Description

These Healthy Marbled Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins are a deliciously wholesome treat, perfect for fall or any time you crave a moist, flavorful muffin. Made with whole wheat pastry flour, warm spices, pumpkin puree, and swirls of rich chocolate batter, these muffins strike the perfect balance between indulgent and nutritious. Sweetened with pure maple syrup and featuring a chocolate chip topping, they offer a delightful marbled appearance and are ideal for breakfast, snacks, or dessert.

Ingredients

Scale

Wet Ingredients

1 cup pumpkin puree
½ cup pure maple syrup
2 large eggs, at room temperature
¼ cup unsweetened almond milk (or milk of choice)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup coconut oil, melted and cooled (or substitute melted butter or vegan butter)

Dry Ingredients

1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Add-ins

½ cup chocolate chips, divided

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Instructions

Preheat and Prepare Muffin Tin: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray the inside of the liners lightly with nonstick cooking spray to ensure easy muffin removal.
Mix Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, pure maple syrup, eggs, almond milk, and vanilla extract. Whisk well until the mixture is smooth and evenly blended.
Whisk Dry Ingredients: In a separate large bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, allspice, and salt to evenly distribute the spices and leavening.
Combine Wet and Dry: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing gently until just combined. Avoid overmixing to keep the muffins tender. Then stir in the melted coconut oil until incorporated.
Divide and Flavor Batters: Divide the batter evenly into two bowls. Stir the unsweetened cocoa powder and ¼ cup of the chocolate chips into one of the bowls to create the chocolate batter.
Layer the Muffin Batter: Spoon just under 1 tablespoon of the pumpkin batter into each muffin liner, then top with 1 tablespoon of the chocolate batter. Repeat layering until all batter is used.
Marble the Batters: Using a knife, swirl the pumpkin and chocolate batters together gently with about 3 to 4 twists. Be careful not to over-swirl so the marbled pattern remains distinct.
Even the Batter and Add Topping: Gently shake the muffin pan back and forth a few times to settle and even out the batter. Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup chocolate chips over the tops of the muffins.
Bake and Cool: Bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The muffins were perfect at about 22 minutes in testing. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes

To make this recipe into pumpkin chocolate marbled bread, layer the batter in a greased 8×4 inch loaf pan and bake for 45-55 minutes or until a tester comes out clean or just a few crumbs remain.
For a gluten-free version, use a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour substitute.
These muffins freeze well; see the full recipe post for freezing tips and tricks.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 muffin
Calories: 180
Sugar: 8g
Sodium: 180mg
Fat: 8g
Saturated Fat: 4g
Unsaturated Fat: 3g
Trans Fat: 0g
Carbohydrates: 25g
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 4g
Cholesterol: 35mg