Are you looking for a nutritious allergen-free breakfast or snack to eat on the run? These Gluten-Free Vegan Blueberry Oat Muffins are great for people who are sensitive or allergic as they are dairy, gluten, egg and nut free. Plus, they are super easy to make. Don’t believe me? Try them yourself!
This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click and buy, I may receive a small commission (at zero cost to you). Please see my full disclosure policy for details.
Using Wild Blueberries
Wild blueberries are nature’s gift to us. Sweet and tangy and if you pick them just at the right time. They pack a satisfying juicy crunch. As good as fresh berries are, frozen berries are just fine for baking and work beautifully in this muffin recipe. And if you have any left over, whip up some fluffy Allergen-Free Blueberry Pancakes for breakfast!
Making Your Own Oat Flour
You can use pre-packaged oat flour in this recipe. I prefer to blend my own flour using gluten free rolled oats in the blender. Living in a rural area, it’s sometimes difficult to get fresh ingredients and blending the flour myself has always produced excellent results.
If you are spending a lot of time cooking and baking from scratch, I would suggest you invest in a good blender. We love our Vitamix. The quality of this appliance totally justifies the hefty price tag as we use it every day (often multiple times a day!) for baking, soups, sauces and smoothies.
Chia Seeds as an Egg Substitute
We love this vegan recipe as it doesn’t require an egg. Well, not exactly. It uses a “chia egg”. This egg substitute is created by mixing seeds with a liquid. This creates a gelatinous substance that mimics the texture of egg white which makes it helpful in binding ingredients together in baking.
Chia is loaded with nutritional benefits. Read all about it in our Orange Creamsicle Chia Pudding post.
Blending Chia Seeds
This recipe calls for pre-ground chia. Alternatively you can use whole seeds and blend them yourself. Add it to the blender with the oats to get it fully incorporated into the resulting oat flour.
A word of caution: be sure that your blender is completely dry beforehand or else it will stick to the sides of the jug and the blades. Super frustrating. Careful not to over-blend as the heat from the blender may cause the oils to be released from the chia and create clumping.
Achieving a Good Rise
Make sure you bake the muffins promptly after mixing the wet and dry ingredients. The chemical reaction between the vinegar and baking powder is what causes a good rise. This will be less effective if you let it sit and your muffins will be stodgy. (Can you tell that I’ve been watching the Great British Bake Off?)
Gluten-Free Vegan Blueberry Oat Muffins
Equipment
- 1 Blender optional
Ingredients
- 2 cups oat flour
- 2 tbsp chia seed
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 1 cup apple sauce
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup oat milk
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit. If you have a convection oven, use that.
- Add oat flour, chia seed, cinnamon, baking powder and salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk together by hand.
- In a second bowl, add all of the wet ingredients. You can play around a little with these depending on what your sensitivities/allergies are. We use oat milk but you may substitute it for soy or almond milk if you can tolerate those. We have tried all and prefer the oat.
- Mix the wet ingredients with a whisk. When fully incorporated, add the dry ingredients slowly and continue mixing thoroughly until smooth.
- Add the blueberries last to the mixture and stir to incorporate.
- Using a ¼ cup and silicone spatula, divide the batter into a lined muffin pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before placing muffins onto a cooling rack. The result is a soft, springy and moist muffin that's full of nature's antioxidants.
