These Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are moist and fluffy, fresh and tangy and healthy enough for breakfast!
With summer just around the corner, I thought it was time to introduce a sweet treat that’s easy to make, and suitable for all sorts of summery occasions like:
- picnics
- alfresco breakfast
- lazy brunches
- packed lunches
- road trips
- general travelling!
Why you’ll love these Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins:
- they’re moist and fluffy
- they’re not-too-sweet
- they’re zesty and tangy
- they’re refined sugar free
- they’re made in one bowl
- they’re perfect for dessert, breakfast, brunch or a snack!
How to make these Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins:
- Mix together all the ingredients in a glass mixing bowl.
Tip: Make sure to use a measuring jug to measure out the exact amount of plant-based milk!
- Divide the batter between muffin cases in a muffin/cupcake tin.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
I decided to make a sweet, tangy lemon syrup to pour over the muffins. The syrup is refined sugar free and easy to make, and adds a little extra zippy sweetness. Plus, you can quickly mix it together whilst you’re waiting for the muffins to bake in the oven.
Tips for the lemon syrup:
- I recommend pouring the syrup over the muffins straight out the oven while they’re still hot, so that it gets properly absorbed.
- It’s optional so you can definitely leave it out if you want.
Tips for baking with lemons
- For optimum lemon flavour, I would recommend using fresh lemons (not ones that you’ve had sitting in your fruit bowl for weeks!) and organic ones if possible.
- You have to be careful when baking with lemon juice as the acidity and lemon flavour can really vary depending on the lemons you use.
- I would recommend tasting the lemon juice you’re using and adjusting the amount of lemon juice you use accordingly.
- For the lemon zest, make sure you use unwaxed lemons.
Substitutions you can make to this recipe:
- you can use any type of oil: coconut oil, olive oil or vegetable oil
- you can use any type of plant-based milk: almond milk, rice milk, soy milk, cashew milk, oat milk etc
- you can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc
- you can substitute the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground walnuts
- for a nut-free version: substitute the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground sunflower seeds or use 30g (¼ cup) coconut flour instead of 150g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds
- you can use plain flour, wholemeal (whole wheat) flour or spelt flour instead of the gluten-free flour if you’re not gluten-free.
How long do these Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins keep for?
These Muffins do taste best when fresh, but they do keep covered in the fridge for up to a few days. You can reheat them in the oven or an oven toaster if you like.
For more vegan muffin recipes:
- Carrot Muffins
- Blueberry Banana Bread Muffins
- Chocolate Muffins
- Apple Muffins
- Blueberry Muffins
- Muffin Tin Sushi Cups
- Chocolate Banana Muffins
- Orange Muffins
If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog, I’d really love to hear any feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo @rhiansrecipes #rhiansrecipes on Instagram! Thank you.
Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Ingredients
For the muffins:
- 60 g (¼ cup) coconut oil (or sub olive or vegetable oil)
- 180 ml (¾ cup) unsweetened almond milk (or sub any other plant-based milk)
- 8 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (use unwaxed lemons)
- 12 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 3 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 150 g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds (almond meal) *
- 150 g (1 ¼ cup) gluten-free flour blend (or sub plain flour if not gluten-free)
- 2 heaped teaspoons baking powder (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
- ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
For the syrup (optional):
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup
Instructions
For the muffins:
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Place the coconut oil in a large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave (skip this step if using any other oil)
- Once melted, add the milk to the same bowl along with the lemon juice, lemon zest, maple syrup, vanilla, salt, poppy seeds and ground almonds
- Sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda
- Mix well, adding a tiny splash more milk if it’s looking too dry
- Transfer the mixture between muffin cases in a muffin tin
- Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until risen and an inserted skewer comes out clean
For the syrup:
- Whilst the muffins are baking, mix together the lemon juice and maple syrup
- Drizzle it over the muffins as soon as they’re out of the oven – it will soak into the muffins better when they’re hot
- These muffins taste best eaten on the day they’re made, but keep for a few days. They can be reheated in the oven or an oven toaster if you like!
Notes
Tips for baking with lemons
- For optimum lemon flavour, I would recommend using fresh lemons (not ones that you’ve had sitting in your fruit bowl for weeks!) and organic ones if possible.
- You have to be careful when baking with lemon juice as the acidity and lemon flavour can really vary depending on the lemons you use.
- I would recommend tasting the lemon juice you’re using and adjusting the amount of lemon juice you use accordingly.
- For the lemon zest, make sure you use unwaxed lemons.
Disclosure: This posts contains affiliate links to Amazon. If you click through and purchase any of the products, a small percentage will come to me, with no extra cost to you! This income will go towards the running of this blog – thank you.
Gretchen
Hi!
I’m looking to bake these over the weekend. Can I replace the gluten-free flour with oat flour?
Rhian Williams
Yes it should be ok, but the texture will be slightly more dense!
Becky smith
What kind of gluten free blend do i use, self raising or plain?
Rhian Williams
Plain!
Antoinette
Easy and delicious! Loved by vegan and blink-vegan alike – thank you
Antoinette
Sorry that was meant to say vegan and NON vegan
Rhian Williams
Thank you os much, so glad you liked them!