Delicious Vegan Blackberry Muffins
Vegan blackberry muffins are slightly sweet, easy to make and a great breakfast or snack option all year long. These almond flour blackberry muffins can be made with fresh or frozen blackberries and have a zesty kick from the lemon zest.
Naturally sweetened, these healthy blackberry muffins are vegan, gluten free, dairy free and paleo friendly!
Why you will love this recipe
- Easy to make – the batter to make these vegan blackberry muffins recipe is quick to prepare, all you need is one large bowl and a muffin tin. I recommend using muffin liners to make clean up a breeze too!
- Simple ingredients – these almond flour blackberry muffins have easy to find ingredients that you can find at almost any store! There are some great swaps and alternatives if you need a nut free muffin as well! You can use fresh or frozen blackberries or your favorite berry depending on what is in season.
- Healthier than typical muffins – these muffins are naturally sweetened (refined sugar free) with maple syrup, made with almond flour and almond butter for healthy fats and fiber and are vegan, egg free, gluten free and dairy free.
Ingredients
- Ground flax & water – ground flax and water are used to replace the egg in this recipe. Be sure to mix the flax immediately when added to water or it tends to clump. You can also use chia seeds (or ground chia seeds).
- Dairy free milk – use whatever your go-to dairy free plant based milk is for this recipe. To keep this vegan, you can use almond milk, cashew milk, oat milk, coconut milk (in the carton not the can), hemp milk or flax milk.
- Maple syrup – maple syrup naturally sweetens the muffins helping them taste just slightly sweet. The maple syrup also adds extra liquid to the muffin batter. Because of this it cannot easily be swapped out with coconut sugar or maple sugar.
- Almond flour – almond flour helps to create the base for the muffins. This recipe is best with almond flour but if all you have is almond meal, it will work as well, but the texture will be slightly different.
- Arrowroot powder – arrowroot flour (or powder) helps to create that soft, spongy texture for the muffins. This texture is usually created by the gluten in regular baking. Since this recipe is gluten free and uses almond flour, the arrowroot is used to help create that same texture. You can also use tapioca flour.
- Baking powder – baking powder helps ensure the muffins rise when baking. Be sure you are using fresh baking powder (no more than 6 months old) or your muffins may not rise.
- Almond butter – almond butter provides the fat in these muffins, helping ensure they are moist and fluffy. You can use whatever your favorite nut or seed butter is.
- Lemon zest – lemon zest gives these muffins an extra pop of flavor and takes them to the next level.
- Fresh or frozen blackberries – you can use fresh or frozen blackberries. Be sure to lightly mash them so the berries don’t create air pockets when baking. Defrost frozen berries 30 minutes in advance.
How to make vegan blackberry muffins
Start by combining the ground flax with the wet ingredients (water, dairy free milk, maple syrup) in a large bowl. Stir well.
Add the dry ingredients (almond flour, arrowroot and baking powder) to the bowl and stir well until everything is well combined.
Add the almond butter to the batter and stir in well.
Next zest a large lemon into the bowl (be sure to only get the skin and none of the with white pith under the skin).
Slightly mash the blackberries (defrost 30 minutes in advance if frozen) and add them to the batter.
Stir lightly just to incorporate them into the batter(the more you stir the more the juice from the blackberries will start to bleed, which can turn the batter purple).
Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop the batter into muffin tins (lined with parchment paper or silicone liners). You will likely need to use a spoon or spatula to get the batter from the measuring cup as it’s sticky and thick.
Once you have all 12 muffins in the pan, put in a 375F oven for 33 minutes.
After 33 minutes, remove the healthy blackberry muffins from the oven and let them cool at least 10-15 minutes before removing the muffins from the pan. Let cool completely before removing the paper or silicone liners.
Top tips
Use parchment paper or silicone liners for the muffins to make them easy to pop out of the muffin tin and for easy clean up afterwards.
Some of the berries will start to break down the longer they sit in the batter. If you want to keep the batter from turning blue/purple, add the blackberries last and scoop the batter into the pan quickly.
As the berries cook and burst inside the muffins, the muffins may fall a bit, that is totally normal and ok! If you want to ensure that the muffins don’t fall, you will need to mash the berries slightly (not into a puree, just slightly) and fold the mashed berries in. Large berries will create air pockets that can fall once the muffins start to cool.
When zesting the lemon, you only want to get the top yellow part, not the white pith that is bitter.
If you don’t have a lemon to zest, you could also use an orange zest or even lime zest. I do not recommend using lemon juice instead, it turns the batter a bit sour and does not produce the same flavor as adding the zest.
Allow the vegan blackberry muffins to cool completely before taking them out of the muffin liners. They will be very fragile the first 10-15 minutes out of the oven but have the best texture once cooled completely.
Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to distribute the batter between the muffin tin to get evenly sized muffins. You will need a small spatula or spoon to help get the batter from the measuring cup since the batter is thick and does stick.
