Apple Cinnamon Muffins
Prep. Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
35 minutes
Servings
12 muffins
Difficulty
Easy
Soy-Free, Nut-Free, dairy-free, egg-free
Fall always brings me back to baking with apples — it’s the easiest way to make the house smell good and keep everyone happy. These vegan apple cinnamon muffins come together in one bowl, with simple ingredients and a tender, spiced crumb that holds up well for a few days. I usually bake them on a weekend, let the kids grab them for snacks, and freeze a few for busy mornings or road trips. I make the batter with cubed apples, and really, any apple goes. I've tried Fuji, Gala, Honeycrisp and maybe others? Not sure, but if you use kinds that lean to the sour end, like Granny Smith, balance it with the amount of sweetener.
Ingredients
For the Muffins
-dry ingredients-
7oz (200g) wholegrain spelt flour
2.8oz (80g) all-purpose flour
2.5oz (70g) almond flour (for a nut-free recipe, substitute with all-purpose flour)
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 cup brown sugar
-wet ingredients-
1 tbsp flaxseed meal + 1/2 cup plant-based milk + 1 tbsp apple vinegar
1/2 cup store-bought apple sauce (unsweetened)
1 large apple, peeled and diced
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
For the Cookie Crumble (to Coat the Muffin's Cap)
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup granulated brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
2 tbsps plant-based milk (for a soy- and nut-free recipe, choose milk that is labeled as free of these allergens)
Instructions
Making the Cookie Crumble
Preheat the oven to 370F/185C.
In a mixing bowl, combine the ingredients listed for the cookie crumble, and mix until a dough is formed.
Line an oven pan with parchment paper, and place the dough on the paper. Flatten it to an approximately 0.5'' thickness.
Place the pan in the oven and bake for 12 minutes, or until golden.
Once ready, remove from the oven, but keep the oven heated.
Making the Muffin Batter
Line 1-muffin pan (12-wells) with muffin paper or silicone cups, and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and mix.
Pour all the wet ingredients into the dry bowl, and sift until the batter is consistent and smooth.
Quickly (since now the vinegar and baking powder are now mixed), spoon the batter into the muffin wells, up to 3/4 of the well's height.
Place the pan in the oven, and bake for 35 minutes or until the top is golden, and the muffins are stable and spring back lightly when pressed in the center. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean or with just a few dry crumbs. Let them cool in the pan for a few minutes before transferring to a rack — they’ll finish setting as they cool.
Notes
You can use only all-purpose flour if that's what your pantry allows. Alternatively, you can substitute the almond flour with more all-purpose flour. For the muffins to rise nicely, make sure at least a third of the total flour quantity (at least 3.5oz/100g) is all-purpose flour.
Instead of maple syrup, you can use silan or agava syrup (same quantity), or 1/3 cup granulated sugar.
Instead of cocnut oil, you can use extra virgin olive oil or vegan butter (check out my recipe here).
The Latest Bite
Wonderful Parsley Salad
I usually buy parsley with the idea that I’ll use “just a little” in a recipe, and then I’m left with a big bunch staring at me from the fridge. This salad is my solution. Instead of letting those greens wilt away, I chop the whole thing and make it the main event. It’s fresh, full of flavor, and takes almost no effort.
The best part is how forgiving it is. Walnuts give it crunch, but almonds or pecans work if that’s what’s in the pantry. Cheese adds creaminess and the dressing is quick to whip together with what we usually have on hand, and it makes the parsley feel less like “just herbs” and more like a real salad.
This isn’t a kid-friendly dish in our house (the parsley is just too “green” for them), but it works great for the adults. I’ll make it at home when dinner needs something light on the side, or pack it into a container when we’re traveling in an RV and want an easy salad to balance out heartier meals. Since it’s dairy-free and plant-based, it holds up well for hours on the road without the stress of refrigeration worries you get with mayo-based dressings.
It’s fast, flexible, and keeps parsley from going to waste—a little grown-up salad that travels well.