These vegan apple muffins are soft, fluffy, moist and loaded with chunks of fresh apple. Perfect for breakfast or dessert.
These vegan apple muffins were pretty much guaranteed the moment I made a vegan apple cake.
That cake was so good, I knew the recipe would have other uses.
So of course I adapted it for muffins. And these vegan apple muffins are amazing!
Brown sugar sweetened, cinnamon spiced and packed with whole apple pieces. Truly divine.
They’re perfect for a grab-and-go breakfast, snack or dessert.
Ingredients To Make These Muffins:
Ingredient Notes
- Granny Smith apples – are the perfect apples to use in these muffins. They are deliciously sweet with a hint of tart and bake up really well.
- Canola oil – can be switched for vegetable oil.
- Vegan buttermilk – we use our recipe for homemade vegan buttermilk, which is a mix of lemon juice (or vinegar) with soy milk and it curdles into buttermilk. Soy milk works the best for vegan buttermilk but you can use another non-dairy milk like almond milk, or another plant milk, even if it doesn’t curdle.
- Applesauce – is used in a small quantity to add extra moisture without weighing the muffins down. You can use sweetened or unsweetened applesauce, whatever you have on hand.
How To Make Vegan Apple Muffins
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl. Add light brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix together.
- Prepare the vegan buttermilk by adding a tablespoon of lemon juice to a measuring jug and then adding soy milk up to the ¾ cup line (180ml). Let it curdle into buttermilk.
- Add vegan buttermilk, canola oil, vanilla extract and applesauce to the mixing bowl and mix into a thick batter. Don’t overmix.
- Add peeled and chopped apples and fold them in.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin partitions of your muffin tray. Add a few extra pieces of peeled and chopped apple directly to the tops of the muffins.
- Place into the oven and bake at 350°F for 22-25 minutes.
- Let the muffins cool in the tray for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Baker’s Tips
Cut the apples up fairly small. If the pieces are too big they will be too bulky for these muffins.
The batter is thick. A thick batter works great for muffins in general. But it’s also important here because if your batter is too thin then your apple pieces will be more inclined to sink to the bottom of the muffins.
Measure the flour correctly. Since the batter is already thick, if you use too much flour, you won’t even be able to mix it. So make sure you measure your flour correctly. Ideally weigh it out on a food scale, but if you don’t have a food scale, then use the ‘spoon and level’ method. Spoon it into your measuring cup and level off the top with a knife.
Don’t overmix the batter. Mix the batter until just mixed and then stop mixing. Don’t worry if there are tiny lumps.
Make Them Gluten-Free
If you’d like to make these vegan apple muffins gluten-free you can use a gluten-free all purpose flour blend.
Storing and Freezing
Keep them covered in an airtight container at room temperature where they will stay good for around 3-4 days. Or store them in the fridge in a covered container for up to 7 days. Give them a quick 15-seconds in the microwave to heat them up before enjoying.
They are also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. Let them thaw in the fridge overnight and bring them up to room temperature on the countertop or heat them up for 15-seconds in the microwave.
More Vegan Muffins
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Vegan Banana Muffins
- Vegan Zucchini Muffins
- Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Vegan Chocolate Muffins
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Apple Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour (250g)
- 1 cup Light Brown Sugar (200g)
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ¾ cup Vegan Buttermilk (180ml) 1 Tablespoon lemon juice + soy milk up to the ¾ cup (180ml) line
- ¼ cup Canola Oil (60ml) or Vegetable Oil
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 Tablespoons Applesauce
- 1 cup Chopped Apple (125g) Peeled, plus more to add directly to the tops of the muffins before baking.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray a muffin tray with non-stick spray.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl. Add light brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix together.
- Prepare the vegan buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to a measuring jug and then adding soy milk up to the ¾ cup line (180ml). Let it curdle into buttermilk.
- Add vegan buttermilk, canola oil, vanilla extract and applesauce to the mixing bowl and mix into a thick batter. Don't overmix.
- Add peeled and chopped apples and fold them in.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin partitions of your muffin tray. Add a few extra pieces of peeled and chopped apple directly to the tops of the muffins before baking.
- Place into the oven and bake at 350°F for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean.
- Let the muffins cool in the tray for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Measure the flour correctly. This is a thick batter, so if you use too much flour, you won’t even be able to mix it. So make sure you measure your flour correctly. Ideally weigh it out on a food scale, but if you don’t have a food scale, then use the ‘spoon and level’ method. Spoon it into your measuring cup and level off the top with a knife. Don’t scoop it and don’t pack it into the cup.
- Vegan buttermilk – we use our recipe for homemade vegan buttermilk, which is a mix of lemon juice (or vinegar) with soy milk and it curdles into buttermilk. Soy milk works the best for vegan buttermilk but you can use another non-dairy milk like almond milk, or another plant milk, even if it doesn’t curdle.
- Granny Smith apples – are the perfect apples to use in these muffins. They are deliciously sweet with a hint of tart and bake up really well.
