Mmmmm… muffins!
Sweet, soft, and fluffy, these homemade treats are charming, single-serving breakfast treats.
Baked the night before, or pulled fresh out of the oven first thing in the morning, their easy preparation offers a refreshingly laid back approach.
And there’s a very good reason why muffin pans include multiple cups – this baked good is best served at the breakfast table surrounded by friends and family!
While it was a little heartbreaking to choose just our top favorites from our collection of tasty muffin recipes to feature here, we have selected five popular options that we think you’ll really enjoy baking and serving.
With this small compilation, we hope you will be inspired to get in the kitchen to try one right away – or maybe even all five! – before you branch out to explore even more homemade options to bake for many mornings to come.
Before you begin… review our guide if you want some helpful tips for avoiding the soggy bottom blues.
Ready? Start separating some paper liners, and let’s get to baking!
5 of the Best Morning Muffin Recipes
1. Blueberry
The big bursts of juicy, fresh blueberries, the moist and tender texture, the crunchy, sugary topping…
For this bountiful blueberry version, we kept one main motto in mind:
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!
Simple and Classic Blueberry Muffins – Get the Recipe Now
This is for anyone who can’t get enough that classic blueberry muffin taste and texture. We did our best to pay tribute to a bakery-style goodie, while adapting it to create an accessible version you can quickly and easily mix, bake, and serve for your next casual morning gathering.
Besides a ton of deliciously fruity flavors and aromas, you’ll get the added benefit of fresh blueberries’ antioxidant power.
The lightly vanilla scented batter plays well with the berries, while a little sour cream or whole Greek yogurt provides some subtle tang and added moisture.
2. Carrot
The ultimate dessert-turned-breakfast, our carrot muffins will be a sweet favorite in many homes!
With both carrots and tart Granny Smith apples freshly grated and mixed into the batter, these are super moist baked goods that will – we kid you not – literally melt in your mouth.
Carrot Muffins – Get the Recipe Now
As with any perfect carrot cake, a medley of spices is a core component to its iconic flavor and scent. A teaspoon of ground cinnamon and pinches of ground ginger and nutmeg make their presence known as the batter is baking, flooding your kitchen with warming, aromatic waves.
While we don’t include dried fruit or nuts in the batter, we understand that everyone interprets the key ingredients of a carrot cake quite differently. Mix in a quarter-cup or so of your favorite add-ins to make this recipe truly yours.
3. Chocolate Chip
We’re enjoying chocolate for breakfast – and no one can stop us!
If you’re still on the fence, as soon as you get a chance to stuff your face with these delicious chocolate chip treats, you won’t be hesitant for too much longer.
Healthier Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins – Get the Recipe Now
And let us further appease your worries by explaining that this recipe is a healthier version of what you might find at the grocery store, made with whole wheat flour, old fashioned oats, ground flax seeds, and unsweetened applesauce.
It’s like a hearty chocolate chip oatmeal cookie, but in the delectable form of a fluffy breakfast goodie you can feel good about eating.
4. Honey Lemon (Gluten Free)
Brighten up your morning with bold, lemony flavors!
Our gluten-free honey lemon muffins are a taste of sunshine in a cute little package, and they’re a beautiful start to the day.
Gluten-Free Honey Lemon Muffins – Get the Recipe Now
Sweet and light, you’ll enjoy a subtle tang in each bite from the freshly squeezed lemon juice and yogurt.
The wheat-free base includes an assortment of gluten-free flours and other ingredients, including brown rice, sweet sorghum, tapioca, ground flax seed, and xanthan gum.
And by making just a few ingredient substitutions for dairy-free or vegan diets, everyone can enjoy these treats – no one is left out of the sunny fun!
5. Pumpkin Nut
Who says pumpkin is just for fall? Enjoy these pumpkin nut breakfast treats at any time of year!
This recipe is a classic combination of sugar, pumpkin spice, and everything nice.
