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Early last Friday afternoon, I stopped by my friend’s house to drop off a batch of my pumpkin spice latte energy bites. With how much she enjoys coffee, I thought she’d appreciate the surprise healthy snacks, especially because of her extremely busy schedule that weekend!
When she invited me inside, I found a few of her husband’s friends, as well as one of her sons and his girlfriend, all decked out in a variety of St. Louis Cardinals t-shirts, hats, and sweatshirts. I arrived just before they planned to leave for that night’s baseball game in San Francisco, and because of the city’s infamous freezing cold weather, a stack of blankets sat next to the door as well.
While they waited for the final person to show up at the house, I chatted with my friend and a few of the other gentlemen I hadn’t met before. Since we all follow baseball as obsessively as Wall Street businessmen follow the stock market, our conversation flowed easily and mostly revolved around the Cardinals, our favorite team, and their games for the rest of the season.
I intended to leave the house at the same time as their group and drive around town running errands before heading back to my home office to wrap up some blog work. As the last man parallel parked his car on their street and we all walked out through the garage, my friend’s husband turned to me and asked, “We have an extra ticket to the game; do you want to come?”
I glanced down at my shorts and flip flops, completely torn. “I’d love to, but I’m not exactly dressed for San Francisco…” Hearing my response, my friend suggested that I rode the train into the city an hour later with her son and his girlfriend. Within about two seconds, I had made up my mind and dashed home to change into pants, thick socks and boots, and four layers of shirts and jackets… And tucked a beanie and fleece-lined gloves into my purse.
Before sprinting back out the door, I grabbed a few of these Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Mini Muffins to nibble on while heading to the train station. The baseball game didn’t start for another four hours after we left town (I shared lots of pictures on my @AmyBakesHealthy Snapchat account while there—did you see any of it??), and since I knew my stomach would start rumbling long before then…
I really appreciated that I could grab these mini muffins as a quick and easy snack to tide me over! Even better, they contain no butter, eggs, refined flour or sugar and just 44 calories. That’s definitely my idea of pumpkin bliss!
To make these healthy mini muffins, you’ll start with white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. This gives white whole wheat flour a lighter taste and texture, similar to that of all-purpose flour, which gives these mini muffins the same texture as cupcakes. Yum!
Note: Whole wheat pastry flour would be a great substitute, and I’ve included my recommend gluten-free blend in the Notes section if you prefer.
Unlike many muffin recipes that call for ½ to 1 full cup of oil (yikes!), this one only requires 1 tablespoon of coconut oil (or butter). Yes, that’s it! The rest of their tender texture comes from a combination of two ingredients. Can you guess what they are?
Greek yogurt and pumpkin purée! If you’ve been around Amy’s Healthy Baking for a while, you know how much I love Greek yogurt. It adds the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and with around 21g of protein per cup, it gives your baked goods a protein boost, too!
The pumpkin purée actually plays three roles in these mini muffins: flavor (although I’m sure you guessed that already!), additional moisture for their tender texture, and an egg replacer. That’s right—these muffins contain no eggs! Which means the batter is perfectly safe to eat raw… If you’re like me and want to sneak a taste test (or, umm, maybe five?). Remember to buy regular ol’ pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie mix! The latter contains refined sugar, which we’re avoiding.
Instead, you’ll use another one of my favorite ingredients to sweeten these mini muffins: vanilla crème stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly, and it’s highly concentrated. You only need 1 ½ teaspoons for this entire recipe! This is the kind that I buy because I love its warm vanilla flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertastes like with some other stevia products. You can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, but I almost always buy it online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
And of course, as a chocoholic (that’s why I published my Healthier Chocolate Treats cookbook!), I saved the best for last… The mini chocolate chips! I love using mini chips because their smaller size ensures every bite contains as least one morsel of chocolate. These are my favorite mini chocolate chips because they taste so rich and melt really well!
I’m almost embarrassed by how many of these mini muffins I’ve eaten… As in… I almost didn’t share a single one. ? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your mini muffins and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Mini Muffins | | Print |
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla crème stevia
- ¾ cup (183g) pumpkin purée, room temperature (not pumpkin pie mix)
- ½ cup (120g) Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (120mL) nonfat milk
- ¼ cup (56g) miniature chocolate chips
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 32 mini muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, vanilla, and vanilla crème stevia. Stir in the pumpkin purée and Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Gently fold in 3 tablespoons of mini chocolate chips.
- Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, and gently press the remaining chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 12-15 minutes or until the tops are firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack.
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
For a stronger spice flavor, increase the cinnamon by an additional 1 teaspoon.
I highly recommend using the vanilla crème stevia! It’s my favorite sweetener, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too. If you prefer, 8-12 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave may be substituted for the vanilla crème stevia. If using this substitution, omit the milk. The baking time may change.
Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.
Be VERY careful if using liners! Generously coat the liners with nonstick cooking spray before adding the muffin batter. This batter will stick to liners like superglue if they aren’t coated with cooking spray.
If you prefer, this recipe will yield 12 standard sized muffins. The baking temperature remains the same. Begin checking on them after about 15 minutes. The muffins will be done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops feel firm to the touch.
