In my house, we have intolerances to both dairy and eggs, and boy, can that make breakfast tricky! These fluffy, tender blueberry muffins are naturally sweetened with maple syrup and completely free of animal products, making them the perfect solution for our morning troubles.
I like to keep a big batch of these muffins stashed in the freezer to make for easy grab-and-go breakfasts. They pair perfectly with a smoothie for a nourishing breakfast!
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What do I need to make vegan blueberry muffins?
The ingredients for vegan blueberry muffins are pretty similar to non-vegan versions, but instead of the muffin being leavened (AKA: how it rises in the oven) by egg, our version uses baking soda and baking powder.
Wholefully Protip
Instead of the egg that is usually used to make muffins rise, these vegan muffins use a combination of baking soda, baking powder, and lemon juice.
Here is what you’ll need to make these muffins:
- Unsweetened, plant-based milk—like oat, almond, soy
- Lemon juice and zest
- Oil or melted plant-based butter
- Maple syrup
- Vanilla extract
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Fresh or frozen blueberries
How do you make vegan muffins?
The batter for these muffins comes together in one bowl in just a few minutes. Here’s how to do it:
- Curdle the plant-based milk by mixing it with lemon juice and lemon zest. After sitting for about 5 minutes, this curdled milk is used to give the muffins a buttermilk flavor.
- Add the remaining wet ingredients to the curdled plant-based milk.
- Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, stirring until just combined.
- Add in the blueberries, and fold (AKA: gently stir) to distribute the blueberries.
- Fill a muffin tin that is greased or filled with muffin liners 3/4 full of batter.
- Bake in a 425°F muffin for 12-15 minutes.
Wholefully Protip
Do not overmix muffin batter! Overmixing makes for dense, hard muffins. In fact, a few lumps left in the flour is better than mixing until completely smooth.
Can I use frozen blueberries?
Yes! Unthawed frozen blueberries work well in these muffins, but they do tend to “stain” the entire muffin a blue/green color when mixing them in. You can make this problem a little less prevalent by rinsing your frozen blueberries in cold water until the water runs mostly clear, and then drying the blueberries on a clean kitchen towel before folding in.
Wholefully Protip
Fresh is best in these muffins, but using unthawed frozen blueberries will do the trick, too! Just rinse the frozen berries in cold water before folding into the batter to prevent staining.
What’s the best plant-based milk to use in these vegan blueberry muffins?
Your favorite! Any plant-based milk will do the trick here. We tested these with both unsweetened almond milk and coconut milk, and both worked perfectly. You could also try oat milk, soy milk, or any other non-dairy milk. The key with the milk is to make sure you curdled it first by mixing it with lemon juice and lemon zest. This gives the plant-based milk a taste similar to buttermilk.
Whoa, a 425°F oven? That sounds too hot for muffins!
Don’t be afraid of the higher oven temperature! This allows the muffins to get an “oven spring” when they hit the hot oven—making them rise and dome nicely.
I’ve done a lot of testing on the proper oven temperature for muffins, and while the standard 350°F temperature works, you get much prettier and fluffier muffins with a higher temperature. Trust me!
Can I bake this into a loaf instead of muffins?
Sure can! Bake yourself a loaf of blueberry bread by pouring the batter into a greased or parchment-lined loaf pan. Bake at 425°F for 10 minutes, and then reduce temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Can I use whole wheat flour or gluten-free flour?
We’ve tested this recipe using all all-purpose flour, all whole wheat flour, and a combination of both with good results. The whole wheat flour is denser, but an enjoyable kind of dense! We have not tested this recipe with gluten-free flour; however, it should work with a standard 1-to-1 gluten-free flour blend that contains xanthan gum.
Wholefully Protip
A mix of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour is wonderful in these muffins!
Why are my muffins too dry?
If your muffins end up crumbly, then you may have overmixed the batter. Be sure to only mix the wet ingredients with the dry mixture until there are no dry spots left, and then stop mixing. This will give you more tender, fluffy muffins!
How should I store my vegan blueberry muffins?
Storing muffins in an air-tight container lined with a paper towel or a clean tea towel (to absorb moisture) at room temp will give you the best results for 2-3 days. If you’d like to store them longer, freeze them.
Can I freeze these muffins?
Sure can! We freeze these muffins all the time in our house for easy breakfasts. To freeze them:
- Let them cool completely.
- Place them on a baking sheet in a single layer.
- Freeze until frozen solid—about 3-4 hours. We do this part in our deep freezer.
- Once frozen solid, transfer to a gallon zip-top freezer bag or to a freezer-safe food storage container.
- Label and freeze. Muffins will last for at least three months in the freezer.
To defrost, leave muffins out on the counter for an hour. Or, you can wrap each one in a paper towel and microwave for 20-30 seconds each.
Can I make these muffins with mix-ins other than blueberries?
Yes! Swap out the blueberries for chocolate chips, raisins, dried cranberries, or chopped nuts for a yummy change of pace. Enjoy.
One Bowl Vegan Blueberry Muffin Recipe
Start your day off right with these tender, and fluffy Vegan Blueberry Muffins! Mix them up in one bowl, and they will be ready in 25 minutes flat.
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened, plant-based milk (oat, almond, soy, etc.)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1 lemon worth)
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest (about 1 lemon worth)
- 1/3 cup avocado oil, melted coconut oil, or melted plant-based butter
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups fresh blueberries
- Raw cane sugar, turbinado sugar, coconut sugar, or sucanat, for sprinkling on tops, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a muffin tin with baking cups, or spray tin liberally with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine the plant-based milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Let rest for about 5 minutes to allow the mixture to curdle.
- When the mixture has curdled, add in the oil or melted butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Whisk to combine.
- Next, add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir until well incorporated, but do not over-mix (this makes for tough muffins)—a few lumps of flour are fine. Add in the blueberries, and fold to combine.
- Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full with the batter, and then sprinkle tops with sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out cleanly. Remove from the oven, and allow to cool for five minutes in the pan, and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Swapping in turbinado sugar, cane sugar, coconut sugar, or sucanat all work in place of the maple syrup.
- This makes for a lightly sweet muffin. For a sweeter, bakery-style muffin, increase the maple syrup by 2 tablespoons.
- You can stretch this batter into 18 muffins by filling the muffin cups 2/3 full. This will result in shorter, but still good-sized, muffins.
- Don’t be afraid of the higher oven temperature! This allows the muffins to get an “oven spring” when they hit the hot oven—making them rise and dome nicely.
- Unthawed frozen blueberries work well in these muffins, but they do tend to “stain” the entire muffin a blue/green color when mixing them in. You can make this problem a little less prevalent by rinsing your frozen blueberries in cold water until the water runs mostly clear, then drying the blueberries on a clean kitchen towel before folding in.
- Store muffins in an airtight food storage container on the counter for up to three days.
- These muffins are a wonderful candidate for freezing! Once cooled completely, loosely pack the muffins in a zip-top freezer bag or freezer-safe food storage container. They will keep in the freezer for three months or more. To defrost, leave them out on the counter for an hour, or wrap in a paper towel and microwave for 20-30 seconds.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 muffinAmount Per Serving: Calories: 201Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 4mgSodium: 263mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 3g
At Wholefully, we believe that good nutrition is about much more than just the numbers on the nutrition facts panel. Please use the above information as only a small part of what helps you decide what foods are nourishing for you.
