Vegan Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

This recipe is very different from my usual recipes because it is VEGAN! I have a lot of respect for vegans (especially those who do it for ethical reasons) and so this recipe is for you guys! I of course am not vegan as you can probably tell from my past recipes, however I feel it is really important to always have a good vegan recipe on hand, as well all know someone who is vegan these days. I also really enjoy these muffins, and like to eat vegan from time to time as well. It is good to step outside of the box and try new things, so I felt it was really important to have a solid vegan recipe in my recipe book, not only for vegans but for everyone! I have shared these muffins with family members who had no idea they were vegan, and they often declare these the best homemade muffins, vegan or otherwise! I love the combination of oats and wild blueberries, and I felt these were ideal for breakfast (but you can even have one for dessert or a tasty snack). I really hope you give these a try, whether you are vegan, or not, as these big, hearty muffins are easy to make, and so delicious to boot! I also have a video showing you how to make these muffins HERE!

Muffin Ingredients:

1 cup almond milk (you can use your favourite vegan milk) *Unsweetened
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
1 Tsp Vinegar (I use white vinegar, you can even use lemon juice, or any other vinegar)

2 Cups All-Purpose flour
1/2 Cup Quick Oats
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt

1/2 Cup Oil (I used Vegetable Oil, you can use Canola, Sunflower, etc…)
1/2 Cup Sugar*
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar (packed)*

2 Cups Blueberries
*I use wild blueberries, but you can also use fresh, regular blueberries *see notes*

*I am Canadian and most Canadian sugar is vegan (free of bone char), just be sure to check your labels. For example, redpath sugar is the one I used and is vegan.

Muffin Instructions:

The first thing I usually do is rinse my frozen wild blueberries in warm water, and set them aside in a strainer to dry, like I said earlier. I forgot to do this early on in my video which is why they imparted a more blue colour to the muffin batter (as they were still wet), however, if you do this early on, you batter colour should hardly change. Either way, if you use fresh blueberries you will still need to wash and drain them as well.

Next, you want to take the first 3 ingredients mentioned (almond milk, extract, and vinegar), combine them, mix, and set aside to sour. We are essentially making a vegan “buttermilk” if you will.

Next, take the dry ingredients (flour, oats, baking powder, soda, and salt), combine in a medium sized bowl, mix, and set aside as well.

Now mix the oil, and sugars, in a large bowl. You want to mix these ingredients with a handheld or stand mixer to combine.

Now take that “sour” milk mixture, and add that to our large bowl of oils and sugars, and mix to combine.

Then, take the dry flour mixture, and add it all at once to the large bowl of our other ingredients and mix, just to combine. This should take a few seconds to 1 minute, but do not over mix. Our batter should still look a bit “chunky”, but it should also have all the ingredients combined.

Now, take the wild blueberries that have been drained (if you use regular blueberries you will still need to wash and strain them as well), and add that to the batter. I like to slowly fold them in with a spatula (or spoon), so I do not crush any with an electric mixer.

Now we move onto the sugary, oat topping! This is optional, but I do not recommend skipping this step as it is SO delicious, and essentially uses all the same ingredients that already went into this muffin batter. 

Topping Ingredients:

1/3 Cup Quick Oats
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar (packed)
1 Tbsp Oil (I used Vegetable oil again)
1/2 Tbsp Almond Milk *Unsweetened
Dash of Salt (eg. 2 shakes)
Dash of Cinnamon *optional

This is very easy, simply combine all of the previously mentioned ingredients into a clean bowl (oats, sugar, oil, milk, salt, and cinnamon), and mix! I used my electric mixer, but you can even use a spatula, or spoon (or your clean hands if you’re feeling hands-on)!

Now that we have the batter, and topping finished, we can assemble our muffins!

Baking Instructions:

Scoop to batter into your lined muffin tins, I like to start with 1/4 of a cup of batter at first. I also like to use a LARGE muffin tin (so I make 6 muffins). In my video HERE I show you my trick to make your own muffin liners, as I find the cupcake liners too small and restricting for my muffin tins. Not to mention, you might not have cupcake liners lying around. What I do is cut out 2 strips of parchment paper, and place them in each muffin tin compartment in a cross or x pattern. This is perfect because then I can make the muffins as large as the tin can carry, and they come out so easily! If you are using a regular or small muffin tin, you might make more than 6, and thus you may need to bake these for less time.
These 6 large muffins take 25 to 28 minutes to bake at 375 degrees. If you are using smaller tins, and thus making more muffins, you may need only 22 to 25 minutes. Either way, you should always check your muffins if you think they are done by inserting a toothpick into the centre, if they come out clean they are done! If not you might need a few more minutes. No one likes under-baked muffins (unlike underbred cookies… yum)!
Now that your tins are hopefully evenly filled with this muffin batter, you can then place the topping (or crumble) on top of the muffins. I like to use about 1 Tbsp per muffin, as I find that is perfect for the 6 large muffins. I also like to spread/flatten this topping evenly on top, but is should also spread even more so as these bake.
Like I said, these need to go in at 375 Degrees for 25-28 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Let these muffins cool in the tin for 10-15 minutes, then take them out, and if you can, place them on a wire wrack to continue to cool.
You can then eat these! I leave these out at room temperature. They do not last more than 1 or 2 days, so I find they are fine to simply leave out and eat whenever I’d like. This is a reasonably small recipe, so I feel like they won’t last long, but if needed, I wouldn’t leave these for longer than 4 days.

Thanks so much for reading this recipe, and hopefully watching the VIDEO that goes along with it. These are easy enough to make, and so delicious. I feel like everyone needs a vegan recipe up their sleeve, and honestly, these are the best muffins, vegan or otherwise. You will not miss the eggs, milk, or butter at all!! If you have any questions feel free to ask, and if you enjoy these, please let me know 🙂

– Lisa (@ladolcelisa)