Adapted from this blueberry muffins recipe, this blueberry muffin bread is soft, moist, and loaded with blueberries. Since there’s no individual muffins, this muffin batter goes from the mixing bowl to the oven in minutes. Though this quick bread is outstanding on its own, a swirl of blueberry jam and sprinkle of crumble topping create an outstanding crust.
I’m always on the lookout for quick and easy recipes that double as breakfast and snack. Banana bread, morning glory muffins, and zucchini bread are my usual defaults, but in an effort to break out of routine, blueberry muffin bread is now in the line-up.
What is Blueberry Muffin Bread?
Glad you asked. Blueberry muffin bread is exactly what it sounds like… blueberry muffins baked as bread. This is a quick bread recipe, so there’s no yeast required. Blueberry muffin bread is soft, moist, and completely overloaded with blueberries. Enjoy it warm from the oven or straight out of the refrigerator. It also freezes beautifully!
Blueberry Muffins in a Loaf Pan
Any muffin recipe yielding around 12 standard size muffins doubles as a quick bread recipe. Today we’re using my blueberry muffins, which is actually my master muffin recipe. This particular muffin batter creates 1,000s of muffin varieties including cranberry orange muffins, peach muffins, and apple cinnamon muffins. For the muffin bread, I added a little more flour to ensure this was a nice big loaf.
Now we can create plenty of quick bread recipes too! For example, swap blueberries for chocolate chips and you have an easy chocolate chip quick bread.
Blueberry Muffin Bread Ingredients
Like pound cake and biscuits, blueberry muffin bread is another example of how extremely basic ingredients easily transform into an absolutely delicious recipe.
- Butter: Butter is the base and produces a soft cakey crumb. If desired, swap with solid coconut oil.
- Sugar: Use a mix of granulated and brown sugar for flavor. A dry unrefined sugar, such as coconut sugar, works too. I don’t recommend a liquid sweetener.
- Eggs: 2 eggs work their magic providing structure and overall richness.
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Plain low fat or full fat sour cream or yogurt add exceptional moisture, as well as the necessary acid for the baking soda.
- Vanilla & Salt: Flavor flavor flavor.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is the workhorse of quick breads like apple cinnamon bread and zucchini bread. I don’t typically bake with gluten free flours, but let me know if you try any that work.
- Leaveners: Both baking soda and baking powder add necessary lift. Remember the differences in baking powder vs baking soda and why we use both in some recipes?
- Milk: The blueberry muffin bread would be flat and heavy without milk.
2 Optional Extras!
The blueberry muffin bread is completely awesome on its own. But if you want to take things up a notch, add one or both:
- Blueberry Jam: Swirl 2 Tablespoons of blueberry jam into the batter.
- Crumble Topping: Simply combine all-purpose flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter. Sprinkle on top before baking.
The pictured bread includes both. See my recipe notes for detailed instructions.
Enjoying your slices with a swipe of homemade honey butter is fantastic here, too!
Blueberry Muffin Bread
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 1 loaf
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Adapted from my favorite Blueberry Muffins, this blueberry muffin bread is soft, moist, and loaded with blueberries. Since there’s no individual muffins, this muffin batter goes from the mixing bowl to the oven in minutes. Though this quick bread is outstanding on its own, a swirl of blueberry jam and sprinkle of crumble topping create an outstanding crust.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flourย (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) packedย light or dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (80ml) milk, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups (210g) fresh blueberries*
- optional: 2 Tablespoons blueberry jam and/or crumb topping (see recipe note)
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Grease a 9ร5-inch loaf pan or coat with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. On medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla extract on medium speed until combined. With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients and milk into the wet ingredients and beat until no flour pockets remain. Fold in the blueberries.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan. See note if adding streusel or blueberry jam swirl. Bake for 60-65 minutes, loosely covering the bread with aluminum foil at the 30 minute mark to help prevent the top and sides from getting too brown. A toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf will come out clean when the bread is done. Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack.
