Cherry Muffins

These moist and delicious cherry muffins are just bursting with summer cherries in every bite. Prepared with fresh, sweet, red cherries, plus a touch of buttermilk and sour cream, this fruity muffin recipe is topped with an almond streusel and a drizzle of buttermilk glaze for that bakery-style flavor!

Bake shop-style muffins bursting with fresh cherries

As a gal proudly born and raised in the beautiful state of Michigan, aka “the cherry capital of the world,” I absolutely cherish fresh, sweet, juicy cherries.

Every year, as summer makes its way in, I get very excited when I start to see the abundant cello bags of fresh, plump cherries in the produce section of the markets, and begin dreaming of all the ways to put these gorgeous gems to delicious use!

A few of my favorite comfy-cozy sweet treats to make with fresh cherries are my mini cherry galettes, my glossy and luscious cherry jam (so irresistible!), my buttery cherry turnovers, and my bubbly cherry cobbler with cream biscuit topping.

Each cherry season, I like to think up new ways to make use of these healthy and sweet stone fruits. This year my cravings turned to these cherry muffins, so deliciously moist and tender, and brimming with the aroma of cherry and almond!

This cherry muffin recipe is a bakery-style sweet treat, complete with a lightly crunchy streusel and sliced almonds, plus a light buttermilk glaze to drizzle over top. Each bite is seriously bursting with lots of juicy and jammy fresh, red cherries, with one muffin never being enough!

My recipe for cherry muffins

The star of these muffins is the fresh cherries, with the rest of the ingredients acting as support to help enhance the flavor and texture so that each bite is wonderfully fruity, juicy, moist and tender.

When I was measuring out the amount of fresh cherries I wanted to use in this recipe, I originally thought that 1 ½ cups’ worth would be sufficient. But then, at the last minute, I decided to “up” the amount to 2 cups.

At first, I wondered if I should have stuck with my initial instinct of 1 ½ cups, as it seemed like, perhaps, too many cherries were in the batter...

But once the muffins were baked, I really loved how loaded with fresh bits of cherries each bite was, and decided to stick with the greater quantity to really make these cherry-licious!

Some other ingredients I added to the muffin batter were a touch of buttermilk and sour cream for tenderness and richness, plus both vanilla extract and pure almond extract for the perfect sweet aroma that highlights those cherry notes.

Typically, I like to use either butter or oil in my muffin recipes, usually opting for butter in fruity muffin recipes such as my lemon blueberry muffins or my lemon poppy seed muffins.

And I typically like to use oil for muffins such as my morning glory muffins or my double chocolate chip muffins. Oil has more fat than butter and creates a texture that works really well for these types of muffins.

But with these cherry muffins, I wanted to experiment with both...

I wanted to try out using half butter (for that flavor and aroma), as well as half oil (I used neutral avocado oil, which keeps the muffins moist longer), and the results were fantastic.

The cherry muffins had a great “rise” to them and a touch of buttery aroma and flavor, with the oil helping to keep them moist a little longer than butter alone would have.

As for the topping, because almonds are a terrific partner with cherries, I topped these cherry muffins with a sweet streusel as well as raw, sliced almonds for crunch, then finished everything off with a small drizzle of buttermilk glaze.

The result is a moist, super flavorful and fruit-filled muffin, which is sure to be on repeat in your kitchen this cherry season, just as it will be in ours!

Here's a sneak peek at my cherry muffin recipe:

(or just jump to the full recipe...)

1. To get started, I allow my pitted and chopped fresh cherries to sit on a paper towel-lined plate or shallow bowl to help absorb any excess juices.
2. Next, I prepare my streusel topping, and keep that cold in the fridge while I prep the rest of the ingredients.
3. Then, I separately whisk together my dry ingredients and wet ingredients, and combine those, folding them together lightly.
4. Next, I fold in the chopped, fresh cherries, taking care not to crush them and make the batter too red.
5. The batter is then spooned into prepared muffin cups, topped with streusel, and the muffins are baked for roughly 22 minutes.
6. Once cooled, I drizzle over the easy buttermilk glaze, allow that to set, then enjoy the cherry muffins!

Recipe

Cherry Muffins

by Ingrid Beer

Print Recipe

These bakery-style cherry muffins are bursting with fresh, red cherries in every bite, topped with almond streusel and buttermilk glaze!

