Spring has sprung and these scrummy keto lemon sour cream muffins (cake tho, right?) are the perfect way to celebrate! Tender lemon muffin base (seriously, it’s tiny cake people – just keeping it real) with a crunchy streusel topping and a sweet and tart lemon glaze – it’s everything you’ve ever wanted a in a low carb muffin! #butreally #itscake
As most of you know by now, I live on an island in Belize where the weather is perpetually summer-like. The temperatures here range from HOT most of the year, to spontaneous combustion is imminent if you’re outside more than 5 minutes in August. ☀️ ? ?
So it’s not easy for me to get in the mindset of “yay, Spring!” like it used to be when I lived in New York and froze half the year.
Still, I got very excited when out of the blue, lemons showed up on the island about a month ago. ?? ? ? ? ?
They don’t have yellow lemons here usually – it’s all limes all the time in Belize. Which I’m OK with for the most part. But this time of year still means lemon and strawberry (I scored some of those too, new recipe later this week, Woot!) flavored everything to me – so I bought a huge bag of them.
I was amused by the cashier’s obvious confusion – first at the weird yellow limes, and second that I was buying at least 20 of them! ? I couldn’t wait to get started cooking lemon flavored everything – the only problem was that I was leaving for the states for 3 weeks and had no time to use them before they went bad…
So I froze them out of desperation, which I’d never done before. ❄️ ? ?
I was terrified that they’d be ruined when I got home from our trip – but it worked great! As an added bonus, when I thawed and cut them in half to juice them with my hand-held citrus crusher thingy, it was easy to get every last drop out of them – much more so then when they were fresh.
The moral of this story is that if you have more lemons then you can use – you can totally freeze them whole and thaw them as needed! I even zested them with no problems! ?
So, long story long – against all odds I was able to get lemons in Belize and I made you these keto lemon sour cream muffins with them. And THEY ARE GOOD. SO. GOOD.
Don’t be intimidated by the multiple steps in these keto lemon sour cream muffins either – the muffin portion is made in the blender so it’s super easy, and the streusel topping is mixed with a fork in a bowl, as is the easy lemon glaze. There is lemon juice and/or zest added to every component, so it’s sooooooper lemony people – in the best possible way.
Lemon lovers rejoice! ?? ? You are going to LURV this one!
You might be wondering why the sour cream. It’s an honest question. I wasn’t sure about it myself, but I used to order an amazing lemon sour cream pound cake years ago, and it was so very tasty that I thought I’d try it in these keto lemon sour cream muffins.
The sour cream made the muffins very tender, super rich, and the tart cream flavor really complemented the lemon. I’m hooked, and you will be too!
I made these both as muffins and as mini loaves, to see if it would bake up ok both ways. It totally did, and I’m on the fence about which way I liked it more. Both tasted the same, but I liked being able to just slice off a small piece of the loaf without committing to an entire muffin.
That being said, my muffins were pretty large – so if you make them average sized then you’ll probably be getting about the same amount either way.
The point is – you can make these keto lemon sour cream muffins in almost any format and they will be great. I’m including baking times for multiple sizes in the instructions, but please be aware that ovens and cooking times may vary. Bake it until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and you’ll be in business.
Keto Lemon Sour Cream Muffins Recipe Video ??
PrintKeto Lemon Sour Cream Muffins – Low Carb
Tender lemon cake, topped with crunchy streusel and a sweet tart lemon glaze! Keto, low carb, Atkins friendly, and gluten free to boot!
- Yield: 8 to 12 servings 1x
- Category: Low Carb Muffin Recipe
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the muffin:
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated erythritol sweetener **
- 3 large eggs
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp lemon zest
- 1 1/2 cup superfine almond flour **
- 1/2 cup coconut flour **
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum or arrowroot powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup full fat sour cream
- pinch of salt
For the streusel topping:
- 3 Tbsp butter, melted
- 3/4 cup superfine almond flour **
- 3 Tbsp erythritol sweetener **
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 Tbsp coconut flour
For the lemon glaze:
- 1/2 cup confectioners style erythritol **
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
For the muffin layer:
- Combine all of the muffin ingredients in a blender and blend for 2-3 minutes or until smooth.
