These Gluten Free Double Chocolate Chip Muffins are made with my  new favorite sugar substitute- pureed dates. These healthy chocolate muffins can be made in a blender so are actually pretty quick to throw together as well.
Contents
Healthy Double Chocolate Chip Muffins – No Added Sugar!
I am apparently not the only one out there that thinks dates are amazing in desserts. My Gluten Free Date Bars (sugar free!)
are now the most popular recipe on my site.
When I realized that a few months ago, I decided to try making some other baked goods with date puree. I began with an amazing Sticky Date Pudding with Caramel Topping made with no sugar at all- just the goodness of dates (and boy is it good!). I also used dates to top these amazing Oatmeal Date Caramel Bars, and they sure have been popular as well.
I started making these Gluten Free Double Chocolate Chip Muffins a few months ago, but haven’t posted them in fear I was making my blog too date-centered.
But what’s not to love? Rather than using refined sugar, or even honey (which has some trace minerals and vitamins), dates are actually loaded with health benefits. They are high in fiber, potassium, copper, manganese, magnesium, and B6.
This combination of nutrients helps with promotes digestive health, but also have been found to boost heart health, reduce blood pressure, and are a good addition to any anti inflammatory diet.
And it’s always a good thing when you can add extra nutrients into fun foods like these double chocolate muffins. Because treats keep most of us sane!
Of course, dates are still mostly sugar, so eating them in moderation is key to maintaining balance. These muffins are a healthy option with clean ingredients, but still have as many calories as a typical muffin would.
Tips for making Gluten Free Double Chocolate Chip Muffins
- I’ve used both store bought and home-ground (in a blender) oat flour. Either will work fine in this recipe, although I prefer to grind it myself for these– adds a bit more texture!
- I mostly use Medjool dates. I started using weights for dates in my recipes after finding out 1 cup of medjool dates is the same in weight as 2 1/2 cups of smaller dates. Dates blend great in my Vitamix, but I have also made this recipe in a standard blender with good results.
- Make is Gluten Free: If you need this recipe to be 100% gluten free, be sure to use certified gluten free oat flour. Almond flours are already gluten free.
- For the Family:Â Xander loves these, so I made his without walnuts since he still doesn’t have a full mouth of teeth.
Gluten Free Double Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup oatmeal ground into a flour
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup natural cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup walnuts optional (not pictured)
Wet
- 5 1/2 ounces dates pitted
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup almond milk unsweetened
- 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Pour boiling water over dates and soak for 1-2 minutes, then drain well. Soak dates even if using fresh Medjool dates.
- Process whole oats in the blender until a fine flour is formed. I do not recommend subbing a store bought oat flour. Set aside.
- Add dates and all wet ingredients to a blender, and blend until a very smooth mixture is formed.
- If you want to make these all in the blender, add the sea salt, baking powder and baking soda to the blender with the date mixture first. Blend until mixed well. Then, add the oat flour, almond flour, and cocoa powder, and pulse to combine. Stir chocolate chips and walnuts in with a spatula.
- Otherwise, add all dry ingredients to a bowl and mix to combine, then add the wet ingredients into the bowl and stir until no dry ingredients are left. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.
- Either line a muffin tin with cupcake papers, or spray with coconut oil.
- Divide the batter into 6 large or 8 smaller muffins, and top with extra chocolate chips and walnuts if desired.
- If making large muffins, feel free to pile the batter in over the top of the muffin pan. The batter is thick and sticky and doesn't rise a lot.
- Bake 20-24 minutes, until centers are fully baked.
Nutrition
Other Date-Sweetened Recipes:
- Date-Sweetened Banana Bread, by Sweet Simple Vegan
- Chocolate Chip Almond Butter Bars, by Emilie Eats
- Gluten Free Date Bars, by Sunkissed Kitchen
- Sticky Date Pudding with Caramel Topping, by Sunkissed Kitchen
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I need to play around with dates more! I just never ever buy them!
These look fantastic! I’m gluten free and I’m always looking for a good gluten free dessert! Printing this recipe out now!
Good! I hope you love these as much as we do.
Love dates and these muffins look amazing, what a delicious bite!
These are super delicious — but healthy, too!
They look really tasty, loving all the dates, very much an old fashioned and traditional ingredient in lots of British desserts.
These look so delicious! I love the addition of pumpkin, and your photography is beautiful!
Thank you Tiffany! I just upgraded my camera and even though I don’t 100% know how to use it yet, I have seen an improvement in my image quality 🙂
These healthy muffins sound like just the sort of afternoon snack I’d love! I make healthy baking substitutions all the time, but I still haven’t tried date paste. Gotta give it a go!
I started out blending dates to replace sugar in my son’s muffins when he was a baby, and realized you could barely tell the difference between pureed dates and honey if you used the right proportions- now it’s a go-to with all my muffins/quick breads for the whole family.
I’m going to try them for breakfast soon! They look so scrumptious!
I hope you enjoy them Priya! I had to make so many batches of these when photographing them, and gave a batch to my mom to take in to her office. Even though she had already had a batch, she decided they were too good to share and kept them in her freezer!
These look awesome. Love the “no sugar” added too. This is my kind of breakfast!!
I love using fruit instead of other types of sugars– so much goodness, and they have such an amazing flavor!
Yum, such beautiful muffins! I love that they are gluten free and made with dates. Dates are a fairly new favorite of mine.
wow – what a healthy muffin!
They are delicious 🙂 One of my new favs.
I made these in a tremendous hurry for a meeting at my house, and in support for my sister who has eliminated gluten and sugar for health reasons. Not only did the house fill with a fantastic chocolate smell, but the muffins came out perfect and moist and so delicious!! Keeper recipe, for sure!! Thanks very much!!!
Katie, thank you so much for telling me! One, it reminds me that I haven’t made these in a while, and they are a favorite all around here. Two — I have tons of recipes that your sister might benefit from! If you go to the menu on my site, there is a submenu “sugar free desserts” on the desserts menu. I have many more she might like to try. Plus, everything on the site is gluten free and much of it sugar free!