These Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins are soft for days after baking (whaat?!) and have a delicious streusel topping. Quick and easy to make, no mixer required.
One common problem with gluten free baked goods is their short shelf life. Usually a muffin is best the first day and getting crumbly the next, but these gluten free pumpkin muffins are soft for daaayyys!
While we don't usually have leftovers (there are six of us!), I have been doing so much recipe developement in preparation for the holidays that there is just too much to eat, so these muffins had to wait.
3 days later, and they are still every bit as soft as they were on day 1!
#GlutenFreeWin
I started with a recipe from the muffin Goddess herself, Sally's Baking Addiction, and tweaked it to fit our gluten free needs.
I ditched the extra step of melting the butter for the streusel topping, I have made it both ways and found it great either way, so no need for an extra step in my book.
WHAT INGREDIENTS DO I NEED TO MAKE GLUTEN FREE PUMPKIN MUFFINS?
Whenever baking gluten free, always check labels for each ingredient to be sure it is safe.
For the muffins:
- eggs
- milk any milk, dairy or non-dairy, will work
- pumpkin puree I strongly recommend using Libby's, I recently opened a can of the store brand and a can of Libby's and was surprised by how different they are!
- white sugar
- brown sugar
- neutral oil avocado, canola, vegetable, etc.
- vanilla
- gluten free flour see below
- baking soda
- cinnamon
- pumpkin pie spice
- salt
For the streusel topping:
- gluten free flour see below
- white sugar
- brown sugar
- pumpkin pie spice
- salted butter
HOW DO I MAKE GLUTEN FREE PUMPKIN MUFFINS?
This is an easy recipe! Here are the steps:
- Preheat your oven.
- Line muffin tin with liners I only use these parchment liners, nothing ever sticks!
- Make the streusel topping:
- Put all ingredients into a small bowl and mash with fork until crumbly. Set aside.
- Whisk together dry ingredients in a large bowl. note: whenever measuring gluten free flour, always stir the flour, scoop into your measuring cup, then level off with the flat edge of a knife. This ensures you don't get too much flour and end up with crumbly or dry baked goods.
- Whisk eggs in a medium bowl, then whisk in remaining wet ingredients.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk or stir just until combined. Don't overmix!
- Scoop batter into lined muffin tin. This recipe makes 12 muffins and you'll be filling each muffin cup almost to the top. I use a 2 T cookie scoop heaping full for this process.
- Sprinkle crumble topping evenly over muffin batter, then press gently so it will adhere to muffins and not fall off.
- Bake the muffins at a high temperature for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to complete baking. This gives you a beautifully domed muffin top!
- Cool completely before enjoying.
WHAT GLUTEN FREE FLOUR SHOULD I USE?
I tested this recipe with Bob's Red Mill 1:1 flour because that is my favorite blend for muffins and quick breads.
I do not recommend Namaste or gfJules in this recipe, as they may lend a gummy texture. I do like both of those blends for other recipes, though.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Is pumpkin puree the same as pumpkin pie mix?
No. be sure to use pumpkin puree in this recipe.
Can I make these gluten free muffins dairy free as well?
Absolutely! Just use a dairy free milk in the batter, and substitute a stick butter substitute in the streusel topping.
Can I make this recipe egg free?
I haven't tried making this recipe egg free. If you do, please come back and comment to let me know how it went!
What gluten free flour should I use in this recipe?
I tested this recipe with Bob's Red Mill 1:1 flour because that is my favorite blend for muffins and quick breads. It is easy to find in stores and online, and worked beautifully for this recipe.
Do I need to measure gluten free flour a certain way?
Yes! Measuring it by simply scooping the flour with a measuring cup will give you too much flour and yield crumbly and/or dry baked goods. Whenever measuring gluten free flour, always stir the flour, scoop into your measuring cup, then level off with the flat edge of a knife.
WAIT! Don't lose this post! Save this image on Pinterest
MAKING THIS RECIPE???
We would love to know what you think! Snap a photo and tag @LifeAfterWheat on social.
Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins with Streusel Topping
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Line muffin tin with liners I love the parchment liners linked below!
- In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and mash with fork until crumbly. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. note: whenever measuring gluten free flour, always stir the flour, scoop into your measuring cup, then level off with the flat edge of a knife. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, then whisk in milk, oil, white and brown sugars, pumpkin puree, and vanilla until smooth.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk or stir just until combined. Don't overmix!
