This Healthy Pumpkin Muffins recipe is made with whole grains, less butter and sugar, and only 160 calories each! They taste just like the bakery and are freezer friendly!
Looking for more pumpkin recipes? Try my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread, Classic Pumpkin Roll, or Pumpkin French Toast!
What I love about them:
- Healthy, but just as good as a bakery – I love that these have less sugar and fat than regular pumpkin muffins, but they still taste like a sweet treat and I can feel comfortable offering them to my kids.
- Freezer Friendly – Make a double batch and freeze the leftovers for a quick snack, or for part of kids lunches.
- Add protein: Make them even healthier by replacing a few tablespoons of the flour with a scoop of protein powder!
How to make Healthy Pumpkin Muffins:
Combine dry ingredients: flour, cornstarch, pumpkin spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl: eggs, honey, butter, and canned pumpkin puree (or homemade pumpkin puree). Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients then pour the wet mixture in.
Stir batter together, being careful not to over-mix it, and then add chocolate chips (optional). Divide batter between the muffin cups.
Bake healthy pumpkin muffins at 350 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes. Enjoy!
Freezing Instructions:
To Freeze: Allow healthy pumpkin muffins to cool completely, then place them in a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.
More Healthy Muffin Recipes:
- Healthy Applesauce Oat Muffins
- Healthy Banana Bread Muffins
- Skinny Chocolate Muffins
- Banana Oat Muffins
- Bran Muffins
Follow me for more great recipes
Recipe
Healthy Pumpkin Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups whole-wheat flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch*
- 1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/3 cup melted butter , or coconut butter
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips , optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a standard 12-cup muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray (or line with muffin liners).
- Whisk dry ingredients together: flour, cornstarch, pumpkin spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Mix wet ingredients together: eggs, melted butter, honey, and pumpkin puree.
- Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the pumpkin mixture and chocolate chips. Mix just until combined. (Do not over-mix).
- Spoon the batter into the muffin pan, filling each cup 2/3 full (or a little more if you want bigger muffins). Bake for 16 – 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. .
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
Tag @TastesBetterFromScratch on Instagram with #TastesBetterFromScratch!
Follow Me
Recipe inspired by 100 Days of Real Food.
I originally shared this recipe October 2015. Updated September 2018, October 2021 and September 2023.
This post contains affiliate links.
Can canned pumpkin be substituted for puree?
They are the same (as long as it’s not canned “pumpkin pie” filling)
I was not sure if I would like whole wheat flour. At first was not sure but kept coming back for another one. My husband likes them also. I made two batches so far! Thank you.
Delicious
I altered the recipe a bit so gave it 4 stars because of this. I used half agave and half brown sugar with the same measurements as honey. I also used vegetable oil in place of butter and added a 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce as I felt the ingredients would yield a drier muffin if it didn’t have added moisture. I also used half AP flour and half whole wheat. Half cup of mini choc chips. The result was a delicious 5 star muffin.
What kind of whole wheat flour did you use in these muffins? I have hard white wheat and soft white wheat and wasn’t sure which one would be best to use for this recipe. Thank you!
Hello! I want to try this but was wondering if I could double or triple it? I like to make big batches and freeze them. Thank you so much for your delicious recipes! I recently discovered your website and new cookbook.
Yes! There is a button to double or triple the recipe ingredients in the recipe card. Thanks for the support. We love you!
Made these with AP flour, they were super good but were a bit dry. Any recommendations on how to make these more moist?
Thanks
Make sure to measure the flour properly–they may have had too much flour, if they were dry.
I have now brought this dessert to back-to-back friend gatherings and it was a hit at both! It is so easy to make and is honestly the best apple crisp I have had. Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream…yum!!
One of my girlfriends recently brought these to a get together and they were the first thing gone. Everyone was asking for the recipe and she shared that she got the recipe from your site. I will definitely be making these soon – they were amazing!
I made this today with my Kindergarten class. We had to make some changes due to allergies. We used flax eggs and applesauce instead of melted butter. They turned out so moist and delicious! And completely vegan!
If I use AP flour, do I still need to use cornstarch? thank you 🙂
You don’t have to use the cornstarch (you could replace it 1:1 for flour).
Can I sub applesauce for butter in this recipe? If so, how much? Thank you!
Sure–I’d add 1/3 cup.
These came out so moist and delicious! I didn’t have any chocolate chips on hand so added a bit of cream cheese extract instead to add a little extra kick. I’ll definitely be making these again, hopefully with chocolate chips!
I was looking for a pumpkin muffin recipe with whole wheat flour. This one intrigued me but I agree with what other reviews said-the texture was gritty. Sorry.
I was wondering if I could substitute banana for the pumpkin, keeping everything else the same? They sound delicious with the pumpkin, but I have some bananas I need to use up. These really look wonderful.
