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Vegan and grain-free hummingbird muffins, inspired by the Southern cake with the same name! Made with chickpea flour, & plump with pineapple & banana, they are excellent as delicious, nutritious breakfasts or snacks.
No hummingbirds were harmed in the making of these muffins.
I needed to make that clear, just in case hummingbird cake is new to you :).
I was unfamiliar with hummingbird cake, myself, until moving to Texas.
Boy, had I missed out. Hummingbird cake is a traditional Southern cake, rich and moist with pineapple, bananas, cinnamon and pecans (yum x 4) and typically slathered with cream cheese frosting. Umm, yes.
Equally enchanting, it is one of the easiest cakes to make: no fuss, no mixer, no creaming of butter (like carrot cake, it is an oil-based cake). If you love carrot cake, you will most likely fall (hard) for hummingbird cake, too.
Plant Based Hummingbird Muffins
The only downside to hummingbird cake is that it is cake, which puts some limits on how much and often I can eat it.
Updating hummingbird cake into muffins changes everything. I can keep all of my favorite elements (banana, pineapple, cinnamon and pecans) while modernizing these hummingbirds into nutritious, anytime eats.
Recipe Benefits
- Vegan (dairy-free, egg-free)
- Grain-free
- Gluten-free
- No refined sugars
- Good source of fiber
Ingredients
The exact amounts of each ingredient are indicated in the recipe card at the end of the post. Toggle between US Customary (volume) and Metric (weights) for preferred measurement option.
- chickpea flour
- flaxseed meal
- ground cinnamon
- baking soda
- salt
- mashed, very ripe bananas
- unsweetened crushed pineapple
- coconut sugar
- vegetable oil (I used avocado oil)
- vanilla extract
- pecans
I use chickpea flour & flaxseed meal for my dry ingredients, both of which allow for an egg-free muffin that tastes as traditional as can be, yet without any worries of tough muffins (no one needs that); you can mix and mix since there is no gluten that can overdevelop.
Note, too, that ample doses of cinnamon and vanilla, which are essential for hummingbird cake, are added to the muffins ensuring no traces of bean flour.
In traditional hummingbird cake, firm-ripe bananas are diced and added along with crushed pineapple. To cut back on sugar, I mashed the bananas instead. Together with the pineapple (and pineapple juices), only relatively small amount of sweetener (3 tablespoons) needs to be added.
Step by Step Directions
Note that the complete directions are also in the recipe card below.
- Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Line 10 cups of a standard size muffin tin with paper or foil liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk the chickpea flour, flaxseed meal, cinnamon, baking soda and salt, breaking up any and all lumps in the chickpea flour.
- In a small bowl, stir together the banana, crushed pineapple (with its juices), coconut sugar, oil, and vanilla until blended. Add to the flour mixture, stirring until well-blended.
- Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups (they should only be about 1/2 full). Sprinkle tops with pecans.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 19 to 23 minutes until golden brown, tops are firm to the touch, and a toothpick inserted near the center of a muffin comes out with only moist crumbs attached.
- Cool 5 minutes in muffin tin. Remove the muffins and cool completely on a cooling rack.
Important Baking Tip
For a perfect rise, fill the muffin cups about 1/2-way full; do not overfill, or the muffins will take on a wonky shape. 10 cups, filled to the halfway mark, is just right. Finish with a sprinkle of pecans, which toast as the muffins bake.
The finished muffins are moist, sweet and flavorful, with 100% homey appeal. Go ahead, have two.
Happy baking, everyone!
FAQ
- How Should I Store the Muffins? Store the completely cooled muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days, the refrigerator for 1 week, or the freezer for up to 6 months.
- What Can I Substitute for Coconut Sugar? An equal amount of your favorite granular or liquid sweetener can be used in place of the coconut sugar.
- Can I Use a Another Flour (in place of the Chickpea Flour)? I do not recommend it. This recipe was formulated for use with chickpea flour.
More Scrumptious Chickpea Flour Muffins to Try:
- Chickpea Flour Pumpkin Muffins {Vegan, Grain-Free, Oil-Free}
- Chickpea Flour Zucchini Muffins {grain-free, oil-free, vegan}
- Basic Vegan Chickpea Flour Muffins {grain-free, oil-free}
- Chocolate Chickpea Flour Muffins {vegan, grain-free}
- Gingerbread Chickpea Flour Muffins {grain-free & vegan}
- Coconut-Lime Chickpea Flour Muffins {Vegan, Grain-Free}
- Cranberry Orange Chickpea Flour Muffins {Grain-Free, Vegan}
Vegan & Grain-Free Hummingbird Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/4 cups chickpea flour
- 3 tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 1-1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup mashed, very ripe bananas
- 1 8- ounce can unsweetened crushed pineapple, do not drain
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, I used avocado oil
- 1-1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Line 10 cups of a standard size muffin tin with paper or foil liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk the chickpea flour, flaxseed meal, cinnamon, baking soda and salt, breaking up any and all lumps in the chickpea flour.
- In a small bowl, stir together the banana, crushed pineapple (with its juices), coconut sugar, oil, and vanilla until blended. Add to the flour mixture, stirring until well-blended.
- Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups (they should only be about 1/2 full). Sprinkle tops with pecans.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 19 to 23 minutes until golden brown, tops are firm to the touch, and a toothpick inserted near the center of a muffin comes out with only moist crumbs attached.
- Cool 5 minutes in muffin tin. Remove the muffins and cool completley on a cooling rack.
Hi, if I don’t have flaxseed meal, can I add an agg instead?
Hi Mek,
Sure, that should work just fine. Cut back on the liquid by about 2 tablespoons, too.
Hi Kelly and Camilla. I made these muffins for a work birthday and used Almond flour instead of the chickpea flour. They were wonderfully moist and delicious 🙂
That’s so great to hear, Rosemary! Thanks so much for sharing ! 🙂
Would coconut flour work in place or chickpea?
*of, instead of
Hi Kelly! I wish it could, but no, it definitely will not work with coconut flour. Almond flour might work, but I have not tried it.