For a vegan version, use coconut oil instead of butter, substitute additional pumpkin purée (or non-dairy yogurt) for the Greek yogurt, and use your favorite non-dairy milk in place of the nonfat milk.
{gluten-free, vegan option, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, low sugar}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♥ Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bran Muffins
♥ Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
♥ The Ultimate Healthy Soft & Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
♥ Pumpkin Pie Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
♥ Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins
♥ The Ultimate Healthy Pumpkin Spice Latte
♥ Skinny Single-Serving Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Mug Cake
♥ …and the rest of Amy’s pumpkin recipes!
What a fun weekend! Thank goodness for easy and Fall/inspired snacks like these!! Still haven’t gotten that mini muffin pan….why am I taking so long again?! 😉
Thanks Marina! Hmm… Maybe Santa will bring you one?? 😉
I made these this morning, minus the chicolate chips. I used all purpose flour, it was all I had. They were the best I have tried so far! Cooking time was way longer though, 35 minutes. Thank you for this!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the muffins Valerie! That’s strange about the baking time… Did you make mini or standard sized muffins?
Oh, yes, made regular size muffins, didnt even see the “mini” at all. Sorry! Still yummy tho!
That would explain why they took so much longer to bake! 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed them Valerie!
I hope you enjoyed the baseball game, Amy!☺ These muffins look super scrumptious, and I love that I can eat the batter raw as there are no eggs! Mind you, there will probably be no batter left if I taste test the batter…that one taste test will certainly become five, then probably ten!?Haha!
That’s my problem too Katie! 😉 I had an amazing time at the ballgame — thank you!!
So I wanna make these as mini cupcakes (without the chocolate chips, and top them with cream cheese drizzle) to bring to a halloween party tomorrow and I wanted to check, could I use non-dairy yogurt instead of the greek yogurt? I have SoDelicious unsweetened coconutmilk yogurt…I was also planning to do the gluten free version as I can no longer eat gluten. thanks!
Yes, that should work Anna! I can’t wait to hear what you think of the recipe! 🙂
Darn I just realized it says you have to coat the liners with spray and I don’t have any non-stick spray 🙁 any other ideas? I don’t mind using just oil (like grapeseed oil) instead of the yogurt if you think that would help?? A quick response would be very appreciated! Thanks so much!
Oil instead of yogurt would probably help, but the liners still may stick some. The other option is to skip the paper liners, pour some oil on a paper towel, and rub that on the insides of the muffin cups to grease them the traditional way. I’m excited to hear what you think of them Anna!
AMY‼️HELLLP‼️ I have everything out on the counter ready to start this recipe – even the baking soda – and it says “mix together: flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a bowl”‼️ — Excludes the baking soda — ‼️‼️‼️ Is there baking soda in this recipe or not ⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️
Thanks for catching that Belle! I’ve updated the recipe Instructions. There is baking soda! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these mini muffins!
Amy;
Hi,I am going to make your chocolate chip pumpkin mini muffins soon,I have a 36 mini muffin tin that I use to make mini muffins.your recipe makes 32 mini muffins.what do I do with the last four empty mini muffin tons that will be empty after I put the chocolate chip pumpkin mini muffin batter in the 32 mini muffin cups I have a bottle of cooking spray that I can spray the 32 mini muffin liners with just before I put the batter in them.
Can your mini muffins be frozen and stored for a long time in the frige freezer?
Kim
Yes, these mini muffins are freezer friendly! You can either leave those last 4 mini muffins spots empty or fill them with water. Either will work! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these Kim!
Amy;
Hi,I have all purpose flour,no vanilla creme stevia,no mini chocolate chips,I have agave honey,and I have the rest of the ingredients to make your mini muffins.
Can I put regular chocolate chips in your muffins.mom has the regular chocolate chips that I could use in your muffin recipe?
Kim
Amy;
I don’t have any yogurt to put in your chocolate chip pumpkin min muffins.so I will make your muffins on Thursday after I go to the grocery store to buy a container of vanilla Greek yogurt.
Kim
Amy;
I can now make your chocolate chip pumpkin mini muffins on Thursday,I have all of the ingredients to make your mini muffins,and I will let you know how much my family and I love and enjoy eating your muffins after I make them tomorrow.
Kim
Wonderful Kim!! I’m glad you were able to get all of the ingredients, and I’m so excited to hear what you and your family think of these! 🙂
Amy;
Hi,would it be OK for me to use a kitchen aid machine to mix your muffin ingredients when I make your muffin recipe sometime this afternoon?
I have arthritis in my shoulders,elbows,hands/wrists,knees and hips and it makes it uncomfortable and painful to have to left heavy bowls,and to manually mix the ingredients by hand etc.
I find that by using the kitchen aid machine to do the mixing for me it makes it easier and more comfortable on my arthritis symptoms to do things that don’t cause my symptoms to get worse.
Can I use a mini ice cream scoop to put the batter in the mini muffin tin or cups?I will make sure to use a nonstick cooking spray in the muffin cups before I put the batter in the cups.
Kim
Amy;
Hi,I just made your chocolate chip pumpkin mini muffins and I just took them out of the oven,they taste really good,I love these muffins.mom will have one or two when she gets home from picking my nephew at his school.
Kim
I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins Kim! That means a lot to me that you’re sharing them with your mom and nephew. I hope they love them too! 🙂