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A close-up of freshly baked oatmeal strawberry muffins with sourdough discard, featuring golden-brown tops and vibrant red strawberry pieces.
Sourdough Discard Muffins

Low-Sugar Oatmeal Strawberry Muffins With Sourdough Discard

If you love fruit-filled, nourishing muffins with bursts of berry flavor, these sourdough oatmeal strawberry muffins are for you!

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
Jump to Recipe Rate Recipe
Recipe Index | Ferment | Sourdough Discard | Sourdough Discard Muffins

Low-Sugar Oatmeal Strawberry Muffins With Sourdough Discard

If you love fruit-filled, nourishing muffins with bursts of berry flavor, these sourdough oatmeal strawberry muffins are for you!

A close-up of freshly baked oatmeal strawberry muffins with sourdough discard, featuring golden-brown tops and vibrant red strawberry pieces.

Oatmeal Strawberry Muffins

These sourdough oatmeal strawberry muffins are the perfect balance of wholesome and fruity. Made with fresh strawberries, hearty oats, and sourdough discard (or active starter), they offer a delicious way to reduce starter waste while creating a tender, flavorful muffin perfect for spring.

Whether you’re a seasoned sourdough baker or just looking for a nutritious breakfast treat, these muffins will quickly become a favorite in your kitchen.

A ceramic mixing bowl filled with dry ingredients for oatmeal strawberry muffins, including flour, rolled oats, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
A person wearing a floral blouse pours a bowl of wet ingredients—melted butter, sourdough starter, lemon juice, whole milk, and eggs—into a larger mixing bowl.

Strawberry Muffins with Sourdough Discard

Why use sourdough in muffins? Sourdough isn’t just for bread! Incorporating sourdough starter or discard into muffins enhances flavor and texture while making them easier to digest.

Sourdough naturally contains lactic acid bacteria, which break down gluten, fructans, and phytic acid, making baked goods easier to digest. This can be especially beneficial for those with gluten or FODMAP sensitivities.

Unlike traditional sourdough bread, muffins aren’t typically long-fermented, but you can ferment the batter overnight in the fridge for even better digestibility. Mix the batter, cover it, and refrigerate it overnight before baking.

A mixing bowl filled with thick, textured oatmeal strawberry muffin batter, speckled with vibrant red strawberry pieces.
A person spoons oatmeal strawberry muffin batter into parchment-lined muffin cups.

The Key to Fluffy, Moist Muffins: Don’t Overmix!

One of the most important muffin-making tips? Avoid overmixing the batter.

When you overmix, you develop the gluten strands in the flour too much, leading to dense, chewy muffins instead of light, tender ones.

How to Mix Muffin Batter Properly:

  • Add the fresh strawberries in with the dry ingredients (trust me).
  • Gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together.
  • Stop mixing when you see some streaks of flour. A few lumps and dry spots is ideal!

My other muffin baking tip is always to use a thin metal aluminum muffin tin with paper liners. A metal muffin tin works way better than a silicone muffin pan.

Why Fresh Strawberries Work Best in Muffins

Using fresh strawberries instead of freeze-dried or dehydrated ones gives these muffins a juicy, naturally sweet burst of flavor. Frozen strawberries can also work great in this recipe!

  • Fresh strawberries add moisture and a soft, jammy texture to each bite.
  • Chop them into small pieces so they distribute evenly throughout the batter.
  • Toss them with the dry ingredients before mixing the batter to prevent them from sinking to the bottom.

Sourdough Strawberry Muffins

This strawberry muffin recipe comes together in less than 10 minutes and only takes 30 minutes to bake. While I call for strawberries in the recipe, you can totally use any berry you want in this recipe! Just evenly sub for the strawberries in the recipe. Here are some of my favorite berries and berry combos. Let me know in the comments if you try any of these!

