Can You Freeze Muffins?

What happens when you freeze muffins

Muffins are sturdy things and freezing suits them. The crumb thaws tender, the tops keep their dome, and only a streusel or sugar crust gives up its crunch — a few minutes in a hot oven brings that back. Homemade muffins get 2–3 months in the freezer against 3–7 days on the counter, and commercially packaged ones 3 months. Either way, a batch of a dozen belongs in the freezer by the second day, not in a bag going stale on the counter.

How to freeze it right

1. Cool muffins completely on a rack — trapped steam turns into ice on the tops.
2. Wrap each one in plastic or foil, or freeze them on a tray and then bag them.
3. Press the air out of the bag; muffins dry out faster than they bruise.
4. Freeze the batch the day it’s baked, not once it starts going stale.
5. Write the flavor and date on the bag.

Thawing and using it

Microwave a frozen muffin for half a minute, or leave one wrapped on the counter while the coffee brews. For a bakery finish, thaw it first and then warm it in a hot oven for a few minutes — the top crisps while the inside steams.

Can you refreeze it?

Skip the refreeze — a twice-frozen muffin is a dry muffin, and the second round costs more than the first. Wrap them individually so you take out one at a time instead.