- Cut the apples up fairly small. If the pieces are too big they will be too bulky for these muffins.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Mix the batter until just mixed and then stop mixing. Don’t worry if there are tiny lumps.
- Gluten free: If you’d like to make these muffins gluten-free you can use a gluten-free all purpose flour blend.
- Storing: Keep them covered in an airtight container at room temperature where they will stay good for around 3-4 days. Or store them in the fridge in a covered container for up to 7 days. Give them a quick 15-seconds in the microwave to heat them up before enjoying.
- Freezing: They are also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. Let them thaw in the fridge overnight and bring them up to room temperature on the countertop or heat them for 15-seconds in the microwave.
Nutrition
*This recipe was first published in January 2019. It has been updated with new photos and extra tips.
Geraldine says
Just made this muffin recipe, I made some changes and used whole wheat flour, 3/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup applesauce and added 2 tbsp of chopped golden sultanas, I also grated the apple. It came out amazing. Thanks for all these lovely recipes, I enjoy tweaking them. Can you make some savory ones? Think I’m sweet enough now.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed them and thanks for sharing your tweaks! We do have some (semi) savory muffins which are our cornbread muffins and those are great! Thanks for the amazing review. xo
Joy Del Rosario says
Made these vegan apple muffins and my friends loved it!! And my professor also.
Alison Andrews says
Yay! So glad they were enjoyed! Thanks for the awesome rating Joy. 🙂
Ruby says
Hi there, can I skip the applesauce? Thanks.
Alison Andrews says
Hi Ruby, you would need to replace it with something else, like extra oil or mashed banana in its place. 🙂
Kessa Eads says
Can the recipe be made without the oil? Any substitution that would still make it work?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Kessa, I think replacing the oil with applesauce should work! All the best! 🙂
Eileen says
They were fluffy and light and delicious. First try at baking muffins, ever… you made it so easy for me, thank you for the great recipe!
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! Thanks for posting Eileen! 🙂
Davina says
I used one cup of whole meal flour and one all purpose flour and it came out delicious! Tastes like apple bran muffins which I love. Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Fantastic! Thanks so much Davina! 🙂
TC says
I made the cake variation of this recipe and it turned out beautifully. I am so happy i found your blog as my children have egg and dairy allergies and these recipes are much needed in our lives. Thank you 🙂
PS i really appreciate the weight measurements as i prefer this to measuring by cups, for accuracy.
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear it came out beautifully! Really happy you found our blog too. 🙂 And yes, the weight measurements can be really important in baking, I much prefer them myself. Thanks so much for the wonderful review. 🙂
Michele Smith says
My batter was also too thick. I did use whole wheat flour. Measured but not weighed. I also used almond milk. I used both of those as that is what I had in the house. They are still really tasty but certainly not light.
Alison Andrews says
Hi Michele, I have never tested these with whole wheat flour, so I would imagine that may cause the extra density. Or it could be that weighing the flour would create a lighter result. So glad that they are still tasty! 🙂
Liz says
These are probably the best muffins I have ever made. Trouble is they don’t last long in our household – off to make the third batch this week! Love your recipes. Thank you.
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! So happy to hear that Liz! Thanks so much for posting. 🙂
Misti says
These were absolutely delicious. I’ve been a vegan for 2 years now and my family that aren’t vegans loved them as well.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! So glad they were enjoyed. Thanks so much for sharing. 🙂
Angie says
Made this today and the muffins are light, fluffy and wonderfully delicious! I used coconut milk (from a carton not a can) because it’s all I had on hand. Thanks for this keeper of a recipe. 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Hi Angie, so glad to hear they were good, thanks so much for sharing. 🙂
Jackie says
Totally perfect muffins. Light, fluffy and moist just like you said.
Alison Andrews says
Yay! So glad you enjoyed them, thanks Jackie. 🙂
Nicki says
Can’t wait to make these! The Apple Cake was a hit and soooooo delicious!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Nicki, awesome! You’ll definitely enjoy them if you liked the apple cake!
Jennifer Bliss says
These sound PERFECT!
Emily says
I’m not sure what I did wrong (I followed the recipe to a tee!) but my mixture was very dry and too thick so the apple pieces were not ‘submerged’ and this resulted in quite heavy muffins. The flavour was amazing and will definitely try again but might experiment with a different oil or add a bit more milk. Thanks Alison!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Emily – did you make any substitutions with the flour? Also did you weigh it? Accidentally using too much all purpose could cause this. So glad the flavor was still good but they are definitely supposed to be light and fluffy and not heavy. Hope they work out better next time!
Rima says
Happy New Year! I stumbled across your site and I’ve been baking something new almost every day! Your chocolate cake, lemon cake, and these yummy apple muffins, were amazing! The recipes worked so well. Thank you so much for these easy to follow and easier to make delicious desserts.
Alison Andrews says
Hi Rima! So glad you’ve enjoyed the recipes, thanks so much for sharing! And happy new year to you too! 🙂