Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins – Soft & Fluffy!
Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins are soft and fluffy, made with pumpkin puree and classic pumpkin pie spices, and ready in under 45 minutes!
If you love these gluten free pumpkin muffins, check out my Gluten Free Banana Muffins, Gluten Free Cherry Muffins, and Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread!
Gluten free pumpkin muffins are the perfect grab-and-go breakfast in the morning. They’re also great cut in half and toasted, then topped with cream cheese or almond butter and paired with a cup of coffee. You can add raisins or dried cranberries to the batter for some sweetness.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Gluten Free All Purpose Flour – I use the cup-for-cup gluten free all purpose flour.
Light Brown Sugar – The brown sugar adds a deeper flavor, which goes great with pumpkin muffins. You can use white granulated sugar if that’s what you have.
Baking Powder – Make sure your baking powder says ‘double-acting’ on the container. This is a key ingredient to make sure your muffins rise properly.
Pumpkin Spice Flavor – I add some extra cinnamon on top of the pumpkin pie spice I’m already using. You can use only pumpkin pie spice, or your favorite combination in general.
Pumpkin Puree – Canned pumpkin works fine (the same one you’d use for pumpkin pie filling). For an alternate recipe, you can replace the pumpkin with mashed bananas. You can also use homemade pumpkin puree if you have it.
Eggs – Eggs help add texture and flavor to baked goods.
Butter – Butter adds flavor and also helps the muffins to rise while adding a soft fluffy texture. You can swap it for vegetable oil if that’s what you have, or applesauce for a lighter version.
I also recommend using unsalted butter so you can control the amount of salt that goes into the recipe.
Half and Half – Half and half adds a little more fat and acidity to the muffin, helping it have a moist texture instead of drying out. You can also use heavy cream, or whole milk if that’s what you have.
How to Make Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins
- Grease a muffin pan (or add paper liners). Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- In a large bowl whisk all of your dry ingredients together.
- Add wet ingredients to the bowl and mix well. Use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer. Be careful not to over-mix!
- Evenly distribute among the muffin cups and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Jacqui’s Tip! Pour this batter into a bread pan to make gluten free pumpkin bread! It’s ready when a toothpick comes out clean, a total time of around 60 minutes.
How to Make Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins in a Larger Muffin Pan
I made this recipe for a smaller muffin tin. You can make these in a larger muffin tin, but I have a few suggestions if you do:
- Lower the heat to 375°F and line a larger pan with muffin liners.
- Doubling the recipe to make sure you have enough batter for a full 6 muffins.
- Increase the cook time by about 5-10 minutes, or until they’re golden brown on the top and a toothpick comes out clean. Keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t over cook.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can freeze gluten free pumpkin muffins! I like to make a double batch of these, so I can freeze half and grab them on my way out the door to work in the morning. Just make sure to wrap them tightly in plastic wrap, and then in a ziplock bag to keep any freezer burn off of them.
Gluten free pumpkin muffins will last on the counter in an air tight container for 1-2 days, and 1-2 months in the freezer.
This recipe uses two tsp baking powder. If you don’t have baking powder, I would recommend substituting 1/2 teaspoon baking soda plus 2 teaspoons of lemon juice in its place. You can also use 2/3 teaspoon baking soda, but I find the acid from the lemon juice helps the muffins rise more.
Jacqui’s Tip! Make sure the baking powder says “double acting” on the packaging or they won’t rise properly!
What can I add to gluten free pumpkin muffins?
- Add in chocolate chips or dried cranberries to the muffin batter, or a sprinkle of brown sugar to the top of the muffins for some different variations. I would start with 1 cup of chocolate chips with your dry ingredients for this muffin recipe.
- Add in nuts like almonds or pecans for extra crunch!
- Sprinkle a tsp cinnamon on top of the muffin batter decoratively before baking.
- Add a teaspoon salt mixed with a teaspoon ground cinnamon to the top of the muffins for a sweet and savory flavor. Make sure to use flakey salt, and use 1 teaspoon for the whole batch with just a small sprinkle on top of each one.
- In a large bowl, mix together a streusel topping to make my pumpkin streusel muffins!
- This recipe calls for 1 cup pumpkin puree, but you can substitute that for other pureed vegetables. Try zucchini, or butternut squash! Just make sure the veggies aren’t watery.
- Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract for a different flavor. If you don’t have vanilla extract, you can also try other flavors like almond or orange extract.
- I prefer to eat these with a bit of cream cheese, but you can also add butter or drizzle them with some maple syrup.
How to Make Pumpkin Pie Spice
You can buy pumpkin pie spice, but it’s also really easy to make at home! Here’s my favorite pumpkin pie spice recipe that I make a big batch of every year. It’s also worth mentioning that this pumpkin spice is way cheaper than buying it at the store! Just whisk everything together and store in an airtight container.