Pumpkin Nut Muffins – Get the Recipe Now
Deeply flavorful dark brown sugar offers sweetness and moisture, while a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and vanilla yields comforting warmth and intoxicating aromas.
As for the “everything nice”…
Thanks to the pumpkin puree and softened butter, these mounds are incredibly rich and moist.
And a cupful of pecans gently folded into the batter provides a delicate crunch.
Suggested Smears and Spreads
You can never go wrong by serving any of these recipes warm from the oven with softened butter – what melty perfection!
But if you want layers of fun flavors, consider other condiments that would complement or contrast with your baked goodies.
For example, we are currently chasing a wild obsession with pairing our sweet and fruity blueberry muffins with an acidic and mouth-puckering homemade lemon curd.
You can also play with other types of jams, jellies, or preserves. A spread of strawberry basil jam would be a colorful counterpart to a warm batch of our gluten-free honey lemon option.
We also are completely supportive of your decision to serve homemade carrot muffins with thick smears of cream cheese frosting for the ultimate breakfast inspired by carrot cake.
Choose your own path with the final pairing. Whatever you decide, we guarantee you’ll be sweetly satisfied.
Is your favorite recipe not included here? We would love to know about your most beloved homemade treat, so please leave a comment below.
Okay, okay – fine! We hear you loud and clear, shouting for more ideas! For your encore, here’s a trio of other sweet starts to the day that you can bake from our full lineup of breakfast recipes:
- Pistachio Granola Bars
- The Best Banana Bread with Cinnamon Streusel Topping
- Overnight Raspberry and Chocolate French Toast Casserole
Photos by Nikki Cervone, Fanny Slater, Kelli McGrane, and Meghan Yager, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published on August 8, 2015 by Jennifer Swartvagher. Last updated on June 11, 2023.
About Nikki Cervone
Nikki Cervone is an ACS Certified Cheese Professional and cheesemonger living in Pittsburgh. Nikki holds an AAS in baking/pastry from Westmoreland County Community College, a BA in Communications from Duquesne University, and an MLA in Gastronomy from Boston University. When she's not nibbling on her favorite cheeses or testing a batch of cupcakes, Nikki enjoys a healthy dose of yoga, wine, hiking, singing in the shower, and chocolate. Lots of chocolate.
Awesome recipes! You practically had my mouth watering mentioning the carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. I’m definitely saving that one for the next time the family wants something sweet.
I also really enjoyed the banana nut take these classic breakfast treats. I always get discouraged from making the bread because for some reason bread is my enemy, but this recipe feels easy and mess-up-proof enough even I can’t destroy it! Thank you for this article!
I love muffins anytime of the day, but they are good for a breakfast on the go. The chocolate recipe is my favorite and then banana. I like traditional ones and although big ones look great, they can be tricky to eat, so bite size ones are better for me.
It’s a good way to use up bananas, and cupcake sized breads tend to keep well and you can freeze them if need be.
We make a style very similar to the banana one, except we use oatmeal.
You would be amazed at how well they freeze!
I eat them almost every day.
I am actually out of oatmeal so I am going to try this batch exactly how you describe it.
I couldn’t help myself but bookmark the page, am thankful really, for these awesome ideas, I love baking, so, in this particular area, I know I won’t go wrong 😉 …the banana nut and chocolate chip example really caught my eye, the presentation too is quite awesome, somehow ruffled my feathers in a good way, now I know how to layer/present the table with such wonderful niceties. 😉
When my bananas get too ripe, I either feed them to the dog or make banana nut bread, so these muffins will be a nice change to the normal routine. However, the recipe I want to try the most is the one for the raspberry muffins; the tartness of the fruit that balances the sweetness of the dessert is appealing to me. For the carrot cake muffins, was your cream cheese frosting homemade and if so, how did you make it? Thank you for the article!
Cream Cheese Frosting
4 ounces unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a large mixing bowl, combine butter and cream cheese. Once combined, slowly add powdered sugar until smooth. Add vanilla and mix until well incorporated.