- Cover and store bread at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Cool baked muffin bread completely. Tightly wrap the loaf or slices (individually or grouped) in 2 layers of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Place wrapped bread in a large freezer-friendly storage bag or reusable container. Freeze for up to 3-4 months. Thaw wrapped or unwrapped in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) |ย 9ร5-inch Loaf Pan | Cooling Rack
- Sour Cream: Plain yogurt is a great substitute for sour cream. Unsweetened applesauce or mashed banana may also be used.
- Blueberries: Fresh blueberries are best. I do not suggest frozen blueberries. If you need to use them, do not thaw, add another 2 Tablespoons of flour to the dry ingredients, and extend the bake time.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. See my post on the importance of room temperature ingredients for more information.
- Blueberry Jam or Crumble Topping: If desired, swirl 2 Tablespoons blueberry jam (or any flavor) into the top of the loaf before baking. A crumble topping adds a lovely crunch. Simply combineย 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, then using a fork, mix in 2 Tablespoons melted unsalted butter until crumbles form. Sprinkle over loaf before baking.
- Adapted from Blueberry Muffins with a *little* extra flour and milk to produce a nice large loaf.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I’d like to add some lemon zest/juice to the batter – how much would you recommend?
Thank you!
Hi Sally, We recommend adding the zest from 1 lemon and 2 Tablespoons lemon juice. Make sure you remove 2 Tablespoons of milk to make up for the lemon juice. Enjoy!
So scrumptious! Very delicate and moist.
This one was a bit of a mind game. It looks like a loaf of bread but it tastes like a muffin, exactly as the title of this recipe implies. Not too sweet which is wonderful. I was happy to see that the loaf itself held its shape. Can’t wait for company to come by so I can share it. Great recipe! Follow it exactly and you will not be disappointed.
This was absolutely delicious. I donโt know if anyone will get a chance to taste it because I canโt stop eating it. I had one problem. All the blueberries sunk to the bottom of the loaf. Still delicious but looks a little odd. Any suggestions?
Hi Nancy, Tossing the blueberries in a little flour helps prevent them from sinking. Are you using frozen? They are more prone to sinking since they are heavier. If using frozen, add 2 more tablespoons of flour to the dry ingredients to help.
Hi, Can I substitute strawberries in this bread? I love blueberries but the Grand kids love strawberries! Thanks
Hi Angela, fresh strawberries work great! Chop them to be roughly the same size of blueberries. No other changes! We also have a strawberry bread recipe you might like.
My husband was wanting muffins and I saw this recipe in my email. Not only is this much easier than making individual muffins, it tastes incredible! I absolutely recommend using the jam (I used mixed berry) and the crumb topping. My husband said the topping was the best part. Excellent recipe and very easyโฆ
Not sure if I reviewed yet but this is amazing! My husband likes making a loaf rather than the muffins and this was perfect. Moist and yummy!
Oven temp and cook time for a stoneware loaf pan 9×13, please.
Hi Deb, you would need more batter for a 9×13 pan. Hereโs everything you need to know about cake pan sizes and conversions. We’re unsure of the bake time that would be needed.
Hi
How eggs can be substituted in this recipe?
Thank you
Hi Varsha, we haven’t tested this recipe with any egg substitutes, but let us know if you do.
Looks GREAT!
Any adjustments for high altitude- I’m at 5,000 feet in Colorado.
Hi Susan, we wish we could help, but we have no experience baking at high altitude. Some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
I’m at ~6500 ft, and I just made this tonight. The only changes I made were halving both the baking soda and baking powder and baking at a higher heat (375F) for a little less time (50 min). I did end up having to bake a little longer to finish it off, but I went too far, so the loaf was a little overdone. I’ll be tweaking my bake time, but otherwise the loaf tastes great!
Wanting to try this recipe for my daughter. I would also like to add some raspberries along with the blueberries. What changes would you recommend for this to work?
Hi Wendy, you can replace some of the blueberries with fresh raspberries. Happy baking!
Will the temperature need to change if using a glass loaf pan?
Hi Diane! The bake time may be slightly longer inaccurate glass pan.
I am making this recipe tomorrow
in the USA pan you recommended.
