Fluffy Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Delicious and moist vegan lemon poppy seed muffins that can be made just vegan OR vegan and gluten-free, instructions for both ways are included. Plus, you can make them extra special by making a lemony glaze for them or you can just enjoy them plain, they’re delicious either way!

If you've browsed around my website a little, it will be clear, pretty quickly, that muffins are a staple around here! (you can see all of my muffin recipes by clicking here)

I've wanted to share a vegan lemon poppy seed muffin recipe for a while but I had a hard time getting the base of the recipe right.

I always mention that vegan gluten free baking can be tricky if you're new to it. Actually, it can be tricky for anyone! I've been doing it for years, but I still get tripped up at times.

So after another failed attempt with this recipe, I went back to my strawberry muffin recipe and used that as a guide. I made a few changes and happily, it just took a few tests to come up with the recipe I'm finally sharing with you today. So let's get into the details so you can make them, too!

Are you new to vegan gluten-free baking? If so, be sure to read all of my vegan gluten-free baking tips!

Ingredients You'll Need

As with all of my other muffin recipes, the ingredients are minimal and simple. If you keep your pantry stocked well, you likely have all the ingredients to make this recipe, right now!

Flour - You'll need to use all-purpose white flour for this recipe.

Make it gluten-free: Use Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour Blend in the RED bag for vegan gluten-free lemon poppy seed muffins. Any other gluten-free flour on its own, like almond, oat, or coconut flour, will NOT work, it must be this specific blend to get the same results I do.

NOTE: To ensure your muffins turn out perfectly, it's important to measure the flour accurately (no matter what type you are using!). Check out my step-by-step "How to Measure Flour Correctly" before you start baking.

Sugar – I use organic cane sugar in this recipe. I have not tried making this recipe with liquid sweeteners (like maple syrup or agave) or sugar alternatives, so I am unsure how they would work.

Applesauce - Use unsweetened, unflavoured applesauce. It helps keep the muffins moist and replaces some of the oil, reducing the amount needed.

Oil - Use a neutral-flavoured vegetable oil like refined avocado, safflower, or sunflower. You can also use melted coconut oil. I haven't tried making this recipe without oil.

TIP: If you use coconut oil, make sure the other ingredients are at room temperature to prevent it from solidifying.

Flax Eggs – This recipe is egg-free, using ground flax seeds and water as a vegan egg replacement. You can also use chia eggs instead of flax.

Lemon Juice and Lemon Zest – These are both essential to give the muffins their lemon flavour.

Baking Powder and Baking Soda - Ensure both are fresh, they are important for the muffins to rise and have the proper texture.

Salt and Vanilla - You'll need a little of each to help enhance the flavour.

Poppy Seeds - You can find poppy seeds along with the spices at your grocery store.

How to Make Them

(Note: I’ve outlined the step-by-step on how to make this recipe here, but find the full recipe, ingredients, and directions at the end of this post.)

The first step towards making these delicious vegan lemon poppy seed muffins is to make the flax eggs. Once made, set aside to thicken.

Next, mix the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another bowl. Then add the wet to the dry ingredients and mix well.

After that, fold in the poppy seeds and you're now ready to scoop the batter into your muffin pan.

I like to use a scoop for dividing the batter, this is the one I have (you can see it in the picture below). It’s actually an ice cream scoop but it doubles perfectly as a muffin scoop.

The vegan gluten-free version of these muffins can over bake in the blink of an eye which causes them to dry out.

I learned this the hard way when testing the recipe when I baked a couple of batches for a few minutes longer than what was needed, so be sure to keep an eye on them as they come close to the end of their baking time.

Once the muffins are done, remove the pan from the oven and carefully transfer each of them to a cooling rack.

You now have 12 of the most delicious lemon poppy seed muffins waiting to be devoured!

Storing Leftovers

Once they've cooled, store them in an airtight container, at room temperature. The version made with all-purpose flour will keep for 4-5 days

The gluten-free version will keep for about 2-3 days. I find that the things I bake with gluten-free flour blends start to stiffen up as if they're stale, the day after being made. They're not stale, it's just the nature of the gluten free flour blend. If this happens, a quick few seconds in the microwave will bring them right back to the same delicious freshness from day one.

Freezing

Once they've fully cooled, wrap them up tightly so they’re airtight, place in a container or freezer bag and freeze. They will keep in the freezer for up to two months.

What's the Texture Like?

These vegan lemon poppyseed muffins are soft, fluffy, light, moist, and perfect. Have a look above to get a visual of what they look like inside.

And when you bite into one, you'll get a burst of bright lemon flavour, thanks to the fresh lemon juice and the lemon zest, and you'll also get little pops of crunch from the poppy seeds.

To Glaze? Or Not to Glaze?

Many lemon poppy seed muffins include a glaze, so I've included steps on how to make vegan lemon drizzle for these muffins, just in case you want to make them a little extra special.

If you do choose to add a glaze, make sure your muffins are almost cooled, a muffin that is still too warm will soak in all of the glaze and it won't remain on top. They'll still taste good, they just may not look the best.

To avoid that, add the glaze when they've almost fully cooled and right before serving, to avoid any mishaps.

(And if the glaze isn't your thing, how about topping them with a little vegan lemon curd?)

If You Make This Recipe...

Please let me know! You can do so by leaving a comment and star rating below or you can also share a pic of your vegan lemon poppy seed muffins with me on Instagram, just be sure to tag me so I can see your pic, I'm @delightfuladventures on IG.

If You Like This Recipe...

You may also like these other simple vegan muffin recipes:

• Blueberry Muffins
• Oatmeal Muffins
• Chocolate Muffins
• Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
• Sweet Potato Muffins