The perfect vegan blueberry muffins! These muffins are soft, sweet, perfectly moist, and filled with fresh blueberries in every bite. Made with a hint of lemon to take these muffins to the next level.
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This post was originally published on March 2, 2015. Last updated on July 13th, 2020
My first baking job was the best job I’ve had to date. Well, with the exception of this job. In my time as a baker, I fell absolutely in love with the process, the environment, and the practice of baking and patisserie.
I originally published this vegan blueberry muffin recipe over 6 years ago. Since then, it has become the most popular recipe on my website, BY FAR. You people LOVE these vegan muffins.
I get it. These vegan muffins are soft, perfectly moist, and flavored with a hint of lemon. Beyond that, they are wildly versatile. Take a look through the comment section of this recipe and you’ll learn how to make these muffins gluten-free, without refined sugar, soy-free, and so many other ways!
With all the love these vegan muffins get, I figured it was time to give them a new look.
Recipe Video
Recommended Ingredients & Equipment
I love this recipe and I think you will too! These vegan muffins are moist, rich, and bursting with blueberries and lemon zest in every bite. They are the perfect morning pastry or a midday snack.
Ingredient Notes
- Non-Dairy Milk – I recommend soy milk because it curdles the best. Almond milk will often curdle but not as well. This may affect the overall texture of the muffin.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – This is my vinegar of choice when making vegan buttermilk (vinegar + soymilk) but white vinegar, white wine vinegar, and lemon juice are great alternatives.
- All-Purpose Flour – For healthier flour options, you can use 1:1 gluten-free flour blends, buckwheat, or spelt flour.
- Granulated Sugar – Check out my guide to vegan sugars and alternative sugar replacements. For a healthier sugar alternative, I recommend coconut sugar.
- Oil – This recipe calls for canola oil because it creates the best texture without added flavor. If you want to avoid hydrogenated oils, try avocado or melted coconut oil. Olive oil also works but adds a slightly savory flavor. If you want to eliminate the oil altogether, swap it out for the same amount of applesauce.
- Fresh Lemon – If you don’t like lemon, this can be omitted.
- Fresh Blueberries – If you don’t have fresh blueberries, check out my Tips & Tricks to find out how to replace them with frozen berries.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step One – Combine the Ingredients
To start, we must first make our “buttermilk”. To do this, mix together soymilk with 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar and set it aside for 5 minutes to curdle. Once it’s curdled, whisk in the sugar, oil, vanilla extract, and lemon zest.
Pro Tip: The curdled milk helps give these muffins rise and texture. While other types of non-dairy milk will do, I find that soy milk curdles the best.
In a small bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. That’s the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until it’s well combined and set aside. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until all the flour is evenly hydrated.
Step Two – Fold in the Blueberries
Once the batter is made, we want to gently fold in the blueberries. The goal with folding is to get the blueberries fully incorporated into the batter without overmixing the batter or breaking apart the berries.
To do this, use a wooden spoon or plastic spatula and fold the batter from bottom to top in a “C” shape.
Step Three – Bake the Muffins
Scoop your batter into a greased muffin tin. Fill each muffin mold about 3/4 of the way full and bake for 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Pro Tip: I find that using an ice cream scoop is the cleanest and easiest way to get the batter into the muffin molds. With an ice cream scoop, you can ensure the muffins are equally sized as well.
Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes before flipping out to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Serving And Storing
Serving – Serve these vegan muffins immediately. They come out of the oven warm, buttery, and hard to resist!
Storing – Store leftover muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. You can also freeze these muffins for up to 2 months. To thaw, pull the muffins from the freezer and let them thaw at room temperature for several hours.
Tips And Tricks
- The most accurate way to measure flour is to spoon it into your measuring cup, leveling it off with the back of a knife.
- Do not overmix your batter. Overmixing allows the gluten to develop and too much gluten will give you gummy and dense muffins.
- If you are using frozen berries, thaw the berries in a colander by running them under room temperature water. Let the berries sit for 30 minutes for any excess water and juice to run off them. Pat them dry with a paper towel before adding them to your batter.
- Fill muffin tins about 3/4″ of the way full. Any fuller than that and they will overflow.
- Bake the muffins until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the tops are golden brown.
- Make sure to let the muffins sit in the muffin tin for 10 minutes before flipping them out to a wire cooling rack. Otherwise, the muffins may fall apart.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. While I choose soy milk because it curdles so well, many people have had success with almond milk, oat milk, and cashew milk as well.
