Vanilla Muffins

These vanilla muffins are soft, fluffy, and gently sweet, with a tender crumb that melts as you bite into it. They’re flavored with real vanilla and finished with a simple vanilla glaze that adds just enough sweetness without overpowering the muffin itself. I like to make these when I need something fast! If I’m throwing an impromptu brunch or a friend is coming to visit at the last minute, I’ll whip these up, throw them in the oven, and they’ll be ready within the hour.

Why I love these muffins

I already mentioned how quick they are, but here are some more reasons!

• Soft, plush crumb that stays tender
• Pure vanilla flavor from beans, extract, or paste
• Quick to make with simple ingredients
• Finished with a light vanilla glaze
• Perfect for breakfast, brunch, or snacking

Key Ingredients & Why I Use Them

Milk – Regular milk works great, but buttermilk adds extra tenderness if you have it

Vanilla bean / extract / paste – Use what you have; beans give the most aromatic flavor

Sour cream – Keeps the muffins moist and soft (Greek yogurt works too)

Butter + oil – Butter for flavor, oil for moisture

Sugar – Granulated sugar for structure, coarse sugar for crunch on top, powdered sugar for the glaze

How to make vanilla muffins

You can read the full set of instructions and ingredients at the bottom of this post, but if you want some insider tips, here’s how I make them step by step!

Step 1: Infuse the milk with fresh vanilla

I like to start by infusing the milk with vanilla when I’m using a whole vanilla bean. It’s not required if you’re pressed for time, but it adds a deeper, more fragrant vanilla flavor that really comes through in the finished muffins.

I split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape the seeds into the milk, and add the pod as well. I gently heat the milk just until the first bubbles appear, then remove it from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. Once cooled, I discard the pod.

Step 2: Prepare the wet ingredients

For the batter, I whisk together the infused milk, melted butter, oil, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla (extract or paste if I’m not using a bean). Everything should be at room temperature so it blends smoothly.

Step 3: Prepare the dry ingredients

In a separate bowl, I whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Step 4: Combine

Next, pour the wet ingredients into the dry and gently fold everything together just until combined. I stop as soon as I no longer see dry flour — overmixing will make the muffins dense.

Step 5: Fill the muffin pan

I divide the batter into a lined muffin pan, filling each cavity about ¾ full, then sprinkle coarse sugar on top for a crisp, bakery-style finish.

Step 6: Bake

Just like my Bakery-Style Blueberry Muffins, I like tall, domed muffins. To do that, you have to start them hot. Bake the muffins at 425°F for 7 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 350°F and continue baking for 12–15 minutes. Once the edges are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, they’re done!

I let the muffins cool completely on a wire rack before glazing.

Step 7: Make the vanilla glaze

The glaze is simple: powdered sugar, a splash of milk, and vanilla. I whisk until smooth, adjusting with a little more sugar or milk as needed. A small amount of liquid goes a long way — the glaze should drizzle easily but not run off the muffins.

Step 8: Glaze the muffins

Once the muffins are cool, I drizzle the glaze over the tops and let it set. Then you’re ready to eat!

Variations for this recipe

This is a basic vanilla muffin recipe; you can add other elements and ingredients to it to spruce up the flavor. Here are some ideas:

• Add chocolate chips to the batter, up to 1/2 cup. You can use white chocolate, milk, or dark. Alternatively, add chopped chocolate instead.
• Add chopped up Oreos.
• Swirl some Nutella or Biscoff in the batter before baking.
• Add blueberries, raspberries, or chopped strawberries to the batter. Check out my White Chocolate Raspberry Muffins
• Add some nuts of your choosing, like my Banana Nut Muffins.

Storage

These muffins are best the day they’re made, but they store well. Keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few days, or freeze them tightly wrapped for longer storage. Thaw at room temperature before serving.

FAQ

Try some of my other muffins

If you enjoyed these, you might also like my Nutella Muffins, Strawberry Muffins, Peanut Butter Banana Muffins, or Lemon Blueberry Muffins.

Share your muffins with me!

If you make these vanilla muffins, I’d love to see them — tag me or leave a comment and tell me how they turned out.

