the eggs out for egg whites
- use cottage cheese for the yogurt
Nutrition
This post was originally published on November 8, 2009. It has been updated for content and clarity.
BethB
I’m way late to the party but I tried these yesterday. OH MY GOSH THEY ARE SO GOOD!!!
I’m a big muffin/quick bread person, mostly because I’ve really mastered what kinds of subsitutions and alterations I can make to a recipe. This one is fantastic! I used all whole wheat flour, because I always do, homemade yogurt that didn’t set up quite right in place of both yogurt and milk, and my add ins were blueberries, lemon zest, and almonds. Such a moist delicate texture. This one is a keeper!
Cathie
I was hoping to add frozen blueberries, are there any adjustments I would need to make for the frozen berries?
Jessica
@Cathie, I’ve done that before. You might need to adjust the cooking time a little, but it works for me.
Becca
Trying these tonight. Trying to have better breakfast for my kiddo’s besides cereal!!! I also pinned these to my board on Pinterest if you don’t mind! 🙂 Thanks for the fabulous idea’s! 🙂
Jessica
Thanks for the pin! These muffins are so versatile. Love that!
Sarah
My family is officially addicted to these muffins. They’re so easy and we love them. Thanks so much!
Jessica
That’s what I love to hear! Thank you.
Amy
Hey! I know this post is old, but I had a question. If I wanted to make the mix ahead, but wanted to make a smaller batch (I don’t have enough muffin pans to make that big of a batch) what would the portion of the dry mix be? For example, if I wanted to make up the dry mix, and then make a dozen muffins, how much of the dry (all mixed together) would I take out?
Jessica
@Amy, I would just cut the proportions in half before you make the mix. That would be enough for a dozen muffins.
Jessica Fisher
I know yours is an older comment, but I wanted to let you know we have a new feature on the blog where you can adjust the servings and the recipe card automatically adjusts the amounts of the ingredients. 🙂
Lindsay
Is this the measurements for 1 batch?
Jessica
It is a large batch – It makes 2 dozen small muffins or 1 dozen large.
Alicia
My son has been asking for “vanilla muffins” and I think these might fit the bill. I also LOVE the instructions for making your own mix. That is exactly what I need!
Ginny
Coming back to say that I made these muffins tonight and they were a huge success! I made it into a fun time with my kids. I filled the cups half way full, then let the kids put in some add-ins, then finished filling the cups. The kids had a blast (including my 3 year old niece) and enjoyed eating their creations. Oh, and my family says thanks!
Jessica
@Ginny, yeah! So glad you enjoyed them.
Ginny
I’ve never been much of a baker, but this recipe looks really easy to make. I’ve been trying to figure out a way to use up all of those cupcake cups that I’ve had for so long! 🙂 And I know my family will thank you!
Phyllis
This might seem like a silly question, but where did you get those gorgeous muffin cups. I have been looking EVERYWHERE for them and I can’t find them.
Jessica
They are actually party cups. I’m not sure you’re supposed to bake in them, but the house didn’t catch fire and no one grew a second head, so I think we’re good. I think they’re the kind you serve mints in at weddings.
Kasee
I was wondering if you think it would be ok to use vanilla yogurt instead of plain??
Jessica
yes, that should be fine.
Kylee
I know this is an old post, but…. where do you buy your muffin cups? I love those ones. Makes them look like muffins, not cupcakes!
Can you email me on [email protected]?
Jessica
Those are party cups, not really muffin cups. I’m not sure if you’re “supposed” to bake in them, but I did.
campbell
Wilton makes those cups… they sell them at our local craft store and walmart 🙂
Lerin
I used this recipe for blueberry muffins last night and they turned out very good! My batter was very thick though so I added a little more milk, and I had enough batter to do 18 large muffins. I used half succanat and half cane sugar and sour cream instead of the yogurt, but I think it would be really yummy with vanilla yogurt too! Thanks for the recipe!
Tina
Since the yogurt is probably for moisture mainly, I would just use 1 cup applesauce instead of the oil and yogurt. I have a very similar muffin recipe and that is how I do it.
Michelle @ From the Same Nest
Where do you get those muffin cups? I don’t care for muffins without cups because of the hardened texture… I’m wondering if they are cheaper than cupcake muffin cups too. Thanks!
~ Michelle
Jessica
These are actually portion cups that my sister gave me. She promised me they were oven safe. But, I really have no idea. I’ve seen them in the party section of Walmart.
Hartwigs
I made these the other day for my husband who won't eat breakfast unless it's easy to grab. We both like them but both compared them to cornbread. What is it that makes us think that? The whole wheat flour maybe because it's a little grainier?
Jessica
It could depend on the grind of whole wheat flour. I’m not sure; I haven’t had that happen.
Karen
Try using WW pastry flour instead of regular WW flour. It’s a much finer grind. I use WW pastry flour for everything (often without any white flour) and my family doesn’t even notice.
TSandy
Same here. I keep WW pastry flour in the freezer just for that reason.
Jolene
Thank you! I didn't know that.
FishMama
Thank you for answering, Jenni. I haven't got to the bottom of my inbox. I was thinking that was the case, but I'm glad to have an RD say so! 😉
Jenni R.
Jolene: If your husband is just lactose intolerant and does not have a milk allergy (issues with milk protein) then he should be able to tolerated yogurt. The lactose is broken down by the bacterial cultures so hopefully he can tolerate it. {Sorry to respond unasked–I am a Registered Dietitian who just happened to see your question!}
MMullins
My granddaughter is allergic to milk protein in general… so would a soy based yogurt , like Silk brand, substitute accurately?
Jessica Fisher
I’ve never baked with soy yogurt, but I’d definitely give it a try and see!
Jolene
Is there anything you can think of that could replace the yogurt? My husband is lactose intolerant… I can use Lactaid milk for the recipe but I don't know what to swap out the yogurt with.
Sherry
Marla Heller, dietician has learned that those with a lactose intolerance can digest the lactase by eating low fat yogurt daily. She is the author of the DASH diet books. I have found this to be true as well.