For sure! For gluten-free muffins, I recommend using a 1:1 Baking Flour Blend. (<<affiliate link)
Sure. If you would like to make this recipe oil-free, simply swap out the oil for additional applesauce at a 1:1 ratio.
If you are using frozen berries, thaw the berries in a colander by running them under room temperature water. Let the berries sit for 30 minutes for any excess water and juice to run off them. Pat them dry with a paper towel before adding them to your batter.
I recommend coconut sugar. Other readers have replaced the sugar with 1/2 cup maple syrup or simply reduced the sugar by 25%-50% with great success. Check out my complete guide to vegan sugar for more ideas.
If you want to make this muffin batter in advance, store the batter in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours.
To bake the muffins, preheat the oven and bake according to the instructions. However, these muffins may take a few minutes longer to bake since the batter will be chilled. The muffins will also be slightly denser as the baking soda begins to activate once it’s mixed into the batter, causing it to be slightly less potent.
Do you still have a question? If so, make sure to check out the comments below. This recipe has over 500 comments, including answers to frequently asked questions, common substitutions, and more!
More Vegan Muffin Recipes
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- Healthy Vegan Banana Muffins
- Pumpkin Muffins
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Chocolate Chip Muffins
And make sure to check out all my muffin & pastry recipes.
Vegan Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup soy milk
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup + 2tbsp. granulated sugar
- ¼ cup + 2 tbsp. canola oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1½ – 2 cups fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a small bowl combine soy milk and apple cider vinegar. Set aside to allow milk to curdle.
- In a larger bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together sugar, canola oil, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Add soy milk/vinegar mixture and stir to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients until well incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix – a few lumps are okay. Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Spoon into muffin tins, filling each cup about ¾ full. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Remove from heat and allow muffins to cool before removing from pan.
Video
Notes
- Can I use something other than soy milk? Yes. While I choose soy milk because it curdles so well, many people have had success with almond milk, oat milk, and cashew milk as well.
- Can I make this recipe gluten-free? For sure! For gluten-free muffins, I recommend using a 1:1 Baking Flour Blend.
- Can I make these muffins oil free? Sure. If you would like to make this recipe oil-free, simply swap out the oil for additional applesauce at a 1:1 ratio.
- Can I use frozen berries? If you are using frozen berries, thaw the berries in a colander by running them under room temperature water. Let the berries sit for 30 minutes for any excess water and juice to run off them. Pat them dry with a paper towel before adding them to your batter.
- The most accurate way to measure flour is to spoon it into your measuring cup, leveling it off with the back of a knife.
- If you are using frozen berries, thaw the berries in a colander by running them under room temperature water. Let the berries sit for 30 minutes for any excess water and juice to run off them. Pat them dry with a paper towel before adding them to your batter.
- Make sure to let the muffins sit in the muffin tin for 10 minutes before flipping them out to a wire cooling rack. Otherwise, the muffins may fall apart.
Hi, I’m Sarah. I’m a 14-year (and counting) vegan, professionally trained photographer, former pastry chef, founder of My Darling Vegan, and author of the
Lorri Crockett says
Hi. The ONLY change I made in this recipe was that I used all purpose gluten free flour. I didn’t over mix it at all and when I went to “fold in” the blueberries they wouldn’t combine with the dough! I had to use my hands to “layer” the dough and berries. Did anyone else experience this?
Sarah says
I’ve never heard of this. I know other people have had a lot of success with gf flour blends. Did you use US Customary measurements? My best guess is that something was measured wrong.
Lani says
These are so good! I made them on Saturday and by Monday morning they were gone (just 2 of us, oops) I just made another double batch in the “jumbo” muffin tins to make 12 giant muffins. Going to try freezing them for breakfast on the go. Thank you!
Jaci says
Could I sub the soy milk for macadamia milk or coconut milk?
Sarah says
Yes, either would work.
Taylor says
Seriously so good! I am not a baker and was very nervous about messing these up but the recipe is super easy to follow and they came out AMAZING!! My fiance and I were so happy with the results.
Dimitri says
Excellent recipe, I have studied French pastry and I must say this is well put together! I substituted soy milk with almond milk, added 1 tsp pulverized chia and golden flax seeds as an ‘egg substitute’ for fluffiness, I also reduced the sugar by 25% as I like less sugar. But your recipe is great. Thank you!
Gigi Van Dame says
Did you sub 1 teaspoon of each Chia and flaxseed? And did you mixed them with water? Thank you!
