Fall dreams are made of these fudgy and perfectly spiced DOUBLE Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins. Naturally vegan, oil-free, no mixer required and there are even whole grain and gluten-free options!
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"These are wonderful! We just started our vegan journey this year and these pumpkin chocolate muffins were a real hit. You really can't tell the difference between non-vegan and this because they are so fluffy and yummy. My kids ate them up. Thank you, Mel, for sharing all these great recipes!" - Amber ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
Move over lemon muffins because fall dreams are made of pumpkin spice lattes in one hand and double chocolate pumpkin muffins or streusel-topped pumpkin muffins in the other ...
If you happen to be a lover of my Vegan Chocolate Banana Muffins, which I know so many of you are, then this one's for you because it's an adaptation of that recipe. We are simply switching the banana for pumpkin puree and adding a bit of pumpkin spice. Nothing complicated. Nothing fancy. But everything delicious!
Mel x
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Ingredient Notes
Here’s the rundown on what’s going in these muffins and why:
- Pumpkin puree - I used canned purree but you could also use homemade. Any squash-based puree or even sweet potato puree will work too.
- Flour - You can use all-purpose flour (plain flour in the UK), spelt flour or spelt ot wholewheat flour in this recipe.
- Nut/seed butter - The fat from the nut or seed butter is necessary for a good texture. It really helps with the fudginess and richness which is why I use it instead of oil or vegan butter.
- Sugar & maple syrup - We are using a mix of both. Both sweeten, the sugar gives structure and the maple syrup adds more fudginess. You can use any sugar you like. White sugar, cane sugar, brown sugar, coconut sugar are all fine. Keep your muffins refined sugar-free by using coconut sugar.
- Chocolate chips - I like to use semi-sweet chocolate chips in my baking. Most dark chocololate chips are naturally vegan but be sure to check the label when shopping just in case. You can also use the same amount of chopped up dairy-free free chocolate bar although it will melt more into the batter. Chocolate chips are designed not to melt and so will hold their form better.
- Cocoa, baking powder and baking soda - Natural cocoa powder gives the muffins chocolate flavour and also adds acidity. Baking powder and baking soda are necessary to leaven the muffins. Baking powder as per usual in baked goods, and baking soda too because it reacts with the acidic cocoa creating extra bubbles and lift. This provides the extra leavening that eggs would in a non-vegan recipe. You could use Dutch processed cocoa powder but you won't get the same lift and lightness.
- Salt & vanilla - For flavour. Salt is just as important for enhancing flavours in sweet recipes as it is savoury. Use good quality sea salt and not table salt. Vanilla adds another flavour layer.
- Pumpkin spice - It's fall so pumpkin spice is mandatory ;O) And it works so well with the other flavours, bringing a lightly spiced warmth to the sponge (see recipe notes for an alternative).
- Dairy-free milk - Just a small amount to thin the batter a little.
To make them all you need is a muffin pan and a bowl and spoon, although a food processor makes it all even quicker and easier. I am loving this muffin pan. I use no liners, just a little oil instead, and they release perfectly every single time.
Let's Make Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins
These double chocolate pumpkin muffins are really easy to make in just a few steps. Here's how:
- Combine the wet ingredients (by hand or in a food processor).
- Add the dry ingredients and fold/pulse in until combined.
- Add the chocolate chips and folden/pulse through.
- Spoon into a greased/lined muffin pan and bake.
Muffin Success Tips
Follow my instructions and tips and you will be graced with perfectly fudgy Double Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins!
- As with all of my baking recipes where precision is key to excellent results, I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to measure your ingredients, rather than using cup measurements. This one is cheap (under $20) and works brilliantly.
- Don't overmix your batter. This is so important. Overmixing will affect the texture and the rise of your muffins.
- Don't skip my oven temperature hack! The trick to a perfectly domed muffin top is a good recipe and oven temperature. They need an initial, very hot blast, which creates steam that will raise those muffin tops right up from the inside out. Then you need to turn them down after 5 minutes so that the insides cook through more gently.
- Don't overbake them. It's better for the muffins to be very slightly underbaked (hello extra fudginess!) than overbaked and risk them getting dry.
Variations
Enjoy these fudgy pumpkin muffins just as they are, or make them your own. Here are some ideas:
- Use any squash-based puree or sweet potato puree instead of the pumpkin.
- Add a few drops of orange extract or orange zest to the batter. It works so well with chocolate and pumpkin.
- Add a handful of nuts or seeds.
- Add a dollop of nut butter to the centre of each muffin. Simply fill the muffin well halfway, add the nut butter then put more batter over the top. It shouldn't alter the cooking time.
- Make a simple glaze with a cup of powdered sugar, a tablespoon of cocoa and a couple tablespoons of plant milk.