- 4 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp nutmeg
- 1 tbsp ginger
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp cloves
More Gluten Free Pumpkin Recipes
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes
- Homemade Pumpkin Pie & Streusel Topping
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake
- Breakfast Pumpkin Pie Smoothie
Tips and Tricks
- Don’t replace the half and half for gluten free pumpkin muffins. When you’re using gluten free flour, you want to use half and half or cream instead of milk, because cream has more naturally occurring acid in it. This affects the rise of the muffin, and creates the muffin top we all know and love.
- Remember that you want to keep the pumpkin pie spice a bit higher than in non-GF baking. It’s all about flavor!
- Make this a dairy free or vegan pumpkin muffin recipe by using almond milk instead of half and half, oil instead of butter, and try one of these egg substitutes.
- Cut the prep time down by making a large batch of dry ingredients at night and storing them in an airtight container. Then in the morning, all you have to do is measure out the pre-mixed dry ingredients with the wet ingredients and bake.
- Pro tip for any gluten-free muffin recipe is to make sure you use the right egg size. This recipe (and most recipes) call for large eggs. Make sure they are room temperature when you start! You also want your butter to be room temperature, to make it easier to mix the batter.
- I use cup-for-cup gluten free all-purpose flour for this pumpkin muffin recipe. Every gluten-free flour blend is a little bit different. Some have ingredients like (gluten free) oat flour, xanthan gum, or almond flour. Use your favorite blend for this recipe, but results may vary!
- Use paper muffin cups in your muffin tin to help make cleanup easier.
If you loved this recipe, be sure to leave a 5 Star review below, and tag me with a photo of your finished recipe on Instagram @Jacqui_DishingDelish!
Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup gluten free 1-to-1 all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder, double acting
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup half and half
Equipment
- 1 muffin tin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a muffin pan and set aside.
- Whisk together dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl beat eggs, then add to dry ingredients.
- Add half and half, butter, and pumpkin puree to dry ingredients. Stir all ingredients together (or use a stand mixer) until well combined. Be careful not to over-mix.
- Add muffin batter to greased muffin tin evenly among 9 of the cups. (You can spread them among 12, but the muffins will be slightly smaller).
- Bake for 20-25, or until muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
Notes
- You can add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, dried cranberries, or raisins to this recipe.
- I use cup-for-cup gluten free all-purpose flour for this pumpkin muffin recipe. Every gluten-free flour blend is a little bit different. Use your favorite blend for this recipe, but results may vary!
- A higher acid dairy like half and half or cream will help the muffin tops rise.
- Make sure the baking powder says ‘double acting’.
- Don’t over-mix the batter, it’ll keep the muffins from rising properly.
Nutrition
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Hi- do I have to use the all purpose GF flour, can I use GF white rice flour?
Also, can I use this recipe for Pumpkin bread?
I would recommend using the gluten free all purpose. The reason is because it’s a blend of flours, and with gluten free baking you really need that protein/starch ratio to be just right to get a good texture. That being said, you could technically use just white rice flour, but it would probably be crumbly.
You can definitely use this recipe for pumpkin bread, you might just have to increase the cook time. I also have a great pumpkin bread recipe here. Thanks! 🙂
I have a stupid question. I have whipping cream on hand. Is that the same cream you use? I want to make these over weekend for a fall party we are having! Thank you.
Hi Rachel, yes you should be able to use whipping cream with no issues.
After my son was diagnosed with celiac we’ve needed to take the house gluten free. Baking used to be my happy place, now it is all frustration and wasted food. Yours is not the only recipe I have had trouble with, but I cooked the muffins for 40 minutes (after 15 I had to tent with foil, because the tops were burning), yet even when I took them out at 40 minutes I could tell they were still not baked all the way through, but removed them because I was afraid of overcooking the tops too much, which were browning and crisping up even under the foil). We are able to eat them hot, but after they cool they turn to a gummy, disgusting ball of dough. Also, the muffins were high and fluffy looking and collapsed in after a few minutes out of the oven. Any thoughts? Would a lower temp and longer cooking time be a better option? I made these with Namaste Flour, any experience with this one? I know they are all different. Thanks for any advice.
Hi Amy, sorry this happened! I have a few thoughts. The first is to get an oven thermometer, and measure your oven temperature. It’s a really common problem with ovens to cook too hot or too cold. The muffins rising and dropping like that sometimes can be a heat issue.
My next thought is the flour blend. I’ve never tried namaste, I usually use Bob’s Red Mill GF All Purpose (red label). I’ve made them many times with that one and haven’t had an issue. Different gluten free flours have different levels of protein to starch, so baking can be tricky! They also have a 1-to-1 GF flour that’s pretty good.
Let me know if you changed anything else in the recipe, and I can help you troubleshoot further!
Thanks for the reply. I didn’t make any other changes, always try to make the recipe as is first before tweaking things. Our oven is good, we have a thermometer that lives in the oven, so I can check each time we bake something that the temperature is correct, so I feel good ruling that out as a possibility. I did remake a cookie recipe, that has more of a muffin texture, using the King Arthur Flour blend and got significantly different results than with the Namaste. If I retry your recipe with KAF I’ll let you know if the results are different. Definitely hard baking when all the blends are different and often different cookbooks recommend different blends based on their testing. Leads to lots of flour blends stacking up in the house! I’ll figure this out sooner or later : )
how to make it with out eggs my grandson cant have eggs
Hi Linda, you can sub in 1 tbsp corn starch + 3 tbsp water per egg. Hope that helps! 🙂
Delicious muffins!!! I had exactly 1 cup of fresh pumpkin puree and needed a quick recipe for a sick friend. Made 6 small and 6 medium muffins.
