The best Vegan Morning Glory Muffins! They are cozy, wholesome, and bursting with feel-good, healthy ingredients like carrots, bananas, coconut, dates, oats, and seeds. This recipe is inspired by Whole Foods Vegan Supa Health Muffins which I love!
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Ok so, I've got a thing for Whole Foods Vegan Supa Health Muffins and decided enough was enough and I should try to create a copycat recipe.
After many, many rounds of testing, I've finally landed on a Vegan Morning Glory Muffin recipe that is really similar and uses the exact same combination of mix-ins. The only difference is they are normal size instead of "supa" because the Whole Foods ones are HUGE and 1200 calories each! 😱
My healthy vegan muffins are full of lovely textures, not overly sweet, both soft and dense at just the right balance, not heavy despite being absolutely loaded with mix-ins, and they are perfectly wholesome and filling.
As healthy as they are though I do feel like having a batch of warm-from-the-oven seedy, wholesome muffins is an open invitation for a melty smear of vegan butter or almond butter, and a drizzle of vegan honey. Just perfect for a satisfying breakfast, or a delicious accompaniment to your afternoon coffee. They are also great for packed lunches because they are nut-free.
If you're into healthy vegan muffins you'll probably also like my Chocolate Banana Muffins, Blueberry Bran Muffins, and Healthy Carrot Muffins so be sure to check them out too!
Mel x
Ingredient Notes
Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:
- Flour - Spelt is used in the original recipe so it's naturally what I've used here. The nutty flavour is perfect. All-purpose, wholewheat, or white wholewheat also work well but make sure to take note of the varying amounts needed in the written recipe. A good gluten-free 1 to 1 baking flour that contains xanthan gum will also work.
- Sugar - Dark brown sugar gives these muffins a lovely depth of flavour AND it is acidic so it reacts with the baking soda to create more lift. I don't recommend using an alternative here because other sugars (or artificial sweetener) are not as acidic which means your muffins will not turn out as light and they will not rise as much.
- Baking soda & baking powder - Both are necessary in this recipe for lightness and a good rise.
- Oil - Any neutral liquid oil will work. If you want to make them oil-free replace the oil with the same amount of nut or seed butter and add 2 tablespoons of extra milk. I recommend blending it up with the milk before you begin because otherwise, it can be difficult to get it mixed in well.
- Spices - I used cinnamon and ginger because that's what is in the Whole Foods version of this muffin, but you can use any other spice that you enjoy. Allspice, pumpkin spice, apple pie spice, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves, etc would all work well.
- Carrot - I love the goodness carrot adds as well as the orange flecky appearance it gives the batter. You could switch it for grated apple, grated sweet potato, or grated zucchini.
- Banana - Despite there being a lot of banana in these muffins they aren't overly banana-y (in case that's something that bothers you). You could however switch the mashed banana for pumpkin puree. Possibly applesauce too but I haven't tried it.
- Mix-ins - We've got oats, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, millet, shredded coconut, cornmeal, and flax (whole or ground) going in because that's what's used in the muffins I'm replicating. As long as you use roughly the same amount of mix-ins you can switch them for anything else you like. Dried fruits like raisins, sultanas, cranberries, chopped apricots, chopped nuts, seeds like sesame, hemp, buckwheat, flaked quinoa, or even chocolate/carob chips would be good. It's a great recipe for finishing up open bags in the pantry!
Let's Make Vegan Morning Glory Muffins!
Can't wait to make them? Here's a quick visual walkthrough (see the recipe card and recipe video for the full and detailed version):
1 - First soak the dates in hot water for about 15 minutes then chop them up. The soaking softens them up and makes them nice and caramel-y.
2 - Mash the banana.
3 - To the banana add the chopped dates, all the other wet ingredients, sugar, and spices. Mix well.
4 - Then add the flour, raising agents, and mix-ins. Stir to form a thick, gloriously textured batter. Don't over-mix.
5 - Scoop the batter into a greased or lined muffin pan. I recommend using an ice cream scoop so the top of the muffin batter is nicely domed in the pan. I used 2 scoops in each well, one on top of the other. Although these muffins rise and expand as they bake, their general shape tends to stay the same so if they go in nicely domed they'll come out nicely domed.
6 - Bake, and be sure to take note of my initial 5-minute high-temperature trick. Don't skip it!
My favourite Muffin Pan
I've tried lots of different muffin pans and the best I've ever used are USA Pan Muffin Pans. They radiate heat really well, bake super evenly, and release perfectly every time. I never need to use muffin liners. I've had a couple for years and they are still as good as they were when I purchased them.
