Earl Grey Blueberry Crumb Muffins

A variation on a classic, these earl grey blueberry crumb muffins are perfectly sweet, soft and moist and are filled with the flavour of earl grey tea, a touch of lemon and pockets of blueberries, all topped off with a crunchy brown sugar and cinnamon crumb. Prepared with simple ingredients and just a few steps you’ll love how easy it is to make this recipe!

Muffins are one of my favourite things to bake when I want something warm and comforting from the oven but want a low fuss situation. This is that perfect mix everything together, put it in the oven and your done kind of recipe. It’s quick and it’s easy and tastes fantastic – it really doesn’t get much better than that.

I love blueberry muffins, they are a classic and a favourite of many. And while I do have my standard dairy-free blueberry muffin recipe that is usually my go to, I decided to try something a bit different to make these muffins really stand out.

Enter the flavours of citrus through the bergamot taste of earl grey tea and just a bit of lemon.

It is no secret that I love baking with tea, like in my lady grey cupcakes (which is constantly one of my most popular recipes), and this recipe is no exception when it comes to letting the flavours of the tea shine.

Lemon and blueberry are a perfect match, simply google this combination and you will find pages and pages of search results filled with wonderful recipes for all occasions. But for today’s recipe, I felt that I wanted to take that a little further and combine the flavours of earl grey tea with that classic combination of blueberries with just a hint of lemon.

The result is a perfectly sweet and soft muffin filled with the flavour of earl grey tea, a touch of lemon and pockets bursting with sweet blueberries, all topped off with a crunchy brown sugar and cinnamon crumb.

Oh and these muffins do not contain any dairy or eggs making them vegan – or just perfect for when you run out of eggs and still want muffins. I love using oat milk in these muffins as the flavour doesn’t come through and the texture is the closest to dairy milk that I have tried, however almond or soy will work perfectly as well.

The muffins get their texture and moisture from the addition of oil and as we are not using any eggs the texture remains quite light and soft – which I think is perfect when combined with that crunchy topping.

Let’s talk more about that crunchy, crumble topping for a moment. It is the same combination I used for my chai spiced tea cake, my chai spiced french toast casserole, and a gluten-free variation was used for my blueberry crumb tea cake. So it’s safe to say that crumble toppings have been making baked goods better around here for a while now.

You make your crumble, refrigerate it while you make the muffins so it is nice and cold and then sprinkle it over the muffins before putting them in the oven. It is an extra step and you could leave it off and the muffins would still be fine, but you wouldn’t want to because that extra texture and flavour really make these muffins special.

The muffins are best consumed the day of making but will keep in an airtight container for another day. Following this the tops may get soft due to the amount of oil in the muffins, but they will still taste amazing. Alternatively you can freeze the muffins in a zip lock bag for up to three months.

I think it’s important to note that there is always a tendency to think blueberry muffins are healthy, especially when labelled as vegan. This recipe still uses sugar, white flour and oil so I do not consider this a healthy recipe, however there are no additives or hidden nasties, so anything homemade is always better as you know exactly what you are eating!

Also I always use frozen blueberries in muffins. Use them from frozen and just stir through the batter 3 or 4 times to stop the batter from turning purple. They are inexpensive and available year round, and frozen blueberries vs fresh in muffins really do not make a difference. Save your fresh blueberries for simply snacking (the best) or a recipe that really let’s the freshness of the berries shine.

If you do make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and rating below! And tag any of your creations on Instagram with #eightforestlane as I would love to see.

Earl Grey Blueberry Crumb Muffins

These earl grey blueberry crumb muffins are perfectly sweet, soft and moist and are filled with the flavour of earl grey tea, a touch of lemon and pockets of blueberries, all topped off with a crunchy brown sugar and cinnamon crumb.

4.58 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Morning Tea

Cuisine: Australian

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 12 muffins

Author: Sally

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Ingredients

Crumble Topping

• ¼ cup plain flour
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon dairy-free butter* melted

Earl Grey Blueberry Muffins

• ¾ cup non dairy milk such as oat, almond or soy
• 2 earl grey tea bags
• ½ cup canola or vegetable oil
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 ½ cups plain flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• zest of 1 small or half a large lemon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup frozen blueberries

Instructions

• In a small bowl, combine the crumb ingredients with a fork until it forms a crumbly consistency and place in the fridge.
• Heat the milk in a mug or small bowl in the microwave for 1 minute. Place the tea bags in the milk and set aside to steep for 10 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 200°C and line a 12 cup muffin tin with patty cases.
• In a large mixing bowl, add sugar and oil and whisk to combine. Sift into the bowl the plain flour and baking powder. Add in lemon juice, zest and vanilla and continue mixing. Remove tea bags from milk and add to the bowl slowly, whisking in between until the batter comes together. It will be quite thick. Add blueberries and fold through with a spatula 3-4 times until mixed through but do not over mix to prevent batter from turning purple.
• Fill patty cases evenly with the batter. Remove the crumb topping from the fridge and sprinkle over the muffin batter. Place the muffins in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops spring back when lightly touched.
• Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. These are best enjoyed warm from the oven, but will keep in an airtight container once completely cool for 1-2 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

*I use Nuttelex Buttery to replace butter in most of my recipes as it is vegan and gives a 'buttery' flavour without being greasy. As this is an Australian product, the closest US alternative I believe is Earth Balance. Otherwise any dairy-free spread will work.

Not from Australia? Check out my US Conversion Guide.

Nutritional information is provided as a guide only and is calculated using automated online tools, therefore we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We encourage you to make your own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe.

Have you made this recipe?Leave a comment and a rating below and tag your creations with #eightforestlane on Instagram!

Not fom Australia? Check out my US Conversion Guide

More muffin recipes:

Vegan Banana Walnut Muffins
Dairy-Free Blueberry Muffins
Raspberry, Coconut & Lime Muffins
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (Dairy-Free)
Vegan Chocolate Muffins

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