These healthier chocolate muffins are vegan, lightly sweetened, full of cocoa and chocolate chips, and both tender and satisfying thanks to whole-grain oat flour. You'll love how easy they are to make, with simple ingredients, and the pantry-friendly, secret ingredient replacing eggs and oil—pssst, it's canned pumpkin!
Adapted from my vegan pumpkin muffin recipe, these healthy vegan chocolate muffins are made with gluten-free oat flour and use pumpkin to replace oil and eggs.
But don't worry, you can't actually taste the pumpkin! It adds moisture and helps bind these naturally gluten-free muffins that would otherwise be a bit crumbly.
And of course, cocoa powder and chocolate chips bring all the chocolate vibes.
We love that these aren't a cloyingly sweet or heavy muffin. The fiber in the oat flour and fat from the almond butter make them satisfying yet light enough to enjoy for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
They're easy to make, too! All you need are 13 ingredients and 30 minutes to whip up a batch.
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Ingredient Notes
- Oat flour - you can buy oat flour online and in many stores, or make your own oat flour by blending rolled oats until they're the consistency of flour. Super easy!
- Nut butter - I used raw almond butter but any other runny nut or seed butter you like is fine. Try Sunbutter for a nut-free option.
- Canned pumpkin - our key, secret ingredient. This works as a binder and adds moisture to the oil-free batter.
- Maple syrup - I can't recommend any substitutions. Maple syrup sweetens the muffins, adds flavor, and contributes moisture.
- Cocoa - look for regular, unsweetened cocoa powder for the best flavor. Unlike Dutch process cocoa, it is naturally acidic and reacts with baking soda to help the muffins rise.
- Coffee - hopefully you have some cold brew or strong brewed coffee on hand because they're great at enhancing the chocolate flavor. If not, a splash of good quality balsamic vinegar is nice, too.
See the recipe card below for amounts and full instructions.
How to Make Healthy Chocolate Muffins
- In a small bowl combine the wet ingredients. In a mixing bowl whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Pour wet into dry and stir to combine. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Divide the batter among a standard 12-cup muffin pan. Add a few chocolate chips on top of each one. Bake for 19 to 21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then transfer the muffins to a cooling rack.
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Variations
- Spiced - similar to this vegan chocolate zucchini bread, try the Mexican-chocolate inspired spices - cinnamon, chile powder, and cayenne. Or skip the chile and cayenne and pair cinnamon with ground ginger. Delicious!
- With nuts- we always enjoy a little extra crunch in our muffins. Chopped walnuts and pecans are really good here.
- Refined sugar-free - for a fully WFPB muffin (whole-food plant-based), instead of sugar-sweetened chocolate chips, use grain-sweetened carob or sugar-free chocolate. There are more varieties of sugar-free chocolate out there than ever!
How to Store
Store the chocolate muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or refrigerated for up to 6 days.
The muffins freeze well, too. Make sure they are protected from air in a freezer-safe container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Related: if you enjoy healthier chocolate treats, don't miss these oil-free banana brownies!
More Healthy Muffin Recipes
I hope you enjoy these healthy vegan chocolate muffins. If you try the recipe be sure to give it a star rating and comment below to let us know!
Recipe
Healthy Chocolate Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
- 2 cups oat flour - tap Metric to see weight in grams
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Wet ingredients:
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin puree - or sweet potato
- ½ cup applesauce
- ½ cup maple syrup plus 1 tablespoon
- ⅓ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk - such as oat or soy
- ¼ cup coconut sugar - or sub brown or cane sugar
- ¼ cup runny almond butter - or other nut/seed butter
- 2 tablespoons brewed coffee
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup non-dairy chocolate chips - plus more for tops of muffins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C), and locate a non-stick muffin pan. Use paper liners if desired.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together all of the dry ingredients. In a smaller bowl stir together the wet ingredients. Pour wet into dry, and stir until a thick batter forms. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Divide the batter evenly among the muffin pan. Sprinkle a few more chocolate chips on top of each muffin.
- Transfer the pan to the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 355°F (180°C). Bake for 19 to 21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used.
Jean
Instead of canned pumpkin, could I use mashed bananas or alternatively extra apple sauce?
Lori Rasmussen
Hi Jean - Yes, I think mashed banana would be best.