- The mixture is thick so you’ll have to stop a few times and scrape the sides down with a silicone spatula to get it going the first minute or so.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F) and then start your streusel topping.
For the streusel topping:
- Combine the melted butter, almond flour, sweetener, lemon zest and coconut flour in a small bowl and stir well with a fork until a crumbly dough forms.
- Spoon the muffin batter from the blender into 8 large or 12 regular muffin cups (if you’re using foil or thin paper then place inside a muffin tin to support them) – or into a small loaf or cake pan.
- Crumble the streusel topping in pea sized pieces over the top of the batter.
- Bake on the middle rack of your oven at 350 degrees for 35 minutes (large muffins) or 25 minutes (average sized muffin) or 50 minutes (loaf or cake pan) OR until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
For the lemon glaze:
- Combine the erythritol and lemon juice in a cup or small bowl. Stir with a fork until smooth.
- If too runny, add another Tbsp of erythritol (or more) until an opaque but still pourable glaze forms.
- If too stiff to pour, add another tsp of lemon juice to loosen.
- Pour the glaze over the muffins after they are baked and slightly cool. Serve warm or room temperature.
- Store any leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Notes
** For best results, see what brands I use and recommend for my recipes over on the IBIH pantry recommendations page!
Approximate nutrition info is as follows:
1 average muffin (1/12th of recipe) or loaf slice contains:
290 calories, 25g fat, 4.5g net carbs, 8g protein
1 gargantuan (bakery sized) muffin or 1/8th of recipe contains:
435 calories, 37g fat, 7g net carbs, 12g protein
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 muffin
- Calories: 290
- Fat: 25g
- Carbohydrates: 4.5g net
- Protein: 8g
If you love lemon desserts like I do – you should also try my low carb Lemon Cloud Pie from last season! It’s a stunner for sure! Oh and my favorite keto lemon bars are pretty awesome too – just sayin’.
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Can I sub Greek yogurt for sour cream?
Yes, but it will alter the carb count.
I love lemon anything and these are wonderful!! Perfect for spring and summer and the sour cream makes it!
★★★★★
So, I have gotten to the point in life where I don’t bake much, but when I read this, I had to try it! I have made them twice…
First, the good: they are delicious! We love lemon anything & these are just what we love.
Next, the not so great: I have read the recipe at least a dozen times & don’t see anything about either using muffin papers or greasing the muffin tin. The first time I made them, I sprayed the muffin tin with a Pam type product. They were very difficult to get out of the pan :-(
The second time I used muffin papers & they came out without any problem.
As I said, I rarely bake anymore, so maybe it’s just because of that… Maybe I should have just known to use muffin papers!
Bottom line: We love them! Also, one more note, my muffin tins are “standard”, I had enough batter to make 12 muffins plus 1 extra in as custard cup…
Keep up the great recipes!
★★★★★
One of the best Keto recipes that I’ve tasted and made! I find Keto recipes with sour cream are some of the most moist!! Love these!!
★★★★★
Amazing muffins with great flavour. Moist and delicious. I didn’t use baking cups and they fell apart coming out of the muffin pan. Any suggestions?
★★★★★
Made the batter in my food processor because I don’t have a blender, and it worked very well. Didn’t have to scrape the sides at all. The muffins turned out yummy. Thank you for a great recipe!
★★★★★
I have made these several times and LOVE them more with each new batch. They are tender and soooo delicious. I WAS going to make blueberry muffins today but have decided to make these again and just toss in a handful of blueberries with the lemon. Thanks for all of your recipes! Oh…I also made your bacon gouda mashed cauliflower today. It is a favorite in our house.
