These Vegan Sweet Potato Muffins are studded with chocolate chips and are so moist, soft and fluffy. They are healthy, gluten-free, oil-free and just 8 ingredients and made in 1 bowl! So very easy to make!
*This post contains affiliate links. See my full disclosure policy here.
VEGAN SWEET POTATO MUFFINS
I really love sweet potatoes. A lot. I love sneaking sweet potatoes in desserts, as can be seen here in a full collection of 12 Vegan Desserts Using Sweet Potatoes. These super soft and fluffy vegan sweet potato muffins are so easy to make and so delicious! My daughter has eaten 6 of them in the past 2 days. Since they are pretty darn nutritious, I don’t mind it one bit. I used less sweetener in these than I typically use, since the sweet potato does add some sweetness. Also, anytime I add chocolate chips, I can get away with using less sweetener.
Just like with a lot of my recipes, I used almond flour in these for moisture to keep them oil-free. Both the sweet potato, almond flour and coconut milk give major moisture and richness in every bite. My recipes with almond flour are typically the most popular, so that is why I love to use it so much. The oat flour gives a healthy dose of fiber. I mean, these are basically breakfast, right? Haha.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN SWEET POTATO MUFFINS
First, you will need to gather these 8 ingredients (+salt):
- blanched superfine almond flour
- oat flour
- baking powder
- orange cooked sweet potato
- plant-based milk (I used and recommend canned lite coconut milk)
- pure maple syrup
- vanilla extract
- dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips
Cook a whole sweet potato either in a microwave or in the oven. I do the microwave because it’s much faster. An oven will take around 45 minutes. Once the sweet potato is squishy soft, it is ready. Let the sweet potato completely cool.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and line a muffin pan with 8 nonstick parchment paper liners.
To a large bowl, add the almond flour, oat flour, baking powder and salt and whisk very well until no lumps remain. Set aside.
Peel and mash the cooled sweet potato and measure out the 5 tablespoons (75g) and add to a food processor or blender (I used my Vitamix). Add the milk, syrup and vanilla extract. Blend until completely smooth and no bits/chunks of sweet potato remain.
Pour the blended mixture over the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until completely smooth and mixed. Gently stir in the chocolate chips, being careful not to overmix too much. Use an ice cream scoop or a 1/3 measuring cup to divide the batter into the 8 liners. The batter will fill up near the tops as you can see, which will result in large tall muffins. Do not divide it into more muffins, it will not overflow.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick is basically clean from the center of a muffin, a few crumbs are ok. The oat flour version was done at 20 minutes but the starch version takes closer to 25. Keep in mind ovens vary, so look for the clean toothpick.
See, gorgeous fluffy muffins.
SUBSTITUTIONS
Just because I’m so good to you and I knew the question would be coming, I have tested a grain-free version for you for those who cannot tolerate oats! You will sub the oat flour for basically half the amount of starch. If you are not gluten-free and want to use regular all-purpose flour, sub the oat flour for the same weight amount. You can sub the oat flour for either all-purpose flour OR wheat pastry flour. Both were tested and work beautifully. For those who cannot have coconut, you can sub with cashew milk. I tested it personally. While the lite coconut milk does make them a bit more moist, rich and fluffy, the cashew milk works. I’d do the coconut milk though if you aren’t allergic. Soy milk will make these too chewy because of the protein content, so I’d probably avoid that one.
OTHER VEGAN MUFFIN RECIPES TO TRY:
- Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Gluten-free Double Chocolate Muffins
- Whole Wheat Chocolate Muffins
- Bakery-Style Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
- Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Vegan Sweet Potato Muffins
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons (75g) cooked, mashed and cooled orange sweet potato (do not use a white one, they are too dry)
- 1 1/4 cups (140g) superfine blanched almond flour (must be superfine or your muffins will be dense)
- 1 cup (128g) fine oat flour (I use Bob's Red Mill, see NOTES at bottom for grain-free)
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 3/4 cup (180g) room temperature canned lite coconut milk, shaken first OR creamy almond milk or oat milk should work
- 6 tablespoons (120g) pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons (10g) vanilla extract
- 5-6 tablespoons (75-90g) mini semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips (the minis spread more throughout the batter)
NOTE
- Always use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl and make sure to zero out in between each ingredient.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- The day before or an hour or so before you want to make the muffins, cook a whole sweet potato either in a microwave or in the oven. I do the microwave because it's much faster. An oven will take around 45 minutes. Once the sweet potato is squishy soft, it is ready. Let the sweet potato completely cool.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and line a muffin pan with 10+ nonstick parchment paper liners.