Those pumpkin-based ones look delicious. I prefer to place some vegetables and fruit in them for breakfast because it’s a little healthier. I don’t like carrots, though they’d be perfect to add to the pumpkin, but I bet zucchini would work well.
I”m bananas for these banana muffins! Aahah, sorry, I had to. But seriously, I can tell I will enjoy this recipe. Quick question, though: could I add more spices to the pumpkin version without affecting the consistency?
Yes, adjust the spices according to your tastes.
I have made some pumpkin spice cookies a long time ago. I’m now thinking about making it into a muffin version. I love to eat these for breakfast but then I would eat them any time of day. All of these recipes look simple enough to make. How could I possibly mess this up? Time to get cooking!
Muffins are always enticing. All of these look good. The little ones, bite size would be dangerous. End up eating the whole batch of these. The pumpkin nut and banana ones too. Probably all of them. I don’t think I’ve ever had a muffin I didn’t love. There is only one problem with them, they widen my hips and add to my butt. Other than that I don’t see any problems with them. This is why I can only look at pictures of them.
Speaking of muffins, I actually had a couple of them at dinner earlier this evening. They weren’t that good, but I was dining at a relatively lackluster buffet. I’m partial to the classic chocolate chip variety, but I’ve been known to grab a blueberry from time to time. I love these recipes, though. They all sound pretty good!
These look absolutely amazing, especially the carrot one! Even though I probably won’t be able to make and eat these since I am vegan and all of them eaither had eggs, butter, or milk in them, I still quiet enjoyed the pictures. Do you think I could still make these with some substitutions? Like applesauce instead of eggs?
P.S. In the first one, you forgot to put the egg in the ingredients list though. Just to let you know.
What are muffins but naked/healthy cupcakes? Wonderful recipes, by the way; I think my favorite out of all of these would be the chocolate chip one or banana nut one (I like my mine sweet). I’ve never heard of anyone putting raspberries in their breakfast grab-and-go, but I bet the tartness of the raspberries would go great with the sugar that’s already in these tiny cakes!
They also make great house-warming gifts too; who doesn’t love receiving a basket of muffins when they are so busy with unpacking and cleaning? They make for the best treats that anyone of any age can enjoy.
Thanks for sharing the recipes!
Reading these comments, I’m surprised raspberry examples aren’t more common! I eat them fairly regularly at a breakfast cafe down by my work, and I’ve prepared them myself a few times. My only tip for anyone who decides to bake them would be to keep in mind that your berries will add moisture to the batter, especially if you are using riper berries. You may want to adjust your cooking time accordingly, if you dislike a moist texture.
I’ve never heard of raspberry muffins, but they look delicious! It might also be good to make the banana nut version and throw in some raspberries. I have at least a half dozen bananas in the freezer just waiting to be used.
Have you ever used whole wheat flour to make these a bit healthier? I would like to make some to have on hand as a quick breakfast but would feel somewhat guilty consuming the calories since my normal breakfast is a bowl of plain oatmeal. Also, I imagine I could substitute Splenda for the sugar.
The chocolate chip muffins look killer. Plus the ingredient list isn;t too lengthy so I think I can manage to try these with the items I have in my house. I think I might start baking these once school starts up again because I have a bad habit of skipping breakfast. I think maybe if I am able to bake (which I love) I’ll be able to justify eating them so I wouldn’t waste food.
I especially enjoy a savory muffin for breakfast, but fruit and nuts will also do. These ideas are really great and offer you more options when you just don’t know what to make anymore. Breakfast making can become an ordeal when you have a family of children who are easily bored.
I have some leftover bananas from a family gathering not long ago. I’ve never tried using them in a cake before, but a banana muffin seems like a good idea. I wonder if it would go well with some peanut butter, since peanut butter seems to always go well with bananas, in my opinion. Plus it balances out the health benefits.
