Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins with {Optional} Maple Cream Glaze
These pumpkin applesauce muffins are the fluffiest, most delicious pumpkin muffins ever – oh my goodness, I love them so much! Plus, the optional, but delicious, maple cream glaze is so tasty drizzled on top!
Can your heart possibly hold enough love for one more pumpkin muffin right now?
I surely hope so. If not, try just for me, because these pumpkin applesauce muffins are extraordinary.
I made them dozens of times last fall (including for a huge work event for Brian), and they quickly became one of my favorite fall, pumpkin muffins.
I’m sorry I haven’t shared them sooner! Maybe it’s because I’ve been obsessing over these other pumpkin muffin favorites:
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Whole Grain Pumpkin Blueberry Muffins
I swear, there just isn’t enough time to make all the pumpkin muffin variations I want to.
I have a problem, I know. I get it. And I embrace it.
I debated about posting the recipe way back in February.
But in the end, I felt a little insecure about posting a warm, spiced, pumpkin muffin during a time when the internet was exploding with sugar cookies, red velvet, and sprinkles.
I apologize. I really do.
Because, I’d take one of these creamy glazed pumpkin applesauce muffins any day over most sprinkle-laden treats.
These pumpkin muffins are incredible!
Even though I have a lot of favorite pumpkin muffins (see the list at the top of the post for a starting point), I think these are the fluffiest of the bunch.
They are tender and moist.
And they are hearty and healthy enough for breakfast, especially if you dig deep and make even healthier choices like leaving off the glaze or replacing some of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat (still delicious, promise).
Speaking of leaving off the glaze, while the maple cream glaze is intensely delicious and pairs perfectly with the spiced pumpkin flavor, we enjoy these muffins unadorned and simple as can be, too.
For breakfast, for snack, for an after dinner treat.
They are a great all-purpose pumpkin muffin for whatever add-in you choose to throw in there.
Ahem, chocolate chips.
I really do think that in addition to being a partial oil substitute, the applesauce gives a light fluffiness to the texture that can’t be beat.
And since Brian works for an applesauce company (GoGo Squeez), I’m always throwing applesauce in everything.
Smoothies, cakes, cookies, spaghetti sauce.
I’ll admit, a few “experiments” haven’t turned out so well (as in, some of my kids may never want to eat spaghetti again thanks to some questionable texture issues).
But applesauce definitely works well in these pumpkin applesauce muffins.
So easy and so tasty, you definitely need to add these to your pumpkin muffin lineup!
One Year Ago: Harvest Pasta Sauce {Trader Joe’s Copycat}
Two Years Ago: Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake with Chocolate Cookie Crust
Three Years Ago: Easy Homemade Egg Noodles {Step-by-Step Pictures Include Food Processor Method or By Hand}
Four Years Ago: Black Bean and Butternut Enchilada Skillet
Five Years Ago: Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies
Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins with Maple Cream Glaze
Ingredients
Muffins:
- 3 large eggs
- 1 (15-ounce) can (425 g) pumpkin puree/canned pumpkin
- ½ cup neutral flavored oil, like canola, vegetable, avocado
- ½ cup (113 g) no-sugar added applesauce
- 1 cup (212 g) granulated sugar
- 2 ½ cups (355 g) all-purpose flour (see note)
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (see note)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Glaze:
- 1 cup (114 g) powdered sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon maple extract (see note)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two standard muffin tins with paper liners and set aside (24 muffins total).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, oil, applesauce and sugar.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined (don’t overmix or the muffins may be dense and kind of heavy).
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin tins, filling the cups about 2/3 of the way full (or slightly more than that). I use my #20 cookie scoop to portion the batter into the muffin tin.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until the top of the muffins spring back to the touch and/or a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached.
- Remove from the muffin tin to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- For the glaze, whisk together the glaze ingredients, starting with the lesser amount of cream and adding more as needed to make a pourable, but still thick, glaze.
- Drizzle the glaze over the cooled muffins with a spoon or fork and serve.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted a little from A Bountiful Kitchen
These were great! I only had 1 cup flour left, so I used 1 cup ground oatmeal and 1/2 cup wheat flour figuring they’d be dense, but they were STILL light and delicious.
