High-Protein Pumpkin Muffins Recipe

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Muffins win the convenience award time and time again, whether you need an easy go-to afternoon snack or something quick yet nourishing as you walk out the door on a busy weekday morning. Not all muffins are created equally, of course, and some of them teeter more into dessert territory than they do nutritious breakfast. If you're looking for those muffins that truly do pack a nutritious punch (all while tasting delicious), then these high-protein pumpkin muffins from wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn are just the breakfast solution. Made with wholesome ingredients like flax seeds, hemp hearts, pumpkin puree, these muffins are soft and nutty with warm and cozy fall spices (not to mention a satisfying crunch from the slivered almonds and hemp seeds). 

Not only do these muffins make for an easy breakfast, but they're also great just about any time of day when you need a little pick-me-up. "I always like to have a batch of healthy muffins on hand for a pre-workout energy source or an afternoon snack," Hahn tells us. And, best of all, you can easily prep these ahead of time to keep on standby throughout the week. "When making these ahead, just let them cool, then place them in an airtight container in the fridge and they will last five days," Hahn says. "To freeze them, place them in a freezer safe container to last up to two months. To reheat, warm in the oven for 10 minutes at 300 F."

To make this recipe, you'll need some baking staples like oat flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla extract. Then pick up some ground flax seeds and hemp seeds. If you buy whole flax seeds, just make sure to grind them in a spice or coffee grinder before adding them to the recipe. The other dry goods needed are slivered almonds, pumpkin puree, almond butter, maple syrup, and apple cider vinegar. Hit up the dairy aisle for soy milk and Greek yogurt. Optionally, grab some pumpkin seeds or rolled oats if you want to add them to the muffin tops.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Line a muffin tin with parchment paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oat flour, almond flour, flax seeds, hemp seeds, slivered almonds, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and salt.

To a blender, add the soy milk, Greek yogurt, pumpkin puree, almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and apple cider vinegar.

Blend until smooth.

Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

Spoon the batter into the muffin tin.

Top the muffins with pumpkin seeds or rolled oats, if desired.

Bake for 28-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean.

Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before serving.

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There are several ingredient swaps that can be made if you want to use what you have on hand. For the flour, you can substitute the oat flour for whole wheat flour, but note that the texture will be a little denser. Almond flour provides added protein to the muffins while adding moisture to eliminate the need for oil, so it shouldn't be substituted.

You can swap out slivered almonds for any type of nut. Chopped walnuts or pecans are a great choice here, staying on theme with the autumnal feel. For the wet ingredients, any type of milk will work. Soy milk is a high protein source, but other options include cow's milk, almond milk, or oat milk. If you want to keep the recipe dairy-free and vegan, swap out the Greek yogurt for a plant-based protein yogurt like coconut or cashew. If you don't have almond butter on hand, you can use peanut butter, cashew butter, sunflower seed butter, or you can even make your own nut butter. To make your own pumpkin pie spice use a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.

In this recipe, we've created a high-protein pumpkin muffin by combining multiple sources of proteins to balance the nutrition and make them naturally satisfying and energizing. For the base of the dry ingredients, both oat flour and almond flour offer more protein than all-purpose flour, and the combination of the two together makes for a great muffin texture. Hemp seeds and flax seeds both provide an extra little protein boost along with added fiber to boot. The almond butter and slivered almonds also provide protein (we recommend looking for an almond butter without added sugar).

For the wet ingredients, soy milk also adds a nice protein boost, coming it at around 7 grams of protein per cup. Finally, Greek yogurt rounds out the protein-rich ingredients in these muffins. All of these little ingredient contributions come together to form a cohesive muffin, one with plenty of sources of protein without the need for protein powder (which would affect the texture and flavor of the muffins).

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