Vegan says
This is seriously THE BEST vegan blueberry muffins!! I’ve made this almost daily, the whole family loves the muffins so much!! It’s simple and quick to make. Would like to turn this into a delicious blueberry cake, how long do you advise to bake in a i) loaf pan, ii) 9″pan?
Lyne G says
Excellent muffins, I replaced the lemon zest by orange zest since I had no lemons on hand.
Valerie says
These muffins are absolutely amazing. Thank you for this great recipe. I am making them all the time?
Taylor says
My first ever muffins — vegan or not. They turned out great! I used white wine vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar because that’s what I had, and frozen blueberries. The batter turned blue, which was to be expected, but the taste and texture was perfect! Thanks for making such an easy and accessible recipe!
Meagan says
these muffins are so good!! I ended up making some small tweaks like leaving out the lemon zest, using dried blueberries because i think the texture works better, substituted some of the vanilla for maple flavor, and i topped them with some raw sugar for some crunch. they were incredible! i haven’t had a good blueberry muffin since i went vegan they’re always a little too moist (falling apart or doughy) but these were just perfect.
Ashlyn says
BEST. RECIPE. EVER!! I adore these muffins, and the lemon is soooo good, and they aren’t even too sweet! but they’re so FLUFFY. but even better than that, the recipe is very forgiving, and you can also tweak it a little bit, stick it in a waffle iron and have amazing waffles! (trust me, i know) 😉 thanks for this lifesaver!
Sarah says
I will have to try this as waffle batter. Thanks for the great idea!
SM says
I have used this recipes a few times now, it is simple enough to remember and comes out great everytime! I have substituted chocolate chips instead of blueberries (yum) and even tried a mix of oat flour and white, with frozen blueberries and it worked perfectly! Best vegan baking recipe I’ve come across, so easy and delicious 🙂
Michelle says
So, I will preface with saying that I hate it when people comment about how they changed 25% of the recipe and that it didn’t come out right. Duh, That said, I have been STRUGGLING with vegan baking because we live at high altitude (which is a challenge in and of itself) AND we’re gluten-free. Those three constraints are enough to make me about give up, but I decided to find a vegan recipe with lots of stars, adjust a little and keep adjusting until it works
Well, guess what… your recipe NAILED it, even with adjustments. I used 1-1/2 cups gluten-free flour mix + 1/2 cup almond meal for the flour and decreased the leavening (1-1/2 tsp for the baking powder) and the muffins came out almost perfect! They are just a tad dense, but I think I can work with that – or just accept it because they are dang good anyway. I am so excited… and THANK YOU!
Sarah says
What a fantastic review. I’m so glad you found a recipe that you can make work for you!
ashley judosn says
Hi! Is it possible to sub the all purpose flour for almond flour and the soy milk for almond milk?
Leslie says
This was a delicious recipe!!! I loved the fluffiness ofThe muffin when I tasted it but I guess because I used Swans all-purpose flour.
Vegan says
This is seriously THE BEST vegan blueberry muffins!! I’ve made this almost daily, the whole family loves the muffins so much!! It’s simple and quick to make. Would like to turn this into a delicious blueberry cake, how long do you advise to bake in a i) loaf pan, ii) 9″ shallow pan?
Kyle T. says
The best vegan blueberries muffins yet!! I never tweak a recipe the first time as I want to experience what the author intended. The first two muffins I ate warm covered in homemade brown sugar sauce (an old family favourite way of eating blueberry muffins) and it was heaven. Even cooled & by themselves for breakfast the next day, they were perfect. I’ve been trying to find the best base for a vegan gumdrop cake for a few years now … I thought this might be the ticket in a loaf pan. The only changes I made for the gumdrop loaf was I replace the lemon zest with 1 tsp of Wilton imitation butter flavour, replaced the blueberries with cut (& floured) gumdrops, and reduced the oven temp from 375 to 350. The loaf was done in 55 min in my oven, which is normal for a loaf (50 to 60 min … and would be the same for Sarah’s original recipe). I couldn’t be happier with the result. Slices hold together perfectly when sliced (a problem with prev recipes) and the taste is wonderful. I will try the 9″ shallow square pan with Sarah’s unchanged recipe to server warm with brown sugar sauce for our Christmas desert (a family favourite for years). From past similar cakes, I would expect it to take 30 to 35 minutes, but have a peek at 25 minutes and take it from there. Good luck.
Clara Hernandez says
Can I use frozen blueberries?
Sarah says
Yes, they bleed into the batter a little making your batter a bit blue but won’t have much overall effect on the taste and texture.
Rachel says
very tender yummy blueberry muffins! We loved them!