These delicately spiced pumpkin muffins are on my year-round rotation — partly because they’re so easy to prepare, and partly because my sons request them for a special breakfast treat so often! I developed this recipe with ease of preparation in mind, along with a few expert tricks to make muffins with bakery-quality height and texture.
You only need 10 minutes of active time for my pumpkin muffin recipe: The batter could not be easier to whisk together with a few simple ingredients, most of which I’m sure you probably already have on hand! Plus, my secret for tall, perfectly domed muffins starts with a very hot oven, and then you reduce the temperature so the muffins can bake through. The results are tall, fluffy muffins like you find at your local bakery!
A reader, Linz, says: “Mine came out picture perfect, with the same gorgeous cracked dome tops. I used a bit of whole wheat flour, added some chopped pecans, and subbed 1/4c of the oil for apple sauce. They have a surprisingly light, moist crumb. Thanks for all the tips to achieve the perfect muffin. Love!” ★★★★★
My Secrets To Bakery-Style Muffins
When I developed this recipe, I knew I wanted the resulting muffins to have that delicious bakery-quality texture and appearance. Throughout several tests, I discovered two key secrets for achieving that at home!
- Use vegetable oil. While I love the taste of butter in baked goods, a liquid fat like vegetable oil is key to producing a super-tender muffin that stays moist for days. Because vegetable oil is liquid when cold or at room temperature, the fat in the muffin doesn’t firm up once it’s cooled, so the crumb texture stays soft, fluffy, and tender even when it isn’t warm.
- Start baking in a hot oven. Baking the muffins at 425°F for the first 5 minutes helps them immediately start to rise when they hit the hot oven. This quick lift gives them that professional bakery-style look with a pretty dome on top. The temperature is dropped after 5 minutes so that the muffins don’t overbake or burn on the outside before the center is done.
Key Ingredients
These are the main ingredients you need to make homemade pumpkin muffins. You can find the full list of ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.
Leavening agents — for sky-high muffins, you’ll need both baking powder and baking soda.
Spices — store-bought or homemade pumpkin pie spice has all the perfect fall flavors you need. You can swap it out for 1½ teaspoons cinnamon, ½ teaspoon allspice, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, and ¼ teaspoon nutmeg. But these are your muffins, so if you only like cinnamon, go ahead and just use that. You could even use garam masala for a more savory, bold flavor.
Pumpkin — like many other pumpkin recipes, you need canned pumpkin puree for these muffins. Don’t use pumpkin pie filling, which has other ingredients added to it that will affect the flavor of the muffins. It can be confusing since the puree and pie mix are usually right next to each other in the grocery store (and in very similar packaging). So double-check the label! It should only contain 100% pumpkin. You can use fresh pumpkin puree if it’s not too runny.
Sugar — using both granulated sugar and light brown sugar gives you a hint of molasses in each pumpkin muffin, which is simply sublime paired with the warm fall spices.
Oil — I like using vegetable oil, which adds plenty of moisture and richness to these easy pumpkin muffins. But you could also use coconut oil, which will add a little sweetness, or even olive oil. Just be aware that coconut and olive oil have a strong flavor, and it will come through in the muffins. You can also use melted butter.
Milk — you don’t need much milk at all, so feel free to use what you have in the fridge. I use whole milk, but almond milk or even water works just as well!
Variations To Try
Mix up your pumpkin muffins with one of these additions!
- Add chocolate chips or nuts. If you’re looking for a sweeter muffin, fold ½ to ⅔ cup chocolate chips into the batter. If you want some added crunch, stir in ⅔ cup chopped toasted walnuts, toasted pecans, or roasted pepitas.
- Add a streusel topping for some textural interest. Sprinkle the streusel topping on the tops of the muffins before baking. It adds a crunchy, perfectly sweet finish.
- Add blueberries for a burst of fruit. Riff on my classic blueberry muffins by stirring in 1 cup of fresh or frozen blueberries into the pumpkin batter. The combination might sound a bit unexpected, but the tart blueberries pair very well with the spices and earthy pumpkin!
- Drizzle with a glaze. Try the chocolate glaze from my chocolate scones or the plain glaze from my pumpkin scones. Let the muffins cool for at least 20 minutes before glazing them, or the glaze will melt and run off.
- Swap some of the oil for browned butter. While this will slightly firm up the texture since butter solidifies when cool, it adds a rich, nutty flavor to the muffins that is SO delicious. If you replace only half of the oil, you’ll get the benefit of flavor from the browned butter along with the softness from the oil.
Pro Tips For Making The Best Pumpkin Muffins
Weigh the flour. If you want moist, tender pumpkin muffins, measure the flour with a kitchen scale! Using too much flour is a common mistake when baking, and the results will lead to dry muffins. A scale is the most accurate way to get the exact flour amount every time. Using a dry scoop can lead to accidentally packing in too much flour. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, fluff your flour up before spooning it into a measuring cup, then level off with a knife for best results.
