These vegan peach muffins are easy, healthy, soft + moist and burst with juicy pieces of peach. They make for an amazing summer treat for when the peaches are in season and such a great healthy snack for kids!
Isn't peach season the ULTIMATE peak of the summer?
I just shared my love for juicy mangoes during the summer in my mango cucumber salad post. But now that I'm writing about these oatmeal peach muffins, I just cannot decide anymore which one is my favorite summer fruit (I'm totally geeking out over here, I am aware).
The thing with mangoes and other summery fruits like strawberries or blueberries is that they'll find their way to us during other seasons. They might not be at their best at that moment, but they'll sneak in the grocery stores in January, totally unexpectedly. So we can get a taste of some of the very summery fruits during most the year without going through profound withdrawal.
Not the peaches though. They love to have us impatiently wait for them.
But here they are right now. The juicy ripe peaches have made their entrance. In all their glorious fuzzy coats.
And I have been taking advantage of them and made so much peach salsa, peach iced tea and frozen peach smoothie bowls so far this summer. But making peach muffins was clearly a must to get the most of them! Their sweet, juicy and slightly acidic flavor is such a treat when combined with oats and a hint of vanilla flavor. So don't let them disappear again before you have a chance to try this delicious recipe. Happy baking!
Healthy kids's muffins for snacking or breakfast
My kids are crazy about them (I bet yours will be too!). They are slightly sweet with hints of vanilla flavor while being super soft and moist. They make for a super healthy and wholesome snack to squeeze in their lunch boxes or to serve as a fun after school snack with a cold glass of cashew chocolate milk!
Here are a few reasons why these make for a healthy snack or dessert (or breakfast!):
- Filled with plant-based protein: the bulk of this recipe is made using whole wheat flour and rolled oats, which help add more protein to the muffins.
- High in fiber: not only are they filled with fiber-rich peaches, but again, the rolled oats and whole wheat flour bring so much fiber to this recipe. Also, these muffins contain ground flax seeds for bonus fiber.
- No added refined sugar: there is a small amount of maple syrup to make them a little sweeter, but these muffins are mostly sweetened by the natural sugar from the fresh peaches.
- Oil-free option: although I think the texture was better when adding a small amount of coconut oil, you can swap it for apple sauce if you don't mind them being extra moist for an oil-free peach muffins recipe!
Ingredients you'll need to make these vegan peach muffins
- Rolled oats: choose old-fashioned style (opposed to quick cooking) as they create more texture to the muffins
- Flour: I love baking with a white whole wheat flour. All-purpose will work just as well though.
- Ground flax seeds: it helps the muffins hold well together (egg replacement). You can grind your own flax seeds or buy already ground flax seeds in grocery stores or online. Keep in the fridge once ground.
- Baking powder: leveling agent for fluffy muffins. Choose aluminum free for best flavor.
- Maple syrup: or agave nectar. You need a sweetener in the form of a liquid.
- Coconut oil: choose refined (no coconut flavor) or unrefined (with coconut flavor). Do not substitute for other kind of oil.
- Vegan milk: any kind will work. Choose a nut-free milk like oat milk if sending them to school with your children.
- Vanilla flavor
- Fresh peaches: you will need ripe, soft and juicy peaches for this recipe. Avoid the hard rock ones as they won't provide enough flavor and best texture. Choose either yellow or white (usually sweeter). Nectarines work well too.
How to make these vegan peach muffins
- Start by combining ground flax seeds with the water in a small bowl. Let it sit until it forms a gel, about 10 minutes.
- During that time, combine the flour, rolled oats and baking powder in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Then, add the coconut oil to a different medium bowl and melt in the microwave until all liquid, for about one minute or so. When melted, add the flax seed mixture, maple syrup, vanilla extract and vegan milk and stir to combine.
- To the dry ingredients, add the wet ones and stir until just combined. Avoid overmixing.
- Then, add the diced peaches and fold them in the batter gently.
- Cover a muffin pan with 8 paper liners and divide the muffin batter in between the muffin tins. Bake for 18-20 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean).
As a side note, I love these paper liners from the brand Gifbera, especially when baking with low-in-fat muffin recipes as they really don't stick at all (just look at my pictures, the paper liners simply opens up without any help!).
