Back when he was writing for Just Baking, Allen Williams shared this recipe for Hazelnut Blueberry Muffins with us. Allen came across his great-grandmother’s recipe for blueberry muffins while rummaging through his mother’s recipe box. He made the muffins and instantly fell for the delicate, moist consistency. But a spontaneous discovery of hazelnut flour / meal at the grocery store resulted in a new twist.
Hazelnut Blueberry Muffins adapted from Grandma’s Favorite Recipe
These hazelnut blueberry muffins use his great-grandmother’s base recipe but have a double nutty infusion.
These hazelnut blueberry muffins turned out well, as moist and light as I remember. The hazelnut flour added a very slight nutty flavor and nice dark flecks of color to the muffin itself. The chopped hazelnut topping provides a crunchy contrast to the texture.
Next time, I might increase the lemon zest by another teaspoon. Also, I don’t suggest that ‘more is better’ when it comes to adding the blueberries. I had an extra 1/4 cup or so that I threw in and it compromised the structure of the muffins (a few fell apart when being removed from the muffin tin). Enjoy the recipe — I’ll definitely make them again! And although I love the original blueberry muffin recipe, I’m sure my great-grandmother would approve of this new version.
Ingredient Notes & Tips
We’re updating this recipe in honor of National Blueberry Muffin Day, and I have a few ingredient options to add, too!
- Hazelnut Flour / Meal – You don’t have to buy this at the store. You can grind your own hazelnuts into a meal or flour using a spice grinder or food processor. You’ll need just 1/3 cup or so of hazelnuts, as you the amount becomes more voluminous once ground. As another option, you can use almond flour or almond meal in place of the hazelnut flour.
- Oil / Shortening – The density of the coconut oil or non-hydrogenated shortening adds richness. But you can use your favorite baking oil if you don’t have either on hand.
- Lemon Zest – Allen would add more zest, but it isn’t an essential ingredient. If you don’t have any lemons on hand, you can omit this ingredient.
Special Diet Notes: Hazelnut Blueberry Muffins
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, peanut-free, soy-free, and vegetarian.
For egg-free and vegan-friendly hazelnut blueberry muffins, see our Egg Substitute Guide.
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup hazelnut flour / meal
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup unsweetened dairy-free milk beverage
- ¼ cup melted non-hydrogenated shortening or coconut oil
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- 1 cup blueberries
- ¼ cup chopped hazelnuts
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF and grease 12 muffin cups.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the milk beverage, shortening or oil, egg, vanilla, and lemon zest and stir until just combined; do not overmix. Fold in the blueberries.
- Fill the prepared muffin cups about ¾ full with the batter. Sprinkle the tops with chopped hazelnuts.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean (aside from blueberry!). Allow to cool before removing from muffin tins.
More Fruity Dairy-Free Muffin Recipes
Sweet Ginger Peach Muffins
Vegan Chocolate Berry Muffins
Fresh Pineapple Muffins
