Grab that cinnamon and ready the can opener. It’s time to bust out the pumpkin! Supremely moist, naturally sweetened, and packed with pure pumpkin flavor, I perfected this Healthy Pumpkin Muffins recipe over four separate attempts just for you and your fall fervor.
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I can attest, these healthy pumpkin muffins are the BEST!
This recipe for healthy pumpkin muffins began as an innocent adaptation of my one-bowl Healthy Pumpkin Bread.
But it turns out that adaptation wasn’t so cut-and-dry. I took me four attempts to get these muffins just right.
It was worth it!
- These pumpkin muffins are 100% whole grain and naturally sweetened with honey, so you can feel good about enjoying them as a breakfast or snack.
- Like my Healthy Pumpkin Cookies, I made sure to be generous with the warm spices that are critical to bringing out pumpkin’s quintessential taste: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice ensure these muffins are bursting with fall flavor.
- Bonus: These muffins freeze beautifully, which means you can enjoy healthy pumpkin muffins for breakfast far beyond pumpkin season. Yeah!
5 Star Review
“These healthy pumpkin muffins are so good, I’ve made them twice in one week!”
— Holly —
Key Ingredients
You’ll find the full list of ingredients in the recipe card below, but here are some notes to keep in mind.
- Pumpkin. This recipe calls for one whole can of pumpkin, so you don’t have to waste any amount of an opened can.
- Greek Yogurt. Provides additional moisture and creates a fluffy, exceptionally moist muffin—not the typical dense muffin that can result from using 100% whole grain.
- Oatmeal + Whole Wheat Flour. Wholesome, fiber-packed additions that give these muffins a delightfully nutty flavor.
- Honey. To keep these muffins free from refined sugar, I sweetened them with honey (maple syrup would also work beautifully here). The honey tastes wonderful with the spices, oats, and pumpkin too.
- Spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice make these muffins instantly warm and cozy. They’re essential for bringing out the perfect pumpkin flavor.
How to Make Healthy Pumpkin Muffins
Mix the Wet Ingredients. Whisk the oil, honey, and yogurt together, then add the egg and vanilla. Then, whisk in the pumpkin.
Add the Dry Ingredients. Stir in the baking soda and spices. Add the flour and oats, stirring until fully incorporated.
Divide Batter into Pan. Transfer the batter to the muffin pan, and top the muffins with oats for a little festive decoration.
Bake. Bake the pumpkin muffins for 24 to 29 minutes at 325 degrees F. Let cool, then ENJOY!
Healthy Pumpkin Recipe Adaptations
If you’ve made Well Plated recipes before, you’ll likely know one of my go-to healthy swaps is often using applesauce in place of butter and oil.
Here, however, I do not recommend making healthy pumpkin muffins with applesauce in place of the oil. The pumpkin already contributes scrumptious moisture, so adding applesauce in addition to the pumpkin and Greek yogurt would most likely make the muffins too mushy.
These are tried and true recipe adaptations you can enjoy instead:
- Gluten Free. Baking pumpkin muffins with almond flour is an excellent option to make healthy pumpkin muffins gluten free. Check out this recipe Almond Flour Pumpkin Muffins. You also can follow this recipe, but swap in a 1:1 baking blend for the wheat flour.
- Vegan. My Vegan Pumpkin Muffins are a perfect fit for what you’re craving!
- Chocolate Chips. To make healthy pumpkin muffins with chocolate chips, add 2/3 cup of your favorite chocolate chips to the batter. Or for a similar taste and texture with oats too, you’ll devour this Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread.
Healthy Pumpkin Muffins
Video
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Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or melted and cooled coconut oil
- ½ cup honey or pure maple syrup
- ⅓ cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt at room temperature
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg freshly grated is an amazing upgrade! Use this zester to grate whole nutmeg.
