Vegan Gluten-free Sweet Potato Muffins with Sweet Potato Caramel and cinnamon! They are just 8 ingredients, dairy-free, grain-free and oil-free. These are light, fluffy, moist and refined sugar-free.
VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE SWEET POTATO MUFFINS
Oh my goodness, I am SO excited to share these Vegan Sweet Potato Muffins with you today! Seriously, I contemplated dedicating an entire post just to this sweet potato caramel sauce. It is certainly worthy of it. You haven’t lived until you have had this caramel, this tastes like REAL caramel.
I have quite an obsession with using sweet potatoes in my baking. Evidence of that here on my 12 Vegan Desserts Using Sweet Potatoes. Also, try these Vegan Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Muffins!
I love sharing muffin recipes, as they are one of my favorite types of vegan desserts to create. Another vegan muffin recipe was in order after all the absolutely, amazing feedback I keep getting on my Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins. They have been wildly popular, so I was itching to create another amazing muffin recipe for you all and it be completely different and grain-free for those who can’t have oats! If you are a muffin lover like me, check out my collection of my best 15 Vegan Muffin Recipes Without Oil!
4 SWEET POTATO MUFFIN VERSIONS TESTED
I created 4 vegan sweet potato muffin versions for you!
These muffins are really soft and light. Think…clouds of muffins with a wonderful cinnamon flavor and sweetness from the sweet potato and pure decadence from the caramel. Pretty flippin fantastic, to be honest with you.
Full disclosure: Out of all 4 versions, my favorite version is definitely the almond flour/potato starch combo, so if you aren’t grain-free or nut-free, then choose that one, it’s the best as far as textures go. The result is light, soft and moist. Also, with the sunflower flour, just know that it does give a sunflower taste to the muffins. If you are used to baking with sunflower, this probably won’t bother you. Nothing that a lot of caramel wouldn’t make up for!
SWEET POTATO CARAMEL
So, let’s talk about this sweet potato caramel. I created a dairy-free, vegan, corn syrup-free, easy, amazing, creamy caramel sauce…..using sweet potatoes! Yes, sweet potato caramel.
What’s even more exciting is that this Sweet Potato Caramel is low-fat! You can eat an entire 1/4 cup of caramel (if you wanted to) and it’s only 3 grams fat!
If you are vegan, you have probably had caramel one of these ways:
- Date caramel ( I actually am not a big fan of date caramel…or dates for that matter…sorry!)
- Almond butter and syrup combined have a caramel-like taste
- Or, one of my favorites is melted coconut butter with syrup and vanilla and salt. YUM! It is what I created to drizzle over my Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream
Regardless of all the caramel recipes you’ve tried, now it’s time for you to try this sweet potato caramel!
OTHER VEGAN MUFFIN RECIPES TO TRY:
- Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Gluten-free Double Chocolate Muffins
- Whole Wheat Chocolate Muffins
- Bakery-Style Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
- Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
- Caramel Crusted Pumpkin Muffins
- Vegan Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Cinnamon Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Chocolate Chip Cherry Muffins
Vegan Sweet Potato Cinnamon Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (140g) superfine blanched almond flour (for nut-free, see NOTES at bottom)
- 1/2 cup (80g) potato starch
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 cup (96g) coconut sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (120g) cooked mashed sweet potato
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon (20g) vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240g) canned lite coconut milk, shaken well first
SWEET POTATO CARAMEL (makes about 6 tablespoons)
- 1/4 cup (60g) cooked mashed sweet potato
- 1/2 cup (120g) creamy plant-based milk, I used and recommend the malk brand almond milk, it's creamier than traditional watered-down milks and has no added gums or additives OR light coconut milk
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
- 4 tablespoons (48g) coconut sugar (do not sub with another sugar)
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
NOTE
- Always use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- First, cook your sweet potato by placing a large sweet potato (with skin on) on foil and roast for 50-60 minutes at 405 degrees. You want it to be overcooked basically and incredibly juicy and tender, so it mashes very well. Let it cool before preparing the muffins.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C)and line a muffin pan with foil liners. I use Staybrite by Reynolds because they keep muffins really moist and do not stick at all like the paper ones. Add the almond flour (or sunflower), potato starch, baking powder, sea salt, coconut sugar and cinnamon to a large bowl and whisk very well, breaking up any lumps from the starch.
