Gluten Free Muffins

One of the easiest breakfasts you can make is gluten free muffins. There are a lot of things that get more complicated when you have a gluten-free family members, but thankfully, muffins aren’t one of them. 

They’re just so easy! And they’re great for breakfast, yes, but also brunch, dessert, and snacks. 

What makes a muffin a muffin? 

I know what you’re thinking, and I’ve had the same thought – what’s the difference between a muffin and a cupcake? 

When it’s all said and done, it’s simply that muffins contain less sugar. 

So for instance, these gluten-free banana cupcakes are very similar to muffins, but since they are iced, they contain a lot more sugar.

Muffins can be fairly indulgent, but that usually comes less from sugar, and more from nuts, and fruits, and sometimes chocolate chips rather than buttercream icing, and custard fillings. 

What are gluten free muffins made out of? 

This is going to vary by recipe, but the main ingredients for muffins are a gluten-free flour blend, butter or oil, sugar, baking powder or baking soda, salt, eggs, and then your add-ins.

The main difference between traditional and gluten-free muffins is flour blend. Typically, the other ingredients are the same, though the amounts of each may be different to support the differences in the flours. 

I’ve personally found muffins to be very forgiving when it comes to what types of flours to use. The main thing you need to compensate for is moisture. Gluten-free baked goods tend to dry out faster than those made with wheat, so it can be helpful to use recipes that add things like mashed banana, sour cream, buttermilk, or have a high fat content. 

muffins made without wheat flour typically include gaur or xanthan gum. If you use a commercial flour mix, you won’t need to worry about adding it yourself since it, or an alternative will be included in the mix. However, all the recipes below give measurements for when you are making your own custom mix from scratch.

What flour should I use in gluten free muffins? 

As a general rule, you’ll want to use 1/3 starch, 2/3 flour. Most commercial flour mixes take the guess work out of it for you, but you can make your own using a recipe like this. 

I’ve found King Arthur Gluten-Free baking blend available almost everywhere, so I use that a lot with good success. 

My other favorite is to make my own blend using flours such as quinoa flour, Ivory Teff flour, sorghum flour, sometimes super fine brown rice flour, and for the starch, arrowroot powder or cornstarch. 

If you do a lot of gluten free baking you’ll probably settle on your own favorite blend, and find that favorites come and go. 

Gluten Free Muffin Recipes

Here are some of the best gluten free muffin recipes. some of them are classics, and some of them are just plain fun! 

For the most part, you’ll probably have muffin ingredients in your pantry. Additionally, you’ll need muffin pans, and potentially a second mixing bowl for dry ingredients.  

Other things that are nice to have, but not 100% necessary are a whisk, a scoop for transferring muffin batter to the pans, and a wire rack for cooling muffins. 

Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffin Recipe

Everybody’s childhood favorite. It’s hard to beat a blueberry muffin! These are great any time of year using fresh or frozen blueberries, and they’re incredibly easy to make. 

Gluten Free Strawberry Muffins

These are perfect for spring with fresh, chopped strawberries and a sweet streusel topping. 

Gluten Free Zucchini Streusel Muffins

Another streusel-topped muffin. These are perfect for when zucchini is overflowing out of your garden. Sweet and moist with a bit of cinnamon. 

Gluten Free Cranberry Orange Muffins

These have a delicious holiday vibe and are perfect for using leftover cranberries after Thanksgiving or Christmas. Sweet, orange flavor studded with tart cranberries is really tough to beat!

Gluten-Free Blueberry Banana Muffins

These are easy to make, perfectly moist, and bursting with banana flavor and juicy blueberries. One of my personal favorites, and great for making ahead. 

Gluten Free Double Chocolate Muffins

These is a treat that miiiight just cross the line between muffin and cupcake. Such a treat! Perfect for when you want a little bit of indulgence. 

Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Muffins

Another indulgent treat. These are a favorite with kids, and honestly I can’t decide whether they’re better fresh with warm, gooey chocolate chips, or cold, with solid pieces of chocolate throughout. 

Gluten-Free Pumpkin muffins

Perfect fall treat full of pumpkin spice flavor, and topped with vanilla glaze. We love adding cacao nibs or chocolate chips in them. 

Gluten-Free Carrot Muffins

These are a perfect breakfast treat – especially in the spring around Easter time. Soft and fluffy, and full of delicious carrot cake flavor. 

Grain-Free Spiced Apple Muffins

These are not only delicious, but perfect for those with multiple grain allergies. Made with coconut flour, so they also contain plenty of protein from the eggs used as binder. 

Gluten Free Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

One of my favorite treats is poppyseed bread, and that’s what these are in muffin form. These are also grain-free using coconut flours, and so good! 

Coconut Flour Blueberry Muffins

Another grain-free recipe using coconut flour! these are similar to the regular gluten-free blueberry muffins, but catering more to those who don’t consume grain at all. 

Substitutions and add-ins

With any muffin recipe, Adding your favorite mix-ins is part of the fun. 

• Chopped pecans are a delicious addition to almost any recipe
• Stir in raisins or dried cranberries/other dried fruit
• Swap part of the flour for oatmeal to diversify the grain profile (make sure they’re gluten free oats if you’re gluten-free)
• Use frozen berries in place of fresh. 
• Lemon zest for a little extra zing

For swapping ingredients, there are a lot of things you can do, with caution, and a little knowledge of baking science. 

• Swap coconut sugar for refined sugar
• Swap cooled, melted coconut oil for vegetable oil or butter
• If you don’t have buttermilk, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to each cup-minus-2 tablespoons of milk, and let sit 5-10 minutes until it begins to curdle. 

How to Freeze Muffins

Freezing gluten-free muffins is an easy way to make snacks or breakfast ahead of time. 

Simply place in a zip-loc freezer bag, airtight container, or wrapped will in plastic wrap, and pop them in the freezer. 

When you’re ready to use them, let them thaw in the refrigerator (in the container) overnight, or if you’re in a hurry, on the counter top for an hour or two. You can also microwave them individually for 10-15 seconds at a time until thawed. 

These 12 muffin recipe offer endless variety and lots of flavor.