Jump to Recipe· 5 from 9 reviews

These vegan chickpea flour muffins with blueberries and chocolate chips gluten-free and have a light and fluffy texture and are easy to make in one bowl with just 10 ingredients.

Chickpea flour makes a wonderful alterative to wheat flour for grain-free and gluten-free baking. These Vegan Chickpea Flour Pancakes are one of my favourite ways to use it, followed by up these delicious chickpea flour muffins.

Stack of 3 muffins on a cooling rack.

Why You’ll Love Them

  • Vegan (no eggs, dairy-free).
  • Naturally gluten-free.
  • 200 calories each.
  • Easy to make in one bowl.
  • 10 ingredients.
  • Customize the add-ins.
  • Freezer-friendly.

Ingredient Notes

Visual of all ingredients needed for making vegan chickpea flour muffins.
  • Flax or Chia: The recipe calls for chia seeds to replace eggs but you can substituted 2 tbsp ground flax.
  • Brown Rice Flour: The muffins are made with a combination of brown rice flour and chickpea flour. I have not tested other flours in this recipe.
  • Chickpea Flour: otherwise know as garbanzo bean flour, it’s actually a different flour than besan or gram flour so I would recommend sticking to gabanzo (chickpea) flour as that what’s the recipe has been tested with.
  • Coconut Sugar: You can substitute brown sugar or cane sugar.
  • Almond Milk: Substitute cashew milk, oat milk or soy milk.
  • Coconut Oil: Substituted olive oil, canola oil or melted vegan butter.
  • Vinegar: You can use white vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Lemon juice would also work. This helps add some lift but it’s not required.
  • Add-In: I used blueberries and chocolates but you can use either or swap for other fruit, dried cranberries or nuts.

This list is not complete. Please see the recipe card at the end of the post for the complete ingredient list with measurements and detailed instructions.

Step-by-Step Photos

Before You Start: Preheat the oven to 350 F. Mix the chia seeds and water in a small dish and set aside for about 5 minutes. It should form a gel with a somewhat egg-like consistency.

Flour in a mixing bowl with a whisk.

Step 1. Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix well. This includes the 2 types of flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

Raw muffin batter in a mixing bowl with a whisk.

Step 2. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl of dry ingredients. This includes the chia egg you mixed up, melted coconut oil, vinegar and almond milk. Fold everything together until all of the dry ingredients have been wetted.

Raw muffin batter in a mixing bowl with blueberries and chocolate chips in it.

Step 3. Add the blueberries and chocolate chips and fold together a few times to distribute.

Scooping muffin batter into a muffin tin using an ice cream scoop.

Step 4. Scoop the batter into 12 muffins tins. You can use muffin liners for easy removal and clean up or give the pan a light coating of non-stick cooking spay.

Option to sprinkle the muffins with a little coconut sugar or brown sugar! Crushed walnuts would be yummy too!

Overhead view of 9 garbanzo bean flour muffins on a cooling rack.

Step 5. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 3 minutes then carefully pop them out with a knife and transfer to a cooling rack to cool.

FAQs

How can I customize these muffins?

You can easily make these into chickpea flour carrot muffins or zucchini muffins by swapping the blueberries for grated veggies. I like keeping the chocolate chips in there but raisins, walnuts, chopped pecans or dates all make great additions too.

What’s the difference between chickpea flour, besan and gram flour?

Chickpea flour is not the same as besan or gram flour. Chickpea flour is made from white chickpeas whereas gram flour is made form split brown chickpeas, or chana dal. They have a similar flavour and consistency but do vary a bit.

Chickpea flour, or garbanzo bean flour, is the most common in stores in my area so I have only tested this recipe with it. You should be able to use besan or gram with some minor adjustments, such as a bit less liquid. Chickpea flour tends to dry out more than besan so besan may actually be a better choice here!

The muffins are nice and moist but they could easily become dry if you use too much flour. For the best results, I recommend using a kitchen scale to measure the ingredients accurately.

What does chickpea flour taste like?

Raw chickpea flour has quite a strong flavour and is actually quite bitter so the raw batter does not taste great. The flavour cook out as the muffins bake though, so don’t worry! The final muffins have a yummy, nutty flavour.

How do you store chickpea flour muffins?

Let the muffins cool completely then store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days, in the fridge for 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Sliced open chickpea flour chocolate chip muffin showing inside texture of muffin.

More Vegan Muffins

Easy Vegan Protein Muffins Recipe

Easy Vegan Applesauce Muffins Recipe

Easy Eggless Banana Muffins Recipe with Walnuts

One-Bowl Healthy Oatmeal Muffins Recipe

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Sliced open chickpea flour chocolate chip muffin showing inside texture of muffin.

Chickpea Flour Muffins

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 9 reviews
  • Author: Deryn Macey
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 12
  • Category: Snack
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

These yummy blueberry chickpea muffins are made with brown rice and garbanzo bean flour for a gluten-free alternative to traditional blueberry muffins.

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp chia seeds (24 g) + 6 tbsp water
  • 1 cup brown rice flour (120 g)
  • 1 cup chickpea flour (120 g)
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 cup coconut sugar (95 g)
  • 1 cup almond milk (250 mL)
  • 2 tsp white vinegar or apple cider vinegar 
  • 3 tbsp coconut oil, melted (45 g)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract, optional
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (120 g)
  • 1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips, optional (80 g)

Instructions

  1. Prepare for Baking: Pre-heat over to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray the cups of a standard size muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper liners. 
  2. Make Chia Egg: Mix the chia seeds and water in a small bowl and set aside for about 5 minutes. It should form a thick gel after a few minutes.
  3. Mix Dry Ingredients: Mix the 2 flours, coconut sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Mix well to make sure everything is distributed and no clumps remain.
  4. Add Wet Ingredients: Add the milk, vinegar, melted coconut oil, chia seed mixture and optional vanilla to the bowl and fold together until all the dry ingredients have been wetted.
  5. Add Add-Ins: Add the blueberries and chocolate chips and fold together a few times to distribute throughout. 
  6. Bake Muffins: Use a large ice cream scoop or spoon to scoop the batter into 12 muffins tins. Option to sprinkle them with a little coconut sugar or brown sugar. Crushed walnuts also make a great topping! Bake for 30 minutes.
  7. Cool: Remove from the oven and let sit in the pan for 2-3 minutes then gently pop each muffin out with a knife and and place on a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Notes

The coconut sugar can be substituted with cane sugar or sucanut. Coconut oil can be substituted with olive oil, canola oil or melted vegan butter.

Storing: Let cool completely then store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 days, in the fridge for 6 days or freezer for up to 3 months.

For best results, use a kitchen scale to measure ingredients. 

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 207
  • Sugar: 14 g
  • Fat: 7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 32 g
  • Fiber: 4 g
  • Protein: 4 g

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Originally published July 14, 2014.