Hi Kathy, that would be fine, but I’d recommend my Skinny Banana Muffins recipe instead: https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/skinny-banana-bread-muffins/
I tried making these muffins using coconut flour. It’s not working out as the result doesn’t look like batter. It is too dry and crumbly.
Do you have any suggestions on what I can add to it to make it into batter?
If I had only checked to compare the measurements for wheat flour vs. coconut flour before making this. I ended up adding almond milk and making it into cookies. They do taste good! Next time I’ll follow the recipe 100%!
Do you use liquid honey or creamed honey?A
These are really good – they’re light and great tasting without the heavy whole wheat flour aftertaste.
Can I use regular AP flour ? I don’t have whole wheat on hand.
Thanks,
LK
Yes, thats fine!
Wow. I’ll have to say these are some of the best muffins I have ever made. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Can I use Bob’s red mill one to one gluten free flour instead of regular flour? Am a celiac.
Jill
I haven’t tested it but I think it would work fine!
It’s literally so good!
Made these this morning and just finished one off. They are delicious!
They rose beautifully, were nice and moist, super fluffy, and filled us up, easily. The instructions for making the muffins are also quite easy to follow.
This is the first recipe I’ve made from your site, and I am now looking forward to trying more!
Thanks for sharing, Robin! I’m happy you found me!
These muffins are my new favorite! Moist and delicious, especially with the chocolate chips added.
Can you make this into a loaf?
I haven’t tested this in a loaf pan! I’d love to hear if you try it.
Can this Recipe be made as a loaf of quick bread also? I’m a huge fan of your Skinny Banana Bread and Skinny Banana Bread Muffins. Thank you your incredible recipes!
Not bad. Not particularly sweet. Not notable enough for me to make twice honestly….. (sorry)
I just made these for my girlfriend to take to work this week and she loved it! Thank you!!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! These are SO YUMMY! I made mine into 36 mini muffins, using mini chocolate chips, and reducing the bake time just a bit. Turned out perfectly, with nice round tops on them. Probably one of the best muffin recipes I’ve tried.
Very good ! The chocolat chips give it more flavor. My Mom is a pumpkin lover so I will bring her some today.
Does the nutrition information include the chocolate chips being that they are optional?
No, it does not.
A friend of mine followed this recipe and made these for me! They’re absolutely amazing. Any idea how it would turn out, if you added a scoop of protein powder? Would that be weird?!
I bet they would be delicious! I’d love to hear if you try it!
SO GOOD. Thank you!!
Stuffed mine with chocolate truffles. I think that negated the skinny aspect… oh well, they were awesome, even better because the pumpkin held it’s taste since there was not regular sugar mucking it up.
Hi, I’ve looked around for hours for a recipe that I would like and this seems to be it! Just one question. What temperature would I bake these at and for how long if I were to make minis?
Same temperature and start checking them around 10 minutes.
Made these tonight and they were DELICIOUS!! My children are picky eaters and they loved them too. Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks Jamie.
I just made this last night and they are absolutely delicious! I didn’t have enough honey though so I used blue agave light golden syrup instead and it worked out well. I highly recommend this recipe and I will definitely be making this again.
That’s a great substitution idea! I’m glad you liked them–thanks for commenting!
My family and I loved these muffins. They were so moist…great with a cup of coffee.
Thanks for a great site!
Hi, these look divine! Just have a quick question. Is coconut butter just coconut oil in solid form?
That’s what I was wondering, because I misread the directions and used melted coconut oil. So we’ll see how they come out their in the oven now.
I actually have cake flour that I need to use up before it expires, so can i use that, and if so, how much? 1 1/2 cups?
Yes, 1 1/2 cups 🙂 Enjoy!
can i substitute the honey for sugar? i want to make them for my 6 month old- he cant have honey yet
Yes, that would work fine 🙂
I made these last night and they turned out delicious! My hubby gobbled them up. I love that honey is the only sweetener and no sugar. Only downside is I think the whole wheat flour made it a tiny bit gritty. I would make this recipe again for sure!!
Theses look so delicious I’m definitely going to bake them!!
How’s the nutrition calorie when I don’t use chocolate chips???
Just wanted to know.
Hi Anne,
The 1/2 cup chocolate chips adds about 400 calories to the entire recipe!
Can you tell me the nutritional info? I am on weight watchers and would like to know how many points for each?
Hi Kandace,
The muffins are estimated at about 160 calories. I have added the nutrition label to help you but feel unqualified to comment on weight watchers points! Hope this helps!
It’s 8 freestyle points per muffin for those doing weight watchers 🙂
Do you add the chocolate chips with the dry ingrediants?
Yep! Hope you enjoy them!