Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Protein Muffins made in the blender with oats, pumpkin, Greek yogurt, protein powder, pumpkin spice, and chocolate chips! High protein and low carb and only 122 calories with 7 grams of protein per muffin!
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Pumpkin protein muffins!! It’s officially that time of year for all the things pumpkin and I am here for it! From these protein muffins to protein bars and pumpkin pie butter.
Why we love these pumpkin protein muffins:
- made with simple ingredients – kitchen staples that you probably already have at home
- they couldn’t be easy to make – made in the blender and that’s it!
- very forgiving! – I have used both whey protein and plant-based and both work great
- have a great macro breakdown – they have a good balance of complex carbs, healthy fats, fiber, and 7 grams of protein in each one!
And they make an easy make-ahead breakfast, snack, or healthy dessert and definitely hit the spot when you are craving a baked good and don’t want to derail your nutrition goals!
Pumpkin protein muffins
This protein muffin recipe couldn’t be easier. Made in the blender with just 10 ingredients. They are made with ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen and are packed with protein!
Pumpkin chocolate chip protein muffins ingredients:
- old fashioned rolled oats
- pumpkin puree
- Greek yogurt
- eggs
- natural or vanilla flavored protein powder – I like using vanilla
- pumpkin pie spice
- cinnamon
- baking powder
- baking soda
- chocolate chips
- salt
First, make the oat flour. You could easily buy oat flour, but all you have to do is add rolled oats to your blender and blend for 30 seconds or so until it is broken down into a flour-like consistency. Voila, oat flour!
Next, add the rest of the ingredients (except the chocolate chips) – pumpkin, yogurt, eggs, protein powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking powder and soda, and salt. Blend it up until combined.
The batter will be THICK, but it’s okay. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips. I just add them to the blender and carefully stirred them instead of dirtying another bowl.
PRO TIP – only stir in about 1/3 cup of the chocolate chips and then sprinkle the rest of them on the top of the muffins after they are in the liners. This makes for pretty muffins.
Once the batter is combined, evenly distribute the batter between 12 muffin tins and bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. I used silicone muffin liners so after they cool, they will pop right out!
Gluten-free protein muffins
Rolled oats are naturally gluten-free, but they can be one of the most cross-contaminated products. To ensure this recipe is gluten-free, look for certified gluten-free oats.
Pumpkin protein muffins substitutions
This recipe is pretty forgiving and you can change it up to fit your needs. I have made it with a few different protein powders and they work. That is the only substitution I’ve tried, but I think these others will work as well!
- protein powder – you can use whey protein or plant-based. I would assume that most work, except collagen, as the protein helps thicken the batter.
- no protein powder – if you don’t want to use protein powder, try 1/3-1/2 cup more of oats. This will change the nutritional breakdown though.
- non-dairy yogurt – I haven’t tried it, but you could probably use non-dairy yogurt. Just make sure the batter is thick and if you need to, add more oat flour.
- cottage cheese – I would think this would work the same
- flax eggs – if you can’t have eggs, try 2 flax eggs instead
More healthy protein snacks
- Pumpkin Protein Bars
- No-Bake Protein Cookies
- Perfect Bar Recipe
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Balls
- Apple Cinnamon Protein Cookies
- Sweet Potato Blueberry Protein Muffins
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Protein Muffins
ingredients
- 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats (100 grams)
- 1 cup pumpkin puree (244 grams)
- 1 cup Greek yogurt (227 grams - I used Siggis 0%)
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 packed cup vanilla flavored protein powder (~50-60 grams)*
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of sea salt
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add the oats to a Vitamix, blender, or food processor and process until a flour forms (about 20 seconds).
- Add the pumpkin, Greek yogurt, eggs, protein powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and blend again until well combined. Try not to overprocess it if you can. Stir in the chocolate chips**.
- Distribute into 12 silicone muffin liners (or regular muffin liners that are greased).
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 25 minutes will be a little moister while 30 minutes won't be as moist. Enjoy!
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Recipe by Kelly Nardo, Eat the Gains | Photography by The Mindful Hapa
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I made these flowing every direction carefully and they came out kind of too moist in the middle to me. I baked for 25 minutes the second time instead of 20. The toothpick came out clean both times but still moist in the middle. Maybe I will only use half a cup of the Greek yogurt next time….
Hey Anna! Sorry to hear that. Everyone’s oven is a little different, but I will say they are a little moist since they aren’t a typical muffin you find at the store and do use yogurt. It could have to do with the protein powder you used as well. Like you said, I would suggest taking down the yogurt or you can add more oat flour! Hope that helps and thank you for leaving a review!
Made these this weekend and they were a HUGE hit for me and my (picky) kids! I used butternut squash because I had just roasted one for something else and I didn’t have pumpkin on hand. They were everything I could hope for in a macro-friendly muffin– tasty, not too sweet, great texture, and easy to make! I will be making these again and again! Thank you so much for sharing 🙂
Yay, so happy to hear that Jamie! And I love the idea of using butternut squash instead, it sounds so good! Thank you for trying them!
These are the perfect healthy pumpkin recipe with enough sweetness from the chocolate chips to curb those cravings! They were super moist too. I love this simple recipe!
So glad you liked them Chelsea and I agree, they hit the spot when needed something sweet. Thank you for trying them!
Trued then delish
They are so good!
Just tried this recipe and they were devoured by my 8 and 4 year old! Oh, and myself as well! I did use vanilla greek yogurt because that is all we had in the house and it was delish. Thanks for the great recipe!
Oh I love the idea of using vanilla greek yogurt! So glad everyone liked them, especially the kiddos. Thanks for trying them Lynn!
I was so excited about these, but they came out with a bitter Spicy taste. Is it 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice and 1tsp of cinnamon? Not sure where I went wrong.
Hi Shannon! Those are the correct measurements. I have found that some pumpkin pie spices can be a lot stronger than others, but I do love those flavors so it might be too much for some. I would suggest not adding as much and then tasting the batter and going from there. I hope they were still edible.
This recipe turned out horrible for me. They were super gooey, didn’t hold shape, and tasted very bland. Very bummed. Wait a waste of high quality ingredients.
I’m so sorry to hear that. Did you measure out the ingredients using a scale? I know sometimes slight changes can affect the recipe. I’ve had many people make these in the past and love them. Feel free to email me directly and I would be happy to work through it with you.
I FINALLY found the base for protein muffins. I loved these. I brought them to work and they ran out so quickly that people were upset they missed out. The only difference were already ground oat flour instead of grinding oats, using unflavored whey protein powder, and 1/4 cup egg whites instead of two full eggs. In future variations, I also played with yogurt flavors and veggie mash (avocado, zucchini, and chickpea!) instead of pumpkin. The recipe is versatile, healthy, and so simple! Loved it.
Yay, I’s so happy to hear that Elizabeth!! I absolutely love those variations too! Thanks so much for trying them!