Make a batch of these pumpkin muffins, and it'll disappear before you know it! Moist, tender, and warmly spiced, they're a perfect autumn treat.
In the last few weeks, I’ve baked more batches of these pumpkin muffins than I can count. Most years, I’m pretty strict with myself when it comes to pumpkin season. It starts on the first day of fall and ends at Thanksgiving – no August pumpkin bread or pumpkin spice lattes for me. But when I started testing this pumpkin muffin recipe a few weeks back, I knew that this year was going to be an exception. These puffy pumpkin muffins were just too good not to make again and again…and again, autumn or not.
Still, I thought that I should wait until fall officially arrived to share this recipe with all of you. Now that it’s here, I’m so excited for you to try these muffins! They’re super moist and tender, with a delicious spiced pumpkin flavor. Enjoy one (or two) for breakfast with a matcha latte or a cup of coffee, and then grab another for a cozy afternoon snack. If you have any leftovers, you can freeze them, but in our house, at least, these pumpkin muffins never last long.
Pumpkin Muffin Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make these healthy pumpkin muffins:
- Pumpkin, of course! It gives these muffins an amazing moist texture and rich pumpkin flavor.
- Eggs – They make these muffins tender and puffy.
- Oil – I like to make this recipe with extra-virgin olive oil because it’s what I keep on hand. Feel free to substitute another neutral oil, such as sunflower oil, if you prefer!
- Maple syrup – I sweeten this recipe naturally with maple syrup. It’s more nutritious than regular granulated sugar, and if you ask me, pumpkin + maple are a to-die-for fall combination!
- Almond milk – It adds to the delicious moist texture. My homemade oat milk would be great here too!
- Apple cider vinegar – It helps the muffins puff up as they bake.
- Vanilla extract – For warm depth of flavor.
- All-purpose flour and whole wheat flour – This combination makes the muffins wholesome, but not dense.
- Baking powder and baking soda – They make the muffins nice and puffy.
- Pumpkin pie spice – What would pumpkin muffins be without cozy, warming spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger?
- And sea salt – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Pumpkin Muffins
This pumpkin muffin recipe is super easy to make! Here’s how it goes:
First, whisk together the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another.
Then, pour the flour mixture into the bowl of wet ingredients.
Stir until everything is just combined – careful not to overmix!
When the batter is smooth, use a 1/3-cup measuring cup to divide it into a greased muffin pan. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Easy Pumpkin Muffins Tips
- Don’t overmix! If you make baking recipes often, you know this tip like the back of your hand. Overmixing the batter will make these muffins dense, so only stir until the wet and dry ingredients are just combined.
- Let them cool for 15 minutes before you eat. It’s tempting to reach for these pumpkin muffins as soon as they come out of the oven, but if you can stand to wait for 15 minutes or so, it’ll be worth it. These little guys are fairly tender, so giving them a chance to cool makes them less likely to crumble when you remove them from the muffin tins. They’ll have a richer pumpkin spice flavor after cooling, too!
- Freeze the extras. These pumpkin muffins freeze perfectly! I like to set aside a few to eat on days 1 and 2. Then, I freeze the rest in airtight containers or baggies for quick breakfasts or snacks down the road. To thaw frozen muffins, pop them in the microwave for 30 seconds and eat them right away, or transfer them to the fridge to thaw overnight.
More Favorite Pumpkin Recipes
Crazy for pumpkin? Make one of these delicious recipes next:
- Pumpkin Bread
- Best Pumpkin Pie
- Pumpkin Bars
- How to Make Pumpkin Puree
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes
- Vegan Pumpkin French Toast
- Pumpkin Waffles
For more fall recipe ideas, check out this post!
Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 eggs
- ⅔ cup almond milk
- ⅓ cup olive oil or any neutral oil
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly grease or spray a 12-cup muffin tin.
- In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, eggs, almond milk, olive oil, maple syrup, vinegar, and vanilla and whisk until combined.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flours, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients and stir until just combined.
