Soft and moist gluten-free pumpkin muffins loaded with pumpkin flavor and warm fall spices. These muffins take just 5 minutes to prepare and come with tested nut-free, refined sugar-free dairy-free, and vegan variations! This recipe is versatile - top with pumpkin seeds, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, or stir in chocolate chips!
My wish for you is that your kitchen will soon churn out as many gluten-free pumpkin muffins as mine. Your house will exude pumpkin and fall spices will waft throughout the neighborhood. You'll know you're there when your neighbor texts you: "I can smell the baked goods from my doorstep."
With this recipe that takes two bowls and less than 5 minutes to mix up, you can easily become the fall baking fairy on your block. This recipe can be endlessly customized. Leave some plain to let the pumpkin shine, top some with cinnamon sugar for a crisp muffin top, and/or add salted toasted pumpkin seeds to others. Make a batch with gooey chocolate chips or nuts and another with streusel. Make them nut-free, dairy-free, or vegan. Or do half-batches of every variation like I did.
Ingredients in gluten-free pumpkin muffins
My go-to one-stop grocery is our local Bay Area Andronico's Community Market. I'm able to grab a wide range of gluten-free flours, as well as all the other baking staples from toasted pumpkin seeds to Libby's canned pumpkin puree.
- Trio of gluten-free flours: Super-fine blanched almond flour, gluten-free oat flour, and sweet rice flour. See the nut-free option and flour substitutions below.
- Baking powder and baking soda: A combination keeps the muffins fluffy, but incredibly soft. Optionally use just 1½ teaspoons baking soda, but the muffins will be much darker and crisp on top.
- Salt: Don't skip the salt! It brings out the spices and magically keeps the muffins tasting sweet and flavorful.
- Pumpkin pie spice and ground cinnamon: The warm spices bring out pumpkin's natural flavors.
- Oil: Use your favorite neutral vegetable oil such as safflower or sunflower
- Light brown sugar and granulated sugar: Only a bit of sugar to lightly sweeten the muffins while keeping them wholesome. The light brown sugar adds moisture and a deep molasses flavor. You can optionally use coconut sugar in place of both and the result is still extremely delicious.
- Maple syrup: Adds moisture and subtle warm sweetness.
- Large eggs: For the fluffy structure. You can optionally sub in a flax egg for a vegan option.
- Pumpkin puree: Not pumpkin pie filling, which has sugar and spices already added. I also recommend non-organic pumpkin purée as organic puree has more moisture and will affect the outcome of your muffins.
- Vanilla extract: Like salt, vanilla enhances the overall flavors.
- Milk: Any kind of milk for moisture - whole milk or non-dairy milk.
- Optional - Cinnamon sugar topping: Creates a sweet crisp muffin top, that, in my opinion, is the best part of the muffin.
- Optional - Salted and toasted pumpkin seeds: Similar to the cinnamon sugar topping, the salted toasted pumpkin seeds add crunch and salty savory notes, which, in combo with the cinnamon sugar topping is dynamite. If you've got picky kids like mine though, make some with and without.
Gluten-free Flours for Pumpkin Muffins
Made with a combination of almond and oat flour, these muffins have whole grains to keep you full longer, making these muffins a great way to jumpstart your day.
Super-fine almond flour adds moisture to the muffin. The flavor of almonds doesn't overwhelm the crumb, instead offering a subtly sweet nuttiness that, together with oat flour and sweet rice flour, mimics the neutral flavor of glutenous muffins. If you cannot tolerate nuts, scroll down for the nut-free variation that uses buckwheat flour.
Gluten-free oat flour adds the softness and structure for a fluffy muffin crumb. It keeps the muffins super moist, but not dense. The flavor complements almond flour, adding warm, slightly nutty, wholesome notes. If you don't have oat flour, you can make your own by grinding gluten-free rolled oats in a blender or food processor until fine, then sifting out any larger pieces.
