The recipe prices will vary based on fluctuating grocery costs. Please use what is posted as a guide.
These delicious pumpkin muffins are made with honey instead of sugar, making them a healthier breakfast or snack option. They are also quick and easy to make, perfect for busy weekdays or special occasions.
This recipe costs $8.60 to make. The recipe makes twelve muffins and costs approximately $0.71 per muffin.
Pumpkin Honey Muffins
I like making these easy pumpkin muffins for breakfast on the go or entertaining overnight guests. Whatever circumstance leads you to make these, everyone will love them!
Pumpkin and honey are two flavors that pair well together, which is excellent because honey is a natural sweetener. The honey gives these muffins the right amount of sweetness without being overly sweet. Plus, they add to the distinct autumnal flavor of the pumpkin honey muffins!
The chopped pecans add an earthy, nutty flavor, while the warm spices add to the seasonal flavors you can serve for breakfast, brunch, after school, or after dinner.
What You’ll Love About This Pumpkin Muffin Recipe:
- Seasonal Appeal: When pumpkin season comes, these muffins hit the spot. Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, honey, and pumpkin blend create a warm and cozy muffin.
- Healthy Ingredients: My recipe uses honey instead of sugar for a naturally sweet addition with fewer calories.
- Soft and Moist Texture: These muffins are soft and tender. Adding pumpkin puree helps keep the muffins super moist while getting a slightly crispy outer layer through baking.
Pumpkin Muffins Ingredients and Estimated Cost:
Per Serving Cost: $0.71
Recipe Cost: $8.60
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour – $0.16
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder – $0.06
- 1 teaspoon baking soda – $0.01
- ¼ teaspoon salt – $0.01
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon – $0.09
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger – $0.12
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg – $0.05
- ¼ cup butter – $0.56
- ¾ cup honey – $2.16
- 1 large egg – $0.43
- 1 cup canned pumpkin – $1.71
- 1 cup chopped pecans – $3.24
NOTE: The recipe prices are calculated by using grocery store websites. The recipe cost is calculated by the amounts needed for the recipe. The actual cost of the recipe will vary depending on what ingredients you already have. I updated the pricing for this recipe in September 2023.
How To Make Pumpkin Muffins
***For complete recipe instructions, see the recipe card below.
- First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a muffin tin with paper liners.
- Then, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a medium bowl and set it aside.
- Beat the butter on medium for about two minutes and then add the honey, egg, and pumpkin to beat for another minute.
- Slowly add the flour mixture and mix until blended.
- Fold in pecans.
- Scoop the batter into the muffin liners. Sprinkle a pinch of sparkling sugar over each muffin cup.
- Finally, bake for twenty-five to thirty minutes, remove from the pan, and place on a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.
Pumpkin Muffins Recipe Variations and Substitutions:
- Add ⅓ cup of sour cream or yogurt to the batter for a moist muffin.
- To make these muffins vegan, substitute applesauce for the butter and use a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 2 tablespoons water) instead of the chicken egg.
- To make these muffins gluten-free, use gluten-free flour.
- Instead of pecans, you can use walnuts or leave the nuts out altogether.
- I dressed these muffins up by adding some Wilton White Sparkling Sugar to the tops right before baking. It gives them more of a professional, straight-from-the-bakery look! You could use a sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw instead.
- Leave off the sugar from the tops of the muffins if you want a muffin free from refined sugar.
Pumpkin Muffins With Pecans Storage Tips
SERVE: Serve the pumpkin muffins warm or at room temperature. A drizzle of honey or a light smear of butter are both delicious on the muffins.
STORE: These muffins will keep covered at room temperature for three days. I doubt they’ll last that long, though!
FREEZE: To freeze muffins, let them cool completely. Then, wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap or foil. Place the wrapped muffins in a freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.
THAW: Remove them from the freezer to thaw muffins and let them thaw at room temperature for 1-2 hours. You can also thaw muffins in the microwave. To thaw muffins in the microwave, place them on a microwave-safe plate and microwave on high for 15-30 seconds per muffin or until thawed.
Recipe FAQs
Store the muffins in an airtight container to keep them fresh and moist.
One tip is in how you mix the ingredients. Mixing the dry and wet ingredients separately helps create moist muffins that will not dry out during baking.
These Pumpkin Honey Muffins will need to bake for twenty-five to thirty minutes at 350 degrees F.
If you love pumpkin like I do, check out these other recipes.
More Delicious Pumpkin Recipes:
- Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
- Pumpkin Blossom Cake
- Mom’s Pumpkin Bread
- Pumpkin Blossom Cookies made with 4 Ingredients!
- Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- Mashed Pumpkin
- Pumpkin Cupcakes with Marshmallow Buttercream
- Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Browned Butter Cinnamon Icing
- Paleo Pumpkin Bread
- Pumpkin Parfait Breakfast Popsicles
- Pumpkin Churro Waffles
- Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Pumpkin Honey Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg freshly ground if possible
- ¼ cup butter softened to room temperature
- ¾ cup honey
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- 1 cup chopped toasted pecans
- Wilton White Sparkling Sugar optional
Instructions
PREP OVEN AND MUFFIN TIN:
- Move the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350°F.
- Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners.
MAKE MUFFIN BATTER:
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Whisk until combined.
- Using an electric or stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter on medium until light in color, about 2 minutes.
- Add honey, egg, and pumpkin and beat until combined, about 1 minute.
- Slowly add flour mixture until blended, and no flour streaks remain.
- Fold in pecans.
BAKE MUFFINS:
- Scoop batter into muffin cups using a 4-tablespoon scoop (if you don’t have a scoop just distribute batter evenly).
- Sprinkle a pinch of Wilton White Sparkling Sugar over each muffin cup.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
COOL AND SERVE:
- Remove muffins from pan and place wire rack to cool for an hour.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Video
Nutrition
Melanie Coburn says
Hello,
I want to make these muffins, they look delicious! However, can you please clarify what size is the can of pumpkin? I have two different sizes in my pantry.
Thank you,
Melanie
Jillian says
For these muffins you only need 1 cups worth of canned pumpkin. If you want to double the recipe just use an entire 15-ounce can of pumpkin.
Lisa says
I made these this morning for a ladies brunch and they were fantastic! Definitely a hit and I didn’t feel guilty about them because they have no refined sugar! Will be making these again for my kiddos!
Jillian says
Lisa, I am SO glad you loved them. They’re one of my favorite muffins to make…and eat! 🙂
Robert says
Hi friend … great recipe as pumpkin is one of my favourites and I love honey. Could whole wheat flour be substituted and would there be a change in the amount? Thanks in advance.
Jillian says
Hi Robert! Last fall I tested this recipe with whole wheat flour substituted for all-purpose flour. I didn’t publish the substitution in the blog post, because the end product wasn’t great (especially because the recipe as written is awesome!). With that said, if you want to make this recipe with whole wheat flour you do need less flour overall. Use 1 cup + 3 Tablespoons of whole wheat flour for the substitution.
For future reference you’ll need 3/4 cup whole wheat flour for every cup of all-purpose flour when you make a substitution in a recipe. If you make these I’m curious how they turn out for you; make sure you stop by and let me know!
Jill says
To go along with the whole wheat substitution question, what about gluten-free flour?
Jillian says
Unfortunately, I have very little experience with gluten-free flour so I don’t have a substitute for you. Sorry!
Ella J. says
For anyone wondering, I just made these with gluten-free flour (Namaste brand’s Perfect Flour Blend). In addition to subbing gluten-free flour, I also replaced the butter with full-fat yogurt.
The results? Great! I baked at 350 for 30 minutes.
Like many gluten-free baked goods, the end result was on the chewy, springy, and slightly dense side. This doesn’t bother me at all, as I like a chewy muffin. But anyone expecting a more cakey muffin might be disappointed.
Jillian says
Glad this recipe worked for you!
leah says
I just made a batch of these and they all caved in. I didn’t see your note to half the pumpkin. so sad.
Jillian says
Oh no! If you use the entire can of pumpkin instead of just 1 cup like the recipe calls for, unfortunately they will cave in. Sorry this happened to you. 🙁
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry says
These look absolutely delicious – I might have to give making these a try with the children this week as I am loving pumpkin recipes right now
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
Yum! These look like just the sort of thing I love to bake at this time of year!
Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says
I love pumpkin muffins and I feel like the honey would add just the right amount of sweetness! yum!
Jillian says
It does!
Jenni says
I am totally in love with these muffins! Love that you added honey instead of sugar. And the pecans, too! YUM! These are seriously perfectly fall muffins!
Jillian says
Thank you! 🙂
Tania says
Hi. I’m from the UK and we dont really use canned pumpkin. Could i use fresh for this recipe ? Thank you
Jillian says
Yes, go for it!
Amanda says
Made these tonight as I needed a recipe with no processed sugar for my diet. I substituted whole wheat flour and walnuts (I didn’t have pecans). They came out great! I actually think I like walnuts better and they are going to make a great addition to my breakfast carb options. 🙂 thank you so much!!
Jillian says
Amanda, I am thrilled that this recipe was a hit. It’s one of my favorites for sure. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
Emily says
Just made these tonight!! My toddlers absolutely loved them! Hands down the best pumpkin muffins recipe! Thank you!!
Jillian says
Emily,
I am SO glad that you and your little ones loved the recipe. It’s our favorite pumpkin muffins recipe, too! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Calvin says
Ah with fall season coming around again, it’s good to have these.. I bet they smell great!
April says
These muffins are delicious! Will definitely be making them again.
Jillian says
April, I’m so glad that you enjoyed them!
Tavo says
Wow, those Pumpkin Honey Muffins were a hit at my weekend brunch! The balance of pumpkin and honey was spot-on, making each bite a cozy little autumn hug. Your recipe was easy to follow, and the muffins turned out perfectly moist. Can’t wait to see what you whip up next!
Nikki says
These do look and sound irresistible. I really like the pecans in them. Give the muffins a little extra flavor boost.
Alison Corey says
I love that this recipe uses honey instead of sugar. It’s a healthier option, and it also gives the muffins a delicious caramel-like flavor.