Muffins are delicious! I remember my mother used to make them almost every morning for breakfast. As I got older I lost interest in them but I think I should start baking them once again. Banana variations seem pretty tasty! 😀
Those banana nut and raspberry muffins look delicious. I haven’t thought to make muffins as a breakfast item but I love the idea! I’ll definitely start doing this. They seem healthy too.
I do like the idea of the pumpkin and nut muffins. I’ve saved the recipe and will try it out the next time the family comes to visit. It looks like a way to give the muffins an ideal amount of ‘squish’ without making them too sweet. Personallly I prefer savoury food to sweet, but these seem to be a good compromise.
I really want to try the raspberry muffin recipe for breakfast one morning.
I really want to try to make the banana nut muffins. I just bought some bananas and cupcake paper wrappers for baking. This will make making muffins easier as well as for the clean up. My mom would love the carrot muffins for breakfast. She loves carrot cake more than anyone else in my house.
I think CARROT MUFFINS are my favorite too, they are quite simple to make and very soft to the tongue. I have never made them at home, so I’m planning on following the easy steps as soon as I have time on my hands!
Putting cream cheese frosting on top seems like a good idea, thanks for the information Jennifer Swartvagher!
I’ve just saved all of your recipes, I like to start my day with something sweet and muffins are perfect. I can’t wait to try the carrot ones, I have a juice extractor and every time I make carrot juice there’s a lot of waste that looks exaclty like grated carrots and I’ve always felt sorry for throwing it out. Thanks to your recipe, I’ll have a delicious treat and a big glass of carrot juice for breakfast tomorrow! I’m going to try out all the other recipes, I’m especially intrigued by the banana and nuts and the pumpkin versions.
All of these look super appetizing! I’m itching to try the chocolate chip one first. I’ve never really had a knack for baking, so I hope that following these recipe’s to the T would help me out in that department. I kind of want to try recipes that involve meat as well, to eliminate the need to fry bacon or sausages separately for breakfast every morning. Is that doable at all?
I’m gonna try the banana ones tomorrow. They look delicious, and the ingredient list is so simple (I really hate it when recipes have ingredients that would require me to go to at least 3 different places to get).
The thing I’ve taken from this article that I’ll use the most, though, is probably the wet paper towel wrap before microwaving trick. I knew it could be used to heat things up more evenly, but I didn’t know it could be used on baked goods.
Oh, these are great. My kids always loved having these for grab and go breakfast or even just for snacks.
You have included some great flavors. I especially want to try the second one (with or without topping they sound great).
A variety basket of these would make a nice welcome gift for a new neighbor.
Well I am sorry to say that I have an issue with this article. While I respect pumpkin, and that carrot muffin actually sounds really delicious, and is something that I am going to try, I had to continually ask myself where the blueberries were. When it comes to muffins in the morning, I have to have some tangy blueberries. I know it is just my personal tastes, but I hoped my bias would emphasize how much I love them. I am going to try that carrot one, though, so thank you for sharing.
Yum! I know I love muffins passionately; one batch can feed me for a week! I’ll really enjoy trying out these recipes. But, one question. Do you think the banana nut version would work with pecans instead of walnuts?
I love this! I have three toddlers, who are tired of eating cereal, and pop tarts for breakfast, so our new “thing” is muffins. They absolutely love blueberry and banana nut, so we are rather excited to try raspberry and chocolate chip muffins.
These look really amazing, I love them! You guys always come up with the best recipes around! I definitely would like to wake up in the morning and see some of those upon my table, for sure! Thank you for sharing this, I will copy down the second recipe, that’s the one wich attracted me the most.
The pumpkin muffins sound really good! They sound like they’d be delicious with some apple butter, honey, or maybe a bit of maple syrup. Looking at the recipe, it looks like you could also use sweet potato puree instead of pumpkin. Pumpkin muffins would also be nice for a “Harry Potter” themed breakfast, if you are so inclined.