- Use a ⅓-cup measuring scoop to divide the batter into the muffin tin. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Hi,
I made the muffins twice. The first time I followed the recipe precisely and had to bake them for more than 40 minutes and they were still not done. The texture was a bit odd – on the outside they looked done but on the inside they were wet. The taste and texture reminded me more of a baked pumpkin rather than a muffin. The second time I decided to add more flour to make it feel more like a cake dough rather than mush but the same thing happened… Honestly I’m not sure what the problem might have been since other people left positive reviews to the recipe but I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Hi Nina, did you change anything about the recipe, specifically the eggs or the type of flour?
Hi, I made this recipe today for first time and I love it, thanks a lot.❤️❤️❤️ file:///var/mobile/Library/SMS/Attachments/ca/10/0F7352BE-19CC-4320-ACD0-2CC3C4F3B98E/IMG_6575.HEIC
Hi,
Can I leave the apple cider vinegar out?
Thanks,
Annie
Made these muffins today with my little girl. They’re so good – soft and moist. We added chocolate chips. Thank you for a wonderful recipe 🙂
Hi I’ve made these so many times and love them! Just wondering if I could make them as mini muffins? Any suggestions for length of cooking time?
Hi Rebecca, I think that would be fine, I’d bake them for much less time – I’d start checking around 10 minutes?
These muffins turned out so soft and tender. I made a regular batch and a mini batch which baked for 15 mins. They aren’t quite as sweet as I was expecting, so next time I make I want to add chocolate chips.
I think chocolate chips would be a fun add in!
Made these today with canned yams (didn’t have pumpkin) and they were great!
Added chocolate chips and they turned out delicious!
Excellent! Lovely moist muffins.
I made the vegan version. Because I didn’t have whole wheat on hand, I used all purpose flour, except 1/4 of rye flour.
I gave the recipe 4 stars because. I found they needed a longer baking time. I baked them for 26 minutes..
Do you think I could use regular milk instead of almond milk? Thanks!
yep, you can!
Made these today with fresh pumpkin purée. My kids loved them! Will be a new Fall favorite.
Any idea how long to cook if making jumbo muffins? Any temperature difference? Making as a reward for my husband who is reroofing our house!
Hi Pam, I don’t know if these will work as jumbo muffins, they’re very tender and I think a more dense muffin would hold a jumbo shape better. You could try baking them longer but I haven’t tried, so I can’t give an exact time.
I tried them with paper liners in a jumbo muffin pan and they turned out great! They were fragrant and high, both moist and light in texture and utterly delicious! I baked them 30-35 min until their interior temperature was 200 degrees. Perfect recipe for autumn. Thank you so much!!!
I’m so glad they worked out!!
Do you think it is possible to swap out the oil and use apple sauce instead?
Hi Rina, I can’t say with out trying. IF you give it a go, can you let me know?
I did try it and I thought it turned out well, however, I haven’t made the recipe as written so I can’t compare. I also used flax eggs and added chocolate chips!
I’ve actually been making these muffins for a couple of weeks now as they are the base recipe for the healthy banana muffins on this site. They are insanely delicious— we have muffins every week now (the banana version all summer and then this recent switch to pumpkin for fall). I recently swapped out the banana for pumpkin which this recipe does and used pumpkin pie spice— I keep vegan by doing the flax mixture and while not super light and fluffy, they are moist and yummy if you prefer to vegan. I also add the dark chocolate chips because pumpkin and chocolate are one of my favorite combinations. These— and the banana muffins— are the best muffins I’ve ever made. Thank you for this recipe!
Oh ha! You and I were thinking alike :). I’m glad they’ve worked out well with the flax mixture.
The pumpkin muffins sound so good this time of year. Just wondering if you have ever swapped almond flour for the all purpose/whole wheat flours?
Hi Karine, I haven’t and almond flour isn’t a 1:1 swap, so I don’t recommend it with this exact recipe.
Hi! This recipe looks great and I can’t wait to try it! I don’t have whole wheat flour … do you think it would work to use only all purpose flour?
Hi Jennifer, whole wheat is more dense and dry so you might need more AP than what’s listed here. I can’t say for sure because I haven’t tested this version.
HI, This recipe sound wonderful. However,I am gluten sensitive. Any ideas on how to substitute GF flour, or even what kind you would recommend?
Hi Pat, take a look at the notes in the recipe card – we have a gluten free option listed there. I hope you enjoy!
Hi! Can I make these vegan with flax eggs? thank you so much
Elizabeth