Home Baked Lemon Pistachio Muffins
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Home Baked Lemon Pistachio Muffins have a soft and tender crumb and are glazed with a fresh lemon drizzle. They’re the perfect bakery treat when you’re craving something a little sweet.
This Pistachio muffin has a fresh lemon essence that is like a breath of Spring! I’m a huge fan of lemon and could eat lemon muffins or lemon desserts every day of the week if my waistline could tolerate it.
I’ve been on a serious homemade muffin kick lately. It’s no secret that I love making easy muffin recipes. One of the recipes
Lemon just brightens anything up, including me! I especially like baked goods with lemon flavors such as these simple lemon muffins with glaze and pistachios!
How to Make Lemon Pistachio Muffins
Making homemade pistachio muffins from scratch isn’t difficult. If you think about it, store-bought muffin mixes are just the dry ingredients and YOU add the wet ingredients such as egg, milk, oil, and extracts. So why not mix the dry ingredients yourself, save a little money, and know exactly what goes into your food.
Ingredients for Lemon Pistachio Muffins
You are buying very basic ingredients that you may already have on hand such as flour, sugar, salt, and leavening agents (baking soda and baking powder). I’m all for convenience so use what is right for you.
Besides ingredients from your baking pantry, you’ll also need
- a lemon.
- lemon extract. This is not the same as lemon juice and is found with the spices and extracts at your grocery store.
- pistachios.
- whole milk. The extra fat in whole milk keeps these muffins moist.
What is the best kind of flour to use to make muffins?
All-purpose flour is perfectly fine for muffin recipes. The impact of the kind of flour that you use in some finer desserts or sturdier bread recipes is more measurable.
It’s based on the protein content. The higher the protein content, the sturdier or stronger the flour. There are several references for explaining the differences in flour.
What is the difference between muffins and cupcakes?
My first thought is it’s perfectly acceptable to eat them for breakfast! But in all seriousness this is what the differences generally are:
| Difference | Muffin | Cupcake |
| Flavor | Sweet or Savory | Sweet |
| Topping | None, streusel, glaze | Frosting |
| Crumb | Denser | Light, Soft |
| Served | Breakfast, with meal | Dessert |
Tips for Making Lemon Pistachio Muffins
- One question I always like to ask is – are your leavening agents active? Try these tests.
- To test baking soda, add a couple of ounces of vinegar to 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. If it fizzes, it’s active.
- To test baking powder, add 1/2 teaspoon to about 1/4 cup of warm water. If it fizzes, it’s active.
- Replace baking powder and baking soda every six months or less.
- We mix a little bit of flour with the pistachios. This keeps them suspended in the batter so they don’t all fall to the bottom of the muffins.
- Don’t overmix. That will result in a tough muffin.
- Using room-temperature ingredients will ensure that your batter is smooth. If you don’t have time to pull ingredients out of the refrigerator a couple of hours ahead (and who actually remembers to do that?!), here are some tips.
- To take the chill off of the egg, submerge it in warm water for 5 minutes.
- The milk can be microwaved for 15 to 30 seconds.
- Don’t be tempted to overfill the tin.
- The glaze can be kept in the refrigerator and drizzled on before serving
- This batter will make about 40 mini muffins.
Storing Your Muffins
My Lemon Pistachio Muffins can be stored at room temperature or in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days if you actually have leftovers!
Lemon Pistachio Muffins freeze well for up to 3 months in an airtight container. We recommend glazing the muffins after thawing them. This allows you to thaw them in the microwave for speed, without destroying the glaze.
Baking Tools You May Need
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- 12-cup Non-stick muffin pan – I love these muffin pans and have three of them so I can get them all filled and baked at once. They’re great for egg cups too!
- Mini-Prep Food Processor – This little genius is a workhorse in my kitchen. I love that I don’t have to drag my big heavy one out when I want to chop nuts or veggies.
- Scoops – Wonder how those cookies are the same size? Scoops and I use them for my cupcakes too!
