In this post: This gluten-free pumpkin muffin recipe is made with rice flour and is perfect for fall! Have it as a snack on the go, or warmed with butter at breakfast.
Since it’s now officially fall – and all things pumpkin abound – I thought it would be fun to whip up this gluten-free pumpkin muffin recipe! Follow the step-by-step instructions to make this recipe for yourself.
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffin Ingredients
- White rice flour: one of the most popular substitutes for wheat flour (and my personal favorite!)
- Tapioca starch: when combined with gluten-free flour, tapioca starch gives these muffins the soft texture we all miss about gluten-filled baked goods.
- Cinnamon: has a strong, warm flavor.
- Nutmeg: has a warm, nutty flavor and is best used in small amounts.
- Ginger: has a spicy, hot taste with a hint of sweetness.
- Allspice: has a nice peppery kick in addition to its sweet flavor.
- Crushed cloves: has a subtly sweet and warm taste.
- Baking powder: used to lighten the texture of baked goods.
- Baking soda: encourages the batter to brown as it bakes.
- Sea salt: processed much less than table salt and retains trace minerals.
- Sugar: locks in moisture and adds sweetness.
- Melted butter or butter substitute: releases much of its moisture when melted, which causes soft, dense muffins.
- Pumpkin puree: gives the muffins moisture, pumpkin flavoring, and their distinctive orange color. Make sure you use pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling (which contains sugar and milk).
Ways to Dress Up Pumpkin Muffins
If you want more than a classic pumpkin muffin with thickly spread butter, try one of these additions:
- Pumpkin pie topping: combine 3 tbsp of granulated white sugar and 1 tsp of pumpkin spice seasoning. Sprinkle over the muffins.
- Pumpkin spice glaze: combine 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, 1 tsp of pumpkin spice seasoning, and 2 tbsp of the milk of your choice. Drizzle over the muffins.
How to Make Pumpkin Muffins
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line your muffin tin with paper liners.
- Mix the dry ingredients with a whisk in a large mixing bowl.
- Stir the remaining ingredients into the dry ingredients with a spoon.
- Divide batter evenly into the prepared muffin tin.
- Bake the muffins for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Serve warm with butter, or cool and package for freezing.
Tips and Tricks for Making Perfect Pumpkin Muffins
- For easy gluten-free baking, I prefer to mix white rice flour and tapioca starch to about a 70/30 or 75/25 ratio. It creates the perfect I-can’t-believe-it’s-gluten-free texture!
- Mix just until there are no flour streaks left in the batter. It’s okay for the batter to still be a little lumpy!
- Do not overbake the muffins, bake them just until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean.
- Use a spoon or ice cream scoop to divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups.
- Let the muffins cool for a few minutes before removing them from the pan so they can solidify.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long will they keep for?
These muffins will last 3 days at room temperature in an airtight container and up to a week in the refrigerator.
Can I Use Pumpkin Pie Spice Instead?
You can use 2 tbsp of pumpkin pie spice instead of the cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice listed in this recipe.
Can I Add Chocolate Chips to this Recipe?
Sure! You can add 3/4 cup of chocolate chips of your choice. Though you may want to fill one or two extra muffin cups to prevent giant mutant muffins!
How To Freeze Pumpkin Muffins
Place the cooled muffins in an airtight container or sealable freezer bag and store them in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw on the counter for at least 3 hours before serving.
How to Store
Store in an airtight container or ziplock bag for up to:
- 3 days at room temperature
- 1 week in the fridge
- 2 months in the freezer
Nutritional / Dietary Considerations
- This recipe is already gluten-free, so no need to worry about that!
- You can use a vegan butter substitute to make this recipe dairy-free/vegan.
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins
Made with rice flour, this gluten-free pumpkin muffin recipe is perfect for fall!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups white rice flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca starch
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp crushed cloves
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup melted butter or butter substitute, I used Becel Vegan
- 15 oz can (1 1/2 cups) pumpkin puree, not pie filling!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.
- Mix dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients and stir well.
- Spoon into prepared muffin tin.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Serve warm with butter (or substitute) or cool and wrap for freezing.
Notes
- For easy gluten-free baking, I prefer to mix white rice flour and tapioca starch to about a 75/25 ratio.
- Mix just until there are no flour streaks left in the batter. It's okay for the batter to be a little lumpy!
- Do not overbake the muffins, bake them just until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean.
- Use a spoon or ice cream scoop to divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups.
- Let the muffins cool for a few minutes before removing them from the pan so they can solidify.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 18 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 164Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 240mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 2gSugar: 8gProtein: 2g
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily via Nutrifox.
I’ll be honest and say I looove me some gluten… but these look SO good and festive! Love their bright orange color! And kids don’t lie, so if yours loved them, then I’ll for sure have to try them out! Beautifully done Shannon!
Lol. So do I. But it doesn’t like me!
These look wonderful. Going to make them with John and Conor this weekend. x
Have fun, Danielle!
I love pumpkin anything, Shannon! These look really good.
Oh yum! I am always looking for a good muffin recipe – it’s about all I have time to eat in the morning!
I hear you! I baked 5 loaves and three dozen muffins the other day so we have some to eat for awhile.
This was absolutely deiiclous. This was only my 2nd try at using the bread machine first try did not come out so good. I used agave nectar, 1/3 cup. The bread was sweet and the texture was perfect. I am making it again, this time using molasses, because agave is so expensive. I highly recommend this recipe.
Made them as instructed except I made 12 muffins, splitting the batch into 18 muffins would have been a stretch. Muffins turned out nice, soft, tasty. The only complaint is that the baking soda taste seemed noticeable. Will try to dial the baking soda back a little next time to see if it helps. Overall, I was very very pleased especially since I can’t have wheat, corn, and most other grains except rice.
Interesting! I’ve never heard the taste of baking soda affecting them! I’m glad you enjoyed them otherwise!
May I know if I can use cornstarch to substitute tapioca starch?
You should be able to, yes.