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cups white whole wheat flour*
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons, rolled oats plus additional for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325°F. Light coat a 12-inch standard muffin tin with nonstick spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, honey, and Greek yogurt. Once blended, whisk in the egg and vanilla. Make sure the ingredients are smooth and well blended.
- Whisk in the pumpkin purée.
- Sprinkle the baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and salt over the top. Whisk or use a rubber spatula to stir gently to combine.
- Sprinkle the flour and oats over the top, then with a rubber spatula, gently incorporate, just until the flour disappears.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups, dividing it evenly (I like to use a batter or ice cream scoop for this). The cups will be very full. If desired, sprinkle on a few oats on top for decoration.
- Bake for 24 to 29 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Super moist breads like pumpkin bread can be hard to gauge; to be 100% certain, use an instant read thermometer. The center of a muffin should register 200°F. Place the pan on a wire rack and let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then with a butter knife, gently loosen the muffins and transfer them to the rack to finish cooling (or for as long as you can resist devouring them). The muffins will be very delicate while still warm, but will firm up more as they cool.
Notes
- TO STORE: Since these healthy pumpkin muffins are so moist, I recommend storing them in the refrigerator in a paper towel-lined airtight storage container for up to 4 days. The pumpkin flavor becomes even more pronounced on day 2.
- TO FREEZE: Freeze muffins in an airtight freezer-safe storage container for up to 3 months. Thaw and enjoy as desired (I like to individually wrap my muffins so I can grab them for quick breakfasts and snacks).
- *For the white whole wheat flour, you can substitute whole wheat pastry flour, all-purpose flour, or a blend of the two. Regular whole wheat flour can also be used, though the muffins will have a heavier texture and more pronounced wheat taste.
I would make this recipe again!! So good!
Great to hear, charity_negron! Thank you!
This is a terrible recipe, doesn’t bake up well at all
I’m sorry to hear you had trouble with the recipe, Nicole. Let’s try to troubleshoot it a little. Could you check the video in the recipe card and let me know if at any point your batter looked different than mine? As far as baking what happened?
I baked for over an hour and still wet. Way too much pumpkin.
I’m sorry to hear there was an issue, Collette. At which point did it register at 200°F inside?
These are excellent, delicious fall flavors and perfect texture. I did the 200 degree temperature test and they came out just right. I can’t believe there isn’t processed sugar with all the flavor. I did equal portion honey/maple syrup and added nuts and a few chocolate chips. This is a keeper recipe.
So glad to hear, Darlene! Thank you!
We absolutely loved it! I would give these 10 stars if I could!
THANK YOU!!!!!
I just put my fourth or fifth batch of these wonderful muffins in the oven!! No two batches were exactly the same. I’ve played around a bit with the sweetener, using part maple syrup and part honey. I even used a touch of molasses as part of the sweetener concoction – definitely adding its own flavor to this recipe. Which batch is my favorite? All of them! They are a hit with all who have tried them. A super helpful if found (I believe it was included with a quick bread or other muffin recipe) is that the muffins are done when the temperature of the center of the muffin reaches 200 degrees.
Makes me so happy to hear Dawn! THANK YOU!
Delicious! I love the concept of SB’s Pumpkin Cream Cheese muffins, but haven’t landed on a version that I love until now. This recipe is perfect and a bit healthier. I added a small dollop of cream cheese whipped with powdered sugar in the middle before baking. This will be my go-to recipe now!
Yay! So glad to hear, Kathy! Thank you!
I’m wondering if chia seeds could be added to this recipe?
Hi Ruth, I have’t tried it but you likely could. If you decide to experiment, I’d love to know how it goes!
I just baked these delicious muffins a few minutes ago and I am very pleased with how they came out! I made a couple tweaks such as instead of canola oil I used Avocado oil and I added a tablespoon of chia seeds in with the flour. I bake muffins always at 400 degrees for first 8 minutes then drop down to 350 and bake about 10 more minutes or until done. They are so good!
So glad you enjoyed the muffins, Ruth! Thank you!