Use room temperature ingredients. Set the eggs and milk out on your kitchen counter 30 minutes to an hour before you start baking. Cold ingredients will make a cold batter, and you don’t want cold batter going into a hot oven. Additionally, room temperature ingredients mix together better.
Don’t over-mix the muffin batter. Gently stir the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients until they are combined. If you mix too much, you will end up with dense pumpkin muffins.
Use paper liners in the muffin tin. The muffins can stick catastrophically if you skip the muffin cup!
How To Make Pumpkin Muffins
Below, I’ve highlighted portions of the recipe in step-by-step process images along with instructions for making pumpkin muffins. You can find the full set of instructions in the recipe card below.
1. Whisk together all-purpose flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until combined.
2. Grab a medium bowl and whisk together the oil, milk, eggs, vanilla, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Plop in the pumpkin puree and whisk until smooth.
3. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Do not overmix or your muffins will be dense and tough.
4. Line a muffin pan with paper muffin liners. Divide the batter equally among the liners. Fill each one about three-quarters of the way. Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F, which will really help the muffins puff up. Then reduce the temperature to 350°F and bake for 15 minutes more or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the pan and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack.
Pumpkin Muffin Recipe
Video
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Muffin pans
- Paper liners
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour (180g)
- 2½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar (110g)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100g)
- ½ cup vegetable oil (120mL)
- ¼ cup whole milk room temperature (60mL)
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1¼ cup canned pumpkin puree (280g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, then whisk together until combined.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the granulated and brown sugars, oil, milk, eggs, and vanilla until well combined. Add in the pumpkin puree and whisk until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together using a silicone spatula until just combined and no dry streaks of flour remain. Divide the batter among the paper liners, filling each one about three-quarters full.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F. Without opening the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F, and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the pan and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
Notes
- Set a timer so you don’t forget to reduce the oven temperature! It’s easy to put your muffins in and then forget about them, but you don’t want them to cook at a high temperature the whole time, or they can burn on the outside and stay raw in the center.
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions
The best tip I can give for moist, soft muffins is to measure the flour using a kitchen scale. Scooping directly from the flour container will cause you to use too much flour almost all of the time…which, in turn, yields dry muffins. Weighing the flour will help you use the exact amount you need. I also recommend not tweaking the amount of oil used in this recipe. I understand the urge to “healthify” certain things, but oil is a key ingredient for moist pumpkin muffins.
Vegetable oil is the best oil for muffins because it has a neutral flavor and adds moisture and richness to the batter. You could swap it out for coconut oil or even olive oil, but note that both oil’s strong flavor will come through in the baked muffins.
Absolutely! These homemade pumpkin muffins stay moist for up to a week in the refrigerator, so they can be made ahead.
For gluten-free pumpkin muffins, substitute the all-purpose flour for gluten-free all-purpose flour. The other ingredients should not contain any gluten, but please double-check all labels as gluten is often an unexpected ingredient in some spice mixes.
Leftovers will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. I like to store them in the refrigerator, which bumps up their lifespan to a week. Reheat them for a few seconds in the microwave for a warm breakfast treat.
If you want to make a few batches of pumpkin muffins to have on hand for whenever the mood for something comforting strikes, consider freezing them. Wrap the muffins in plastic wrap and foil, and store in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. They’ll thaw in 3 to 4 hours at room temperature, or overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave.
More Pumpkin Recipes To Try
Whip up one of these easy and delicious fall recipes flavored with pumpkin puree and warm spices:
These baked pumpkin donuts will melt in your mouth! The batter is whisked together and is baked in a donut pan; the donuts are then topped with a blanket of maple glaze for the perfect finish.
Homemade pumpkin scones are crisp on the edges, flaky throughout, and drizzled with a sweet glaze. These scones are buttery and generously spiced.
Make the perfect fall breakfast with a stack of fluffy pumpkin pancakes! Pureed pumpkin, brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg flavor these delicious pancakes.
Enjoy a slice of homemade pumpkin bread with your morning coffee. You only need 10 minutes to stir together the batter before letting the oven do the rest of the work.
Make the perfect pumpkin pie with my easy recipe. Stir together the pumpkin custard filling, pour it into an all-butter pie crust, and bake!
If you’ve tried this pumpkin muffin recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Rana says
This recipe is definitely a keeper! The only thing I added to the muffins was milk chocolate chips. My husband and 4 kids, who all have different tastes, devoured them! That says it all!
Cate says
These are the BEST pumpkin muffins I’ve ever had. Can always trust him for good recipes
Kylie says
There super good I keep coming back to the recipe
Josephine says
100%