Ingredients
2/3 c. granulated sugar
1 tbsp. lemon zest
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter , cut into ½” cubes, at room temperature, plus more for the tin
2 large eggs, beaten
2/3 c. whole milk
1 1/2 c. chopped strawberries (about ½" pieces)
2 tbsp. sparkling sugar, optional
Preparation
Step 1Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a muffin tin with butter or line with baking liners.Step 2In a large bowl, combine sugar and zest. With your hands, rub zest into sugar until evenly combined. Step 3Whisk in flour, baking powder, and salt. Use your hands (or an electric mixer) to rub in the butter until the mixture is evenly combined and no large pieces of butter remain. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the eggs and milk until just combined.Step 4Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon of batter into each prepared muffin well, then fold the strawberries into the remaining batter and divide evenly among the muffin wells. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with sparkling sugar.Step 5Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the muffins are firm to the touch and a wooden pick inserted comes out clean. Let cool in the tin for 5 minutes before removing.
The key to the lemony flavor is rubbing zest into the sugar with your hands, which infuses the sugar (and the batter) with the peel’s essential oils. If you’re a regular at making muffins, you might be surprised to see room temperature butter rather than melted butter. Rubbing it into the dry ingredients makes for a super tender—not dense—crumb. If you’d rather not use your hands to do this step, you can use an electric mixer instead. The muffins bake up with a beautiful dome and berries distributed throughout the pastry, not sunk at the bottom like some muffin recipes. That’s because you’ll spoon a bit of plain batter into each cup before folding the fruit into the rest of the batter. This cushion prevents strawberries from sinking down where they could stick to the tin or burn. For a gorgeous shimmer and a tasty crunch on top, you’ll sprinkle sparkling sugar over the batter just before baking. Sparkling sugar is coarse-grained sugar that won’t melt or disappear while it bakes. It leaves just a hint of a crust with a little extra sweetness on every bite. Look for it in the baking aisle or order online. Due to the fruit, these muffins are best eaten day-of, but extra muffins can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
