Apple Cider Muffins

These vegan apple cider muffins are the perfect autumn treat. Flavoured with warm spices and sweet apple cider, they’re soft, fluffy, and full of seasonal goodness. Easy to make and dairy-free, they’re ideal for breakfast, a snack, or a sweet afternoon pick-me-up. Enjoy them with a cup of tea or coffee!

Vegan Apple Cider Muffins – A Perfect Autumn Treat

There’s something truly special about the flavours of autumn—warm spices, sweet apples, and the cosy aroma of freshly baked treats filling the kitchen. These vegan apple cider muffins embody the essence of the season, offering a delicious balance of soft, fluffy texture and rich, spiced flavour.

Much like my apple turnovers, they are a comforting and nostalgic treat, perfect for crisp mornings or chilly afternoons. Whether enjoyed as a quick breakfast, a satisfying snack, or a sweet dessert, these muffins are a must-try and capture perfectly the flavour and warmth of the season.

The magic of these muffins comes from the combination of apple cider and warming spices. Apple cider adds a deep, fruity sweetness that enhances the flavour, making every bite moist and delicious. It also pairs beautifully with the comforting blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom, which give these muffins their signature autumn taste.

Topped with a spiced sugar coating, each bite is fluffy on the inside, slightly crisp on the outside, and bursting with seasonal goodness.

These vegan apple cider muffins are best enjoyed fresh, but you can store any leftovers in an airtight container for a few days. They pair beautifully with a cup of hot apple cider, tea, or coffee.

For an alternative to muffins, try my cinnamon raisin bread or buckwheat banana bread (with dates)

3 Must-Try Vegan Muffin Recipes

Watch How To Make These Apple Cider Muffins

What is apple cider

“Apple cider” has different meanings in the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK). In the UK, “cider” is synonymous with alcoholic cider and the non-alcoholic equivalent is called “apple juice”. In the US, “apple cider” typically refers to a non-alcoholic beverage made from freshly pressed apples. It is often unfiltered and unpasteurized, giving it a cloudy appearance and a rich, full apple flavour.

For this recipe, I am using carbonated alcoholic apple cider because this is the one that is most available in the UK. If you live in the US, simply use non-alcoholic, unfiltered American apple cider.

Alternatively, you can make your own or use unfiltered apple juice.

How to make these apple cider muffins

Step 1: Reduce the apple cider

These apple cider muffins owe their lovely flavour to concentrated apple cider. Reducing the apple cider for around 15 minutes in a saucepan, will intensify its aroma. Once you have reduced the apple cider to about 120ml (US 1/2 cup) set it aside to cool down.

Step 2: Make the chia eggs

While the apple cider is reducing in the pan you can make the chia eggs. Simply mix the ground chia seeds in 6 tablespoons of water. Set aside for 10 minutes. As the chia seeds absorb the water, they will transform into a gel-like mixture.

Step 3: Prepare the muffin tin

I am using a 12-hole muffin tin lined with 12 large paper baking cases.

Step 4: Mix the dry ingredients

In a mixing bowl, stir together the self-raising flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon of ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon of ground cardamom.

TIP: it is sometimes difficult to find good quality ground cardamom. I prefer using freshly ground cardamom seeds for a more vibrant flavour. A quarter of a teaspoon equates to the seeds of 4 to 5 cardamom pods, that I grind by hand using a pestle and mortar.

Step 5: Mix the wet ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, milk, reduced apple cider, vanilla extract and chia eggs until fully combined.

Step 6: Combine the batter

Mix the apple cider mixture into the flour mixture until well combined. Make sure not to overmix the batter.

Step 7: Bake the apple cider muffins

Share the batter evenly between the muffin cases.

TIP: Using a cookie scoop to fill in the muffin case can save time and help create evenly-sized muffins, ensuring consistent baking.

Bake the muffins in the oven for around 20-25mins. Insert a skewer to check they are cooked. The skewer or toothpick should come out clean. When done, leave the muffins to cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes.

Step 8: Sugarcoat the apple cider muffins

In the meantime, prepare the toppings: In a shallow dish, mix the granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon of groundnutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon of groundcardamom (see tip above in Step 4 to make your own ground cardamom).

Place the melted butter into another shallow dish. Dip the top of the first muffin in the butter, and then roll in the sugar mixture until the top is coated all over.

Repeat with the remaining muffins. Sprinkle some of the remaining sugar mixture on top of each muffin. Leave the muffins to cool on a wire rack.

I hope you enjoy these Apple Cider Muffins as much as we do. If you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram!

Frequently Asked Questions about these Apple Cider Muffins

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