Vegan Apple Muffins

You’ll love these vegan apple muffins because they are packed with apple flavor, and you can make them with simple everyday ingredients and no effort.

Our muffin recipe doesn’t use specific vegan ingredients like flax eggs or vegan butter; you can make it with pantry staples.

We flavor the vegan muffins with grated and chopped apples.

The grated apple binds the muffin batter, making it flavorful and perfectly moist.

The apple pieces get soft and juicy, making these muffins wholesome, tasty, and nutritious.

Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

Apples

You’ll need three medium apples for 12 muffins. You can use whatever apples you have at home without worrying too much about the variety.

We recommend Pink Lady, Fuji, Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious, Rome Beauty, and Gala apples. They make lovely, sweet muffins.

If you like a tarter muffin, try Granny Smith apples, Winesap, or Cortland apples.

Other varieties that you can use are Braeburn, Melrose, and Jonagold.

In our family, we have a slight preference for sweet apples.

Flour

All-purpose flour makes lighter and fluffier muffins.

For more wholesome muffins, use 50% all-purpose flour and 50% whole wheat flour.

We have not tried gluten-free flour for this recipe, but a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour blend should work fine.

Oil

Avoid melted butter or coconut oil to make muffins; opt for neutral vegetable-based oil instead.

Butter is excellent for making cupcakes with a flat top, but vegetable oil is your best choice if you want a tall dome with a light and soft texture.

We use olive or avocado oil, but canola and sunflower oil also work well.

Substitute applesauce for oil.

Sugar

White or brown sugar is both okay. Optionally, you can add a pinch of salt to bring out the flavor from the other ingredients.

Milk

You can use any non-dairy milk. We prefer unsweetened soy milk, almond milk, or oat milk.

Baking powder and baking soda

Baking powder is essential to make the apple muffins light, airy, and with a tall top.

Make sure your baking powder hasn’t been open for too long. It’s always best to use unopened and recently bought baking powder.

Baking soda is optional. However, it makes the crumb more tender and gives the muffin a lovely brown color as they bake.

Cinnamon

You can add cinnamon to the batter or add it to the muffins mixed with sugar or with a streusel topping.

We prefer adding it on top because adding it to the batter gives the muffins a brown color that looks too healthy for most people.

Add vanilla extract or the grated zest of half an orange for even more flavor.

Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C. Line a 12-muffin pan (or two 6-muffin pans) with muffin liners.

Chop two apples into 1/3-inch dice. Grate one apple with the large holes of a box grater. Set aside while you make the batter; it’s okay if they get a little brown.

Add milk, sugar, oil, and vanilla extract to a large bowl and whisk well.

Sift in flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda and whisk for a few seconds until combined. Don’t overmix the batter.

Add the grated and chopped apples and fold them with a spatula until fully coated and without overmixing.

With the help of a spoon or ice cream scoop, transfer the mixture to the muffin pan, ensuring the batter sinks fully into the muffin liners.

You can fill the muffin liners to the brim; the apple pieces can pile up on top.

Optionally, you can top them with cinnamon mixed in sugar.

Bake at 350°F or 180°C for 27 minutes, until the muffins are golden-brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.

Let the vegan apple cinnamon muffins cool down on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin.

Then, let them cool down and enjoy them as a breakfast, snack, or dessert.

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Make ahead: Vegan apple muffins are excellent to make ahead because they keep well for several days, and you can also freeze them.

Room temperature: You can store the muffins in a dark corner of your kitchen in an airtight container or plastic bag for up to 4 days. Warm them up in the microwave for 15-30 seconds if they get dry.

Freezer: Let the apple muffins cool down completely, transfer them into a freezer-friendly bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Then, thaw them in the microwave.

Muffin liners: If you don’t have muffin or paper liners, use 5-inch squared pieces of parchment paper.

Don’t overmix the batter: Overmixing develops the gluten in the batter, making the muffins tough and compact, not fluffy and airy.

Thick batter: It’s going to look like there are a lot of apples, and that’s how it should be. Also, the batter should be thick, as the apples will release water as they bake.

Fresh baking powder: If you are not a regular baker, it’s possible that your baking powder is old and has lost its rising properties. We always recommend using new, unopened, or recently bought baking powder for the best results.