More recipes with Lemon that we love!
- Lemon Snowflakes Cookies
- Blueberry Lemonade Pie
- Lemon Olive Oil Cake
- Old-Fashioned Lemon Icebox Pie
- Lemon Pudding Poke Cake
- Blackened Salmon with Lemon Butter
I hope you enjoyed this delicious recipe as much as we do. Drop me a comment below, and don’t forget to give it a star rating. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. Your comments and ratings help others decide if this recipe is for them too.
Home Baked Lemon Pistachio Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
Muffin Batter
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1¼ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1¼ cups whole milk
- 1 egg large
- 1 lemon (juice and zest)
- 1 tsp lemon extract
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ cup pistachios coarsely ground
- 1 tbsp flour
Glaze
- ¼ cup whole milk
- ½ tsp lemon extract
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F. Grease or line 2 12-cup muffin tins with oil, butter, or a non-stick cooking spray or insert cupcake liners.
Muffins
- Combine milk and the juice from one lemon together and set aside. This will become buttermilk after about 5 minutes.
- In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, combine sugar, lemon juice-milk mixture, and egg. Blend together and then add lemon zest and lemon extract. Blend until smooth.
- Gradually add dry ingredients to wet ingredients.
- Combine ground pistachios with 1 tablespoon of flour. Fold this mixture into the batter. The flour helps the pistachios to stay suspended throughout the batter.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the muffin pan and let them cool on a wire rack.
Glaze
- Combine the glaze ingredients together. The consistency should resemble maple syrup. If it’s too thick to drizzle add more milk. If it’s too thin add powdered sugar.
- Lightly shake a fork dipped in the glaze over the top of the muffins.
- Store muffins in an airtight container. They may also be frozen.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
This recipe was calculated using the exact brands and measurements I used to make this recipe. If you are following a strict diet please note changing anything will cause the nutritional info to change. My calculations are intended as a guide only.
Similar Muffin Recipes to Try
- Homemade Muffins Recipe
- Gluten-Free Coconut Muffins
- Harvest Muffins
- Double Chocolate Muffins
- Mango Muffins
- Blueberry Muffins with Orange Pecan Crumble
- Cherry Almond Muffins (Gluten-free)
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2 of my favorite things: lemon & pistachios! YUM!
Thank you!
You are killing me with all these muffins! Lemon pistachio is Braxton’s fave and every time I eat one I think of him:)
What an awesome memory! Thanks, Jennifer!
Hi, I made these last night and they came out very dry…I think it is because there is no fat in these. Is this a mistake?
Did you use whole milk? That and the egg should have assured that the muffins were moist.
Hi,I dont have lemon extract,can I just omit that or just use lemon juice?
In a small amount you can or you can substitute it with vanilla or almond extract.
Lemon just screams Spring to me. The addition of pistachios to these muffins just makes them that much better. My family is going to love these.
Thank you, Jennifer! This one has really become one of our favorites!
Nothing beats the smell of homemade muffins…any day, any season! It’s still cold here and I know everyone will love these straight from the oven. With the vibrant lemon taste I will make these all year round. How simple and delish!
Thank you Debra!
Girl, you are speakin my language with these! I’ll take a lemon muffin over chocolate any day of the week. Then you went and added pistachio. An must make recipe! Can’t wait to make these.
Thank you Trish! I’m an equal opportunity muffin lover. Lemon is amazing but I can’t turn down a chocolate one either.
Spring is here but the weather is still terrible. We may get one sunshiny day and the rest of the days are rainy and cold. Sometimes snow. Now the idea of lemon and pistachio has me seeing some bright warm lights – sunshine. I do love anything with lemon and pistachios are my favorite nuts. Your explanation of cupcakes and muffins is right on the mark.
Thank you Marisa! I guess when it gets to hot we’ll be whining too LOL!
