These vegan chocolate muffins are lightly sweetened, rich with cocoa and chocolate, and made with oat flour. They're moist and satisfying, oil-free, and a welcome treat any time of day, from breakfast to dessert!
Adapted from my vegan pumpkin muffin recipe, these healthy vegan chocolate muffins are also made with oat flour and use pumpkin to replace oil and eggs.
Pumpkin puree also helps bind these naturally gluten-free muffins that would otherwise be a bit crumbly.
And of course cocoa powder and chocolate chips replace pumpkin spice!
We love that these aren't a cloyingly sweet, heavy muffin. The fiber in the oat flour and healthy fats from almond butter make them satisfying yet light enough to enjoy for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
They're easy, too! You'll need just 13 ingredients and 30 minutes to make 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 coarse flour.
- 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 - works as a binder and adds moisture.
- 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 Vegan 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 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 great.
- 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 muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or refrigerated for up to 6 days.
Oat flour chocolate muffins freeze very well. 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 Vegan 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
Vegan Chocolate Muffins (Oil-Free)
Equipment
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
- 205 grams oat flour - (2 cups)
- 45 grams unsweetened cocoa powder - (scant ½ cup)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Wet ingredients:
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin
- ½ cup applesauce
- ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- ⅓ cup non-dairy milk
- ¼ cup granulated sugar - I used coconut sugar
- ¼ cup runny almond butter or other nut/seed butter
- 2 tablespoons strong brewed coffee
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup non-dairy chocolate chips - plus more for tops
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F, and locate a standard muffin pan.
- In a mixing bowl whisk together all 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 degrees. 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.