- To a large bowl, add the almond flour (or sunflower), potato starch, baking powder, sea salt, coconut sugar and cinnamon and whisk very well, breaking up any lumps from the starch.
- In a small bowl, peel the sweet potato and mash it very well, so no lumps remain. Measure out 1/2 cup, making sure to fill the cup and then level off with your finger, so there is not excess potato. Add the potato to a small bowl with the vanilla and coconut milk and whisk or blend really well. You want it 100% smooth so there aren't unmixed chunks of potato.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until well mixed and thickens some. The batter should be similar to the consistency of cake batter, not thin, but not as thick as traditional muffin batter. However, if you are subbing with oat flour in place of the potato starch, the batter will be thicker. Just gently smooth out the tops.
- Divide the batter between 8-12 muffin liners, depending on how tall you want them to be. Bake for 22 minutes (unless you are baking with the oat flour, which it will be 20 minutes) or when a toothpick comes out with a few dry crumbs still on it (but not wet batter) and it lightly springs back when touched. When the muffins come out, they will still be slightly under-cooked, but will finish cooking over the next 20 minutes. So, do NOT eat them until they have cooled at least 20 minutes. They will then be incredibly soft, light and moist. Drizzle caramel sauce on top following directions below. The muffins are best eaten within 24 hours, as the starch will cause them to start to dry out after a couple of days. I stored mine in the fridge and preferred them that way.
SWEET POTATO CARAMEL
- Add all of the sweet potato caramel ingredients to a food processor and blend until completely smooth, scraping the sides a couple of times during. Taste and add any more sweetener, if desired.
- Add to a small pot over a stove and turn to medium-low heat. Once it starts simmering, stir with a rubber spoon/spatula for a full couple of minutes or more until it thickens up and coats the back of the spoon/spatula. Immediately remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Note that the caramel will thicken up much more as it cools, so don't worry if it's not as thick as you want while it's still warm. It will thicken up more in the fridge as well. Pour into a container and drizzle muffins when they are ready. This caramel sauce would be insane also on ice cream, pancakes, etc.!
Notes
- For nut-free, omit the almond flour and grind 1 cup (145 g) of raw, unsalted sunflower kernels into a fine flour in your food processor for a couple of minutes, being careful not to over process into nut butter. Please note that it does leave a sunflower taste to the muffins.
- For starch-free, sub the potato starch and use oat flour instead, but use 1 cup oat flour (128g) (instead of 1/2 cup of the starch). All the rest of the ingredients remain the same. Please note that the muffins are a bit more dense with the oat flour, but are still moist and delicious.
- Nutrition per muffin: 146.2 calories, 6.9 g fat, 2.6 g protein, 19.8 carbs, 9.2 g sugar
Nutrition per tablespoon of caramel: 39.6 calories, .8 g fat, .1 g protein, 8 carbs, 6.5 g sugar
This looks delicious. I’m going to make it as a cake for my son’s 1st birthday. Just wondering if it’s OK to use normal canned coconut milk (I cannot find the lite or low fat versions). Thanks for this recipe!
Hi Kala! The lite coconut milks are usually always on the shelf directly next to the full fat ones. You really need the lite for these, the full fat is 3 times as much fat and is way too thick. I do not think it would work well in these muffins and would likely make them too dense.
Hi Brandi, these look fantastic! I would love to make them to take on Easter to family. How well would all of this travel? Would I need to keep the caramel separate? Thanks a bunch!~
Hi Summer! I would definitely keep them caramel separate or it will make the muffins soggy. I’ve never traveled with them, so I really don’t know, but I’d imagine they’d be fine!
Wondering if you can use the same canned coconut milk for muffin and caramel? One called for lite and the other low-fat….thanks , can’t wait o try them!
OH yes, they are the same, sorry for the confusion!