Pistachios and lemon! What a great combination! I tend to use pistachios more often in savoury dishes, but I love them in all sorts of recipes. I’m totally with you when it comes to cake/muffin mix too. I call them ‘manufactured convenience’ – they give you the impression that you’re saving time, but when you factor in having to go out and buy them, you’re really not doing yourself any favours (plus I just think scratch tastes better). Once you try a good scratch recipe you realize that you’re not limited by box mixes, and that you can make any kind of cake/muffin base any time as long as you’ve got a well-stocked pantry. And hey, that’s my kind of power. Haha.
I hope your winter woes pass soon enough – but if you keep turning out awesome recipes like this as a result, then it’s certainly not the worst thing in the world. Cheers.
Ha! I like your superpower reference! I should be stocked for a month but I still find myself running to the store a couple of times a week. Thank you for stopping by Sean!
While we’ve had a fairly mild winter here (nothing like the weekly blizzards we got a few years back), I’m still all about lemony spring recipes! There is nothing like a lemon muffin to wake up the taste buds as I watch the crocuses wake up too. And I love the addition of the pistachios. I don’t bake with them enough and this was a great place to start.
Thank you, Annemarie! Our winter started off mild but sure made up for it in a short period!
Lemon puts me in a happy mood too! My mom just gave me a bunch of lemons from her tree, so I used fresh juice instead of the extract. These muffins are a keeper and I wll make again!
Oh, I wish I had access to just picking them from the tree! That would be amazing!
Oh my goodness! Seven weeks of snow sounds awful! We had what seemed like a lifetime of rain last year but cannot imagine what that much snow would be like. It certainly would call for a lot of baking to keep the cabin fever at bay!
Thank you, Charity! I think we may be beating Seattle for the gloomiest year ever!
I never used to use pistachios in anything. I feel like I wasted so many good years!! I LOVE baking with them, and I have been putting them in everything!! The addition to the lemon muffins is brilliant!
Thank you! We didn’t grow up eating pistachios and I don’t even know if we had access to them. It was always walnuts!
Jeff is a huge fan of pistachios so when I read this recipe I knew he would love them! A lovely texture and the nuts were so so good in them! I used a little more drizzle on mine, but other than that followed your recipe to a perfect delicious muffin!
Thank you! John loved this one and may have just dipped his muffin in the glaze LOL!
Made these this morning, and they were a hit with the family! So easy, and super tasty.
Thank you!
It’s rainy and gloomy today where I live, and I was just thinking that I should bake something! 🙂 These muffins seem like just the perfect thing to drive away the winter/early spring blues; I love the combination of lemon and pistachio, and they are so easy to make.
Thank you, Daniela! Gloomy here forever too!
You’ve combined two of my favorite flavors pistachio and lemon! These muffins look so savory and delicious I can’t wait to give them a try!
Thanks, Deb! We really loved them too!
Lemon is my FAVORITE!!!! These look incredible!
Thank you! We loved them too!
Looks and sounds delicious! Now I just need smell-o-vision! LOL
Thanks Lynn! I’d love to figure that one out too!
I love the addition of pistachios to this recipe! Plus, we love lemon
here so, this is a winner! Cannot wait to make some of these! thanks for
sharing your wonderful recipe 😉
Thank you so much, Diane!
I love the combination of flavors! Lemon and pistachio sound so perfect together!
Thank you, Madi!
These muffins look great! I love both lemons and pistachios, but never thought of combining them together, the muffins look moist and enticing, on my to do list!
Thank you, Hadia! I really enjoyed this combination too!
Oh, yes, I will be making these, Julie! I love lemon. I love pistachios. And, this is a perfect muffin for happiness!
Thank you, Ally! Anything lemon here too!
I could eat one of those muffins any time of the day.
Thank you Christine! I agree!
Spring is FINALLY here…and means LEMON desserts and goodies. I would love one of these to start my day. I would love one of these with my afternoon latte. I would love to serve these on the weekend brunch. By now, I think you know how much I love lemons.
Thank you, Gloria! An afternoon latte with this muffin would be like a vacation at home!