Category: Dessert
Cuisine: American

Yield: 12 muffins

Nutrition info: 302 calories (per muffin)

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 22 minutes
Total time: 42 minutes

Cherry Muffins Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh, red cherries, pitted and roughly chopped
• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup buttermilk, room temp
• 2 large, whole eggs, room temp
• ¼ cup sour cream, room temp
• 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 4 tablespoons avocado oil

Almond Streusel Topping Ingredients:

• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• Pinch salt
• ¼ cup raw, sliced almonds, for topping

Glaze Ingredients:

• ½ cup powdered sugar, sifted to remove lumps
• 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons buttermilk

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°, and line a 12-well muffin tin with paper liners.
2. Begin by gathering and prepping your streusel topping ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
3. To make the streusel topping, add the sugar to a small bowl, and pour in the melted butter. Use a fork to combine to a “wet sand”-like consistency. Add in the flour and pinch of salt, and use the fork to continue to combine these ingredients together until they form a soft, wet crumble. Place the streusel topping into the fridge to chill and firm slightly.
4. Next, gather and prep your cherry muffins ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
5. Place a couple of layers of paper towel into a shallow bowl or onto a larger plate, and add the chopped, fresh cherries onto the paper towels. Allow the cherries to sit on the paper towels for about 5 to 10 minutes to help absorb excess juices from them.
6. Meanwhile, add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large bowl, and whisk these dry ingredients together to incorporate them. Set aside for a moment.
7. Then, in a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs, sour cream, vanilla and almond extracts, melted butter and avocado oil until smooth.
8. Pour these wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and using a rubber spatula, fold the wet ingredients in until almost fully combined, with a few lumps still present. Add in the chopped cherries, and gently and carefully fold those into the batter, taking care not to crush them too much, as the batter will become pink. (The batter will be on the thicker side, which is as it should be.)
9. Remove the streusel topping from the fridge, and if solidified, break it up into a small crumble. Set aside for just a moment.
10. Next, spoon the cherry muffin batter evenly into the prepared muffin cups, filling them well, and sprinkle over top of each some of the streusel topping.
11. Then, sprinkle over that a few sliced, raw almonds, and place the muffins into the oven to bake for 6 minutes at 425°.
12. After 6 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350°, and continue to bake the muffins for roughly 16 minutes more, or until a skewer inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean (for a total of about 22 minutes).
13. Allow the cherry muffins to cool in the muffin tin for about 5 minutes, then carefully remove them and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack.
14. Meanwhile, gather and prep your glaze ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
15. To make the glaze, add the powdered sugar and buttermilk to a small bowl, and whisk until creamy and blended. Set aside until the muffins are cool.
16. Once the cherry muffins are cool, drizzle a small amount of the glaze over top of each muffin, and allow the glaze to set for about 10 to 15 minutes before enjoying the muffins.

Tips & Tidbits for my cherry muffins recipe:

• Fresh cherries are best when in season: These cherry muffins are ideal to bake up during cherry season, when fresh, sweet red cherries are abundant. Their flavor really comes through, and the muffins are sweet and juicy, with lots of fruit throughout. But in a pinch, you can substitute frozen red cherries (do not thaw them first; keep them frozen), or use canned, unsweetened cherries that have been well blotted of excess liquid.
• Raw, sliced almonds for crunch: Almonds are a terrific partner with cherries, and I love the bit of crunch on top that the raw, sliced almonds provide. They get a little toasted from the oven, and that's why you need raw almonds here. But you can certainly skip the almonds if desired, even the almond extract, if nut allergies are a concern.
• How to store these cherry muffins: These muffins are best the day of, for the freshest texture and flavor, but they keep well for about a day or two. I like to store my cherry muffins on a plate with a cake dome over top, covering them, but you can keep them on a platter if desired, loosely covered in plastic wrap. They actually stay moist for a while. You can even freeze them for later enjoyment once they're completely cooled and glazed.

Craving more sweet and cozy muffin recipes like this one? Check out my recipe for Lemon Blueberry Muffins, Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins, Morning Glory Muffins, Banana Nut Muffins, Apple Muffins, or even my recipe for Double Chocolate Chip Muffins!