- To a large bowl, add the almond flour, oat flour (or starch), baking powder and salt and whisk very well until no lumps remain. Set aside.
- Peel and mash the cooled sweet potato and measure out the 5 tablespoons (75g) and add to a food processor or blender (I used my Vitamix). Add the milk, syrup and vanilla extract. Blend until completely smooth and no bits/chunks of sweet potato remain.
- Pour the blended mixture (make sure to scrape it all out) over the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until completely smooth and mixed. Gently stir in the chocolate chips, being careful not to over-mix too much. The batter will be thick, don't be tempted to add more milk.
- Use an ice cream scoop or a 1/3 measuring cup to divide the batter into the 10 liners. The batter will fill up to the tops, which results in large tall muffins. Do not divide it into more muffins, it won't overflow. Lightly smooth out the tops with the back of a spoon, don't mash it down, as we want to keep the batter light so they rise nicely. Top with extra chocolate chips.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick is clean from the center of a muffin. The oat flour version was done at 22 minutes but the starch version takes closer to 25. Keep in mind ovens vary, so look for the clean toothpick.
- I know it's hard, but you need to let these muffins cool 15-30 minutes, the longer end for the starch version. These muffins continue to cook as they cool, especially starch-based ones. They will be too moist if eaten right away. Store completely cooled muffins in a large ziplock bag or sealed container at room temperature.
Notes
- Make sure the almond flour and oat flour are superfine and not gritty, otherwise your muffins will end up too dense and wet. Gritty almond flours will yield denser muffins, as does oat flour that is not ground fine. This is why I always use store-bought versions for the best, fluffy results.
- If you want to use regular all-purpose flour, sub the oat flour for the same weight amount. Whole wheat pastry flour also works in place of the oat flour. Do not use whole wheat flour, as that will make them too tough. The almond flour cannot be subbed here. It is necessary for both texture and moisture.
- To make this grain-free (oat-free), sub the oat flour for 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (90g) potato starch. It must be potato starch, other starches will yield very dense/chewy results. You can find this at many grocery stores in the flour isle or off Amazon. Make sure you are not getting potato flour, which is very different. If you taste this batter version, it will taste gritty because of the starch, don't fret, the end result is delicious. All remaining ingredients are the same, but this version takes closer to 25 minutes to bake. Look for a clean toothpick. These will dry out quicker by the next day, as do all baked goods with high starch amounts.
- See post under Substitutions for another tested milk version.
This is my favorite muffin recipe – delicious, moist and sweet (without refined sugar). My husband and non-vegan friends love these muffins, too. I’ve shared the recipe with several.
That is amazing to hear Gretchen!!
Review from my husband, “these are the best muffins you have ever made!” After eating 3 in one sitting.
Only critique, need more muffins so they last 😂 thanks for all the hard work you pour into these recipes
These are really good! So easy to make and they always come out just perfect. My husband requests them weekly. I make them as directed- be sure to use the scale as Brandi mentions, so precise and way easier than all those measuring cups!
Made with homemade pecan milk, turned out great ! Kids love them!
That is wonderful, sounds delicious, thank you Dana!
Am I allowed to leave two reviews in one day? 😉 I love to cook and try new recipes, and I’ve had so much fun trying recipes from your blog. Today I tried these muffins – the texture is awesome! So fluffy, and the perfect amount of sweetness! I’m so glad I bought super-fine oat flour rather than making my own; I really think that made a huge difference in the texture. I can’t wait to make these again!