Just made the caramel for some apple nachos! We’re having a fall themed birthday party for my daughter and now I’m wondering if we need cupcakes at all because this caramel is amazing and super simple! Thanks!
Wonderful Karen, I’m so glad you loved it, thank you for making it! Would you mind leaving a star rating, it helps me out so much! (you have to comment in order to do it fyi) Thank you so much!
My kids hate all things coconut with a passion and can always pick out the flavour when I’ve tried to sneak it in a recipe 😬 So do you have any suggestions as to what I could use instead of the canned coconut milk in your caramel and muffin recipes please. I really want to make them. Thanks
Hi Anne! You can try cashew milk. It will be slightly less creamy and less fluffy but I think should still work. Just FYI though, lite coconut milk leaves zero coconut taste in the finished product. That’s why I love it so much. The cinnamon really takes over. But let me know if you try the cashew milk!
Thanks so much for replying Brandi. I’ve just ordered the lite coconut milk and think I’ll make 2 batches, one with cashew and one with coconut milk and see what they say. I’ll give them the coconut ones first…really hoping I can outsmart them 😈 😂
Hahaha! You really can’t taste it so I would be shocked! My hubby is a self-professed coconut hater and he has no idea it’s in there!
I made these muffins today, and they are fantastic! I made the original version and used the lined foil cupcake papers. The muffins are moist and flavorful, and the caramel topping is perfect. Thanks for such a wonderful recipe!
Yay, so glad you loved these Carol, thank you for making them!
Brandi, these muffins are delicious! I wasn’t sure about using so much cinnamon, but I am glad I trusted you…these are perfect!
BTW, I used cashew flour in place of the almond flour and it worked just fine.
Thank you for sharing your delicious recipes!
Hi, I just made the sweet potato caramel sauce today, and I think milk might be missing from the ingredient list. (I added nut milk while cooking, and it’s delicious.)
Hi Brandi,
I want to make these muffins for my cousin. She has cancer so can’t est any sugar. Will the recipe fail if I omit the sugar? Can I add raisins or dates instead? Thanks for any help you can offer.
🤤🤤🤤 Soooooo delicious!!! My new favorite treat! 😍 Thank you!!
So happy to hear that Kai!
This caramel is insane !!! I am in love !!!!!
I didn’t have potato starch on hand; I have arrowroot and tapioca starch. Based on this https://bakeitwithlove.com/potato-starch-substitute/ I used 2/3 as much of the arrowroot as a replacement for the potato starch, or 53.3 grams (who am I kidding-somewhere between 53 and 54 since that’s all the more accurate my scale is). Still too wet at 20 minutes so I went to 22, at which point they passed the toothpick test. But they then collapsed pretty spectacularly in the pan. This made nice little wells to hold lots of the caramel so I’m not completely sad about this, but is this possibly a side effect of the arrowroot substitution? (I didn’t forget to put in the baking powder; experienced baker and I always triple-check my ingredients before things go in the oven, but I’m new to vegan baking that doesn’t involve a flax egg.) They were also still pretty gooey inside after the 20 minutes of wait time/carryover. No complaints from the taste-testers about the slightly pudding-y quality for sure–delicious flavor–and I’m going to keep making these and see if it works differently with tapioca starch and slightly longer baking.
The caramel sauce is Utter Amazeballs. I’m going to make this and give it as gifts to people with a link to the recipe just to blow their minds.
So glad you loved the sauce Barb! Yes, arrowroot tends to make things much more gummy, whereas potato starch has a very fluffy drying effect when baked, so that would be why yours turned out like that. I would definitely do the potato starch next time, you’ll notice a difference 🙂 I order mine off Amazon. Linked in my ingredient list.
Your sweet potato chocolate chip muffins are, hands down, my favorite muffin ever…And this recipe is giving those a run for their money! I love the cinnamon flavor in the muffins! I used oat flour instead of the potato starch, and they came out wonderfully moist and fluffy, and yes, a bit denser. Also, I made the sweet potato caramel a few days ago and drizzled it over the brownies from your cookbook – delicious!