  • Blueberries
  • Blackberries
  • Frozen cranberries
  • Blackberry and blueberry mix
  • Raspberry
  • Raspberry and strawberry mix

Things You May Need:

12-Well Muffin Pan

12-Well Muffin Pan

A product image of a counter top oven showing the front face

Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro

French Sourdough Starter

French Sourdough Starter

three sourdough spurtles made of wood

Teakwood Stirring Spatula for Sourdough

Handmade Mixing Bowls

Handmade Mixing Bowls

Storing Oatmeal Strawberry Muffins

Storing baked muffins properly ensures they remain fresh and delicious. Here are some tips on how to store them effectively:

  • Room Temperature Storage:
    • Allow muffins to cool completely.
    • Place them in an airtight container lined with paper towels to absorb excess moisture.
    • Store at room temperature for up to 3-4 days.
  • Refrigeration:
    • If the weather is hot or humid, consider refrigerating the strawberry muffins.
    • Wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap to prevent drying out.
    • Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.
  • Freezing Muffins:
    • Cool muffins completely before freezing.
    • Wrap each muffin tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
    • Place wrapped muffins in a freezer-safe bag or container.
    • Label it with the date and freeze it for up to 3 months.
  • Reheating Frozen Muffins:
    • Remove the desired number of strawberry muffins from the freezer.
    • Unwrap and place on a microwave-safe plate.
    • Microwave on high for 20-30 seconds or until warm.
    • Alternatively, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and heat muffins for 10-15 minutes until warmed.
A sliced oatmeal strawberry muffin showcasing its tender, moist interior with chunks of fresh strawberries nestled in the fluffy crumb.

More Sourdough Discard Muffins

  • Double Chocolate Cherry Muffins with Sourdough Discard
  • Sourdough Peach Cobbler Muffins with Brown Sugar Crumble
  • How to Bake Sourdough Discard Banana Nut Muffins
  • Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins with Sourdough Discard
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A close-up of freshly baked oatmeal strawberry muffins with sourdough discard, featuring golden-brown tops and vibrant red strawberry pieces.
Sourdough Discard Muffins

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Low-Sugar Oatmeal Strawberry Muffins With Sourdough Discard

If you love fruit-filled, nourishing muffins with bursts of berry flavor, these sourdough oatmeal strawberry muffins are for you! Whether you immediately bake or enjoy them after a long fermentation in the fridge, they’re moist, flavorful, and packed with gut-healthy ingredients.

  • Prep: 10 minutes
  • Cook: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced
  • 1/2 cup grass-fed butter, room temperature soft
  • 1/2 cup sourdough starter, room temperature*
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 tsp lemon extract
  • 1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
  • 2 eggs, room temperature
  • Extra fresh strawberries for topping

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350° F.
  2. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.
  3. In a medium-large mixing bowl, combine the flour, oats, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and strawberries.
  4. In a separate bowl, combine the butter, sourdough starter, lemon juice, lemon extract, whole milk, and two eggs. Whisk until combined.
  5. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until everything is just combined. Do not over-mix. The batter should be thick, and it’s okay if there are clumps.
  6. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins. Optional— top with fresh strawberry slices.
  7. Bake for about 30 minutes total. Rotate the pan halfway through.
  8. Allow cooling for about 15 minutes.

Notes

  • You can use active starter or discard from the fridge. Either way it is “discarded” into the recipe since it is not used for rise. Make sure it’s room temp before mixing into the wet ingredients for best results.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a 5-star review below if you loved it! Tag @cultured.guru on Instagram

 

Nutrition information is auto-calculated and estimated as close as possible. We are not responsible for any errors. We have tested the recipe for accuracy, but your results may vary.

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Kaitlynn Fenley Author, Educator, Food Microbiologist
Kaitlynn is a food microbiologist and fermentation expert teaching people how to ferment foods and drinks at home.
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welcome!

hey i’m kaitlynn, i’m a microbiologist and together with my husband jon we are cultured guru.

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Oxymel is a medicinal herbal elixir, made through Oxymel is a medicinal herbal elixir, made through the fermentation of herbs in honey and raw vinegar. 

It’s my favorite time-tested herbal remedy that’s over 2,400 years old. It originated in ancient Greece and Persia, where it was considered a gift from the gods.

Hippocrates, the famous ancient Greek physician, was a staunch advocate of oxymel and incorporated it into his medical practices. Depending on the herbs used to make it, oxymel can help with many ailments and improve health in various ways!

In a world where everyone is asking AI, I set out to learn about the best herbal combinations from real, practiced experts in herbalism.

