Easy Lemon Muffins with Chia Seeds

These lemon and chia seed muffins are moist and delicious. The muffins are full of chia seeds which give the muffins a gorgeous nutty flavour.

To make these muffins I used my basic muffin recipe which I use for most of the muffins I bake including my banana muffins. I just adapted the recipe with lemon extract and chia seeds. What I love about these muffins is that they do not taste too sweet as the lemon flavour seems to cut the sweetness. I love to bake sweet treats but there are times when I feel like I want to bake and enjoy treats that don't taste overly sweet and these muffins are perfect for those times.

These muffins can be customised with whatever flavours you want and you can add spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg or ginger. You can also use any type of seeds to give them a nutty flavour. These muffins are an extra special treat to enjoy with a cup of tea or a glass of milk for children. They are also great for breakfast on the go when prepared in advance.

Ingredients for Lemon Muffins with Chia Seeds

• 250g caster sugar
• 85g vegetable spread
• 85ml vegetable oil
• 2 medium eggs
• 130ml whole milk
• 90ml sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tsps lemon extract
• 2 tbsps chia seeds
• ½ teaspoon bicarbonate soda
• 350g self raising flour

Ho to Make Lemon Muffins with Chia Seeds

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/350^of/180^oc and line a baking tray or a 12-cup muffin tin with 12 muffin cases. In a mixing bowl, cream together the vegetable fat spread and caster sugar until smooth and fluffy. Pour in the vegetable oil and the eggs and beat or whisk all the ingredients together.

2. Add the milk, sour cream, vanilla extract, lemon extract and chia seeds then continue to mix. Sift and add the bicarbonate soda and self-raising flour then continue to mix until well combined. Be careful not to over mix.

3. Spoon the mixture carefully into the muffin cases and ensure each case is around two-thirds full. Bake for 20 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Leave the muffins to cool for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to completely cool.

Recipe Tips

• Purchase vegetable fat spread without any hydrogenated fats (trans fat) as these types of fats are thought to be bad for health. You can replace the vegetable spread with butter if prefered.
• I use lemon extract when I baked lemon flavoured muffins as I find that fresh lemons don’t give the muffins enough flavour. You can use real lemons if you prefer but bear in mind you may need to add a bit more flour. You can also use a combination of both.
• Chia seeds are delicious in muffins but you can also use flax seeds (linseeds) or poppy seeds. They will all give the muffins a delicious nutty flavour.
• Be careful not to add too many seeds as I found with too many seeds the muffins fail to rise.
• I used whole milk but that can be substituted with any of milk of choice including almond milk.
• Do not use cupcake cases as these will be too small, ensure you use large cupcake cases or muffin cases.

Nutrition

Calories	Fat	Saturates	Carbs
319kcal	14.6g	3.1g	45.1g
Sugars	Fibre	Protein	Salt
21.3g	1.7g	4.1g	0.39g

Storage

These muffins can be stored in an airtight container and kept in a dry cool place. They can be kept for up to 6 days.

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