Sweet rice flour creates the chewy texture of the muffin. Also called mochiko, sweet rice flour is distinctively different than white rice or brown rice flour. Rather it is the same flour used to make mochi, and as such, its stickiness helps to bind the crumb together, creating chewiness like a classic muffin recipe. You can substitute Bob's Red Mill tapioca starch/flour by weight. The results are nearly indistinguishable.
Refined Sugar-Free Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins
For refined sugar-free muffins, replace the light brown sugar and granulated sugar with coconut sugar by weight (116g).
The results are a bit less sweet without the hint of molasses from the brown sugar, but extremely delicious!
Nut-free gluten-free pumpkin muffins
For nut-free gluten-free pumpkin muffins, replace the almond flour with 83g (½ cup + 1 tablespoon) gluten-free teff flour. You could also substitute 83g gluten-free buckwheat flour or millet flour.
Vegan gluten-free pumpkin muffins
For vegan gluten-free pumpkin muffins, use plant milk, such as almond or oat milk.
Replace the egg with a flax egg by mixing 2 tablespoons flax seed meal with 3 tablespoons water and letting it sit for 5 minutes before adding to the wet ingredients. Then add 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar to the wet ingredients and an additional ¼ teaspoon baking soda to the dry ingredients.
How to make gluten-free pumpkin muffins
These gluten-free pumpkin muffins are no-fuss, with no mixer required, and take less than 5 minutes to whip up. Here's how to make them:
- Sift together dry ingredients.
- Whisk together pumpkin, eggs, oil, sugars, maple syrup, vanilla, and milk.
- Mix in the dry ingredients until smooth.
- Let the batter rest.
- Scoop into muffin tin, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and/or pumpkin seeds, and bake.
Tips for gluten-free pumpkin muffins
Measure with a scale
When using multiple types of flour for gluten-free baking, I always recommend measuring by weight. The way you scoop flour can make a huge difference in the amount of flour you add, so by measuring by weight, you'll always have accurate measurements. I also find it significantly quicker to spoon flour into the bowl set on a scale, without having to fuss with measuring cups.
Let the batter rest
Just like with my gluten-free blueberry muffins, I recommend letting the batter rest before baking. Resting allows the flours and starches to better soak up the ingredients and will create more domed muffins with a better rise.
If you don't want to wait, though, you can bake them right away and they'll still be delicious but will have flatter tops.
Cool on wire rack
Remove the muffins from the tins after a few minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. If you let the muffins cool in the pans, you'll end up with soggy bottoms from the steam.
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffin Variations
In the batch pictured here, I made multiple variations of toppings to suit the preferences of each person in my house, but you can further customize these muffins with the following variations:
- Add chocolate chips: Fold ¾ cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips into the batter.
- Add toasted nuts: Fold up to ¾ cup toasted nuts (such as walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts) into the batter or sprinkle them on top.
- Top with streusel: Sprinkle the muffins with streusel topping before baking.
- Skip muffin liners: You can bake these muffins right in a lightly greased non-stick muffin tray without liners if that's the look you prefer. After letting them cool for 5 minutes in the pan, run a thin knife around the outside to help loosen the muffins from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
- Make mini muffins: Make mini muffins, either with mini muffin liners or straight into a lightly greased non-stick mini muffin pan. Bake at 350°F and check for doneness after 10 minutes by gently tapping the top. When done, the top will spring back when gently touched.
How to store gluten-free pumpkin spice muffins
Let cool completely before storing. Store muffins loosely covered on the counter for up to 3 days, or covered in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Over time, the muffins will lose the crispy top, but will become even more moist.
You can also freeze the muffins for up to 3 months. Place the cooled muffins in a single layer on a baking sheet in the freezer until firm (about an hour), then transfer to an airtight bag or container. This will prevent the muffins from squishing each other or sticking together in the freezer.
Let come to room temperature before serving, or warm it up in a toaster oven or microwave.