I felt so much joy collaborating with these herbalists @openspace.center @karlytheherbalist @lilianaruizhealy and @the.brettivy to recommend the best medicinal herb combinations in this recipe!

You can get my oxymel recipe from the link in my bio!
Okay, fine, it’s not the only reason, but it’s Okay, fine, it’s not the only reason, but it’s a reaallllyy good reason to buy another pumpkin!

My new sourdough pumpkin bagel recipe is up on our blog!
https://cultured.guru

these roasted pumpkin bagels can be made savory or sweet! Both options are included in the recipe and are perfect for fall sourdough baking. 

The savory is a pumpkin, parmesan, onion (leek) flavor, and the sweet is a cinnamon brown sugar pumpkin flavor! ✨

You can also choose to use active starter or discard with yeast. It’s up to you! 

Let me know if you try baking these this weekend! 🍂🎃🥯
#bagels #pumpkin
Google “golden beet kvass recipe” and you’ll Google “golden beet kvass recipe” and you’ll see mine, it’s the first one. 🫧✨

I only like to learn fermentation from two places: from knowing the microbes and from cultural recipes passed down in families.

I originally learned how to make kvass from a Russian food blogger, named Peter. @petersfoodadventures He grew up drinking beet kvass made by his grandfather. It doesn’t get more historically/culturally accurate than that

After learning from Peter’s blog, I developed my golden beet kvass recipe, with some slight variations of my own and a secondary fermentation to carbonate it. (Peter is credited and linked in the recipe blog too, so you can check out his original beet kvass recipe!)

Anyways, beet kvass is a delicious, sweet, bubbly beverage, not a salty lacto-ferment 🤗🫧✨

#beets #fermentation
dont want to be dramatic, buttttt these sourdough dont want to be dramatic, buttttt these sourdough apple carrot muffins are the best thing I bake every fall! 🍎🥕they’re perfectly spiced, soft, sweet and moist,  and I love to top them with a little icing. If you’re looking for a fall sweet that isn’t toooo sweet and is still healthy,  the full recipe is available on my website  https://cultured.guru and linked right in my bio. happy baking!
nuance is needed in the alcohol conversation. Pe nuance is needed in the alcohol conversation. 

People in Blue Zones , particularly in Mediterranean regions, often drink 1-2 glasses of wine daily with meals and among friends, enjoying organic wines rich in antioxidants. 

This contrasts with new studies that show “no safe level of alcohol.” These new studies lump together all types of alcohol (including hard liquor) consumed in unhealthy ways, without distinction of specific lifestyle and beverage consumption environment.

I think context is key. Wine is not necessarily a reason for longevity in Blue Zones, but it is a small, supportive component of a larger lifestyle that includes a fiber-rich diet, regular physical activity, strong social connections, and a sense of purpose. Consumption is limited to about 1-2 glasses per day and is almost always enjoyed with food and in the company of friends and family. 

This turns wine into a ritual that promotes social bonds. Not a toxic coping mechanism.

And type of alcohol does matter. Many Blue Zone populations, especially in the Mediterranean, drink natural, organic, or locally grown and brewed wines, which have a much higher antioxidant content and a lower sugar, pesticide, and additive content. 

Because of all of this, I think more nuance is needed in the alcohol conversation. 

🫧Get my apple and pear hard cider recipes on my website! https://cultured.guru 
🍎You can GOOGLE “cultured guru cider” to easily get to all my cider recipes! 
🍐You can always find all my recipes in my website recipe index too!

(Disclaimer: I am very well aware of the epidemiology that states no amount of alcohol is safe. In the general population, especially in America, drinking patterns, social patters, and lifestyle are all predominately unhealthy. So yes, for the general, average population no amount of alcohol can be considered safe.)
My new pumpkin bagel recipe is up on our blog! htt My new pumpkin bagel recipe is up on our blog!
https://cultured.guru

My sourdough roasted pumpkin bagels recipe can be made savory or sweet! Both options are included in the recipe and are perfect for fall sourdough baking. 

The savory is a pumpkin parmesan onion bagel, and the sweet is a cinnamon brown sugar pumpkin bagel! ✨

You can also choose to use active starter or discard with yeast. It’s up to you! 

Let me know if you try baking these this weekend! 🍂🎃🥯
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