I live in Spain so I use a GF flour mix for bread called Scharr and mix it with rice flour. I cut the 3(4 c. of sugar to a heaping 1/2 cup, because it looked like so much. I didn’t have the light cream so used evaporated milk. Definitely going into my recipe stash to bake again! And the house does smell heavenly : ) Thanks so much, Joy
Wow, I am so impressed. I just made them and they are fluffy and delicious. I used chickpea flour so they’re a little dense, buuuut that’s chickpea flour for you. Very happy I found this recipe!
My son was just diagnosed with celiac. His first reply was” I’ll never get to eat you pumpkin muffins again mom!” I can’t wait to surprise him with these tonight. I’m open to suggestions of any kind about keeping a gf house. It’s all new to us!
Thanks,
Kate
I always struggle with gluten free baking but these muffins look so good that I can’t wait to try them!
Just made these this morning and now they are my new favorites!
Does your flour blend contain xanthan gum? If not how much should be added, thanks!
My flour blend does not have xanthan gum in it for this one. I find that the pumpkin helps hold everything together. If you want to add some gum though, start with 1/4 tsp per 1 cup of flour in any recipe as a general rule. Hope that helps! 🙂
These muffins turned out perfectly and were delicious.
Mary Jane
I am going to try it with coconut sugar instead of brown sugar, and cashew milk in place of light cream. Do you think it will work and should I use the same proportions? Thanks
It should work, you might want to add a splash of lemon juice to the cashew milk to give it some acidity. Let me know how it goes!
These came out of the oven looking like regular muffins, so I was really excited, but they have more of a chewy texture to them which I don’t like (however my husband loves that so he loved these muffins). I’m just wondering if these are supposed to be chewy in texture? I am also dairy free so I used vegan butter and soy milk instead of what was listed on the recipe – could this be the cause? Other then the dairy-free changes I followed the recipe exactly. This is the first time I have ever made GF/DF muffins so maybe this is normal? I’m fairly new to being GF/DF.
Hi Chera, The substitutions may have been the cause, or the flour blend you’re using. Try using Bob’s Red Mill GF All Purpose (I think it has a really nice texture) and add 1/2 tbsp lemon juice to the soy milk. Gluten free baking needs a bit of acid that would come from cream, but you can sub in the lemon juice and it should work just fine. Thanks! 🙂
I only have measure to measure KA gluten flour. Will that work in these pumpkin muffins or do I have to get KA gluten free all purpose flour?
I’m not super familiar with King Arthur flour, but I would try it measure to measure, I think it will turn out fine. 🙂
These muffins are so soft and tender with just the perfect amount of pumpkin. I love that these are GF too!
My whole family loves these! I chose to add chocolate chips. I’ll definitely keep this recipe on hand in the future! Thank you so much!
Chocolate chips are a great idea! Thank you!
I just made these for the first time,I used some butternut squash that I had processed fresh. I always try to cut back on refined sugars for us. So I used only a quarter cup of brown sugar and the rest was coconut sugar. I also added English walnuts to give us the benefit of a nut. These were wonderful and looked just like your picture. My husband just raved about these, so this is definitely a keeper! Thank you so much about the hints on the cream and butter, I believe it made a huge difference in the texture too!
I’m so glad you and your husband liked them! Thank you for the stars, the walnuts are a great tip!
I doubled this and made it in a loaf pan with a batch of cream cheese frosting. Delicious! I followed the recipe exactly except I didn’t have half and half on hand so I used 2% milk with a splash of vinegar.
Can this muffin recipes be used in minature muffin pans and what would the time and temperture adjustment be? thanks!
Yes you can definitely make this in a mini muffin pan. I would drop the temperature to 375, and drop the time down to 10-15 minutes. I haven’t made these in a mini pan before, so check them around 8 minutes just to be safe. They’re done when a toothpick comes out clean.
Thank you for sharing this great recipe!
I cooked up pumpkin for the purée and seeds and served both at a Thanksgiving dinner; they jumped out as being uniquely delicious even on a table full of yummy baked goodies ! Because I am following a basic keto and gf diet, I substituted 1/2 cup of almond flour, the rest being 1-1 gf, and added a pinch extra xantham gum. Then I substituted cane sugar out with a zero calorie sweetener. I also boosted the spices a bit especially the nutmeg so it had a slightly eggnog flavor but still retained the pumpkin/pumpkin spice quality. Baked for 20 minutes at 375 but it needed maybe another 5 minutes so I popped them in microwave for one minute for a lovely old-fashioned chewy texture. This recipe is a keeper and adapted to my dietary needs well.