- Melt chocolate and drizzle over the top of each muffin.
Recipe FAQs
You can use this combination of spices instead or omit the spice completely:
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Yes. Cook it first, then run it through a blender to make a smooth puree.
Recipe
Double Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins
Author:Ingredients
- 2 cups (450 grams) pumpkin puree , NOT pumpkin pie filling
- 6 tablespoons nut or seed butter , it should be drippy and not dry
- ¼ cup (60 mls) maple syrup , real maple syrup not pancake syrup
- ¼ cup (60 mls) dairy-free milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¾ cup (150 grams) sugar , any such as white, brown, cane, turbinado, coconut.
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1¾ cup (219 grams) flour , spelt, all-purpose flour (plain flour in the UK), wholewheat or gluten-free all-purpose baking flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda , (bicarbonate of soda in the UK)
- ½ cup (50 grams) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice , see FAQs for alternative
- ½ cup (85 grams) dairy-free chocolate chips , plus a handful more for sprinkling
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 425 °F (218 °C) and grease or line a 12 hole muffin pan with liners.
- In a food processor or large bowl, add the pumpkin puree, nut butter, maple syrup, milk and vanilla and whisk/blend together until well combined and no lumps of nut butter remain.
- If making by hand without the aid of a food processor, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder and pumpkin spice together in another bowl, then add them to the pumpkin mixture. If using a food processor just add the dry ingredients to the bowl of the food processor then pulse until combined and no dry flour is present. Whichever method you use, do not over-mix.
- Add the chocolate chips and fold them in or pulse once or twice in a food processor, just enough to distribute evenly, then spoon the batter evenly into the prepared muffin pan and sprinkle the tops of each with a few more chocolate chips.
- Place the muffins in the middle of the oven and set a timer for 5 minutes. Once the 5 minutes has passed, immediately turn the oven down to 375°F (190°C) without peeking or opening the door and cook for about another 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of one comes out mostly clean (except for some melted chocolate). The type of muffin pan and whether it is black or light in color will affect the cooking time so the time could vary by a few minutes, but it is important not to over-bake these muffins so keep checking in the last few minutes. If anything they are better very slightly underdone to keep their moist fudginess.
- Remove from the pan and place on a wire cooling rack to cool.
NOTES
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Tori says
I have been trying to recreate huge bakery-style muffins. This was a great recipe because the muffins got really big and tall -- it worked perfectly! For whatever reason, some other muffin recipes do not get the muffins tall and fluffy even when using the 425F for 5 minutes then reduce heat trick. I got 6 jumbo muffins out of it, so huge I can't really even finish them but that is probably because of all the fiber from the pumpkin and whole wheat flour! This is definitely a keeper and I look forward to trying your other muffin recipes, thank you!
Diana says
O love this recipe! It was my first Muffin recipe with success!
I used Peanut Butter and instead chocolat chips, i put a chocolat cube inside de Muffin, that Melted in the cooking process…
Everybody loved it 😍
Joanie Lewis says
These are the absolute best! Delicious and a great way to add the nourishment of pumpkin and almond butter to a 3-year-old's diet!
Amber says
These are wonderful! We just started our vegan journey this year and these pumpkin chocolate muffins were a real hit. You really can't tell the difference between non-vegan and this because they are so fluffy and yummy. My kids ate them up. Thank you, Mel, for sharing all these great recipes!
A Virtual Vegan says
Ah, so pleased you all enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. It's much appreciated!
Rochelle says
These are amazing! Why aren't there more reviews?!
I left out the spices and enjoyed plain chocolatey muffins.
Half the recipe made 9 small muffins (small ones mean I can eat 2... And I only had 1 cup of pumpkin in the freezer).
A Virtual Vegan says
Ah glad you enjoyed them Rochelle and thank you for taking the time to leave a review/feedback. It's much appreciated!
Molly Auman says
We baked these yesterday for the first time and they are absolutely AMAZING! The next time we make them I will try to cut the sugar back a bit....they're not too sweet, but more sugar than I like to have on a regular basis. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Lorraine dredge says
Hi Mel made these Amazing muffins thank you again for great recipes Portugal x
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm glad you enjoyed them Lorraine!
Chris says
These came out amazing. I found the recipe and immediately printed it out and added it to the queue! Made them Wednesday and they are just perfect.
Couple small details in case anyone else reading has questions about swaps - I used regular ol' All Purpose flour, coconut sugar, maple syrup, and smooth almond butter. I measured everything on a kitchen scale to the gram which I highly recommend doing (thanks for providing weight measurements btw). Made in a silicon cupcake tray.
Thanks for this awesome recipe and I'll be making it again for Thanksgiving!