Also — instead of frosting, we put Trader Joe’s candied pumpkin seeds on top. Yum.
I even loved them without any frosting. I made some large muffins and served with strawberry jam. Also made two small loaves — one for the neighbor. I will definitely make these again and print off the recipe.
These turned out great!! I’ll definitely spray the liners next time before adding batter – they stick quite a bit when unwrapping. I mixed the batter with 1.5 cups of chocolate & butterscotch chips instead of doing the maple glaze. Thanks for another great, reliable recipe!
This looks amazing – have you ever made it in a bundt pan?
I haven’t – sorry!
“Mom! These are the best muffins you have ever made!” – 7 year old twins
I did add (a lot ) of chocolate chips but these really did rise so beautifully and have such a lovely texture. I did half AP and half whole wheat pastry flour. So fun even in the summer when pumpkin is unexpected .
I wish you could see the sheer joy on my 8 month olds face on his first bite. Definitely a hit at our house. Thanks for the recipe!
That makes me so happy!
So excited to make this! Is it possible to turn this into a quick bread?
I haven’t tried it, but I bet it would work great as a quick bread!
I ONLY HAVE A CUP OF PUMPKIN, WOULD THAT WORK WITH MORE APPLESAUCE?
It might change the texture of the muffins; you’ll have to experiment. Good luck!
I think this is the 4th time I’m commenting! Lol! Anyway, my kids are nuts about these so today I tried to make them even healthier. I figure if each time I make them slightly more so, they won’t even notice! So today I halved the sugar and added 1/2 cup of Isagenix pumpkin shake powder (I’d use vanilla if I didn’t have pumpkin), and a 1/2 cup less of flour. Honestly they tasted identical. I’ll keep experimenting! Need to try wheat flour next. Maybe even coconut flour. Also I’m using avocado oil and I don’t plan on eliminating it since it is such a healthy fat.
They just came out of the oven 20 minutes ago and my 3 oldest are begging for seconds (aged 18 months to 12).
That’s awesome, Tara! I love all your feedback on these muffins!
Subbing Isagenix is an excellent idea! I might have to try it!
Has anyone tried making these with gluten free 1-1 flour? My daughter was just diagnosed with celiac disease. She really wants some muffins and these were a go-to before.
You just need to add more moisture for gf. I’m celiac and my favorite affordable flour is Namaste from Costco. The brand Better Batter is the best one in the market. I’m glad you’re baking gf, I stopped buying baked gf treats because you can make fresher, tastier, CHEAPER at home.
I made these yesterday and they were fantastic. For those of you out there, like me, who are out of cupcake liners, never fear! I made both full size muffins, and mini muffins, and didn’t use liners. I greased the pans with sprayed coconut oil, and they popped out with no problems.
For what it’s worth, I also tinkered with the sugar (did 1/2 cup brown and 1/4 cup white), swapped in one cup of white whole wheat flour, and tossed in about a cup of dark chocolate chips.
Thanks for a delicious recipe that I will make again! I wasn’t feeling pumpkin pie spice, so used 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground cloves, and 1/2 tsp ground cardamom. I also used 1/2 cup almond flour, 1 cup while wheat flour, and 1 cup all-purpose flour. I reduced sugar to 1/2 cup of brown sugar, and added chocolate chips and vanilla — the recipe was plenty sweet. I plan to freeze some of these muffins for easy breakfasts.
My son said it tastes like pumpkin pie! Definitely going to make it again. Some of my muffins were smooth on the top, but the other pan was mostly rough. But they were all light and fluffy! I was afraid my kids wouldn’t like them because they didn’t taste as sweet as other muffins I usually make, but the pumpkin flavor made up for the lack of sweetness.
