These Chocolate Cherry Muffins with aquafaba are vegan, of course, but they are also made without any added oil, naturally sweetened with maple syrup, and they are wholegrain. They are moist, fluffy, and studded with ripe, sweet, juicy cherries in every bite.
So yes, chocolate tastes great and is great for you, and I don't think anyone will argue with me on that. And chocolate and cherry? That's a combination most of us, I think, would die for.
But you don't have to die for these vegan Chocolate Cherry Muffins, although one bite of one of these might make you feel like you've died and gone to heaven.
With school about to start, I am trying to find healthy snack ideas for Jay, who goes into fourth grade this year. How time flies! Surely it wasn't that long ago that we were dropping him off in first grade, missing teeth and all?
Jay is not one of those kids who detests the idea of school. Not by a stretch. He has been waiting for it eagerly, and has been chattering on about meeting his friends again. His enthusiasm has not been dampened one bit by my wet-blanket reminders that school's not about having fun but about learning.
While I am not in control of what goes on in his 9-year-old world while he's at school, there are some things I can control, to some extent: what goes into his tummy, for instance. And I am pretty sure these Chocolate Cherry Muffins will end up there rather than in the cafeteria trash.
These muffins are very lightly sweetened, which is something I love about them, but for little mouths you could serve them topped with some marmalade.
I use frozen cherries in this recipe for convenience, partly because I can always keep them on hand and partly because it's easier to find frozen organic cherries than fresh. But if you can still find fresh cherries in the market, and are willing to put in the effort to pit them, use them by all means.
More recipes to try:
- Vegan Banana Muffins
- Vegan Almond Flour Chia Seed Muffins (gluten-free)
- Vegan Coffee Cake Carrot Muffins
- Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Vegan Applesauce Muffins
Vegan Chocolate Cherry Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- ½ cup superfine almond flour
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 2 cups cherries (frozen or fresh, pitted and chopped)
- ½ cup aquafaba (chickpea brine)
- ½ cup applesauce (can also use mashed bananas, which will add more sweetness)
- ½ cup almond milk (or any nondairy milk)
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prep a 12-cup muffin pan with muffin/cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, mix the flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- To a smaller bowl, add the wet ingredients -- aquafaba, applesauce, milk, maple syrup and vinegar. Whisk together to mix well. Add the cherries and mix.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until incorporated. Don't overmix.
- Divide the batter equally among the muffin cups.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove the muffins to a rack to cool.
Recipe notes
- For an even more chocolatey variation, stir in ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips.
Sarah G
My 4-year-old grandbaby didn't want to eat what I'd cooked for dinner, so I let him eat two of these muffins instead. It was a win-win. He thought he'd gotten away with eating dessert for dinner, and I didn't feel bad about it because there's no white sugar and whole wheat included. These muffins were so moist and delicious that I used them as cupcakes to treat myself instead of eating them for breakfast.
Vaishali
Hi Sarah, what a lovely message! So happy you and your grandbaby enjoyed these muffins. He is smart, they do make a perfect dinner -- or dessert. 🙂
Kaylee
I made these with a few changes - I used chakki atta instead of the whole wheat pastry flour, increased it to 2 cups bc I didn't have any almond flour. I had a jar of morelo cherries in liquid. Drained the liquid and reduced it to a syrup which I substituted for the applesauce. Finally added some chocolate chips and shredded coconut and poured it into a loaf pan. Lowered the temp to 325 and baked for 35 minutes. It's delicious!! Probably quite different in the end from the muffins, but a very flexible recipe as long as you keep the ratios basically the same and use smart substitutions. 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
Melissa
Hi Vaishali, I made these for my son's school snack this week, and we both loved them. I feel good I can give him something healthy he enjoys, Thank you for the recipe.