Strawberry Vegan Muffins

These vegan muffins are a great snack or ready-to-go breakfast option. My strawberry muffin recipe is delicious and easy to freeze so your future self can be prepared for the day ahead.

Whether it is a marathon school day, or I’m packing for a day-long adventure, you can be sure I’m taking these strawberry muffins along. This recipe can also be found in my cookbook, Simple Green Meals, along with 100+ whole-food recipes.

When I first entered the world of healthy baking, I was bombarded with ingredients I couldn’t pronounce, and weird vegan cheeses/creams/butter/sweeteners, etc. that were super expensive, plus still loaded with chemicals.

While dairy products aren’t the worst for people who can tolerate them, a study by the National Library of Medicine found that 65-70% of the world’s population had some form of lactose intolerance (including me!). I started searching for a better way to bake.

Table of Contents

1. Ingredients for Vegan Muffins
2. How to Make Strawberry Muffins
3. Storage Tips
4. Vegan Muffin FAQs
5. More Nutritious Snacking Recipes
6. Strawberry Vegan Muffins Recipe

Here are some tips I’ve learned to turn most recipes, including this strawberry muffin recipe, into vegan-friendly options.

Ingredients for Vegan Muffins

It is surprisingly easy to swap out non-vegan ingredients with vegan ones. These muffins are still fluffy, chewy and soft, but they don’t use any animal bi-products. Here’s what I’m using in my recipe.

• Almond butter: Whether you use store-bought or homemade nut butter, it will bring about a smooth and nutty flavor.
• Coconut oil: This is my favorite oil to use in baked goods as it gives a slightly sweet flavor to the final product without overpowering the recipe.
• Maple syrup: A delightfully nutty, mild natural sweetener that is a great swap for refined sugar.
• Unsweetened applesauce: This easy, inexpensive ingredient is my swap for eggs in this recipe. It’s used to moisten the dough.
• Vanilla extract: An easy way to add more flavor and enhance the almond butter.
• Dry ingredients: All-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt and cinnamon are used to make the “muffin” part of this recipe. I used a flour combo so they would remain fluffy while getting in some more complex carbohydrates from the whole wheat flour.
• Unsweetened almond milk: Another easy sway is dairy-free milk like almond milk.
• Strawberry chia jam: I’ve got a simple, protein-packed jam recipe in my Simple Green Meals cookbook that bumps up the protein and healthy fat in this strawberry muffin recipe while remaining sweet.

If these muffin swaps don’t work for you then read on! I’ve got some more great options for you.

More Vegan Eggs Options

Depending on the recipe, I’ve got several different vegan, whole-food substitutes for eggs. For this recipe, the two eggs are replaced with ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce.

1. Flax egg: To replace 1 egg, mix 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons water. Let sit for 10 minutes before adding to a recipe.
2. Chia egg:  To replace 1 egg, mix 1 tablespoon chia seeds and 3 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes before adding to a recipe. Pro tip: chia seeds and water are used in the strawberry jam recipe below to bind the jam together, in place of pectin.
3. Applesauce: Replace 1 egg with ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce.
4. Banana: Replace one egg with ½ large banana, mashed.

More Vegan Milk Options

Non-dairy milk is super common in grocery stores. They’re also super easy to make. Using non dairy milk in this vegan muffin recipe works just as well as dairy milk would. Here’s my list of great milk substitutes.

1. Almond milk: My team did an awesome review on almond milk. If you’re ready to make your own, check out my simple recipe for how to make almond milk.
2. Oat milk: If you’re looking for store-bought, check out our latest oat milk review. If homemade oat milk is more your jam then go for it.
3. Coconut milk: We’ve also reviewed both carton and canned coconut milk! Plus, I’ve got a great recipe for homemade coconut milk as well.
4. Hemp milk: for a nut-free version, my homemade hemp milk recipe is super creamy and easy to use.

More Vegan Butter Substitutes

A super easy butter substitute is extra virgin olive oil. For every one cup of butter used, I substitute ¾ cup of oil. Avocado oil and coconut oil are also great substitutes.

My general rule of thumb is if the dish I’m making is savory, I’ll use olive or avocado oil. If the dish is sweet, I’ll use coconut oil. This strawberry muffin recipe uses coconut oil, yet another oil can be swapped in too.

How to Make Strawberry Muffins

Even with some creative ingredient swaps, this recipe is made much like any other muffin recipe.

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. Alternatively, you can grease each cup using coconut or palm oil.
2. Start with the wet ingredients. Beat the almond butter and coconut oil until creamy in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer. Add in the maple syrup and beat again. Add the applesauce and vanilla and beat until creamy.
3. Now for the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon until well combined. You want to make sure the specks of cinnamon appear all throughout the mix.
4. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the creamed mixture and beat on low speed until just combined. Add half the almond milk and briefly beat again. Repeat until all the flour and almond milk is added to the batter, yet be sure not to over-mix as this will cause the muffins not to properly rise.
5. Using a cookie scoop or spoon, fill the muffin cups 1/4 full with batter. Then use the tip of a spoon to make sure the batter covers the whole bottom and a little up the sides of each cup. Place 1 rounded teaspoon of jam into the center of each muffin cup. Top the jam with batter, making sure it is entirely covered.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and spring back when gently pressed. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 minutes then remove and serve.

Pro Tip: Replacing 4 tablespoons of flour with 1 serving of homemade protein powder can turn this breakfast/snack into a superfood champion. I’ve found it super easy to add this easy powder to a variety of baked goods.

Storage Tips

Once the muffins are completely cooled, you can freeze them in freezer bags. I often double the recipe so I’ve got easy lunchbox snacks and breakfasts for the week ahead.

If you know you will finish off these muffins quickly then simply store them in an air-tight container on the counter and consume them within three days.

More Nutritious Snacking Recipes

Many people have told me that they can make healthy meals, with no problem. When it comes to snacking, they keep reaching for salty, sugary, processed foods. I get it! Nutritious snacks take prep work and aren’t always ready when you need them.

Batch baking has become my lifeline when it comes to healthy snacking. Here are a couple of my go-to snacks that are easy to batch bake, taste delicious and will keep you full.

• Vegan yogurt: The yogurt can be batch made and frozen in single servings, then thawed the day you’re ready to enjoy.
• Healthy granola: This is such a great snack to bake in bulk and then enjoy with milk, on top of yogurt, or by the handful.
• Chocolate chia pudding: This lovely snack is simple to make and easy to store in the fridge.
• Homemade popsicles: One smoothie recipe can make tons of popsicles. Toss these in a lunch box, and they’ll be the perfect consistency to consume by snack time. 
• Vegan protein bars: These are easy to freeze as well. I like to warm them up in the toaster oven for a snack, then top them with almond butter for even more healthy fat and protein. 
• Homemade granola bars: I love to take these along for road trips. They can be wrapped in beeswax paper for easy transport. 
• Hummus: Super easy to make this vegan snack, then freeze it. All you need to do is add in some fresh veggies when you’re ready to dig in. 
• Vegan Blueberry Muffins: A delicious treat that puts the joy back into snacking.

Don’t forget to rate + review this strawberry muffin recipe once you’ve made it! Everyone tweaks baked goods to fit their preferences and it helps us all when you share.