I made these today and they do taste great, but I think I must have done something different because they aren’t what I would call light and fluffy. The tops aren’t really springy at all and are much more ragged than yours. They are still moist and taste good but I was expecting more of a cupcake like texture. Can you give me any tips? I don’t know if I should use different amounts of flour based on altitude differences or what. I live in east Texas. I measured the flour by weight in my scale so I don’t think I over measured, unless my scale is inaccurate. Any tips? I am still enjoying them! I also had to use maple syrup in the glaze because I couldn’t find maple flavor, but the glaze is awesome! I definitely licked the bowl clean after glazing the muffins 😉
Hi Sarah – others in the comments also said their muffins were craggly on top. I’m not sure why that’s happening, to be honest! I’ve made this recipe lots of times and the muffins are always soft and smooth – I’m wondering if it might be the brand of canned pumpkin? I was thinking that I’m pretty sure I’ve only used homemade pumpkin puree or Trader Joe’s pumpkin puree – both are a little softer than Libby’s (one of the more popular brands). So based on that, I’m wondering if a few tablespoons water added to the batter could help?
That could be the difference because I did use Libby’s!
These are so delicious!! Just made them today. The tops didn’t turn out smooth and dome-like, they looked more spiky and peak-y because of the pumpkin. I wonder if I did something wrong!
I don’t think so, Joy! Others have commented the same thing. It’s probably due to a couple factors, one of which may be how much we are each mixing the batter.
These. Are. Amazing. Our favorite pumpkin muffin ever. My kids and husband are all obsessed. Just about to whip up our fourth batch in just the last 3 weeks.
Yay!
I finally got around to making these. Oh they are gorgeous. You’re so right on how light and fluffy they are. Wow. I can’t decide if they are better than the cream cheese stuffed ones. More of an everyday muffin for sure. So good. I’ll send the leftovers to my daughters youth group tomorrow.
And my kids have friends over right now and they’re all wanting seconds.
Yay! I was hoping you’d check in if you made them. I agree – such a great, every day muffin.
Delicious! I have tried your other muffins too and these are just as you describe them. I took a batch to work and got rave reviews. (And I didn’t even frost them.) Great recipe!!!
Thanks, Sarah!
Just made these, they are so delicious!! A perfect dome and so fluffy, but not too light. The glaze is the finishing touch. I made them with half whole wheat. Thank you for consistent recipes!!
Thanks, Emmy!
I had just made the cream cheese pumpkin muffins, which are so good, and then you posted these. That same week Our Best Bites posted a chocolate pumpkin version. I decided to combine your recipes and I added 6 tablespoons of cocoa to this batter with 3 tablespoons less flour. We loved them with your maple glaze. I will be making more of these very soon.
Such a fun variation, Sheila! Thanks for sharing!
This are tasty, but I had an issue with the muffin sticking to the paper muffin liner. Any tips to avoid this?
It might depend on what brand of muffin liners you are using. You can spray the liners with nonstick cooking spray before using – that can help.
I just made these for an after school snack for my kids- they disappeared! So yummy and delicious, the perfect texture. We will make these again and again!
I’m usually a by-the-books Mel recipe follower. But this time, I substituted. And it worked great!
-mashed bananas instead of the pumpkin (from my frozen stash, then thawed in microwave)
-2 T. maple syrup and 1 T. milk (because I didn’t have maple flavoring or cream)
These banana-applesauce muffins turned out so great! Light and fluffy and so yummy with the glaze!
Thanks, Mel, for all the delicious meals you share with our family!
Mel. These are so good! We have gone through three batches in less than 5 days. My children eat these for breakfast and lunch and beg to have them for dinner! Guess what kids, me too! When we aren’t eating these, we eat your lasagna. My children would live off grapes and animal crackers if it weren’t for you. Love you and your blog SO much.
I’m so happy to hear this!!
My almost 5 year old and I made these together and he declared them “super delicious”. We did use the glaze and he couldn’t get over the fact that they were muffins with frosting! His mind was blown! He may be expecting frosting on every muffin from now on…..
Haha…so cute!
Thanks, Mel. I really liked these. I made them using half white whole wheat flour and skipped the glaze. I particularly liked the fluffy texture (and, as another commenter said, it’s so nice to use up a whole can of pumpkin!). I think next time I will increase the pumpkin pie spice, though, as these were very mild. (I think if I’d glazed them I wouldn’t have thought this.) And I also had the very bumpy tops. That was just an aesthetic issue though. They really are nice muffins. (Oh–I got fewer than 24 out of this recipe–I think I only used half of the second tin. We’ve already eaten so many though that I can’t go back and count.)
Thanks for the feedback, Nancy!
