Tender black currant muffins bursting with tart and juicy berries, you really won’t be able to resist them.
There are hardly any other cakes as delightful and satisfying as a simple muffin. Soft, comforting crumb spiked with pieces of this or that, whatever you happened to put into your muffin at one particular moment. This time black currants.
These black currant muffins make not only a perfect dessert; you can have them for a quick breakfast, or you can take them on a picnic or to a potluck party. Make them for your kid’s next birthday, and you can be sure there will be no leftovers.
You could also try these Strawberry and White Chocolate Muffins or the Banana Oat Muffins.
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What do you need for the muffins?
Black currants:
- I usually weigh the amount after removing the stems, but weighing them before won’t make a lot of difference. You can be flexible about the amount: something between 150 g/ 5.3 oz/1 cup and 200 g/ 7 oz/ 1 ½ cups is fine.
- You can use either fresh or frozen berries. When using frozen, don’t defrost them; add them to the batter directly from the freezer. Fold them very gently and briefly into the batter. If you stir too much, your muffins will be dense, and the frozen berries will start releasing color, making the muffins blueish.
Will the berries sink into the batter?
- This might be a problem with other recipes, but not this one. Not that I have something against sunken berries, generally. But if they don’t sink is even better.
- It all depends on the consistency of the batter. If the batter is relatively thin, the berries will sink. However, this batter recipe is sturdy, so you will not have that problem.
Can I use other berries?
- Absolutely, you can bake this recipe with any other berries you like, either fresh or frozen. Or with a mix of berries. I’ve already baked them with red currants and with raspberries.
Greek yogurt:
- I often use sour cream when baking muffins, but Greek yogurt works perfectly fine as well. It makes the dessert slightly tangier and healthier as it has fewer calories than sour cream.
Oil:
- Using oil in baking is a great idea; it makes the baked goods moist and keeps them fresh and juicy for longer. Another advantage is that you don’t have to remember to bring the butter to room temperature or to melt it.
- Other ingredients: all-purpose flour, eggs, brown sugar, vanilla extract, baking powder, and salt.
How to bake muffins with black currants?
- Preheat the oven and line a muffin tin with paper liners.
- Beat the sugar and eggs. (1)
- Mix wet ingredients (yogurt, vanilla extract, and oil) and fold in. (2)
- Sift mixed flour, baking powder, and salt over the egg mixture. Fold in until just combined. (3)
- Gently fold in the black currants as well. (4)
- Divide into the cupcake tin and bake for 20-22 minutes.
- Let rest for 5 minutes. Then, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe FAQ
Yes, let cool completely after baking and freeze in freezer bags. Thaw at room temperature; it will not take very long. You can also reheat them in the microwave for about 30 seconds or in the oven.
To reheat them in the oven, wrap them in aluminum foil, place them on a baking tray, and reheat at about 150 degrees Celsius/ 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes or until heated through.
The black currant muffins keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days. They might be less fluffy after a while, but they will still taste delicious.
Storing them in the refrigerator helps keep them for longer, but it tends to make them stodgier.
Tips
- Use a digital kitchen scale when baking; it guarantees for best results (the Amazon affiliate link opens in a new tab). Otherwise, make sure you measure the flour correctly in a cup. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup and scrape off the top, don’t dunk the cup into the bag of flour.
- Don’t overmix the batter, or the muffins will be dense. Mix in the dried ingredients and the black currants until just combined.
- Don’t overfill the muffin cups; they should only be about ¾ full.
- Let the muffins rest in the pan for 5 minutes, this will help them set, and they will not break when you try to remove them.
- However, don’t leave them in the pan for much longer than that, as they could go soggy. Then, transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
More fruity muffins
More black currants recipes
Black Currant Muffins
Ingredients
- 175 g brown sugar 6.2 oz/ 1 cup
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 200 g Greek yogurt 7 oz/ 1 cup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 100 ml neutral-tasting oil like canola, 3.4 fl.oz/ ½ cup
- 250 g all-purpose flour 8.8 oz/ 2 cups
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 200 g black currants 7 oz, about 1 ½ cups
Instructions
- Preparations: Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.
- Make batter: Beat the sugar and eggs with a hand-held mixer until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add yogurt, vanilla extract, and oil and mix in with a spatula. In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Sift over the egg mixture. Fold in carefully until just combined. Don’t overmix, or the muffins will be dense and chewy. Gently fold in the black currants as well.
- Bake: Spoon the batter into the muffin pan. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 20-22 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
- Cool: Let rest in the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Rachel says
Do you think this would be ok with red currants? I just went out to pick my black currants and a bird or squirrel has helped themselves to my whole bush and it’s stripped bare. 😩
Adina says
Sure, it will work, but, of course, the flavor will be different. It's the birds that help themselves to our berries and especially cherries around here. In unlucky years, they manage one cherry tree in a day.
Rosanna O says
Very pleased with the recipe. I like the Greek yogurt inclusion.... makes this a little different from other recipes. Yields a dozen perfect sized muffins.
My only ad lib was some lemon zest which worked out well.
A black currant recipe that's a keeper.
Thanks Adina!
Adina says
Thank you for the feedback, Rosanna.
Paddy says
Tasty!! I added too many black currnts I think so they were quite tart, but the sponge came out beautifully and they're lovely with a bit of yoghurt and honey
Adina says
So happy to hear it, Paddy.