Recipe
Vegan Morning Glory Muffins
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (about 9) dates (115 grams without stones) I used Medjool but any dates are ok
- 2 medium bananas (250 grams without peel)
- 1 cup (130 grams) grated carrot
- ½ packed cup (100 grams) dark brown sugar
- ½ cup (120 ml) neutral liquid oil , such as light olive, refined avocado, vegetable, sunflower, canola). Oil-free? See notes.
- ¾ cup (180 ml) dairy-free milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2¼ cups (250 grams) spelt flour , or 2 cups (250g) all-purpose or 2 cups (230g) whole-wheat flour, or 2 cups (296g) GF 1 to 1 baking flour containing xanthan gum.
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ⅓ cup (33 grams) rolled/old fashioned oats
- ⅓ cup (47 grams) pumpkin seeds
- ⅓ cup (43 grams) sunflower seeds chopped
- ⅓ cup (27 grams) shredded coconut , unsweetened or sweetened
- ⅓ cup (60 grams) millet
- ⅓ cup (51 grams) cornmeal , fine or medium
- ¼ cup (28 grams) flax or chia seeds , ground or whole
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Look at my process photos, or watch my recipe video above 👆 before you start so you know how things should look at every stage when making this recipe.
- Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C), and prep your muffin pan. Line with muffin liners or just grease it well if it's one you know releases well.
- Remove the stones from the dates. Put the dates in a small bowl. Pour over some hot water and let soak for 10 to 15 minutes. Drain then chop into small pieces.
- In a large mixing bowl mash the bananas really well.
- To the bananas add the chopped dates, grated carrot, brown sugar, oil, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. Stir together really well. The dates will clump a bit so break them up with your spatula as you mix.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, oats, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, coconut, millet, cornmeal, and flax/chia to the bowl. Mix well to form a thick batter. Be sure to scrape right into the bottom of the bowl to get all of the dry flour. It likes to hide out down there.
- Using an ice cream scoop divide the batter evenly between the wells of your muffin pan. As I mention in the post, although these muffins rise and expand well, they come out in roughly the same shape as they go in so if your batter is nice and domed (hence using the ice cream scoop) the muffins will also be nicely domed when baked. I start with one scoop in the bottom of the well, then put another scoop directly on top. Don't flatten the batter down or worry about a gap around the sides.
- Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 5 mins (set a timer) then reduce the temperature to 350 °F (175°C) (don't open the oven) for 17 to 18 minutes or until well risen, golden, and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. The initial high temperature really helps the thick, mix-in loaded batter rise nicely so don't skip it.
NOTES
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Paula Wright says
I absolutely love these nutritious muffins with the exception of the millet. It is like eating a sandwich on the beach and the sandwich is full of sand. So gritty. But I will definitely make them again and leave out the millet.
Gerry says
These are so good. I've made them several times now and they turn out consistently. I can't have a lot of sugar because of my health so I make them without the added sugar and with a 1 to 1 blend of gluten free flour. Maybe not to everyone's liking but for me they are perfect! Thanks Mel for this recipe.
Melanie McDonald says
You're so welcome, Gerry! I'm really pleased you're enjoying them and able to make the recipe work for you.
Rachelle says
I’m obsessed with these. I cut them into fourths for a little 100 calorie snack after lunch and it’s the perfect little semi-sweet treat to help hold me over.
Gerry says
With dates and bananas do I need the sugar? Could I leave it out or use a smaller amount of maple syrup?
Melanie McDonald says
For the best results I recommend following the recipe as written. Sugar isn't just for sweetness in baking. In this recipe the brown sugar is acidic and reacts with the baking soda to make the muffins rise properly. The recipe won't turn out as well without it.
For future reference I have a section in each post where I talk about the main ingredients, why they are necessary, and also suggest substitutions that are tested or that I know will work well. I try to reply to questions as quickly as I can but it would be quicker for you to check there if you want to make a recipe soon. Hope that helps!
Gerry says
Thanks for such a quick reply and explanation. I really want to try these as they are filled with so many great ingredients.
Sharon Slobodow says
I just made these and my husband is in LOVE! I used cashew butter in place of oil and they came out perfect! I'm always looking for a quick grab breakfast and these will be made often. Thanks so much for this recipe!
Chris Priest says
Just made them Mel, I've eaten 4 already!! Delicious 👍
Melanie McDonald says
So pleased you're enjoying them, Chris!
Sharon Slobodow says
Yikes! They're 400 calories each!!