Vegan Blackberry Muffins

These vegan blackberry muffins are super soft, fluffy, and easy to make. They are made with almond flour and naturally sweetened with maple syrup, making them gluten-free and refined sugar free. The muffins are ready to enjoy in less than 30 minutes, and you only need one bowl to make them! They make for the perfect breakfast on a busy morning or as a healthy, delicious dessert.

These are the perfect muffins to make in the late summer months when fresh blackberries are in season, but they're delicious all year round! You can make them with frozen blackberries if you don't have any fresh ones around.

If you love these muffins, you'll also love these almond flour banana muffins and these blueberry applesauce muffins. I personally can't choose a favorite!

Jump to:

• Why You'll Love These Blackberry Muffins
• Ingredient Notes
• Fresh vs. Frozen Blackberries
• How many blackberries in a cup?
• Step-by-Step Instructions
• Expert Baking Tips
• Easy Muffin Variations
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Storing & Freezing
• More Muffin Recipes
• Recipe

Why You'll Love These Blackberry Muffins

• Easy to make - This muffin recipe is so easy to make because you don't need a mixer or more than one bowl. The muffins are ready in less than 30 minutes!
• Sugar free blackberry muffins - These vegan blackberry muffins are naturally sweetened with maple syrup. They are refined sugar free and contain no fake added sugars.
• Made with almond flour - Almond flour is a sweet and nutty gluten-free flour, which gives these gluten-free blackberry muffins a rich and delicious taste.
• Vegan buttermilk - The lemon juice combined with the plant milk creates a vegan buttermilk in these muffins, giving them a moist and fluffy texture.
• No eggs or dairy - Given that these are vegan blackberry muffins, there are no eggs or dairy in the recipe. They contain healthy, plant based ingredients.

Ingredient Notes

You only need a few simple, healthy ingredients to make these muffins at home.

Here are some helpful notes on a few of the ingredients, including substitutions you can make if necessary:

• Gluten-Free 1:1 Flour: Be sure to use a gluten-free 1:1 (all-purpose) flour with xanthan gum in the ingredients. If it does not have xanthan gum, you will need to add it separately. If you are not gluten-free, you can replace this with all-purpose flour or white whole wheat flour.
• Almond Flour: I recommend using a superfine, blanched almond flour in these muffins. It has a sweet, nutty taste and gives the muffins a soft texture. Almond flour is naturally gluten free and vegan.
• Blackberries: You can use fresh or frozen blackberries in this recipe. If using frozen blackberries, toss them in flour first to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the muffins when they bake.
• Unsweetened Plant Milk: Any unsweetened plant milk will work in this recipe. I like using unsweetened almond milk, but oat milk, cashew milk, or soy milk are other great options.
• Lemon Juice: Lemon juice, when combined with plant milk, creates a vegan buttermilk that gives the blackberry muffins great flavor and texture.
• Maple Syrup: Be sure to use 100% pure maple syrup to sweeten the muffins. Other varieties usually contain corn syrup, which isn't ideal.
• Coconut Oil: Use melted coconut oil in the recipe instead of butter to ensure dairy-free and vegan blackberry muffins. You can use vegetable oil or canola oil instead.

Remember to see the recipe card for a full list of ingredients.

Fresh vs. Frozen Blackberries

Like mentioned before, you can use fresh or frozen blackberries in the vegan blackberry muffins. If you're using fresh blackberries like I did, you can fold them into the muffin batter right before you transfer the batter to the muffin cups.

If you choose to use frozen blackberries, do not thaw them first, or the moisture will add too much liquid to the recipe. Toss the frozen blackberries in the flour mixture before folding them with the wet ingredients. A coating of flour on the frozen blackberries prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the muffins.

Whole vs. Chopped Blackberries

You can use whole blackberries in the muffins if you enjoy a big, juicy bite of fruit in the muffins. This is what I normally do. However, you can chop fresh blackberries into smaller bite-sized pieces if you prefer smaller blackberry bites throughout the muffins. If you do this, pat the chopped blackberries with paper towels or napkins to absorb the excess moisture, or add additional gluten-free flour if the muffin batter gets too wet from blackberry juice.

How many blackberries in a cup?

You need about 1 cup of blackberries to make these vegan blackberry muffins. There are about 15 or 16 blackberries in one cup, depending on the size of the blackberries you have. The 1-pint plastic containers of blackberries you find at the store generally contain 30 or 32 blackberries, which is more than enough to make these muffins.