If I don’t have unsweetened applesauce,!shoukd I lower the amount of sugar into the muffins?
Yes, I probably would…unless you are ok with them being a little sweeter.
Delicious muffins. I think I have tried all but one of your pumpkin muffins now and agree that these are the fluffiest!
For those whose pumpkin comes in can capacities other than 15 oz, I used half a 796 mL can (typical size available in Canada), or a scant 2 cups.
Thanks for that note on the alternate sizes of pumpkin cans, Sarah! Glad you loved these. 🙂
I think I need these. I have some fresh pumpkin puree , and would like to know how much to measure when using fresh vs canned. Would it be more then a cup and a half?
Thanks bunches.
Deb Cadene
You can use the same amount if using fresh, but if the fresh pumpkin puree is very watery, I would suggest draining off some of the liquid (or reducing the liquid slightly in the recipe).
These were light, fluffy and delicious! I love that the recipe uses the entire can of pumpkin. My kids couldn’t wait for the glaze this time but we will definitely try that soon!
Glad you loved them, Kelsey!
I’m making these this morning for easy to grab breakfast in the coming week.
Should I keep them in the fridge or the freezer? Best way to store them?
I keep them at room temperature for a few days, but if storing them longer, I’d recommend the freezer for a fresher taste (once warmed up).
Could I use maple syrup instead of maple extract?
The maple flavor might not be as strong, but yes, I think you could use pure maple syrup.
Outstanding. Moist, light, easy…home run! We added some chocolate chips and pecans…no regrets.
Glad you loved them, Jen!
Oh my gosh!! I made these today for the ladies I visit teach!! I ate 4 today and to be honest I could easily eat 4 more. They are so moist and seriously the icing is out of this world! I only used about 1/4 of a teaspoon of the mable extract because I know I like less mable extract from making Gloria’s cinnamon rolls. They are so good!! I highly recommend. Super fast to make and very fancy when you put the icing on with little zig zags. Another great recipe!! Thank you!
Love you for admitting you could eat eight of these babies. Me, too!!
I’m making my second batch in two days! I’m in love.
Yay!
Sorry forgot to give it 5 stars! Should be 6 stars!!! 🙂
Thanks, Mel!!
Oh my! I just made these muffins! I haven’t even made the glaze yet as I am waiting for the muffins to cool down….I tried one….they are so delicious!!!! So light and fluffy!! Amazing! Your recipes never fail me super duper Mel!!!!
These were rated very good by my husband and picky son #1. I think for my taste I would do a vanilla glaze or use less maple as the maple was a little strong but they were super tasty.
Ok I made these muffins last night. Mine came out quite orange colored and more ‘bumpy’ on top?? Not really light and fluffy at all. Taste good and easy to make though. I did use cinnamon applesauce because that was all I had….
Hi Lori – what was the texture of the applesauce you used? Smooth or chunky?
Mine turned out the same…bumpy top. I’ve looked over the recipe and I’m sure I used the correct ingredients. This happens when i make the whole wheat banana chocolate chip muffins too. Wish I knew what I was doing wrong but they are still delicious!
I wonder if it’s the mixing, Hilery. I know I always harp on not overmixing but I wonder if the batter is getting undermixed and that’s causing the bumps?
Have you tried completely substituting the oil with applesauce? I’m curious!
I haven’t tried that.
Couldn’t wait to get home from work and try these…didn’t put the glaze on…added some beautiful golden raisins…literally these are to die for…I just hope there’s some left for breakfast! Thanks Mel!
So happy you loved them, Jill!
Made them!!! Love Them!!! Glaze and all!! These were the perfect thing to go with my Chicken Noodle soup for Dinner!! (Quick and Delicious Chicken Noodle Soup to be exact!) Perfect for a Fall afternoon/Evening !! And my house smells amazing!
Thanks, Helen!
Hi Mel- A couple of my girlfriends have kids with egg allergies. Is there a way to modify this recipe to exclude the eggs since it uses applesauce? Thanks for your help!
In many baked goods you can sub 1 Tbsp flax seed meal + 3 Tbsp water for *each* egg needed (mix together in a small bowl and let the mixture sit for 5 min.). I haven’t tried it with this recipe but it’s worth a shot.
