These simple and delicious muffins taste just like their namesake! Their light, fluffy texture combined with fresh summer berries accentuated with a touch of lemon make for an almost cupcake-like treat!
Another wonderful thing about this recipe is that you can easily enjoy baking them up with the kiddos! It’s just a few simple ingredients that come together beautifully (as you can see below). So whether you’re just getting started, or have been cooking with your kiddos for years, this is a wonderfully easy and fun (not to mention, scrumptious) recipe to make together!
Kids in the Kitchen: Strawberry Shortcake Muffins
Spending time in the kitchen with your kiddos not only provides many opportunities to teach practical life skills – best of all, it provides a wonderful opportunity to build special memories that last a lifetime!
For older children, this recipe provides you with the opportunity to teach your kids basic knife skills, as well as how to use a microplane zester (shown below).
It’s important to correctly teach your children how to use sharp tools safely by first demonstrating how to properly use the tool, followed by assisting them in using the tool correctly, and then finally by carefully supervising them as they use the tool on their own.
(Be sure to keep an eye out for my upcoming Kids in the Kitchen Summer School Series, where I’ll be sharing some detailed tips and techniques for teaching your children basic cooking and baking skills.)
A little trick I use for teaching kids how to properly measure dry ingredients with less mess and waste, is to have kids measure over a spare bowl. That way, you can pour the unused flour back into the flour container.
No matter what your child’s age or skill level, there is always a task that any child can do. For younger children, simply learning to add ingredients to a recipe, is a fun way to start. For older kids and teens, get them involved with overseeing a recipe from start to finish, as well as with teaching the younger ones with your supervision.
Remember, cooking with kids is not only a great way to teach your children practical life skills and encourage an appreciation for real food – it’s also a wonderful opportunity to build team work and to simply have some fun together with delicious and nutritious results!
This delightful recipe is just one of more than 100 irresistible grain-free, dairy-free recipes in my new cookbook – Everyday Grain-Free Baking!
From breads, biscuits and muffins to savory snacks and decadent treats, you’ll find step-by-step instructions, beautiful color photographs and helpful tips & tidbits to make all of your GF baking adventures a delicious success!
Click here to get a SNEAK PEEK of the book!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup plain whole milk yogurt (for *DF substitution, see note below)
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2 tsp lemon zest (approx 1 lemon)
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup finely diced fresh organic strawberries (or use whole blueberries, see note below)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place 10 paper liners in a 12-cup muffin tin; set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix together the blanched almond flour, salt and baking soda.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, maple syrup, lemon zest and vanilla until well blended.
- Using a spoon, slowly stir in the almond flour mixture until well incorporated.
- Next, fold in the finely diced strawberries. Then, evenly distribute the muffin batter into each of the lined muffin cups making sure to fill no more than 2/3 full.
- Bake for approximately 25 minutes, until edges begin to turn a golden brown and a toothpick placed in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for at least 5-10 minutes, then serve. Enjoy!
Notes
Recipe Variation: Substitute whole blueberries in place of the diced strawberries to create a delicious Lemon Blueberry Muffin. YUM!
Note about Substitutions: Several have asked in the reader comments below about how to make this recipe using coconut flour instead. Since coconut flour cannot be used interchangeably with blanched almond flour, I recommend using my Lemonberry Coconut Flour Muffins recipe instead, and substituting the raspberries for diced strawberries, as well as replacing the lemon extract with vanilla extract for a more subtle lemon undertone.
DF Option: If you're dairy-free, you can substitute with coconut milk yogurt or coconut milk and a 1/4 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. Please note that the flavor and texture of the muffins will differ slightly.
Thank you for sharing this great recipe, Kelly! We use whole wheat berries for our flour and not almond flour. Would I use the same amount in the soft white wheat instead of the blanched almond flour in this recipe? Thanks again!
Hi, Jackie. Because blanched almond flour is very different than gluten-based flours, such as wheat, you would need to rework all of the ingredients if using wheat berries or wheat flour. What I would recommend instead, is to use a favorite wheat berry muffin recipe and add strawberries, lemon zest and a bit of sweetener to try to replicate this. But it will be much heavier in taste and texture than this almond flour based recipe. Hope this helps. Blessings, Kelly 🙂
We aren’t able to use almond flour bc of a treenuts allergy. I know that coconut flour is different from almond flour, but wonder if someone might have some ideas of changing this for coconut flour.
