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Gluten Free Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins

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Let’s make Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins! These light, fluffy pumpkin cornbread muffins are an all-time favorite. The perfect cozy side dish for chili, soup, salad, and more! (Gluten & Dairy Free)

Gluten-Free cornbread muffin being drizzled with honey

Hi. I’m Emily, and I’m sort of in love with cornbread.

We’ve made so many versions over the years I can’t count them, but these pumpkin cornbread muffins are one of our all-time favorites, especially this time of year!

The texture is light, fluffy, and satisfying. The flavor is delicate and cozy. They make your house smell amazing, and go well with soups, salads, and chili.

Plus, they’re SUPER easy to make. Here’s what you’ll need to get started…

Overhead view of a bowl of ingredients for Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins
Front view of a gluten-free pumpkin cornbread muffin fresh from the oven

HERE’S WHAT YOU’LL NEED FOR GLUTEN-FREE PUMPKIN CORNBREAD MUFFINS:

  • Gluten-Free Cornmeal. Make sure you buy certified gluten-free cornmeal. Cornmeal doesn’t contain gluten, but unless it’s certified gluten-free, you run the risk of cross-contamination with wheat through processing practices. Best to be safe! Arrowhead Mills and Bob’s Red Mill are two of our favorites.
  • Gluten-Free Flour. I most often use King Arthur Baking Measure-For-Measure Flour or Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten-Free Flour.
  • Baking Powder + Salt + Cinnamon. These simple staples help the muffins puff and gently flavor the gluten-free pumpkin cornbead muffins.
  • Canned Pumpkin Puree. Pumpkin does wonders for these muffins’ tender texture and keeps them moist without the need for much added fat. It’s kind of like magic!
  • Milk + Eggs. I usually use almond milk in my gluten-free pumpkin cornbread muffins, but you can use whatever milk your family drinks and enjoys. Then, some eggs will bind everything together and keep these muffins from getting dry.
  • Pure Maple Syrup (or Honey). A little subtle sweetness makes these lovely. I tried not to make them overly sweet, but you can feel free to add more or less, to taste.
  • Oil or Butter. Thanks to the pumpkin, we only need a little oil. I usually use avocado oil for its neutral flavor, but melted butter or vegan butter works as a great substitute if you like!
Overhead view of a gluten-free pumpkin muffin with a bite out of it, drizzled with honey
Front view of a gluten-free pumpkin muffin with a bite out of it, drizzled with honey

WHAT MAKES THESE GLUTEN FREE PUMPKIN CORNBREAD MUFFINS AMAZING. 

THE TEXTURE!!! Though we love our Maple Cornbread, and these Gluten-Free Cornbread Mini Muffins, these gluten-free pumpkin cornbread muffins might just have them all beat. The pumpkin does wonders for the texture, and it’s amazing how flavorful and fluffy they get with almost no added fat!

THE FLAVOR. And don’t be fooled! Just because they’re made with pumpkin doesn’t mean they’re only good in the fall. We make these all year round. They don’t taste especially pumpkin-y (they’re not stuffed with pumpkin spice, for instance), and they’re the perfect neutral accompaniment to soups, chilis, and salads. The pumpkin gives them an amazing texture and color, and a lovely subtle flavor I crave regularly.

THE SIMPLE INGREDIENTS! The ingredient list is really straightforward. Most of what you’ll need is simple pantry staples, which means it’s easy to whip these up last minute or on nights where you don’t have much in the fridge.

Three gluten-free pumpkin cornbread muffins drizzled with honey

FAQ + TIPS ON THESE GLUTEN FREE PUMPKIN CORNBREAD MUFFINS:

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE MUFFIN PAN? Lately, I’ve been favoring this muffin pan. The light color helps the muffins cook more evenly, which means golden muffins every time!

THE BEST MUFFIN LINERS EVER. I hate when my muffins stick to the pan, don’t you? These parchment muffin liners are THE BEST. Your muffins won’t stick even a little bit with these!

NOT GLUTEN-FREE? NO PROBLEM! If you’re not gluten-free, you can use regular white flour for these pumpkin cornbread muffins. I adapted this from an Ambitious Kitchen recipe and she uses whole wheat pastry flour.

HOW DO I STORE LEFTOVER PUMPKIN CORNBREAD MUFFINS? You can keep them in a zip-top bag or airtight container on the counter for 1-2 days. If you’d like to keep them 3-4 days, you want to store them in the refrigerator. Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins also freeze beautifully. I freeze them in a single layer and they’ll keep 1-2 months in an airtight container or freezer bag. To reheat, you can thaw on the counter/in the fridge or pop them in a warm oven for 10-15 minutes.

Front view of a gluten-free pumpkin muffin with a bite out of it, being drizzled with honey

SHOP OUR FAVORITE TOOLS + INGREDIENTS FOR PUMPKIN CORNBREAD MUFFINS:

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Overhead view of a gluten-free pumpkin muffin with a bite out of it, drizzled with honey

Gluten Free Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins


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4.9 from 8 reviews

  • Author: One Lovely Life, adapted from Ambitious Kitchen
  • Total Time: About 25 minutes
  • Yield: 12 muffins 1x
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Description

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins – These light, fluffy pumpkin cornbread muffins are an all-time favorite. The perfect cozy accompaniment to chilis, soups, salads, and more! (Gluten & Dairy Free) 


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 1/4 cups gluten-free cornmeal (fine or medium grind works best)
  • 1 cup gluten free 1-to-1 baking flour*
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 3/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 1 cup almond milk (or your favorite)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or honey)
  • 2 Tbsp avocado oil, melted butter, or ghee

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Whisk to combine. Whisk in the pumpkin, milk, eggs, syrup, and oil. Stir until just combined and no dry clumps remain.
  3. Scoop batter into a standard 12-cup muffin pan (spray or grease if not nonstick).
  4. Bake 17-20 minutes, or until cooked through (a toothpick will come out clean when inserted in the center of a muffin) and slightly golden.
  5. Allow to cool slightly, then serve warm!
  • Prep Time: 5
  • Cook Time: 20
  • Category: Muffins
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American

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21 Comments

  1. delicious. used cup4cup gf flour. buttermilk(oldshool). I love cornbread. I had 1 cup of pumpkin already measured so I used it all. Perfectly moist. Thank you!! I’ll have another.






  2. Brought these to Thanksgiving. Emily, I received compliments from gluten-free eaters and those without dietary restrictions alike! Thanks for the great recipe.






  3. I replaced the honey/maple syrup with 1/4th cup sugarfree simple syrup by using 1 tbs baking stevia and 3 tbs truvia brown sugar so there’s only 12 grams of added sugar vs. the near 64 from the honey/maple syrup. I also removed the salt and baking powder because I was using Pamela’s almond meal baking mix which has a primary ingredients of almond meal flour. I also added pumpkin spice (1 tsp) and used 2 tbs of unsalted butter. It came out FANTASTIC even with all of my alterations. So something about the ratio is really fool proof. Thank you for experimenting so much to come up with a good corn meal to flour substitute ratio!






    1. To clarify, the baking mix already has baking powder, xanthan gum and sea salt in it. So too much would have been bad juju (and possibly a weird irish soda bread! lol).






  4. These very good and moist. I used king Arthur gluten-free flour and coconut milk. I usually don’t add a lot of salt, butI think they need extra salt if you do this. Probably 3/4 to 1 teaspoon of salt. Otherwise amazing






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