★★★★
These are hands down with best Keto muffins I’ve made in years! The sour cream and lemon flavor make them shine. Thank you! I use birch xylitol for the sweetener and my silicone mini-muffin molds. It yielded 40 mini muffins which helps with portion control and calorie count.
★★★★★
I’m sorry but i had never used the swerve in anything before and i won’t again. Threw out the rest of the pkg. and threw out the muffins. They were awful!! I eat a variety of healthy foods and have really tried to subs healthy flours and sugars but this has turned me off.
Sorry to hear that, maybe your flour was rancid or there was something wrong with your package of swerve? Just wondering since these usually get rave reviews.
Agree Mellisa. Swerve is the only sugar I’ll use in my recipes. All others just have an really bad taste. You need the confectioners swerve in the glaze!!
★★★★★
Oh, Mellissa,
These are a Godsend! We have been keto/low carb for nearly a year, with great results, but were in a breakfast rut. This morning we ound this excellent recipe. We now love these so much… They are zingy, fluffy and moist. You would never know that they’re keto!
Don’t you hate those comments with a lot of substitutions? ;)
Well, we didn’t have fresh lemons, so I used bottled lemon juice plus a teaspoon of orange extract. My husband doesn’t do well with sour cream, so I used half ricotta and half Greek yogurt. And finally, I always use about 80% Swerve with 20% Stevia for baking, as it helps cut the cost.
I found that my streusel wasn’t exactly crumbly. Perhaps if I hadn’t softened it as much, that wouldn’t have been the case. Nonetheless, I added a tablespoon of coconut flour. I scooped a tablespoon of the streusel, and then scooted bits off the spoon with a small measuring spoon. That helped, but was tedious. Still so worth it! I wouldn’t skip the glaze. One of my favorite pre-keto treats was Starbuck’s lemon pound cake. Now I like these BETTER.
God bless you, Mellissa! These are PHENOMENAL!!!
Kelly
★★★★★
I kept stopping to scrape, as per recipe, but burned out my blender. :(
These turned out perfect and are really wonderful! Not dry at all!
★★★★★
To preface my review my muffins didn’t turn out. The inside would not cook and Im not sure if its due to using silicon baking cups, oven temp or how the instruction indicates to dump everything into a blender and mix. I think some of the ingredients should be worked by themselves before to lighten up the batter.
That being said the flavor from these was ah-mazing. It’s one of the first keto desserts Ive made that didn’t end up tasting like almond flour and egg. Once I get it right these are gonna be a go to when I want something sweet.
★★★★
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I followed the instructions and it turned out great! So yummy!!
★★★★★
I just have to add to the rave reviews of these muffins. I have made so many Keto treats that are “just okay” or decent, but these blew everyone’s socks off. Keto, non-keto, kids and the elderly. Just wow. These will always stay in the rotation and I think modifying it to make other flavors would be quite simple too. Absolutely amazing.
★★★★★
If using a loaf pan, do you recommend layering it with parchment paper or greasing it beforehand?
Always parchment if you can, it helps prevent sticking but also makes it very easy to remove from the pan.
Great recipe! Turned out wonderful.
The only thing, I had to scrape the mixture out of my Waring Extreme blender and transfer It to my Kitchen Aid mixer. I was afraid I was going to blow my motor out.
★★★★★
These are wonderfully flavorful. They also freeze well.
★★★★★
My husband and I loved these!!!!
I made the muffins only without the crumble or glaze (but made no changes to the ingredients). Served with fresh raspberries and they were amazing. Soft, moist texture and delicious lemon flavour. I mixed mine in my kitchen aid mixer and cooked in silicone muffin cups. Will definitely be making these again!
★★★★★
I just made these for a second time and they are delicious. This time instead of lemons, I used lime zest and lime juice. I have to say they are even better with lime flavor. Thanks for a great recipe.
I’ll have to try that next time, thanks for the tip!