These easy Vegan Pumpkin Muffins are so decadent, fluffy, and full of pumpkin flavor. You won't believe that these pumpkin chocolate chip muffins are eggless, dairy-free, and easy enough to whip up in just 35 minutes!
Pumpkin season is truly the best time of year... especially when it comes to vegan pumpkin desserts.
These vegan pumpkin spice muffins are the newest dessert to join the blog and are adapted from my popular Healthier Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread and Vegan Apple Muffins!
Ingredients:
How to make pumpkin chocolate chip muffins
Make the pumpkin muffin batter
First, mix together the soy milk and apple cider vinegar to form vegan buttermilk. This is what gives these muffins a great texture and one way to get perfect muffin tops!
Next, add the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, cane sugar, olive oil, and vanilla to the bowl and mix them together.
Then, add in the dry ingredients including the all-purpose flour, pumpkin pie spice, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
GENTLY mix everything together into a thick batter using a spatula or whisk for the best results.
As a final step, add half of the chocolate chips and fold them into the pumpkin muffin batter using a spatula.
Add batter to muffin tin & add toppings
Add the pumpkin muffin batter to 6 cupcake liners and then top with the remaining vegan chocolate chips and pepitas.
For crunchy muffin tops, you can also sprinkle on turbinado sugar before baking!
Pro-Tip: Let the batter rest in the muffin tins for at least 5-10 minutes before baking. This helps form higher muffin tops!
Bake & enjoy!
Let the pumpkin muffin batter rest in the pan while the oven is preheating. Then, add to the oven and bake at 350F for 20 minutes.
Remove the vegan pumpkin muffins from the oven and move them to a cooling rack to let them cool. Then, dig in and enjoy!
FAQ & Tips:
Can I make pumpkin muffins without chocolate chips?
Yes! Chocolate chips are in these vegan pumpkin spice muffins for a little extra flavor and sweetness, but they can be made without them. I still recommend pepitas and turbinado sugar on top for the best "bakery-style" end result, but you can skip the chocolate.
Can I make pumpkin muffins gluten-free?
Definitely! You can swap the all-purpose flour for a gluten-free all-purpose flour mix like Bob's Red Mill. Please note that flour alternatives like almond or coconut flour will not work in this recipe.
How do I store leftover pumpkin muffins?
Muffins can be stored in a closed container at room temperature for 24-28 hours.
They can also be stored in a closed container in the freezer for up to 1 month. Just let them defrost at room temperature before enjoying!
Hope you enjoy these moist & fluffy Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins! They're the perfect Fall treat to celebrate the start of pumpkin season while still being eggless & dairy-free!
-TSG
More pumpkin dessert recipes you will love:
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Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup soy milk or any plant-based milk
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup sugar
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup vegan chocolate chips
- 2 Tablespoons pepitas optional
- 2 Tablespoons turbinado sugar optional
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the soy milk and apple cider vinegar. Let sit for about 1 minute until the milk begins to curdle and separate to create the vegan buttermilk.
- Next, add in the pumpkin puree, olive oil, cane sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Whisk with the vegan buttermilk until smooth.
- Once the wet ingredients are mixed, add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl starting with the flour and adding the pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on top. Then, use a whisk or spatula to GENTLY mix the batter just until all streaks of flour are gone. A lumpy batter is okay at this point!
- Finally, add ¼ cup of the chocolate chips to the bowl and use a spatula to gently fold them into the pumpkin spice batter.
- Fill a muffin tin with 6 cupcake liners. Use a cookie scoop to add the batter to the 6 muffin liners until each is almost completely full with batter, but not overflowing.
- Next, sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup of chocolate chips, pepitas, and optional turbinado sugar on top of the muffins. Then, preheat the oven to 350F and let the batter rest in the muffin tins for at least 5-10 minutes (this resting time helps form higher muffin tops!).
- Once the oven has preheated, add the tray of muffins to the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes until fluffy and cooked through.
- Remove the tray from the oven and immediately remove the muffins from the muffin tin. Then, place them onto a wire cooling rack. Do not let the muffins cool in the tin or they risk getting soggy on the bottom.
- Once the muffins have slightly cooled, serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
- If you prefer muffins without chocolate chips, just omit them! It shouldn't affect the end result.
- Muffins can be stored in a closed container at room temperature for 24-28 hours. They can also be stored in a closed container in the freezer for up to 1 month. Just let them defrost at room temperature before enjoying!
- I don't recommend making these muffins refined sugar-free as the brown sugar interacts with the baking soda to give these muffins high muffin tops.
Katie says
I made these without the chocolate chips. Delicious and extremely light/airy-textured! A big hit with my vegan and non-vegan friends.
The only change I made was to bake them at 425 for the first 8 minutes, then lower the temp to 350 for the remaining 12 minutes. I do this with muffins - vegan and non-vegan - to help get a nice rise.
Thank you for sharing this recipe! 🙂
Megan says
So glad you and your friends loved them!
Alexandra says
These muffins are *delicious.* I was a bit worried they would be too sweet due to the amount of sugar but I was wrong! They taste so fresh - a real pumpkin flavor that isn't bogged down by all the sugar and other ingredients. My 2yr old son also loves these. Bit hit in our house!
Megan says
Yay, I love to hear that! Thanks for the review 🙂