Plant-Based Berry Muffins are the perfect breakfast treat. Made with whole-food ingredients, they are naturally sweet and completely gluten- and oil-free.
Do you ever want something sweet and also healthy? That's literally me all the time. I would probably only eat sweet foods for the rest of my life if it was nutritious enough.
Alas, it has been proven that sometimes eating vegetables is good for you.
That's a lie. Eating vegetables is ALWAYS good for you. And you should definitely eat them more than just sometimes.
But sweet foods are also good for you.
Fruit has antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that can't be found in vegetables. It has fiber and other nutrients that your body needs.
Also, sometimes it's just good for your mental health to eat something sweet. A nice dessert is relaxing and stress-relieving. That's why I eat dessert every day. Sometimes more than once a day.
I'm not over here stuffing my face with candies and sugary treats, though. Most of the time I'm eating desserts made from whole plant foods, like these Plant-Based Berry Muffins.
When you make desserts made with REAL food, you don't have to feel any shame or guilt about eating. You can just enjoy the food you're eating. You can eat until you're full. And because you're eating fruits, grains, seeds, etc. you don't have to worry about becoming addicted to your food.
Sadly, so many people are addicted to refined sugars and highly-processed, chemically engineered "food" that's sold in stores. All these packaged foods are killing us because we keep going back for more.
But when you eat real food, your body doesn't develop a dependence. This is freedom!
Now that my little food rant is over, let's talk muffins.
I'm calling these Berry Muffins because you can use whatever berries you'd like. I used a mixture of blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries, but I think these muffins would be incredible with strawberries or even some non-berry fruits like cherries or pineapple. (Or cherries and pineapple??)
There are only a few ingredients, so most likely you have everything you need on hand!
Non-Dairy Milk: I used oat milk, but you can use whatever non-dairy milk you have. Make sure it's unsweetened!
Apple Cider Vinegar: When we add ACV to the milk it curdles and creates a buttermilk of sorts.
Date Sugar: This is how we'll get sweet muffins without using refined sugar. Date sugar is just ground up dates. It has all the fiber and other nutrients of whole dates, so it's completely healthy!
Tahini: I'm currently OBSESSED with tahini, so look for it in a bunch of recipes coming up! I chose to use it in this recipe, because I really wanted to mimic oil. All baking recipes require fat (you'll notice most fat-free recipes are just a bit off). But since oil is essentially one of the most processed foods, I'd rather use something that's more natural. Enter: nut/seed butters. Tahini is particularly runny, which is great to take on the texture of oil. Make sure to buy a tahini that doesn't have added oil!
Vanilla Extract: A must in baking!
Oat Flour: Make your own by grinding quick oats in a food processor. Or save time and buy some. I love this brand.
Baking Powder: To help the muffins rise.
Frozen Mixed Berries: I used a mix of blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries, but you can choose whatever berries you prefer. Frozen works best in this recipe!
Sliced Almonds, Coconut Flakes, Chocolate Chips, etc.: You can customize these muffins however you want, depending on what flavor profile you enjoy. In the muffins pictured I added sliced almonds but I've got a couple flavor combos below that sound delicious.
Recipes like this are so cool, because you can really do whatever you want. If you're looking for some flavor inspo, I got you!
First, figure out what flavor you want to make. Then get baking!
Step 1. Preheat the oven and line your muffin tin.
Step 2. In a large bowl, combine the oat milk and apple cider vinegar. Let the mixture curdle for a minute.
Step 3. Then add the date sugar, tahini, and vanilla extract. Stir to combine.
Step 4. Add the oat flour and baking powder. Stir until the mixture is smooth.
Step 5. Stir in your fruit and other add-ins. For the muffins in the pictures, I used blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and sliced almonds.
Step 6. Using a 1/4 cup measure, pour a scant 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin cup. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Enjoy!
Thank you God for healthy desserts. Thank you for giving us endless ways to feed ourselves food we can feel good about eating. Amen.
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Plant-Based Berry Muffins are the perfect breakfast treat. Made with whole-food ingredients, they are naturally sweet and completely gluten- and oil-free.
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