Pan described as non stick.
Should I still spray with a nonstick spray?
Hi Brenda! Yes, we would still spray with a nonstick spray (like Pam).
Do you think this recipe would work with dairy free alternatives? Milk (I typically use coconut), dairy free butter, and dairy free sour cream or coconut yogurt?
Hi Chloe, we haven’t tested it with dairy-free alternatives, but don’t see any particular reason you couldn’t give it a go! Let us know if you try anything!
Should I use whole milk?
Hi Sam, sure! Any milk, dairy or nondairy, works.
I made this Blueberry Muffin Bread for a get-together with friends. It was a huge hit! There were no leftovers. I will definitely be this making this again.
I loved the texture and flavor but my crumble topping sink into the middle. What do you do to prevent that from happening?
Hi Alena, was your crumble overworked by chance? You’ll want it to form larger crumbles. If it seems pasty, then it has been overworked and will sink when baked. It can also be helpful to chill the crumble in the refrigerator for a few minutes before adding to the top of the batter. The colder the topping, the less likely it is to sink. Hope this helps for next time!
Oh my goodness! It has been over 30 years since I made blueberry muffins. This recipe is perfect! I used ingredients that I had in my fridge so I subbed out buttermilk for milk and vanilla Greek yogurt instead of sour cream and a full pint of fresh blueberries.I sprinkled the top of the loaf with larger gourmet granulated sugar before I baked it to add a sweet crunch. The blueberry loaf popped out of the Pyrex pan easily after 15 minutes. Yum!
Question: IF I am not using the crumb topping, or Jam, would you still lower the oven rack ?
Hi GMJ, yes, we would still lower the oven rack. Enjoy!
Thanks Lexi for the quick reply. This turned out very well. I followed the recipe as written. But did not use the jam or listed optional topping . Instead I just sprinkled the top with 1.5 teaspoons of a course sparkling sugar. I bake by gram wt
Mine tested done in 58 min. However, the bread rose nicely, but sunk very slightly. Any thoughts as to why ?. Baking soda, and baking powder are both fresh, and stored in air tight containers. Berries were fresh picked a few days ago and dusted. They did not sink much…just a bit.
Hi GMJ! The bread was likely slightly under-baked. We would try a few extra minutes in the oven next time!
Delicious but it sank in the middle due to excessive amount of baking soda when using unbleached flour. Will try just 1/4 teaspoon baking soda next time.
Can you substitute Greek yogurt for the sour cream?
Absolutely.
Hi Sally: I would like to make the lemon blueberry muffins as a loaf. What adjustments would be needed to do that?
Hi Cathy, this recipe would work well in a 9ร5-inch loaf pan. You can use the baking time and directions from this blueberry muffin bread as a guide.
My mom loved this recipe! Instead of sour cream, I used 1/4 applesauce, 1/4 greek yogurt. I halved the sugar amount, and used florida crystals turbinado sugar instead. We also used blackberries instead of blueberries. Didn’t have baking powder in hand, so I used 1/4 tsp baking soda instead. We did add eggs one at a time, but the butter-egg mixture started splitting. I also had to increase heat temp to 370F because our air fryer oven is weak. In the end, it tasted great!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it!
Hi Sally, love your recipes. Im going to make three of your breads for gifts. I want to put them in small loaf pans .Should I change any thing or just the timing. Do you think three loaves per bread?Thanks for your help!
Hi Kathleen, absolutely! Weโre unsure of the exact bake time, as mini loaf pan sizes can greatly vary. It will be shorter, but keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness. Hope theyโre a hit!
Will salted butter work?
Hi Lee, yes, you can use that–just decrease the amount of added salt you use. Enjoy!
Can you bake this is a Bundt cake pan?
Hi Valerie, we havenโt tested this recipe in a Bundt pan, but that should work fine. It will be a shorter Bundt, or you could try doubling it for a larger Bundt cake. Weโre unsure of the exact bake time, so keep a close eye on it and use a toothpick to test for doneness.
I just made this in a Bundt pan and was enough batter without doubling it.