These bakery-style Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins are high in protein and bursting with blueberry flavor. I have tested numerous variations of this recipe, and the combination of cottage cheese and yogurt makes these healthy muffins moist and flavorful and the perfect option for breakfast or snack!
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The Best Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins
Many “healthy” muffin recipes turn out dry and flavorless. When developing this recipe, I really wanted to create bakery-style muffins that are soft, moist and bursting with blueberry flavor. Having tested this recipe at least half a dozen times and in multiple variations, I feel completely comfortable calling these the Best Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins! And I think you’ll agree.
Like my Two Banana Muffins and Banana Carrot Oat Muffins, these muffins make an awesome breakfast or snack. They’re also high in protein with 7 grams(!!) per muffin. These bakery-style muffins are soft, moist and bursting with blueberry flavor. In one of my tests I tried this without the lemon zest, but like my Purple Blueberry Lemon Cookies, the lemon-blueberry combo definitely wins!
Check out more breakfast ideas with cottage cheese.
Ingredients
- Cottage cheese - whole milk or 2% fat
- Egg - I use large, fresh eggs for all my recipes
- Granulated sugar
- Avocado oil - or other neutral tasting plant oil
- All purpose flour - this works best for this recipe
- Plain yogurt - I used regular plain yogurt but Greek yougurt will also work
- Milk - regular or plant based
- Vanilla extract - or vanilla bean paste
- Baking powder and Baking soda - these are not the same
- Fresh lemon zest
- Fresh blueberries
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions
- You can use either dairy or plant based milk and yogurt for this recipe.
- Frozen blueberries can be swapped for fresh. You may need to increase baking time.
- For gluten free muffins, use gluten free flour
- For an extra touch of added sweetness you can make a coconut sugar or brown sugar crumble and place on top of the muffins before baking.
Instructions
Here are steps for making cottage cheese muffins with blueberries.
- Step 1: Place cottage cheese, plain yogurt, vanilla, oil and 1 tablespoon milk in a large bowl.
- Step 2: Blend these wet ingredients using an immersion blender until mostly smooth. This is to avoid white curds in your muffins.
- Step 3: Once the mixture is smooth, add one egg and mix with a fork or a whisk until combined.
- Step 4: Add dry ingredients to wet and mix it in with a spatula until almost combined.
- Step 5: Now fold in the blueberries until evenly distributed. Try not to break them.
- Step 6: Cover the bowl with batter with a clean kitchen towel and place in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.
- Step 7: After 30 minutes divide the batter evenly between 6 muffin liners. They will be pretty full - that's intended.
- Step 8: Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Top Tip: Don't overmix the batter! It should be thick and wet. If it seems dry, add an additional tablespoon of milk.
Storage tips
Let the muffins cool completely before covering for storage. This will help prevent any condensation from forming while stored and making sticky muffin tops.
Store extra muffins in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. If refrigerated, I like to let them rest a little outside the fridge before eating them.
You can also freeze these muffins for up to 3 months. Place a freezer safe bag on its side and lay muffins in an even layer flat side down in the bag. You can also lay a sheet of parchment over the top of the muffins to prevent contact with the plastic, which might cause sticking while freezing. Store the muffins flat side down.
Serving Suggestions
These healthy and delicious blueberry muffins are great on their own with a cup of tea or coffee for breakfast or snack.
If you’re looking for a more substantial breakfast, serve these with a refreshing Tropical Fruit Smoothie or Blueberry Pineapple Smoothie.
If a smoothie bowl is more your thing, these blueberry muffins go great with my Strawberry Smoothie Bowl or Vanilla Coconut Smoothie Bowl.
Tips & tricks
- Don’t overmix the batter!
- This recipe makes 6 bakery-style muffins with tall muffin tops. I use a 12-muffin pan and space the muffins out, only using 6 of the spaces so that they don't touch as they spread.
- If you want to make 12 muffins, you can easily double the recipe by clicking "x2" in the recipe card (below). I still recommend only filling 6 spaces at a time and leaving the pothers empty so the muffins have the space to expand. You can either use 2 muffin tins and bake the 12 muffins at the same time (if your oven can accommodate two muffin tins) or bake the muffins in two batches.
- Don't skip resting the batter in the fridge. This step prevents the berries from sinking to the bottom and helps create a nice tall muffin top (aka "the dome"). If you do choose to make 12 muffins in 2 batches, place the remaining batter in the fridge while the first batch bakes.
FAQ
Fold the blueberries in gently with a silicone spatula. Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes before baking.
Yes! Cottage cheese is a versatile ingredient that works well in baking. It adds moisture, protein, and a subtle tangy flavor to baked goods.
Do I need to blend the cottage cheese?
For best results I recommend blending the cottage cheese before using in this recipe. Otherwise, you will end up with white curds in your muffins.
I’ve tested this recipe using only blended cottage cheese, a mix of cottage cheese and milk, and a mix of cottage cheese and yogurt. The best flavor and texture came from the last combination so I would not skip the yogurt. If you don’t have any, you can also cut the cottage cheese with buttermilk or full fat milk (start with 2 tablespoons).
I wouldn’t suggest swapping flour for almond flour. This recipe works best with regular all-purpose flour. Gluten-free flour should work, too. If you’re looking for muffins made with almond flour, try these blueberry oatmeal muffins recipe instead.
More healthy baking
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Recipe
Equipment
- 1 muffin tin
Ingredients
- ½ cup cottage cheese whole milk or 2% fat
- 1 egg
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup avocado oil or other neutral tasting plant oil
- 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoon plain yogurt
- 1-2 tablespoon milk regular or plant based will work
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- zest grated from ½ lemon
- 1 cup blueberries
Instructions
- Pour sugar into a small or medium bowl. Zest ½ lemon over the sugar, then combine with your fingers to allow the lemon oil to release into the sugar.
- To the same bowl add flour, baking powder and baking soda. Whisk together to combine.
- Place cottage cheese, plain yogurt, vanilla, oil and 1 tablespoon milk in a separate mixing bowl.
- Blend the wet ingredients using an immersion blender until mostly smooth. This is to avoid white curds in your muffins.
- Once the mixture is smooth, add one egg and mix with a fork or a whisk until combined.
- Add dry ingredients to wet and mix it in with a spatula until almost combined. Don't overmix the batter! It should be thick and wet. If it seems dry, add an additional tablespoon of milk.
- Now fold in the blueberries until evenly distributed. Try not to break them.
- Cover the bowl with batter with a clean kitchen towel and place in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.
- While the batter is resting, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and place 6 muffin liners in a 12-muffin tin using every other space (see photos above for reference).
- After 30 minutes divide the batter evenly between 6 muffin liners. They will be pretty full - that's intended.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Place on a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
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Meet the Author
Hi, I'm Agnieszka. I'm a mom of three and recipe developer, writer and photographer behind Wholly Tasteful. I love creating comforting, delicious, family-friendly recipes that you can feel good about.
Sheyna says
Have you tried this with cranberries? Any advice?
Agnieszka says
I haven't tried but fresh cranberries should work. You may need to increase the sugar a little since cranberries are more sour than blueberries. If I were making these with cranberries, I'd swap lemon zest for orange zest. Good luck!
Bogusia says
Easy recipe. My whole family loved it.👍