If you choose to weigh your blackberries, one cup is equivalent to 5.12 ounces, or about 144 grams.

Step-by-Step Instructions

These blackberry muffins are so easy to make! You only need one bowl to mix the muffin batter.

STEP 1: Add the melted coconut oil, unsweetened plant milk, pure maple syrup, lemon juice, and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl.

STEP 2: Whisk together the wet ingredients until smooth and well combined. This can take 2-3 minutes to fully incporate the oil with the other wet ingredients.

STEP 3: Add the gluten-free flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the bowl. Stir until just combined.

STEP 4: Gently fold the fresh blackberries into the batter. Be very careful not to crush them. You only need to fold the batter a few times. Be careful not to overmix!

STEP 5: Transfer the muffin batter to 12 muffin liners, lightly sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Don't forget the non-stick spray! Since these vegan blackberry muffins do not have much oil in them, they are prone to sticking to paper liners. Greasing the liners before adding the muffin batter is important. Fill the muffin cups until they are about ¾ of the way full.

STEP 6: Bake the muffins for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean. This means they are done.

TIP: Let the muffins cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes before removing them. This allows them to "set up" a bit before you handle them. Gluten-free muffins are generally more fragile than traditional wheat muffins.

Expert Baking Tips

• Properly measure flour - It's very important to properly measure the gluten-free flour and almond flour to prevent dry muffins. Do not scoop your flour into the measuring cup. This packs it down in the cup and results in overmeasured flour. Instead, weigh your flour with a baking scale or use a spoon to sprinkle the flour into the measuring cup, being sure to level the top with a knife.
• Use dry blackberries - Whether you use fresh or frozen blackberries, be sure they are not wet from being washed or thawed. The blackberries need to be dry when you mix them into the batter, or else you will add too much liquid into the recipe.
• Don't overmix the batter - Be careful not to overmix the muffin batter. Stir until the ingredients are just combined. Overmixing can result in a chewy, rubbery texture.
• Grease the muffin liners - It's important to spray the muffin liners with non-stick cooking spray or use silicone liners to prevent the muffins from sticking. There is not a lot of oil in the recipe, which means they have a tendency to stick to ungreased liners.

Easy Muffin Variations

These vegan and gluten-free blackberry muffins are delicious, but there are some simple and easy variations you can make to the recipe if you want to try something new:

Almond Flour Blackberry Muffins

Almond flour is already an ingredient in the muffins, but you can replace the gluten-free 1:1 flour with more almond flour if you want to make almond flour blackberry muffins completely with almond flour. Be aware that you may need to adjust the amount of flour you use to get the proper consistency. The muffin batter should be thick, not runny and thin.

You might like these gluten-free banana muffins made with almond flour, too!

Vegan Blackberry Lemon Muffins

To make vegan blackberry lemon muffins, add 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon zest to the dry ingredients. You can make a simple lemon glaze for the blackberry lemon muffins by mixing vegan powdered sugar with a few teaspoons of lemon juice. This is such a nice tart flavor on top the blackberry muffins!

Vegan Raspberry Muffins

If you want to make vegan raspberry muffins, all you have to do is replace the blackberries in this recipe with raspberries. You can use fresh or frozen raspberries, just remember they should be dry when you mix them into the batter. Tossing frozen raspberries in flour will prevent them from sinking in the muffins.

Gluten-Free Strawberry Muffins

Making gluten-free strawberry muffins is very easy with this recipe, since the muffins are already vegan and gluten-free. Replace the blackberries with chopped strawberries and you will have delicious gluten-free strawberry muffins. I recommend using fresh strawberries for this variation, since they need to be chopped first. Remember to pat them dry if they are especially juicy, so they don't add too much liquid to the recipe.

Frequently Asked Questions

Storing & Freezing

Store the leftover muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 5-7 days. You may also store them in the fridge, but they are fine at room temperature.

Freezing Blackberries

You can freeze dry blackberries in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 6 months. Be sure they are fully dry before storing them, or the water will freeze around the blackberries and can cause freezer burn.

To freeze the blackberry muffins, place them in an airtight container in the freezer to last for 2-3 months. Let them thaw for at least an hour at room temperature before serving again.

More Muffin Recipes

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