You could try an egg substitute (like someone mentioned the flax seed substitute) or increasing the applesauce and pumpkin and leaving out the eggs. Sorry I’m not more help – I haven’t tried it myself.
I do a lot of cooking for my sons who are vegan. I sub 1/4 cup applesauce for 1 egg in my baking recipes. My chocolate cake turns out awesome with applesauce. I’m sure the muffins will also.
Any thoughts about making these in a mini muffin pan? My daughter and I take a turn at bringing refreshments after Sunday Service and smaller servings work better especially with the kids. I assume they would need less time to bake?
Thanks for all the great recipes, Mel. I just canned a double batch of your pressure cooker applesauce
Tiggerr
I think it would work great! I’d probably start checking them around 7 minutes.
The second I saw these I had to make them right away so I cleared my morning schedule haha! They are so good! I love how light and fluffy they are!! I will have to make more soon for sure.
Thanks for trying them so quickly, Amanda! Glad you loved them!
These look great! I’m a pumpkin all year round person, so I always have room for one more recipe. If I used homemade applesauce that already has cinnamon in it, do you think I should use less pumpkin pie spice?
Hmmm, interesting. Yeah, maybe. Probably use 1 teaspoon instead of 2 (but only if the applesauce is heavily spiced – if not, you might be fine with the regular amount of pumpkin spice).
Oh my! You leave me in such a predicament! Friday I have a ladies Bible study (and lots of kids will be there too cuz there is no school Friday), and it’s my turn to bring the snack. I’ve been so excited about making your cream cheese stuffed pumpkin muffins with the streusel topping but now I’m torn!!! Which one should I make? Which do you truly love more?
I LOVE the pumpkin cream cheese muffins. I really do. And I declared them a favorite (which they are) on that post, but if I had to choose, I’d make these ones. They are so easy, so fluffy, and are perfect for adults and kids alike. Another way to look at it is the pumpkin cream cheese muffins will be more of a “wow” or “showstopper” muffin because of all they have going on (that cream cheese center! the streusel topping!) and these pumpkin applesauce muffins are more humble but SUPER delicious and will still get rave reviews, I think. So I guess it all depends on how much wow factor you want to have. 🙂
Thanks for the advice Mel! Still leaning towards the fancier ones but maybe I’ll base it on how busy my day is tomorrow and what I have time for!
These muffins look good. I will be trying this recipe for sure but I don’t understand the idea of
“Don’t overmeasure the flour, especially the whole wheat flour, or the muffins might be dry and dense. ”
Do you mean that not measuring correctly and putting in too much flour is a bad idea?
I can understand how that phrase is confusing. Basically, if you don’t have a scale to weigh the exact amount of flour, make sure you aren’t packing too much flour in the cup when the flour is measured. I’ve done a nerdy experiment before where I’ve had different people measure out a cup of flour – some scooped it right in the bucket, others spooned the flour into the cup, and a friend pounded the cup on the counter to settle the flour evenly. Every cup of flour weighed drastically different, especially the one that was packed, and that can obviously change the outcome of the baked good. This is a post I did a while back about how I measure flour: https://www.melskitchencafe.com/lets-talk-how-you-measure-flour-makes-a-difference/
HA! First to comment on this post! Ass I opened my laptop to search your site for meal ideas, this was on the home page!
The muffins are so so delicious, the perfect mix of moist and chewy!
I added streusel to half of the muffins just for kicks!
You are so amazing and a very talented chef! My kids (2 1/2 and 1 1/2yrs) love these!
So happy to hear that!!
Whoa, I just went to look up your pumpkin chocolate chip muffins to make today and this popped up! We both have muffins on the brain today! Will definitely try these instead.
Muffins on the brain is not a bad thing. 🙂
Does this turn out well if you bake it as a loaf instead of muffins?
That’s a great question, Kelly – and I don’t know since I haven’t tried it, but it should work pretty well (usually quick breads translate into great muffins and vice versa).
I hadn’t the same question! Would it make one loaf? And would I bake it about 50-60 minutes?
I haven’t made it in loaf form myself, but I’m guessing it would make 1 large loaf (9X5) or maybe two smaller ones? It would probably take 45-60 minutes to bake, depending on the pan size.