Vanilla Muffins

Camila Hurst

These Vanilla Muffins are infused with the delicate flavor of vanilla. They are fluffy, soft, and easy to whip up. And they feature a delicious sweet vanilla glaze on top.

5 from 1 vote

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 45 minutes mins

Cook Time 18 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 3 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 16 servings

Calories 230 kcal

Ingredients

 

Vanilla Muffin Recipe

• 1 cup milk 240 ml
• 1 vanilla bean (optional, can be substituted for vanilla extract)
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter melted (84 grams)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil 60 ml
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• 1/4 cup sour cream 60 grams
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 318 grams
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams

Topping

• 1/3 cup coarse sugar

Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1/2 vanilla bean or 1/4 tsp vanilla

Instructions

 

Vanilla Muffin Recipe

• Pre-heat the oven to 425ºF.
• Grease or line 16 muffin tins with baking paper liners.

Infusing the milk

• To make these muffins, we will infuse the milk with vanilla beans. If you don’t want to use vanilla beans, that’s fine, simply skip this step and add the milk normally to the recipe as it’s explained below.
• You can just add the vanilla extract if you don’t have vanilla beans, or don’t want to add them.
• Pour the milk in a small saucepan. Split the vanilla bean in half. Scrape the seeds into the milk. Also add the pod in there.
• Bring the milk and vanilla beans to a boil. Turn the heat off when you see the first bubbles. Set the pan aside until the milk comes to room temperature. Once the milk cools down, remove the vanilla pod.

Making the batter

• Add the cooled down milk, melted butter, vegetable oil, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract to a bowl. Whisk until completely incorporated.
• In another large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar together.
• Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients. Mix with a rubber spatula until the batter comes together. Don’t over mix or the muffins can turn out dry or dense.
• As soon as you see no more dry ingredients stop mixing immediately.
• Divide the batter between the muffin tins lined with cupcake papers. You want to fill each one up until almost full, about 3/4 full.
• Sprinkle about 1 tsp of coarse sugar over each muffin. You can use turbinado, or raw sugar, there’s a delicious vanilla sugar by Nielsen Massey, that is coarse, delicious and has vanilla aroma and taste.

Baking

• Bake in the pre-heated 425ºF oven for 7 minutes.
• Lower the temperature to 350ºF and bake for another 12 to 15 minutes until golden around the edges, and a toothpick inserted in the muffin should come out clean.
• Let the muffins cool down before serving.

Glaze

• Place the powdered sugar in a small bowl.
• Add the milk, and the vanilla bean seeds, or 1/4 tsp of vanilla extract.
• Whisk until incorporated. If the glaze is too thick, add a bit more milk. And if the glaze is too thin, add more powdered sugar to make it thicker.
• Pour the glaze over each cooled down muffin.

Serving and storage

• The muffins will be the freshest the day they are made. But they can be stored in the fridge, or freezer.
• To store the muffins in the fridge, place them in an airtight container. Keep them in the fridge for up to 2 days. Before serving, let them come to room temperature fully, or place briefly in a toaster oven before serving. The muffins stay well in the fridge for up to 4 days.
• To freeze the muffins simply place them in a freezer bag or in an air-tight container and freeze for up to 2 months.
• To thaw, let them sit at room temperature for about 1 hour, or in the fridge overnight.
• You can also wrap the muffin in paper towel and microwave for 15 second intervals to thaw.
• The other option is to wrap each muffin in foil, and bake them in a 350ºF oven for about 10 to 15 minutes, until completely thawed in the center.

Notes

Vanilla beans: You don’t have to use vanilla beans, you can use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste in the recipe.

Infused milk: If not using vanilla beans, no need to heat up the milk. Skip that step.

Variations: Add about 1/2 cup of milk, white, or dark chocolate chips, fresh or frozen blueberries, sliced strawberries, raspberries for a flavor variation.

Sour cream: Can be substituted for greek yogurt if desired.

Milk: If not infusing the milk, you can use buttermilk instead to substitute.

Nutrition

Serving: 1muffinCalories: 230kcal

Keyword muffins, vanilla

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