Want to add a topping to the muffins?
- Frosting: You can use cashew frosting or dairy free maple frosting to drizzle on top right before serving.
- Crumble: You can make an oat crumble or almond flour crumble to go on top of the gluten free blackberry muffins.
- For the oat crumble: ¾ cup of rolled oats, 1 tablespoon avocado oil, 3 tablespoons of maple syrup, and 2 teaspoons cinnamon (optional). Combine these ingredients in a bowl then crumble on top of the muffins before baking.
- For the almond flour crumble: ¾ cup of almond flour, ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts, 3 tbsp. coconut sugar, 1 tbsp. arrowroot powder, 1.5 tablespoons of avocado oil, 1 tablespoon maple syrup and optional ½ tablespoon cinnamon. Combine these in a bowl then crumble on top of each muffin before baking.
- Lemon glaze: Combine ½ cup of powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon lemon juice and the zest from ½ of a lemon. Tip: Make your own powdered sugar with coconut sugar or maple sugar by blending it in a high speed blender until it has a similar texture as powdered sugar.
Common questions
Can you substitute other berries for blackberries?
Yes! This recipe would work great with blueberries, raspberries, strawberries or even cherries. For the strawberries and cherries, be sure to remove the stems, the pit (cherries) and cut them up into smaller pieces so they are distributed well throughout the muffins.
Can you use frozen blackberries?
Yes! That is one of the reasons I love this recipe so much is because it can be made all year long from frozen blackberries. Let the berries defrost about 30 minutes then mash them slightly with a fork before adding to the batter.
If you add whole berries, you run the risk of air pockets forming and the muffins falling when cooled. To avoid this, mash the berries slightly so they don’t create those air pockets.
How to remove blackberry seeds
If you don’t love the seeds in the blackberries, you can always mash the blackberries, and pass them through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Use the puree in the muffins (the muffins will change color).
What is the difference between almond meal and almond flour?
Almond meal is made from grinding up whole almonds (with the skin attached), which can make it less fluffy and baked goods not as light.
Almond flour is made from blanched almonds (they remove the skin first) before grinding the almonds. Almond flour tends to be lighter and create a more delicate baked goods which is why it’s recommended for this recipe.
Where can you buy almond flour?
You can get almond flour at most grocery stores or online. I typically buy mine at Aldi or at Trader Joe’s for the best cost. Costco also has a great price on almond flour.
Can these muffins be made without almond flour?
Yes, you can also make these vegan blackberry muffins with sunflower seed meal instead of almond flour if you need them to be nut free. You can buy sunflower seed meal online or make your own by grinding up raw sunflower seeds in the food processor until it resembles sand (don’t take them too far or they will turn into sunflower seed butter).
What if you don’t have arrowroot powder?
If you don’t have arrowroot flour, you can use tapioca starch or cornstarch as a 1:1 replacement. You can also make these muffins with oat flour instead of arrowroot powder, but you will want to also reduce the amount of almond flour as well.
To make 12 blackberry muffins with oat flour instead of arrowroot powder, you will need 1.75 cups of almond flour and 1 cup of oat flour. Note that these muffins are best eaten within 2 days and kept on the counter or frozen immediately as the texture gets very cakey when stored in the fridge.
Can you freeze vegan blackberry muffins?
Yes! These muffins can be frozen for up to 3 months. Be sure to freeze them in a freezer safe bag or container. I like to wrap them in parchment paper then tightly in plastic wrap or in a heavy silicone bag like stasher bags to help keep them from freezer burn.
Simply defrost the muffins on the counter or warm them up in the microwave or in a low (300F) oven for 10-15 minutes to defrost.
What is the best way to store ground flax?
Ground flax can go rancid quickly so the best way to store it is to place it in the fridge or freezer. I like to store all my nuts, seeds and ground flax in the freezer to ensure they stay fresh as long as possible.
Storage tips for almond flour blackberry muffins
- Counter: Store the healthy blackberry muffins on the counter 1-2 days in a airtight container.
- Fridge: The muffins do great when stored in the fridge up to 5-6 days.
- Freezer: Store gluten free blackberry muffins in the freezer up to 3 months. See the tips above on how to store them.
Substitutions
Ground flax – The ground flax is used to replace eggs in this recipe. You can also use ground chia seeds or regular chia seeds in place of the flax if needed.
Dairy free milk – Use any kind of dairy free milk you have on hand. To keep this vegan, use almond milk, cashew milk, oat milk, coconut milk (in a carton, not a can), hemp milk or flax milk. If you can tolerate dairy, you can also use regular milk. If you don’t have dairy free milk on hand, combine 1 tablespoon of almond butter with 1 cup of milk in a high-speed blender to make almond milk. Measure out ¾ of a cup from this and put the rest in the fridge.
Maple syrup – maple syrup sweetens the muffins naturally. You can also use date paste or honey. Both of these will change the flavor of the muffins slightly but will work fine.