My hubby DEVOURED these! I was SEW surprised, he really doesn’t comment too much. He says this is his FAVORITE! Since he really liked these these Sweet Potato Muffins, I made the Pumpkin Bread for me today…and yes! He is claiming this Pumpkin Bread is better than banana bread any day!!!
Thank you for another great recipe!
Woohoo that is so amazing to hear, yay!! Thank you Rosebud!
I’ve made these twice already in mini muffin tins and everybody, including ME, loves them! Do you happen to have the nutritional content available, including fat and sodium numbers? Thank you!
One of the best sweet potato muffin recipes I’ve made! I frosted it with Dreena Burton’s sweet potato frosting which is also the bomb!! Question: what is oven time if I want to make these mini muffins? Thank you for the lovely recipe.
So wonderful to hear that Lauren! I would suggest reducing the time by 5 minutes or so, just look for a clean toothpic!
Hi,
If you can’t do chocolate chips, would carob chips work you think?
Thanks!
Johanna
Yes, I believe so!
Absolutely delicious! I make a lot of muffins thanks to my toddlers, and this is easily become one of my favorites. I am a little obsessed and trying not to eat all of them myself! My toddlers, and husband (he is pickier than my kids ;)), love them too. I tried your zucchini chocolate muffins last week and those were also a hit. I am very excited to try more of your recipes. Thanks for your awesome creations!
So thrilled to hear this, glad you loved both recipes!!
Could I use ALL oat flour and could blueberries be subbed for the chocolate chips?? (Chocolate chips are a trigger for me.😉)
Very scrumptious and easy too!
Based on all of the praise, I doubled it.
Very glad I did.
Woohoo, glad you enjoyed these!
Made these for a work potluck and sent the link for the recipe to 7 people afterwards. They also sparked a conversation about how easy and delicious eating this way is. Thanks for putting so much work into your recipes!
This recipe is absolutely delicious!! My whole family ate these in one night. I made them specifically for my toddler who has food allergies. I used flour instead of oats. My husband who doesn’t like any baked goods that are made healthy loves these! Now that says a lot. This will be a new staple in the Wilson house. I’m making 3 more batches today and am going to try different variations.
That is so amazing to hear, thank you for sharing Nichole!!
Delicious!!!! I had some extra baked sweet potato and a sweet tooth. I discovered this recipe and gave it a try. This is the BEST dessert or muffin I believe I’ve had in a long while! It was taste tested by several non-vegan friends and they all wanted the recipe. It freezes very well and is also filling. My only suggestion is to double the recipe because these won’t last long!
So wonderful to hear!!
Had some left over baked sweet potatoes and decided to make these – OMG! These are the best! Fortunately I bumped the recipe to 12 muffins but now wish I’d made 18. These are simply delicious Brandi! No question these will be made again. Hubby said they were a 10!
I’ve been making a batch of muffins each week in an attempt to find the perfect “on the go” breakfast muffin. I will look no further- these were the best! I subbed all purpose flour for oat flour, and used oat milk instead of coconut. Since I will be eating these for breakfast, I left out the chocolate chips. The texture of these muffins is perfect! I topped with a little peanut butter and honey. Soooo good!
So happy you loved these!
I know I already rated these, but this morning I used the batter to make donuts and then dipped the tops in vegan butter and cinnamon/sugar. I wish I could post a picture on IG but they were snatched up and DEVOURED so fast there aren’t even crumbs!! 😆 Because the batter was a little heavier than most of your donut recipes, I left them in the 350° oven for about 18 minutes. It was perfect! Thanks for this amazing versatile recipe, Brandi!
Hi! I’d like to turn this into a lactation muffin. My plan is to add Brewer’s Yeast. Any idea how much I should add and how I’d need to (if at all) adjust the other ingredients?
Oil free muffins can be dense and even gummy, but that is definitely not the case with these beautifies! They are light and fluffy! I love your creativity and dedication to wholesome ingredients. Thank you, Brandi!
Have you happened to try subbing chickpea flour for the oat flour? Do you think this could work?
Hi Allie, I don’t think that would work too well because chickpea is high protein which would make the muffins really tough and chewy I’d think. The oat flour makes them soft.