Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins

Easy 1-bowl pumpkin muffins with cacao nibs, dried cranberry, and dark chocolate chips. Enjoy as a healthy breakfast, snack, or dessert.

Currently, there are two perfect pumpkins sitting on our balcony like orange guardians watching over the neighborhood street.

These are our pumpkins; big, bulbous, freshly cleaned…but faceless!

We always manage to go pumpkin picking, but it’s the carving that always seems to get overlooked.

I’ve never been very good at free-styling the face with a kitchen-knife, and my inner art-critic always cringes at every asymmetric slice.

Ooops.

But who said pumpkins have to have faces, anyway?

What I lack in pumpkin carving skills I promise I make up for in pumpkin recipes.

It’s been a while since I shared a muffin recipe on here, so let’s make these wildly appropriate 1-Bowl Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins as we near Halloween!

The Inspiration for Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins

Before I had my driver’s license my sister and I exercised our freedom by walking to our local Starbucks down the street.

It was maybe a 20 minutes walk, give or take, and it felt so good to be so physically in control of our destiny.

And our destiny was dessert.

The colder it got, the faster we walked, and the better the pumpkin loaf tasted when we got there.

These Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins are just a tad easier (and healthier) than your average pumpkin bread recipe, but trust me, they’ll still inspire you to run on a brisk fall day.

What You Need to Make Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins

The orange muffins are simple but hearty with a gluten-free oat flour base.

Here’s what you need:

• gluten-free oat flour
• baking powder
• cinnamon
• pumpkin pie spice
• maple syrup
• pumpkin purée
• unsweetened almond milk
• unsweetened applesauce
• Navitas Organics Cacao Nibs
• dried cranberries
• dark chocolate chips (optional!)

The seasonal combination of pumpkin and applesauce work together to moisture and stick-to to this recipe without any added oils.

Swaps and Substitutions

If you’ve been following my recipes for a while, you know I don’t like things TOO sweet, so I mildly sweetened these muffins with maple syrup and some tasty mix-ins.

I love using a blend of cacao nibs, dark chocolate, and dried cranberries in these pumpkin muffin.

Combined, they pack these muffins with powerful antioxidants and some serious good taste!

The mix of gooey chocolate, chewy cranberries, and crunchy cacao gives these Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins some serious #texturegoals.

If you want your muffins a little sweeter, try adding up to 1-2 Tablespoons more maple syrup.

How to Serve Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins

Enjoy these Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins as a healthy breakfast, snack, or dessert.

They’re also pretty amazing warmed up and served with almond milk yogurt and fresh fruit for a fun breakfast bowl twist!

The muffins store and freeze well so try making the full pan and reheat throughout the week for a quick bite.

I recently made a batch of these with the intention to freeze half.

However, that didn’t happen because I was having way too much fun grabbing these muffins for every occasion all week long!

Enjoy!

More Vegan Muffin Recipes…

• Apple Acorn Squash Muffins

• Banana Chia Chocolate Chip Muffins

• Double Chocolate Double Green Zucchini Muffins

• Pumpkin SunButter Chocolate Chip Muffins

• Lemon Cashew Chia Seed Muffins

• Carrot Cake Almond Flour Muffins

• Zucchini SunButter Chocolate Chip Muffins

• Purple Sweet Potato Muffins

• Vegan & Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

• Peanut Butter Banana Bread Swirl Muffins 

• Oil-Free Dark Chocolate Beet Muffins

• Strawberry Hemp Heart Muffins

I Want to Hear From You

If you make these Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins let me know!

Be sure to leave me a comment, rating, and review so I can use your feedback to create more yums.

Give me a shout on Instagram and use #floraandvino to show me your creations.

Check out my Pinterest page to pin more recipes like this one to make later.

Love this post and want more? Go to my homepage and subscribe to get updates delivered right to your inbox!

XO Lauren

Pumpkin Cacao Cranberry Muffins

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5 from 1 review

• Author: Flora & Vino
• Total Time: 35 mins
• Yield: 12 muffins
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

Easy 1-bowl pumpkin muffins with cacao nibs, dried cranberry, and dark chocolate chips. Enjoy as a healthy breakfast, snack, or dessert.

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Ingredients

• 2 cups gluten-free oat flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 cup maple syrup (+2 TBSP extra for sweeter muffins!)
• 1 cup canned pumpkin purée
• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup Navitas Organics Cacao Nibs
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips (optional)

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a muffin tin with liners or, alternatively, spray with non-stick spray.
2. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients and mix to combine. Next, add wet ingredients and whisk again until well combined.
3. Fold in the cacao nibs, cranberries, and chocolate chips.
4. Spoon the muffin batter into the muffin tins and fill them 3/4 way full. Top the muffins with more cacao nibs, cranberries, and chocolate chips, if desired.
5. Bake the muffins for 18-20 minutes, until they’re golden brown on the edges and slightly firm to the touch.
6. Store leftover muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week and freeze them for long term storage.

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Category: Snack, Dessert
• Method: Oven-Bake
• Cuisine: Vegan, Oil-Free, Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar-Free

This post is brought to you by Navitas Organics, but all words and eats are my own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that keep me hungry!