These delicious vegan cinnamon muffins are easy, packed with spiced flavor and perfectly soft and tender. They feature a crunchy cinnamon sugar topping and they make for such an amazing treat for the fall. 100% plant-based, egg-free and dairy-free.
These vegan cinnamon muffins are incredibly simple to prepare yet they are packed with amazing flavors.
In the fall I like to make a vegan apple galette or pumpkin banana muffins, or these sourdough vegan apple muffins if I have some sourdough starter ready to use. And these easy cinnamon muffins are another autumn favorite!
They are buttery and soft with a nice pillowy texture, plus they have just the right amount of spice. We also love the crunchy cinnamon sugar topping that gives them an extra punch of flavor, don't skip it!
They make for a perfect basic muffin recipe you can make with simple pantry-friendly ingredients you probably already have on hand. Plus, you can customize these vegan spiced muffins and add some fruit, nuts and more spices for a delicious personalized treat.
Let me know if you give them a try! ❤️
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❤️ Why you will love this recipe
- Easy and quick basic recipe perfect for everyday muffins
- Packed with cinnamon and brown sugar flavor
- Light and soft texture contrasting with a nice crunchy cinnamon sugar topping
- Healthier and made without butter
- Perfect for breakfast, but also an amazing make-ahead afterschool snack or light dessert
- 100% vegan, dairy-free and egg-free
🗒 Ingredient notes (+ substitutions)
- Flour: I used all-purpose white flour for this recipe, which gave the muffins a light and pillowy texture. Do not use bread flour. If you want to make them higher in fiber, then you can swap up to 50% of the amount of flour for whole wheat flour, although expect a slightly more dense texture if doing so.
- Brown sugar: I used light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar works too. If you only have regular granulated white sugar, then it should work too. Do not swap for maple syrup!
- Apple cider vinegar: helps puff the muffins to a lighter texture and balance the flavor. You can swap for lemon juice.
- Coconut oil: I prefer refined coconut oil to avoid a coconut flavor in this recipe. I haven't tried it yet, but I think that another neutral-tasting oil or fat, such as vegan butter or vegetable oil, would be fine too.
⭐️ Complete list of ingredients with quantities down below in the recipe card!
📝 Variations
This is a simple eggless cinnamon muffin recipe amazing as is, but also feel free to add some inclusions, such as:
- Chopped walnuts
- Small apple chunks
- Dried fruit (raisins or dried cranberries)
- Chocolate chips
You can also add more spices if you enjoy a stronger spiced flavor, such as nutmeg, ground ginger, cardamom, pumpkin spice mix or chai spice mix.
You can garnish the muffins with a buttery streusel mix instead of the cinnamon sugar. Check out these sourdough vegan apple muffins to get the topping recipe! Or turn them into indulgent cupcakes and top them off with a yummy vegan vanilla frosting!
🍽 How to make vegan cinnamon muffins
Step 1: To a small bowl, add the melted coconut oil, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract and plant-based milk, then whisk to combine.
Step 2: To a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon and stir to combine.
Step 3: Pour the wet ingredients over the bowl with the dry ingredients, then stir until smooth and uniform.
Step 4: Add 9 paper or silicone muffin liners to a muffin pan, then divide the muffin batter.
Step 5: Make the cinnamon sugar coating by mixing together 1 tablespoon of brown sugar with ½ teaspoon of cinnamon.
Step 6: Sprinkle the sugar coating over the muffins and bake at 350ºF for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins cool down for 5 minutes, then transfer on a cooling rack.
⭐️ Find the detailed recipe down below in the recipe card!
💡 Baking tips
- Ideally, use room temperature plant milk (or at least not super cold) so when it is combined with the melted coconut oil it will not trigger the oil to firm up.
- Do not overmix the muffin batter or you might end up with dense or tough muffins. Once the batter is uniform and you cannot see clumps of dry flour anymore, then stop stirring!
- Do not overbake the muffins! They will keep cooking for a little longer while cooling down and you don't want tough or dry muffins. You can check on them after 20 minutes (use a toothpick).
- I highly recommend weighing your ingredients if you have a scale (especially for the flour) so you have proper measurements. If you must measure your ingredients using cups, then be sure to use the "Scoop and Level method"!
❗️ Storage tips
Keep the muffins in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature. The cinnamon sugar topping does not stay crunchy after a few days, but still is just as tasty.
You can also freeze them for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Let them thaw overnight or speed up the process by warming them for a few seconds in the microwave (not for too long or they will toughen up).
❓ FAQs
Yes, you can! Simple swap the all-purpose flour for a certified GF flour such as this one from Bob's Red Mill.
I haven't tried it yet, but often you can swap oil in muffin recipes for apple sauce. This makes for muffins that are a little more dense, but it should work fine and add amazing flavor too. A great option if looking for breakfast muffins! Let me know in the comment if you tried making this swap!
🌱 More vegan muffin recipes to try!
I hope you like these vegan cinnamon muffins as much as we do! If you try them, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Cinnamon Muffins
Equipment
- Bowls (large and small)
- Large spoon and spatula for stirring
- Muffin pan and muffin liners
- Scale or measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
Ingredients
- 65 g refined coconut oil or ⅓ cup
- 240 g Plant-based milk or 1 cup, I used oat milk from Oatly
- 115 g light brown sugar or ¾ cup
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 270 g all-purpose flour or 2 cups (see notes)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Cinnamon sugar topping
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a muffin pan with 9 paper liners.
- In a medium bowl, add the melted coconut oil, brown sugar, vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar and plant-based milk. Whisk to combine.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine, then pour the wet ingredients over. Stir until the muffin batter is smooth and uniform (but do not overmix!)
- Divide the muffin batter between the 9 prepared muffin liners.
- In a small bowl, add the brown sugar (1 tablespoon) and the cinnamon (½ teaspoon) and stir to combine.
- Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the muffins, then bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins cool down for 5 min in the muffin pan, then transfer over a cooling rack.
Video
Notes
- Ideally, use room temperature plant milk (or at least not super cold) so when it is combined with the melted coconut oil it will not trigger the oil to firm up.
- Do not overmix the muffin batter or you might end up with dense or tough muffins. Once the batter is uniform and you cannot see clumps of dry flour anymore, then stop stirring!
- Do not overbake the muffins! They will keep cooking for a little longer while cooling down and you don't want tough or dry muffins. You can check on them after 20 minutes (use a toothpick).
- I highly recommend weighing your ingredients if you have a scale (especially for the flour) so you have proper measurements. If you must measure your ingredients using cups, then be sure to use the "Scoop and Level method"!
- Nutrition: please note that the nutritional information is an estimate per serving provided for informational purposes only (calculated by software) and accuracy is not guaranteed. Consult with your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if you need precise nutrition calculations for health reasons.
Anonymous says
Just made these, they are so good and easy! Thanks for the recipe!