Hi, Jenny. You could use my Lemonberry Coconut Muffin recipe and just use diced strawberries instead of the raspberries/blueberries. They are really delicious! And if you want them to be less lemony (since this almond flour recipe has just a hint of lemon), just omit the lemon extract (or replace with vanilla instead):
http://thenourishinghome.com/2012/03/lemonberry-muffins-gf/
I do have several coconut flour recipes here on the site. Hope this helps! Blessings, Kelly 🙂
Thank you. I will go check it out.
Don’t know what happened but when I put all the ingredients together on the last step the wet batter soaked up all the moisture and now the batter is dry, dry, dry. I used coconut flour to sub. almond flour. I’m tempted to put water in to allow it to stick together. Any suggestions would be appreciated. It sits in my fridge until I find another solution.
Hi, Christy. Unfortunately, this is a common mistake people make in thinking that you can substitute one GF flour for another. The reason this didn’t work is because coconut flour is completely different from blanched almond flour – it requires far more eggs and liquids due to it’s highly absorbent nature. (For example, just a 1/2 cup of coconut flour generally requires 4 eggs and almost a cup of liquids).
If you’re looking for a good coconut flour muffin recipe, I recommend using this one on my site:
http://thenourishinghome.com/2012/03/lemonberry-muffins-gf/
If you want to try to achieve a strawberry muffin that would be close in taste to this almond flour recipe, simply substitute the raspberries in my lemonberry coconut flour muffin recipe with diced strawberries and also substitute the lemon extract for vanilla extract so there’s just a slight lemon undertone.
Blessings, Kelly 🙂
Hi, your coconut pineapple muffins are delicious. And your meal plans are a lifesaver. Thank you so much for doing all of this. Regarding this delicious-sounding recipe, is it OK to replace the whole milk yogurt with whole milk kefir (I have some left over from the coconut pineapple muffins)? If so, would I need to add the apple cider vinegar? And finally, what could I substitute for lemon zest? Thanks for letting me know.
Hi, Karen. Glad you’re enjoying the recipe and meal plans. Thanks for your kind words! As far as this recipe goes, yes, whole milk kefir will be just fine and no need to add the ACV or lemon juice since kefir is acidic like yogurt. And if you don’t care for lemon zest, just omit. No need to substitute with anything (unless you like orange zest in which case that may be a tasty option). Lots of blessings, Kelly 🙂
Your home looks so neat and clean, and your kids look well-cared-for and clean too! Such a refreshing change from the multitude of real-food bloggers who share pictures of their dirty kitchens and homes and seemingly dirty, unkempt kids. Your pictures make me want to eat the foods you create! Thanks for respecting your audience and showing that respect by cleaning your workspace and children before taking pictures! You are a professional and you efforts are appreciated!
Thank you for your kind words, Jane. I am a self-confessed neat freak, but sometimes my home can get a bit too messy for my liking as well, but I try to maintain balance of people first, house looking immaculate second. 🙂 But when I invite you into my home, I definitely like to present it in a manner similar to having any guest in my home – neat and tidy. Just don’t look in the sink, because you’re certain to find a dirty dish or two that I still haven’t gotten to yet. 🙂 Blessings, Kelly
Hi Kelly,
Do these muffins freeze well?
Thank you,
Andrea
Almond flour muffins can be frozen, but do note that they get pretty moist upon thawing. However, once thawed, you can warm them in a toaster oven set at 200 degrees.I find this helps to offset the extra moisture. 🙂
Hi Kelly,
I am really enjoying all your delicious recipes and meal plans! I think it is so nice and refreshing that you are always so positive and encouraging when responding to the comments on your blog.
Regarding this recipe, can I sub frozen strawberries for fresh?
Thanks,
Tiffany
Thank you for your kind words! It’s my pleasure. Yes, you can sub with frozen strawberries. Just allow them to thaw completely first and only use the strawberries, not the resulting juice, that way the muffins will not be overly moist. You may wish to reserve the juice from the thawed berries for use in smoothies. Blessings, Kelly 🙂