Healthy Pumpkin Muffins

- Amanda

Don’t be fooled by the name Healthy Pumpkin Muffins.  These are so delicious and packed with flavor I was hesitant to include the word healthy.  But they are just that and so much more.  They are refined sugar-free and sweetened with only honey and a little bit of applesauce.

The combo of the fresh pumpkin puree (store bought is great too, ) fragrant spices, whole wheat flour, ground flax seeds, and oats really makes for a magical anytime treat you can feel good about eating and giving to your family.  The monkeys can’t get enough of these.  They beg for them for breakfast, as a snack, or after dinner dessert.

And while I love my handy mixer, what I love even more is when I can whip up a recipe quickly without one.  For these muffins, just combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl, then the wet ingredients in a smaller bowl and fold the two together.

If you like a bit of texture in your muffins, the sky’s the limit with these.  I’ve topped them with pepitas, or pumpkin seeds, which I find to be a nice finish to baked goods with pumpkin.   But you can add other chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans, or other mix-ins such as raisins, cranberries, chocolate chips, or even candied ginger.

For the oat flour, you can purchase it at most grocery stores, or make it yourself by pulsing whole oats in a blender, food processor or spice grinder until it reaches a fine powder consistency.  One cup of rolled oats will give you approximately 1 cup of oat flour.

Now I’m guessing, you probably have most of these ingredients in your pantry, so go ahead and give these fabulous pumpkin muffins a try.  You’ll be happy you did.

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Healthy Pumpkin Muffins

These delicious and healthy pumpkin muffins make for a fabulous fall treat.  They're fluffy, perfectly spiced, and naturally sweetened.  Grab one for breakfast, dessert, or an anytime snack.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 12

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups (195g) whole wheat flour
  • 1/4 cup (28g) oat flour
  • 1/2 cup (75g) oats
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water)
  • 1 large egg, lightly whisked
  • 1 cup pumpkin
  • 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp allspice
  • 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup milk (or milk of choice)
  • 2 tbsp walnut oil (or other mild oil)
  • 2 tbsp applesauce (unsweetened)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F/ 180F and spray a regular sized muffin tin with baking spray or line with baking cups.

  2. To make the flax egg, combine 1 tbsp ground flax seeds with 3 tbsps of water in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes until thickened.

  3. Next in a large bowl combine the whole wheat flour, oat flour, oats, and baking soda.

  4. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, all the spices, salt, honey, and applesauce until well combined.  Then add the milk, flax egg, egg, vanilla and oil.  

  5. Make a well in the center of the flours and oats, and add the wet ingredients to the bowl.  Mix by gently folding until all is combined.

  6. Divide the batter evenly into the muffin tins to 3/4 full.  Top each muffin with a few pumpkin seeds and bake in the center rack of the oven for 12-15 minutes or until they spring back when lightly touched in the centers.

  7. Let cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes before carefully removing to a wire rack.  Once completely cooled these muffins can be stored in a tightly sealed container at room temp for 2-3 days, in the refrigerator for 5 days, or frozen up to a month.