Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with muffin cup liners or grease the muffin pan with butter and set aside.
Combine the oats and buttermilk in a medium bowl. Set aside and let it soak while you continue preparing the rest of the ingredients. Mix together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl. In a third bowl or glass measuring cup, whisk together the oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and lemon rind.
Add the oil mixture to the oats mixture and stir to combine. Toss the berries in the flour mixture then add the wet mixture and gently fold until just combined.
Fill each muffin cup really full so that each one is heaped. Top each muffin with oats if desired.
Bake at 425 degrees F for 10 minutes. Lower the temperature to 375 degrees F for another 15 minutes or until a toothpick poked in the centre of a muffin comes out clean. Broil for 2 - 3 minutes to brown and crisp the muffins tops (optional).
Remove from the oven and let the muffins cool for 5 - 10 minutes in the muffin tins before removing.