These Apple Hemp Muffins are hot! These whole-grain, vegan muffins by Dreena Burton are easy to make, delicious, tender, and also nut-free and oil-free.
These Apple Hemp Muffins are hot.
Recipe, I mean. Muffins too, but you know, let ’em cool at least a little before taking a bite.
Who would imagine that hemp muffins could be so popular? Readers have loved this recipe for years now, so much that I revised it for Plant-Powered Families.
The original version appeared in Vive le Vegan back in 2004. Yep, I’ve been using hemp seeds in my recipes for many years, before it was a trendy superfood.
When I started using hemp seeds and talking about them in my recipes, I got that “ohhhh, you are that kind of vegan!” sort of reaction.
People didn’t know that hemp seeds were a highly nutritious food – a ‘superfood’ if you will.
No, instead they thought they’d get high from my brownies. Of course they wouldn’t! Because I saved it all for muffins. #kidding #relax!
Jokes aside, it took a few years for the worth of hemp – high in protein, essential fatty acids, and antioxidants – to be recognized in the world of healthy eating. Thank goodness it has, because it has made these virtuous bitty seeds widely available (and accepted)!
For Plant-Powered Families, I freshened up the recipe and made them oil-free. Even without the oil, these muffins are still beautifully moist and tender. To ensure they don’t stick to the muffin liners, try using these parchment muffin liners. They do the trick!
I make these muffins often for school lunches, because they are substantial, healthy, and of course nut-free.
Apple Hemp Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole-grain spelt flour
- 1 cup oat flour
- 2/3 – 3/4 cup hemp seeds
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/2 – 1 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom can substitute freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 cup unsweetened organic applesauce
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 3/4 cup plain or vanilla non-dairy milk
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup raisins or chopped raw banana spears use kitchen shears or knife to cut in small pieces about size of raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C). In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients, sifting in the baking powder and baking soda. Stir through until well combined. In another bowl, combine applesauce, maple syrup, non-dairy milk, and vanilla, and mix together. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture, and gently fold and mix through, until just combined (do not overmix). Spoon the mixture into a muffin pan lined with cupcake liners (this will fill 12 muffins quite full). Bake for 21-23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (See notes above about cooling to help remove from liner.) Makes 12 large muffins.
Have you tried these Vegan Apple Hemp Muffins? What is your favorite way to eat hemp seeds?
Danielle says
These look delicious! I just might have to make them when it’s my son’s turn to bring in his preschool’s snack! Thanks for the recipe!
Dreena says
Great, thanks Danielle! I make them for school snacks often, just switch up the dried fruits, etc in them – kids love them. Hope your wee boy does too. 🙂
Lisa says
Dreena, I’ve made a few of your recipes and have enjoyed looking at all of them, but just wanted to point out that this recipe is NOT wheat free. Spelt flour IS wheat flour, just a different type. I am vegan and GF and always get excited when I find a good recipe for both…but this isn’t one of them.
Dreena says
Hi Lisa, thanks for your note. Spelt is a *relative* to durum wheat, and so many people that cannot eat wheat can indeed eat spelt – and also kamut. Traditional wheat has been so manipulated and modified in mass commercial production that it has been speculated to be linked to the mass wheat (and gluten) intolerances. I am fully aware of the differences between gluten free and wheat free, I elaborate on the classifications in the baking section LTEV (if you have it, have a look), and have also blogged about it before. Even with oat-based recipes I specify they might be optionally gluten-free if people can use certified gluten-free oat products. The recipe isn’t classified here as GF, so I’m sorry you interpreted it that way.. I certainly did not label it GF.
Cat says
Those muffins do look great! I can’t eat spelt, so will play around with things that I can eat to try them. And I’m thinking… sweet potato hummus might be pretty tasty with chocolate chips. 🙂
Dreena says
Thanks Cat. What flours can you eat? I’ve had a few people ask for a GF modification for this – do you also need it GF, and can you eat GF oat products? And, haha, yes, sweet potatoes and chocolate actually have the wheels in my brain churning right now!!! 😉
Rebecca Stucki says
As others said, hemp seeds are just too ridiculously expensive here in the USA because we have to import them from Canada. It is crazy that hemp is illegal here! People think it is the same as marijuana…sigh. Hemp might be the push I need to move to Canada! (Where’s the warmest weather? – LOL!)
Faith says
I’ve never used hemp seeds before in a recipe, but this post has inspired me to try them! Also, I agree with you about adding chocolate chips to everything and I think you just issued yourself a challenge to create a hummus recipe with chocolate chips:)