Sometimes you just want something warm and satisfying to fuel you in the morning as you start a busy day. If that’s you, these delicious plant-based, dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free, nut-free, oil-free and gluten-free Citrusy Pumpkin Vegan Muffins may just be what you’re looking for! Using only 8 ingredients, the batter for these vegan, refined-sugar-free muffins takes just 15 minutes to mix together and then these muffins can bake for 20-25 minutes in the oven while you and loved ones get ready for school, work or playdates. Feel too rushed in the mornings? Then make these versatile naturally sweet muffins ahead of time and freeze them so you can take some out for a snack, road trip or enjoy on days when you know you will have a busy morning!
Each baked muffin comes packed with 3 grams of protein, 2 grams of fiber, 1 milligram of iron, 211 milligrams of potassium and 2132 International Units of vitamin A, so you are definitely getting a power-packed nutrient boost when you eat these muffins. I have even made these Citrusy Pumpkin Vegan Muffins to give away as a gift to others to enjoy and to celebrate the holidays. I hope you enjoy these muffins as much as our family does!
Make this versatile plant-based, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, oil-free, soy-free and gluten-free muffins for breakfast, a snack or holiday treat!
- 1¾ cups raisins [188g] [or 3/4 cup pitted dates (103g)]
- 2 cups oat flour [217g] (blend your own easily from oats – see Recipe Instructions)
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 cup pumpkin puree [240g]
- 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce [160mL]
- 1/3 cup orange juice [80mL]
- 1 ½ tablespoons orange zest (Have extra orange zest if you would like to garnish the tops of the baked muffins)
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Preheat the oven to 375oF or 190oC, and line a muffin tin with muffin cups (or use silicon muffin molds).
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Soak the raisins (or pitted dates) in a bowl with 2 cups of very hot (just boiled) water for at least 10 minutes. Cover this bowl with a plate to seal in the heat.
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Meanwhile, blend rolled oats (or quick cooking oats) in a regular blender or food processor to get the needed measured amount. Then mix together the dry ingredients in a large bowl (oat flour, pumpkin spice and baking soda).
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After the 10 minutes is up, remove the soaked raisins (or dates) from the bowl using a slotted spoon and put them into a blender or food processor bowl. Add in the pumpkin puree, applesauce and orange juice and blend together until a mostly smooth puree is formed. This puree does not need to be completely smooth, but the raisin (or date pieces) should be well broken up into tiny pieces. Stop at intervals between pulsing to use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the food processor or blender bowl to reach a smoother consistency.
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Next, add in the fresh orange zest (use a grater or shredder to zest the orange peel) into the wet mixture and stir to combine well. Then combine the dry mixture with the wet mixture and use a rubber spatula to gently mix together. The combined batter will feel light and airy.
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Divide this muffin batter into muffin cups (about 3 tablespoons per cup).
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Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, then test to see if the muffins are mostly cooked through (when a knife is inserted into the center of a muffin, it should come out mostly clean). If the muffins are not cooked through yet, let the muffins bake for another 5 minutes in the oven or until they have firmed up more and have passed the knife test.
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Remove these baked muffins from the oven then immediately transfer them to a cookie rack to cool for about 5 – 10 minutes before enjoying!
If you like muffins that are much sweeter, you can increase the amount of dates or raisins used in the recipes to 1 cup of pitted dates or 1 ½ cups of raisins.
Once made, these Citrusy Pumpkin Vegan Muffins can keep up to a week in the refrigerator in a lidded sealed container or zip plastic bag or you can freeze them once cooled in a zip freezer bag to enjoy in the weeks ahead. My family loves these muffins, from my toddler to my preschooler, and I’m happy they can freely enjoy these naturally sweet and wholesome muffins. In fact, I know that my husband would happily eat the whole lot if I let him!
