These are seriously the BEST Vegan Gluten-free Chocolate Muffins you will ever have! Made with almond flour and oat flour and are so rich, decadent and delicious! You would never know they are dairy-free and oil-free!
*This post was originally published on 12-6-2013 and has been updated with better instructions and information.
BEST VEGAN GLUTEN FREE CHOCOLATE MUFFINS
When I say these are the best vegan chocolate muffins, I’m not messing around. Many vegan, especially gluten-free baked goods, can have a very gummy and dense texture. But these are not only light and fluffy, they are SO moist without a drop of oil! They honestly make everybody who eats and makes them say, how in the world are these vegan and gluten-free and oil-free?
And you only need 8 ingredients (+ salt/water). I’m a sucker for double chocolate in any dessert, especially muffins. Like these Whole Wheat Vegan Chocolate Muffins and Vegan Chocolate Mug Cake.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
(Only 8 main ingredients needed. Full details and measurements on the recipe card below.)
- Superfine blanched almond flour: This is different than almond meal (which is just ground up almonds with the skins on). Blanched almond flour is almonds that do not have their skins, have been blanched, dried and then ground into a fine flour. This yields exceptional moisture to baked goods and makes them lighter and fluffier than just ground up almonds. It makes an excellent replacement for oil, which I’ve been using for years and years on this blog.
- Superfine oat flour: I love using the Bob’s Red Mill brand because it is fine and yields fluffiness and rise to the muffins. Homemade is fine if you can get it superfine like in a Vitamix. A food processor won’t get it that fine though and the muffins would end up more dense.
- Tapioca starch: This replaces the eggs. Tapioca has great binding qualities, as well as rise and moisture. If you cannot find this or don’t have it, cornstarch will work great here too. They will just be slightly drier and more fragile, but not a huge change since a small amount is used.
- Baking powder
- Pure maple syrup
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Vanilla extract
- Semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN CHOCOLATE MUFFINS
Step 1: To a large bowl, add the almond flour, oat flour, starch, baking powder and salt. Whisk well.
Step 2: To the same bowl, add the water, syrup, vanilla extract and chocolate chips. Stir until well combined.
Step 3: Divide the batter into 12 muffin nonstick liners and bake at 350°F (177°C) for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick basically comes out clean with a few crumbs on it.
GLUTEN-FREE AND OIL-FREE PERFECTION
Nailing both gluten-free and oil-free, as well as vegan, isn’t always an easy feat. Getting the right ratios of ingredients used can make or break the perfect muffin. Too moist of a muffin can be wet and soggy, which is yuck. Not enough moisture will have you smacking the roof of your mouth and running for some water just to swallow it. But these vegan double chocolate muffins are fluffy, light, moist and absolute perfection.
MORE VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE MUFFIN RECIPES
- Vegan Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Bakery Style Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
- Vegan Gluten-free Sweet Potato Muffins
- Gluten-free Cinnamon Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Vegan Funfetti Cupcakes
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
- Vegan Orange Muffins
- Vegan Gluten-free Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Muffins
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If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Best Vegan Gluten-free Chocolate Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (168g) superfine blanched almond flour
- 1 cup (128g) superfine oat flour
- 3 tablespoons (24g) tapioca starch
- 2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (36g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup (160g) pure maple syrup
- 2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (180g) semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips (Plus more for topping. If using the mini chips, use a heaping 1/2 cup instead since there will be more)
NOTE
- Always use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 350°F (177°C) and line a 12 cup muffin pan with foil liners. I use stay-brite foil liners by Reynolds. These work the best and do not stick whatsoever. They will stick to paper liners.
- To a large bowl, add the almond flour, oat flour, tapioca starch, baking powder, cocoa powder and salt and whisk very well until there is no lumps remaining.
- Make a well in the center and add the water, syrup and vanilla and stir those gently before mixing in with the rest of the ingredients. Stir for a couple of minutes until it's very smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips. Divide the batter into 12 lined muffin cups, they will be filled basically to the top. Using a large ice cream scooper makes it easy and mess-free. Sprinkle more chocolate chips on top, if desired.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the tops are slightly cracked and a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs on it. The toothpick will not come out clean. Since these contain starch, they will still cook a bit after coming out of the oven, so the toothpick should still have some sticky crumbs on it and then they are done. Mine are always perfect at 20 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes and then transfer to cool completely on a wire rack. They will fall apart if you try to eat them immediately....although I don't blame you for trying! For parties or presentation, I like to drizzle some melted chocolate on top as well. Store them in an airtight container or plastic wrap at room temperature and they will stay soft and moist.