- Scoop batter into lined muffin tin. This recipe makes 12 muffins and you'll be filling each muffin cup almost to the top. I use a 2 T cookie scoop heaping full for this process.
- Sprinkle streusel topping evenly over muffin batter, then press gently so it will adhere to muffins and not fall off.
- Bake the muffins at 425° F for 5 minutes, then - leaving the oven door closed -reduce the temperature to 375° F for 17-19 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Be careful not to overbake!
- Cool completely before enjoying.
Alene says
I was horrified to find out that I can no longer eat any rice at all. I got arsenic poisoning! So now I can't cook with any of the 1 to 1 gf brands of flour because they all contain rice flour. I have found 2 blends that don't have rice in them, one by Better Batter and one by Bob's. They are very different though, and I've only tried one recipe with Bob's. Might you have any suggestions.? I am so discouraged. Thank you.
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
I'm so sorry! That is definitely a hard switch. I have a reader who also cannot have rice, and she shared this flour blend recipe with me and has used it with a lot of my recipes:
150 gm millet flour
150 gm sorghum flour
100 gm white buckwheat flour
300 gm potato starch
300 gm tapioca starch
I hope that helps!
Alene says
Thank you so much! I'm going to give it a try. I'll let you know. So many people who bake with no grain recipes bake with just almond flour and maybe some tapioca. I've tried but they're awful. I'm so excited to try this one asap. Thank you.
Nancy A Paine says
Alene, There are MANY delicious recipes using almond flour! I love recipes by Elana Amsterdam, of Elana's Pantry. Bob's Red Mill has a delicious cookie recipe with almond and oat flours, it's very simple and flavorful! I encourage you to keep trying recipes. I would be happy to share some of the ones we love. Nancy SeasonsOfJoy.etsy.com message me.
VLove says
@Alene, Hi. So I actually am Celiac and also do high protein keto baking because I want all those yummy fats and boost of protein to keep me full since my sweet tooth is insane. Jade the Libra brought me here bc the muffins look divine. Truth be told I'd change half the recipe to be keto and high protein lol. Anyway, heres my recipe for pumpkin muffins/loaf which I have made an oatmeal/almond flour streusel topping for so odds are I may just do that today. I love baking so I'm always looking at what people do.
Sieve all dry ingredients
120g almond flour blanched super fine by Bob's Mill's
21g coconut flour (not raw coconut flour, just go to your local co-op or market and get 'coconut flour' it's ground coconut super fine you will not taste it)
1/2 cup pumpkin
1/2 almond milk unsweetened
2 large whole eggs
1 scoop or 30g of a whey based protein powder that is a complimenting flavor OR you can get unsweetened and add more sweetener to taste I have used pea proteins with a caramel flavor or whey and pea proteins make this recipe more loose crumb, kinda "pasty" so I recommend whey as the proteins bind it. you can find 99.9% lactose free
1/4th a cup of packed or to taste Swerve "brown sugar" replacement (browns like regular sugar) or you can use regular brown sugar if you aren't watching inflammation and your blood sugar levels
1 tsp baking powder (add at end when mixing everything)
1 tsp baking soda (add at end when mixing everything)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4th tsp salt
I'm crazy for spice so I literally add like 2 tsp or more of pumpkin spice I also add a 1 tsp of cinnamon
Optional but really tasty is 1 tsp of maca root powder also really good in any chocolate recipe
Now you can add mix ins to your hearts delight. Like nuts, chocolate chips, I make a topping eye balling it with coconut oil, oats, almond flour, Swerve brown sugar, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and plop that on top.
350 degrees bake in any pan you want and just check em'. I don't record bake times because I change what pan I use all the time. I've made a cake with this recipe too but I'd start with 13 mins for muffins. The key with keto is if you stick your knife or tooth pick in and it comes out with a little bit of batter take them out and let them sit and cool int he pan. Do not over bake. Moisture is key and burning almond flour happens in the blink of an eye--and coconut flour absorb sooooooooooooo much moisture.
I have so many other recipes but my problem is I scratch bake and so it's hard for me to be there to say "YES that's the texture!" I will tweak every time as I'm always improving.
I mix this recipe in the typical mix all dry, then add all wet. Lightly whisk eggs. It's more of a spice muffin I'll admit and I have one that uses a whole cup of pumpkin but it's a bit tricky to see the texture because you are adding banana and pumpkin to a point. you do not taste the banana but it adds such a lovely agent of caramelization and moisture.
