This Chai Spiced Vegan Muffins recipe is a delicious healthy breakfast or snack filled with warm aromatic spices like cloves, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom!
Chai Spiced Muffins are must-try vegan muffins that are moist, rich and flavorful! I use dairy-free milk, applesauce instead of butter and load it up with warm spices including cloves, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom. It’s a simple vegan muffin recipe that you can customize to add nuts, chocolate chips or dried fruit. And no one will even notice they’re vegan!
What are chai spices?
Chai is a blend of spices that originated from India. They provide a warming and soothing effect and act as a natural digestive aid so they have huge health benefits however you consume them! The spices used vary from region to region, but the mix most commonly includes:
- Cinnamon
- Allspice
- Cloves
- Nutmeg
- Cardamom
- Ginger
To make the vegan muffins recipe easier, I only included 4 of the spices, but feel free to substitute as you see fit.
How to make vegan muffins
Preheat your oven and grease your muffin tin. In a bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. I like sifting the dry ingredients whenever possible for better results!
In another bowl mix together the wet ingredients: milk, applesauce, neutral oil (I like grapeseed) and maple syrup or another liquid sweetener.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and combine. You should have a smooth batter, but some lumps are totally ok whenever you’re making vegan muffins, or even regular muffins!
Fill the muffin cups two-thirds full and bake. They will puff up in the middle, but not too much. You can also fill them all the way up, and make 9 muffins instead. I like keeping them on the smaller side.
Tips for making vegan muffins
- Don’t substitute the oil for more applesauce. A little fat from the grapeseed oil (or another neutral oil) is ok in these vegan muffins because they help them become light and moist. There’s already applesauce in the recipe and adding more will make these gummy.
- Bring milk to room temperature so it doesn’t seize up. Just like non-vegan baking, it helps when the ingredients are all at room temperature, especially the milk.
- Sift the flour so the vegan muffins will be lighter and fluffier. And make sure to measure the flour after you sift it so you’re not using any extra flour, which can make the muffins more dense and dry.
- Don’t over beat the mixture together. Lumps in the batter are ok and even small specs of flour are ok. If you over beat the mixture, it leads the gluten to develop more, which can also lead to less fluffy muffins.
Frequently asked questions
How do you know when the muffins are ready?
These muffins will take around 18 to 20 minutes to bake. When they are ready, the tops will rise and be solid. Insert a toothpick into the center of a muffin and if it comes out clean, they are ready to be taken out of the oven.
What’s the best dairy-free milk to use in these muffins?
There’s only half a cup of non-dairy milk in these muffins, so you can use whatever you have. Soy, oat and almond all work well. If you aren’t following a vegan diet, you can also use regular cows’ milk.
How long do baked vegan muffins keep?
Once you have baked the muffins, they will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for about two days. To prolong their life, you can store them in the fridge and they will be good for about a week. You can also freeze the muffins and they will keep for up to 3 months.
More vegan treats:
More muffin recipes:
These vegan muffins are so perfectly spiced and no one will ever guess that they are vegan. The spice gives them such a great flavor and they are perfect to enjoy as a mid afternoon snack with a cup of tea or even for breakfast!
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good Chai Spiced Vegan Muffins recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
Chai Spiced Vegan Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup applesauce
- 1/2 cup dairy-free milk
- 1/2 cup grapeseed oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a twelve-muffin tin or add muffin liners to a muffin tin.
- In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients: flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, salt, and the spices.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: applesauce, milk, oil, and maple syrup. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix.
- Fill the muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let them cool down for 5-10 minutes before removing from the muffin tin. Yields 12 muffins.
Video
Notes
- Feel free to change up the spices or increase/decrease quantities as you see fit.
- Instead of grapeseed oil, you can substitute any other neutral oil like canola, vegetable or safflower oil.
- Instead of applesauce, you can use other fruit purees like banana or pumpkin.
- Instead of diary-free milk, you can use regular cow's milk.