Watch how to make them
A few notes on how to prepare the peaches
For best result, make sure to choose ripe and juicy peaches that you would also enjoy eating just like that.
- Clean the fruits in running water, remove their bruises if any and make sure to dry them well with a towel so you don't add too much extra water to the muffin batter.
- Do not peel the fruits as they add texture, but also a beautiful color.
- I recommend to dice the peaches in smaller cubes rather than bigger as you want lots of fruits distributed all over the muffins.
Variations to the recipe
I find that a lot of muffin recipes are pretty forgiving when swapping some of the ingredients. Keep the wet vs dry ingredients just the same, but feel free to add some nuts, ground ginger, cinnamon, mini chocolate chips or even shredded coconut.
Also, I haven't tried it, but I would think that equal amount of other stone fruits (like mango, cherries, plums and apricot) would also work well for this recipe.
If you feel like adding something special to your muffins, then combine some coconut sugar with cinnamon in a small bowl and add a sprinkle over your muffins just before baking them.
Can I use frozen peaches
I would advise against it. Frozen peaches just won't brings as much delicious flavor (they tend to be on a sour side sometimes) and can also yield mushy muffins as they hold on to more water.
If you absolutely must use frozen, then make sure to thaw them first and drain, pat dry to remove excess of moisture.
Are these vegan peach muffins nut-free?
If you are a parent with school age kids and want to send them to school with some, then yes you can! These muffins are completely nut-free, just make sure to use a nut-free oat milk to make them.
How to make this recipe gluten-free
I haven't tried it, but I have heard good things about this gluten-free baking flour from Bob's Red Mill. Simply substitute 1:1 of the wheat flour from this recipe for this gluten-free one and also make sure to use certified gluten-free rolled oats.
Storage tips for these vegan oatmeal peach muffins
After the muffins are completely cooled down, then transfer to an air-tight container and store in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. I love to warm them up slightly using the microwave to soften them up after they were in the fridge for a while.
They can also be frozen, just let them thaw at room temperature or use the microwave to speed up the process.
Other vegan muffin recipes you might like
- Beet and chocolate muffins
- Almond flour banana muffins
- Vegan strawberry muffins
- Zucchini raisin muffins
- Vegan carrot cake cupcakes
- Vegan cranberry orange muffins
I hope you enjoy these healthy peach muffins as much as we do! If you try them, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how they were. Your feedback is so helpful!
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Vegan Peach Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp ground flax seeds + 2 tbsp water
- 1 cup flour - all-purpose or white whole wheat flour
- ¾ cup rolled oats
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ⅓ cup coconut oil - melted, or apple sauce (see note)
- ¼ cup vegan milk
- 1 cup fresh peach - unpeeled and diced
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 375º. Line a muffin pan with 8 paper liners.
- In a small bowl, combine the flax seed with the water, stir and set aside until ready to use.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, rolled oats and baking powder. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add the coconut oil and melt in the microwave for about 1 minute or so (or until completely melted). Then, add the flax seed mixture, maple syrup, vanilla extract and vegan milk. Stir to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones and stir until just combined (avoid overmixing). Then, fold in gently the diced peaches.
- Divide the batter in between the prepared 8 muffin tins and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.
Video
Notes
- How to store: Let the muffins completely cool down, then transfer to an air-tight container and store for up to 5 days in the fridge. I like to slightly warm them up before eating after resting in the fridge for a while. These muffins can also be frozen.
- How to make them oil-free: I did try them out swapping the coconut oil for apple sauce (same amount). Although the texture was a little better with the oil, they were still very good!
- How to make them gluten-free: you can try using a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour instead of the wheat flour.
- How to make them nut-free: make sure to use a nut-free vegan milk, like oat milk.
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I am always googling for vegan recipes using what I have on hand. Today I had fresh peaches getting wrinkled in the fridge. I loved this recipe, and I even had all the ingredients! I mixed half bread flour and half freshly ground whole wheat, since I didn't have white whole wheat. The only other change I made was substituting almond flavoring instead of vanilla. They were scrumptious! My first experience with plant based jess. Thank you so much for taking the guess work out of healthy vegan recipes.
Hi Denise! Thank you so much for sharing, I'm glad you loved them! 🙂