Almond flour – if you cannot tolerate almonds, you can also make this with cashew flour or sunflower seed meal. You can buy both of these online. I have not tried this recipe with gluten free flour or all oat flour.
Arrowroot powder – you can substitute arrowroot with tapioca 1:1. If you do not have either of these on hand, you can use oat flour instead. You will need to change how much almond flour you are using if you add oat flour. 1.75 cups almond flour and 1 cup oat flour.
Almond butter – use whatever your favorite nut or seed butter is here. You can use peanut butter, cashew butter, sunbutter or tahini in place of the almond butter.
Lemon zest – you can use orange zest or lime zest. Do not use lemon juice in place of lemon zest or your muffins will have a sour flavor.
Blackberries – fresh or frozen work great. You can also use blueberries, raspberries, strawberries (cut into small pieces) or cherries (pit removed, cut into small pieces).
More vegan muffin recipes
- Almond Flour Banana Muffins
- Quinoa Banana Muffins
- Blueberry Banana Oatmeal Muffins
- Gluten Free Almond Flour Muffins (savory)
- Lemon Blueberry Protein Muffins
Vegan Blackberry Muffins
$10.73 Recipe/$0.89 ServingIngredients
- 4.5 tbsp ground flax - $0.30
- 3/4 cup water - $0.00
- 1/2 cup dairy free milk - $0.57
- 1/2 cup maple syrup - $2.50
- 2.25 cups almond flour - $3.29
- 1/3 cup arrowroot flour - $0.48
- 1 tsp baking powder - $0.06
- 1/4 cup almond butter - $0.70
- 1 medium lemon, zested - $0.33
- 1.5 cups blackberries - $2.50
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F.
- In a large bowl combine the ground flax, water, dairy free milk and maple syrup. Stir well.
- Add the almond flour, arrowroot powder and baking powder to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Stir well
- Add almond butter to batter and stir well to fully incorporate.
- Zest the lemon into the bowl with the other ingredients.
- Lightly mash the blackberries and add them to the batter. Stir 2-3 times to incorporate but not overmix.
- Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to evenly distribute the batter between the muffin tin (be sure to line with parchment or silicone muffin liners). You may need a spatula to get the batter out of the measuring cup.
- Bake in a 375F oven for 33 minutes.
- After 33 minutes, remove from oven and allow to cool 10-15 minutes. Remove muffins (with liners) to a rack and allow to fully cool before serving.
Notes
- Use parchment paper or silicone liners for the muffins to make them easy to pop out of the muffin tin and for easy clean up afterwards.
- As the berries cook and burst inside the muffins, the muffins may fall a bit, that is totally normal and ok! If you want to ensure that the muffins don’t fall, you will need to mash the berries slightly (not into a puree, just slightly) and fold the mashed berries in. Large berries will create air pockets that can fall once the muffins start to cool.
- When zesting the lemon, you only want to get the top yellow part, not the white pith that is bitter.
- If you don’t have a lemon to zest, you could also use an orange or even a lime. I do not recommend using lemon juice instead, it turns the batter a bit sour and does not produce the same flavor as adding the zest.
- Allow the muffins to cool completely before taking them out of the muffin liners. They will be very fragile the first 10-15 minutes out of the oven but have the best texture once cooled completely.
- If you don’t love the seeds in the blackberries, you can always mash the blackberries, and pass them through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Use the puree in the muffins (they muffins will change color).
- Frosting: You can use cashew frosting or dairy free maple frosting to drizzle on top right before serving.
- Crumble: You can make an oat crumble or almond flour crumble to go on top of the muffins.
- For the oat crumble: ¾ cup of rolled oats, 1 tablespoon avocado oil, 3 tablespoons of maple syrup, and 2 teaspoons cinnamon (optional). Combine these ingredients in a bowl then crumble on top of the muffins before baking.
- For the almond flour crumble: ¾ cup of almond flour, ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts, 3 tbsp. coconut sugar, 1 tbsp. arrowroot powder, 1.5 tablespoons of avocado oil, 1 tablespoon maple syrup and optional ½ tablespoon cinnamon. Combine these in a bowl then crumble on top of each muffin before baking.
- Lemon glaze: Combine ½ cup of powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon lemon juice and the zest from ½ of a lemon. Tip: Make your own powdered sugar with coconut sugar or maple sugar by blending it in a high speed blender until it has a similar texture as powdered sugar.
- Counter: Store the muffins on the counter 1-2 days in a airtight container.
- Fridge: The muffins do great when stored in the fridge up to 5-6 days.
- Freezer: Store blackberry muffins in the freezer up to 3 months. See the tips above on how to store them.
Love these blackberry muffins, they really hit the spot. I eat them as a snack mid-day. Easy recipe and delicious.
Eric, I agree! We eat these up as an afternoon snack as well.