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.
Nutrition
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I have made these dozens of times with leftover pumpkin from making my dog’s treats, and they are delicious! One would never know that they are healthy. I use vanilla bean paste instead of extract, add a bit more cinnamon, and I add nuts (usually walnuts). I’m using pecans this time to carry to a Thanksgiving breakfast.
So glad to hear you enjoyed them, Carolina! Thank you!
I, for one, love all things pumpkin year round. This is the best, healthy pumpkin oatmeal recipe I have ever made. Also thankful that this recipe uses the whole can of pumpkin.
So glad to hear! Thank you Sonya!
So glad I tried his recipe. The muffins are delicious and moist. Added chopped (canned, drained, squeezed) pineapple and pecans and it’s a new favorite. Thank you for sharing.
So glad to hear! Thank you Robbin!
Nice ingredients and flavor but cooking the muffins at 325 degrees? Who does that? Even though I have a very efficient convection oven, after 35 minutes they were still not cooked through. I may try again but at 350 or even 375.
I’m sorry to hear that you had trouble with the recipe, Linda. The amounts, flavorings and timing have worked well for myself (and others) so I wished it would have been a hit for you too! I know it can be so disappointing to try a new recipe and it does not turn out for you.
I agree. I almost adjusted the bake time/temp but didn’t….they came out under done and kind of dense. Might try again at a higher temp
These healthy pumpkin muffins are so good, I’ve made them twice in one week! I added hazelnuts to the first batch and topped with pumpkin seeds. Since I bought the giant can of pumpkin, I made them again with half very ripe banana, half pumpkin, and walnuts this time. I also doubled the ginger and added a little extra nutmeg. These were even better. My husband said “Babe, these muffins are dope!” And I agree. Thanks, Erin!
Love it! Thank you Holly!
Sorry these were terrible. I followed the recipe exactly but they are dense – not st all light and fluffy
I’m sorry to hear you had trouble with the recipe, Janie. When adding the flour you want to make sure you gently incorporate, just until the flour disappears. Over-mixing can cause them to be dense. Did you use a thermometer to check the internal temperature of the muffin? This really helps to make sure they are not over-baked. Hope this helps!
I’m not sure what I did wrong, but these were too dense and gooey, and needed more flavor. I baked until 200° (about 27 minutes) and followed the recipe pretty closely. Oh well, worth a try!
I’m sorry to hear you had trouble with the recipe, Hunter. When you say “followed the recipe pretty closely” does that mean changes were made? Would like to help you troubleshoot this if we can!
These were delicious! I used 1 cup whole wheat flour & 1/4 cup brown rice flour. I added about 1/3 cup raisins. I did heaping measuring spoons of the spices & 1/2 tsp salt. I made mini muffins & got 36 total. They took about 20 minutes. Your suggestion of testing with the thermometer was a good one, as I started out with 15 minutes, but they needed more. Overall such a great recipe! Thank you!
So glad to hear, Lindy! Thank you!
Is this whole wheat flour?
Hi Bobbi! For this recipe we use s white whole wheat flour but you can easily substitute it for all-purpose flour. Enjoy!
Although these were not the best pumpkin muffins that I have ever made, they certainly were the healthiest. I followed the recipe exactly, adding about a half-cup of toasted, chopped walnuts and an extra teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice as well. I baked them in a shiny muffin tin (which increased the baking time to 32 minutes). They are extremely moist and dense, but not too heavy, which suits us fine because other muffin recipes add entirely too much fat and sugar.
Thanks for the feedback, Victoria!
So moist! Will make them a lot! Thank you!
Thank you Julie!
Super good! Very moist and just the right amount of sweetness <3
So glad to hear, Becky! Thank you!