Notes
- FLOURS: Superfine oat flour and superfine almond flour is what will yield the best, fluffiest results. I like to use store-bought Bob's Red Mill oat flour for my recipes because it is so fine and makes the for the best fluffiest texture. Almond flour brands I recommend are King Arthur flour, Wellbee's, Honeyville and Nature's Eats brands all work well.
- STARCH: If you do not have tapioca starch, cornstarch is the next best substitute to give the closest results. Use the same weight amount. Cornstarch makes things slightly drier than tapioca and a tiny bit more tender, but since a small amount is used and the muffins are so moist, it will work fine here.
My all time fav chocolate muffin mm especially in waffles lol!!!
Thank you so much Tiffany, I’m so happy to hear that!
Is there a substitution for almond flour for those of us allergic to nuts? Will unbleached all purpose flour work?
Hi Lauren! No, regular flour won’t work at all in place of almond flour, they behave completely different in baking. Almond flour is used to give all the moisture to a recipe, since I don’t use oils in my baking. My suggestion, which is the best option that I tell readers to do, is to sub out the almond flour for sunflower “flour”, which is grinding up raw, unsalted sunflower kernels in a food processor into a flour. Grind it as fine as possible before it starts getting damp and turning into a seed “butter”. Then make sure to measure out the “flour” to the correct weight amount as listed for the almond flour, using a small kitchen scale (place the bowl on the scale and make sure it’s zero before you add the flours/ingredients to the bowl). Do that for each ingredient, as it will help to ensure accurate results. Let me know if you try them. Keep in mind that the flavor will change some and you may or may not taste the sunflower (although the chocolate will camouflage it well) and they won’t be quite as fluffy as blanched almond flour, but should still be good.
I have an allergy to oats, do you have a recommendation on an alternative to the oat flour?
Hi Katlyn! Hmmm, the oats are pretty important here for the texture of the muffins. Does it need to be gluten-free?
Don’t know if you ever saw my other comment, but you could also try brown rice flour, but since it’s more finely ground than oat flour, I would use less, try 3/4 cup. That’s a guess, but worth a shot. Let me know if you try that.
FINALLYYYY, a GF muffin recipe that actually tastes as amazing as it looks! This recipe is definitely a keeper. Thank you for your precise measurements. They turned out exactly as described!
Yay Anne! I’m so happy to hear this wonderful feedback! Thank you so much for letting me know and I know exactly what you mean about gluten-free recipes, haha! My goal is always to make them Just as delicious, if not better, than traditional ones! Thanks again!
I just made this and holy moly these are OMG good! The only difference was instead of maple syrup I found some chocolate no-bee honey and used that. Everything on your blog looks delicious but this was the first thing I have tried…can’t want to try more!
Thank you so much Cassandra for the wonderful feedback! I’m so happy to hear you loved these so much and thank you!
I have a nut allergy and was wondering if there’s anything I could use besides almond flour?
Hi Grace! Yes, you can grind up raw unsalted sunflower kernels into a flour and use that instead. Since blanched almond flour helps to make these fluffy, then I would add a bit more of sunflower “flour” maybe a couple of tablespoons? All the chocolate flavor should help mask the taste. Let me know how they turn out please!
Everybody needs to try these muffins – they are OUT of this WORLD delicious! I made them yesterday morning for breakfast and two quickly “disappeared” within 30 minutes of them coming out of the oven and none were left by the end of the day! We had people over and they got completely devoured after dinner! These muffins are everything you want out of a muffin – they are SO rich, decadent, moist and soft! It was my first time baking with tapioca starch and I’m so happy I did!!
The only changes I made were that I used almond meal instead of blanched almond flour (what I had on hand) and was just shy of the amount of maple syrup needed in this recipe so substituted the last tablespoon for blackstrap molasses. I also followed the gram measurements and will be measuring all my GF baking from now on – it’s crazy what a difference it makes to the final result 🙂 Thanks for the amazing recipe, Brandi!!
I’m soooo happy you loved these so much Ceara! You feel the way I do about them! I’m thrilled to hear everybody else loved them so much as well, that makes my day!! Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback girl!!
could agave be used in place of maple syrup?
Hi Miriam! Yes, of course! Let me know how you like them 🙂
Made these and we couldn’t stop! Delicious, moist, chocolatey and easy to make! I love that the recipe is super healthy and yet you can enjoy a great treat! Thanks!
I’m so happy to hear that Ana!! Thanks so much for making them and taking the time to leave feedback, I really appreciate it!
