Vegan Blueberry Zucchini Muffins

Fluffy, moist, tender vegan blueberry zucchini muffins are bursting with berries and nutrients thanks to the hidden zucchini. You need just 2 bowls and 10 ingredients for these egg-free, dairy-free, vegan zucchini muffins with refined sugar-free, gluten-free, and oil-free options below!

Moist Vegan Zucchini Muffins with Blueberries

During blueberry season, I practically add these tasty morsels to everything. I've already shared a simple blueberry vinaigrette, and they're welcome additions to any smoothie or vegan milkshake. Now, it's the turn of something a little sweeter with these easy vegan blueberry zucchini muffins.

These vegan zucchini muffins are fluffy, tender, and packed with bursting blueberries in every bite. The addition of zucchini helps keep this treat moist and pack in hidden nutrients, all without adding any flavor. Which is perfect for picky eaters.

Requiring just a couple of bowls, an ingredients list of inexpensive pantry staples, and just a few minutes of hands-on prep work, this recipe for zucchini muffins is incredibly simple to prepare. Better yet, they're even easier to customize.

Experiment with all your favorite add-ins like vegan chocolate chips, walnuts, or perhaps even lemon zucchini muffins. You could also make some healthier swaps, such as using unrefined sugar, a portion of whole wheat flour, making an oil-free version, and more.

Once baked, you can store these zucchini bread muffins in the refrigerator for a week or the freezer for up to three months. So you always have one on hand to enjoy as part of your breakfast/brunch, a snack, or even dessert.

The Ingredients

These easy zucchini muffins are made up primarily of pantry staples. These include:

The Dry Ingredients

• Flour: Use all-purpose flour or a 50/50 combination of AP flour and whole wheat flour. I haven't tried making 100% whole wheat zucchini muffins, though it may work.
• Sugar: Use regular sugar (organic will always be vegan) or an unrefined sugar like coconut sugar or date sugar. Note that each will affect the flavor and color of the vegan zucchini muffins differently.
• Baking Powder: Provides lift and texture in the muffins.
• Salt: Enhances the various flavors in the blackberry muffin recipe.

The Wet Ingredients

• Oil: Use any neutral oil like vegetable oil, canola oil, avocado oil, etc. This will help yield a tender crumb.
• Dairy-free Milk: Use any vegan milk. I.e., almond milk, oat milk, rice milk, cashew milk, etc.
• Flax egg: You'll need ground flaxseed and water. You can grind the seeds yourself in a coffee/spice grinder or high-speed blender.
• Vanilla extract: Use pure, natural vanilla for the best flavor.
• Zucchini: (courgette) Use one that's ripe and free from too many blemishes.
• Blackberries: You can use fresh or frozen blueberries (no need to thaw).

Optional add-ins & Recipe Variations

You can adapt these zucchini bread muffins in several ways and with several add-ins.

• Spices: Cinnamon and nutmeg both work well in these vegan zucchini muffins.
• Lemon: Lemon blueberry zucchini muffins are a particular favorite of mine. Add 1-2 teaspoons of lemon zest (organic, unwaxed) to the batter.

You can swap the lemon out for lime or orange with equally delicious results. Adding lemon juice in place of some vegan milk may increase the flavor.

However, I can't guarantee results as the leavening agent may be affected and require recipe tweaks.

• Vegan chocolate chips: Use your favorite dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks (sugar-free chocolate if preferred). Add a small amount in addition to the berries, or swap out the berries entirely for delicious vegan chocolate zucchini muffins.
• Other berries: This recipe should work well with other berries, too – like raspberries, blackberries, chopped strawberries, etc.
• Sugar topping: Sprinkle coarse sugar over the top of the batter before baking.
• Coconut: Add 2-3 tablespoons of unsweetened shredded coconut to the batter.
• Nuts/Seeds: Add a handful of chopped nuts or seeds to the batter. Walnuts, pecans, or pistachios would work particularly well in these blueberry zucchini muffins.
• Jelly/Jam: Swirl a small amount into the batter before baking or core the baked muffins and fill them in with jam before serving.
• Frosting: Turn them into cupcakes with a simple buttercream frosting or lemon glaze.

How to Make Vegan Blueberry Zucchini Muffins?

• 1) First, preheat the oven to 400F/200C and prepare a muffin tin with silicone or parchment paper liners.

• 2) Then, in a small bowl, combine the water and ground flaxseed and mix well for a minute. Leave it in the refrigerator for at least 5 minutes. At the same time, grate the zucchini using the medium holes on a box grater or a grater disk in a food processor. Then, add it to a nut milk bag or several layers of cheesecloth and squeeze to remove all excess liquid.

You can add this strained liquid to stocks, soups, or smoothies to avoid waste.

• 3) In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Stir well, form a well in the center, and add the oil, flax egg, vegan milk, vanilla extract, and zucchini. Gently mix until just combined.

• 4) Fold in 1 cup of blueberries, reserving ¼ cup as a topping.
• 5) Then, divide the batter between the cupcake/muffin pan liners (filled to the top). Press the remaining blueberries into the top of the batter.

• 6) Bake the blueberry zucchini muffins for around 35 minutes, or until they're golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean (a few crumbs are fine).

Then, remove the muffins from the oven and transfer them to a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes.

FAQs

Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions

Make ahead: Prepare the muffin batter, minus the baking powder and zucchini, 1-2 days in advance (and store covered in the fridge). To use it, allow it to come back to room temperature, add the remaining ingredients, and bake.

At room temperature: Store the zucchini bread muffins loosely covered (otherwise, they become soggy) for 2-3 days.

In the fridge: Store them covered/in an airtight container lined with paper towel for 5-7 days.

In the freezer: First, flash-freeze the vegan zucchini muffins spread out across a baking tray. Then transfer them to a large freezer-safe Ziplock/Stasher bag and store them for up to 3 months.

Allow them to thaw in the fridge overnight or on the counter for several hours. You could also use microwave them for 30-45 seconds (in 15-second increments).

Serving Recommendations

You can enjoy a muffin alone for breakfast or as a snack (including in a lunchbox). There are several other ways to enjoy these vegan zucchini muffins, too, including:

• Enjoy warm and slathered with dairy-free butter OR spread with nut butter or blueberry preserves.
• Toast and then top with a scoop of nice cream.
• Enjoy toasted with a dollop of dairy-free yogurt and extra berries.

Top Recipe Tips and Notes

• Thoroughly drain the zucchini: Thanks to the berries, these vegan zucchini muffins are already moist, so it's essential to thoroughly squeeze out the excess moisture from the grated zucchini.
• For quick prep: Use a food processor grating disk to shred the zucchini in seconds.
• Measure the flour correctly: Use a spoon to add the flour to your measuring cup without pressing or packing it down. Then use the back of a knife to level off the top. Otherwise, you may add too much, and the zucchini bread muffins will be dense.
• Don't over mix the muffin batter: Otherwise, you risk overworking the gluten and affecting the texture and rise. A few lumps in the batter are okay.
• Use fresh baking powder: Make sure it's in date and/or test it with a bit of hot water (it should fizz immediately).

More Vegan Bakes

• Easy vegan lemon cake
• Vegan peanut butter blondies
• Vegan blackberry orange cupcakes

Photos by Alfonso Revilla