Anywho if anyone uses this and has success let me know. I've had my friends try to bake this and some of them came out with success and some of them came over to watch me bake because I always make adjustment on the fly as I can tell the chemistry needs a tweak and it comes out so well no one can pin point what's in it that isn't "normal" just that it's really freaking tasty. LOL That's my goal. Largest place to make error is adding the leavening too soon. leave to last. And the type of protein powder. Again whey works best but if you have to avoid milk all together and not just lactose, I've done this with Women's Best vegan protein powders and Cassey Ho of Blogilates protein powder. It will be slightly gummy.
Suzanne says
This looks so good! What a great fall breakfast meal prep for the week!
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Yes! Definitely make a double batch though, they go quick! 😉
VAnessa says
Thanks for sharing! Do they freeze well?
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Yes they do!
Bella Adams says
Thank you for this lovely recipe, which I will certainly use in the near future.
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Welcome, enjoy!
Meliha says
Hello! How many calories are in each cupcake or total calories and I can divide? I am counting right now and want to put it in my app! Thanks
Denise says
I haven’t had gluten in well over a year, not by choice! I am now 65 so it has been very difficult for me to let go and stop whining 🙃 My daughter also had Celiac so I was already familiar with GF. Anyway, these muffins look delicious and the topping makes them extra special. I will put the ingredients on my grocery list and make very soon!
Have you ever put white chocolate chips in the muffin batter? Thank you!
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Hi Denise, glad you found Life After Wheat! I haven't tried adding white chocolate chips but I bet that would be delicious 🙂 Giving up gluten at this point must be tough but I know you've got it! Let me know if you have any questions.
Lisa says
I need to know the nutritional value, calories with and without the streusel topping.
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
The nutrition information is posted in the recipe card. It includes the streusel topping.
Cathy says
They came out so fluffy! I also put in chocolate chips and walnuts. Didn't do the topping. Definitely a keeper recipe! Thank you!
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Chocolate chips and walnuts sounds delicious!
Joy says
I made these muffins to take to a Christian Women's Conference at my church. Several of us are gluten free due to allergy or health problems. These were a big hit with EVERYBODY! People ate them that didn't have to be gluten free and loved them!! Thank you for sharing a wonderful recipe. I will definitely be making these again.
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
I love this, thanks so much for sharing (your comment and the muffins, haha!)
Meghan says
These are fantastic. I still am unable to find the calories though. Could someone post that in the comments?! Thanks! Will def be sharing this one!
Tina says
I've baked these several times, first for a family of 4 when I was making meals after the father suffered severe injuries in a car accident. I and a few others gave support which for me means making soups and muffins. They were a hit and I've made them several times for myself, and always LOVE them. They are a treat since I've basically given up on buying GF bread because they mold...often before I get them home! But this last batch I made early this morning turned into a gummy mess. I followed the recipe to a tee as I always do. I was careful not to overmix. I've been baking GF for several years now. I love the Namaste flour blend the most as it is free of potato products which I also steer clear of because of inflammation. I'm not sure but my previous muffins I may have used Bob's because the Namaste if not easy to find here. Could that be the issue I wonder? And if it might be do you have any suggestions to tweak the recipe to avoid the gumminess when I use this brand of flour mixture?
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Namaste has a lot more gum content, and would definitely create more of a gummy texture in muffins so I'm guessing that's what happened.
Megan says
I ended up having way TOO much streusel leftover, am I the only one? Any suggestions on what to do with leftover streusel?
Maeve says
I can report that both flax gel and aquafaba work as egg substitutes for this recipe. Delicious!
thereislifeafterwheat@gmail.com says
Happy to hear that, thanks so much for testing and reporting back!
Gillie says
Hello! this recipe looks crazy delicious! Just curious have you any plans to use a scale to weigh the flour and sugars? It's so comforting to know that I have measured out the correct amounts, and not worry about if I fluffed and spooned carefully enough. Your copycat vegetable soup is a standby at our home! And let me tell you, those flaxseed muffins! Oh boy, they are so fantastic. No one believes they are gluten free due to how soft they are.
Celeste Noland says
Yes, I have a lot of readers asking for weights and I will be converting each recipe one by one so keep an eye out! I'm so happy you're enjoying my recipes 🙂