More Gluten-Free Pumpkin Recipes
For more inspiration, browse all the recipes I've made in partnership with Andronico's this past year and a half, and check out these favorite gluten-free pumpkin recipes:
Recipe
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients
- 126 g (1 cup + 2 tablespoons) super-fine blanched almond flour, see nut-free option below
- 95 g (¾ cup + 2 tablespoons) Bob's Red Mill gluten-free oat flour
- 40 g (¼ cup) sweet rice flour, Also called "mochiko", different from white rice flour or brown rice flour
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅓ cup (72 g) neutral vegetable oil, safflower, sunflower, or vegetable oil all work
- ⅓ cup (66 g) light brown sugar, or coconut sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar, or coconut sugar)
- 2 tablespoons (40 g) pure maple syrup, or honey
- 2 large eggs, room temperature (see vegan option below)
- 1⅓ cups (301 g) canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons (45 g) milk, any kind: dairy milk or non-dairy milk, room temperature
- ¼ cup granulated sugar, or coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅓ cup toasted pumpkin seeds
INSTRUCTIONS
- Line a muffin tray with 12 liners or lightly grease a non-stick muffin pan with vegetable oil. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift together almond flour, oat flour, sweet rice flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, eggs, vegetable oil, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, maple syrup, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients and whisk until combined and no lumps remain. Optional: Fold in chocolate chips or any other mix-ins if desired.
- For optimal muffin domes, let the batter rest for 30-60 minutes before scooping into the muffin cups. This allows the flours to better soak up the ingredients and will create more domed muffins with a better rise. If you don't want to wait, you can bake them right away and they'll still be delicious, but will have flatter tops. Shortly before ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400°F.
- If using, mix together the sugar and cinnamon topping.
- Divide batter among muffin cups (filling nearly to the top). Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar topping and/or toasted pumpkin seeds, if desired.
- Bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake for another 16-20 minutes, until the a toothpick in the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs, and the center springs back when gently tapped with a finger.
- Let cool in the pan for no longer than 5 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature. See storage instructions below.
Notes
Refined Sugar-Free Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins
For refined sugar-free muffins, replace the light brown sugar and granulated sugar with coconut sugar by weight (116g). The results are a bit less sweet without the hint of molasses from the brown sugar, but extremely delicious!Nut-Free Version
For a nut-free version, replace the almond flour with 83g (½ cup + 2 tablespoons) gluten-free teff flour and follow the recipe as written. You can also sub in 83g gluten-free buckwheat flour or millet flour, if desired.Vegan Version
For vegan gluten-free pumpkin muffins, use plant milk, such as almond or oat milk. Replace the egg with a flax egg by mixing 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal with 3 tablespoons water and letting it sit for 5 minutes before adding to the wet ingredients. Then add 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar to the wet ingredients and an additional ¼ teaspoon baking soda to the dry ingredients.Storage
Let cool completely before storing. Store muffins loosely covered on the counter for up to 3 days, or covered in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Over time, the muffins will lose the crispy top, but will become even more moist. You can also freeze the muffins for up to 3 months. Place the cooled muffins in a single layer on baking sheet in the freezer until firm (about an hour), then transfer to an airtight bag or container. This will prevent the muffins from squishing each other or sticking together in the freezer. Let come to room temperature before serving, or warm it up in a toaster oven or microwave.
Elizabeth -
Delicious! I'm sold on the Mochiko flour, so much better than the rice flour. Thank you for the recipes with Mochiko. I used coconut sugar and think the sweetness was perfect, and the spices are too. I use chopped pecans on the top, with the white sugar and cinnamon. I used just half of your suggested amount on the topping but they had lost the crispyness by the next day. Still delicious! Thank you!
tmcs -
These are my new favorite pumpkin mufffinS! Works great as a mini muffin too.
Furhana Afrid -
To make these muffins low carb and keto, can I sub with more almond flour, or a combo of almond and coconut flour or lupin flour. If yes, what amounts would you recommend? Thanks much!