These caught my eye bc we love chocolate and we love muffins. They were very easy to make, and the ingredients are things I keep on hand. Hot out of the oven they are just like brownies! And we couldn’t keep the kids off of them. Very moist, and flavorful in all the right ways! Thanks Brandi!
Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback Brooke and for sharing your gorgeous photo of your muffins on Facebook! I’m so thrilled you and the kiddos loved them so much and I love that you added strawberries to them! YUM!
These look amazing! While I’m very health conscious, I’m not vegan and have never used/don’t have any tapioca starch. Can I substitute egg whites, regular eggs, or even a flax egg? If so, how many or how much should I use? Thanks!
Hi Meredith! I actually wouldn’t use an egg or flax egg because that would be extra liquid and the tapioca serves 2 purposes, it acts as a binder and also is a dry starch, so it gives lift and lightness to the muffins. If you don’t want to buy tapioca, I would use cornstarn instead. It will be the best substitute. Tapicoa works best, but cornstarch should be a decent sub, I would just make sure to let them completely cool before eating one, as they will be too tender while warm. Please, please let me know how they turn out after you make them! 🙂
These muffins are awesome….i am the one who doesn’t eat anything unless it is loaded with sugar…since i am trying to do better, i thought i would make these muffins. They are very rich in chocolate flavor….crunchy on the outside and very moist on the inside…Thank you Brandi…very genius!
Elilta-I don’t know how I missed this comment, but I know we talked about them on Facebook. Anyways, thank you so much for your comment. I know how much you love them and how many times you’ve made them, so thank you so much for the feedback and making my recipe!
Omg!!! Your a genious girl!!! We luv the Double Chocolate Chip muffins! They are super moist delucious and healthy!! My sister has asked me to make more for her birthday in January. You Rock!!!
Thank you so much Tiffany! I’m super thrilled to hear you all loved them!
I can’t wait to bake a batch of these lovely muffins, Brandi! And your daughter is just precious – what a sweet photo.
Thank you so much Hannah! 🙂
Ah, these look so SO good!!! Can’t wait to try the recipe! Question: will old fashioned oats work?
Thank you! Yes, just make sure you grind them really well into a fine flour. That’s why I used quick oats because I get a smoother, softer result. But it will still technically work 🙂
Oh my gosh Brandi, these look amazing! I found a similar recipe on Pinterest a while back, but haven’t had a change to make it yet. NOW, yours look even better, so I can’t wait to make them! YUM!
Oh they are so good and easy! Thanks girl 🙂
These sure look good, Brandi, but, to be honest, you didn’t need to use one word to describe them. That photo of your adorable daughter gazing at her next bite says it all. 🙂
Haha! I agree…she loves these muffins 🙂
You turned me onto almond flour and hazelnut butter so anything you make with these gets put on my list to try 🙂
Aww thanks Cindy!
WOW THOSE LOOK CRAZY amazing and moist!! I am thinking about looking into tapioca starch!
Thank you!! Tapioca is awesome because it works as a binder and leaves no weird flavor to baked goods. I prefer it over using flaxseed or chia seeds in general. It also adds springiness to baking, like eggs do.
Your daughter is soooo stinkin adorable!! These muffins look so sinful, but so good! I would eat them for breakfast AND dessert..so..basically I would have two at breakfast haha.
Sounds good to me!
Your daughter is adorable!! You should have taken the pic of her “after muffin” face! Again and again, your baking amazes me! along with all that you ‘no bake’! Family and friends must love stopping my your home! These looks so good!!
Haha! Yes, I should have….I will next time. You are are so sweet…thank you so much! I really enjoy it!
Omg Brandi!!!!! These look AMAZING. I love that first photo!! Your kid is soooo cute and the insides of these muffins look so moist and amazing! Another miraculous recipe from you 🙂
Aww thanks so much Erika!!
Those muffins do look incredibly moist and chocolatey. What gives them that wonderful moistness? The water? There is is no oil or applesauce, I am amazed. Your sweet little one looks absolutely mesmerized with that muffin.
Thank you Suzanne! It is the almond flour! That is pretty much all I use…I use a large amount of almond flour that takes care of moisture, then balance it with some oat flour and starch, so it’s not too wet. Perfecting that combo gives a really moist and light muffin. It’s pretty much all I use to bake with the majority of the time now. It seriously needs no oil! 🙂
What can you use to substitute the oat flour?
I made the recipe with rice flour instead of oat flour and it worked out perfectly!
So Wonderful! Thank you for the review!