Orange Muffins Recipe With Chocolate Glaze

About These Orange Muffins

The orange muffins recipe is adapted from the Orange Cake Recipe that I had shared earlier. But I also decided to add a thin, orange-flavored chocolate glaze this time around. As a result, these tasty little treats are reminiscent of the chocolate oranges available around the winter holidays. They are utterly delightful! Eggless cakes, muffins, and cookies are often made at our home, as we have a serious sweet tooth. In fact, I have already posted few muffin recipes like my Banana Muffins and Chocolate Chip Muffins because we are so fond of them. These simple sweets are made with nutritious whole wheat flour, freshly squeezed orange juice, and a mere ½ cup of sugar, meaning they are perfectly acceptable to eat for breakfast or to pack into your or your kid’s tiffin as a treat. Boasting a soft, light texture and a tender crumb, you’d never guess these simple orange muffins were vegan. They also take just 15 minutes (!!!) of preparation and will be ready for sharing in under an hour.

Ingredients & Substitutions

Despite being absolutely packed with flavor, this simple recipe for vegan orange muffins doesn’t require much to make. Here’s what you’ll need to gather:

Whole Wheat Flour  – I prefer to use whole wheat flour (atta) in my bakes to add an extra boost of nutrition. If you don’t have any on hand, you can easily swap in all-purpose flour (maida) or bread flour instead.Sugar – Feel free to use unrefined cane sugar, powdered jaggery, or regular sugar.Oranges – Fresh citrus not only tastes better, but it also has the added benefit of a secret ingredient: zest! Be sure to only remove the orange colored zest as the white pith is quite bitter. Also, word to the wise — zest before you cut and juice the oranges. For purchasing knowledge, I got 1 cup of orange juice from 3 medium oranges.Salt – Even sweet things need a bit of salt to balance them out!Baking Soda & Baking Powder – Yes, you need both. No, they cannot be used interchangeably. Also, please note that baking powder begins to react as soon as it is added to liquid, so you’ll want to make sure you preheat the oven before you make the batter lest you miss out on some of the rising power.Corn Starch – If corn isn’t part of your diet, you can use 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour (maida), rice flour, or tapioca flour instead. You can also swap in an equal amount of either chickpea flour or gram flour, arrowroot flour or potato starch.Neutral Oil – Any neutral oil will work well here. Try canola, corn, vegetable, avocado, or grapeseed oil.Cocoa Powder – I prefer to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder because it is less bitter, but whatever you have on hand will work just fine. Cacao powder is also perfectly acceptable.

How To Make Orange Muffins

Sift Dry Ingredients

1. First, sieve 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1 tablespoon corn starch, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and a pinch of salt in a mixing bowl or pan.
2. Keep the sifted dry mixture aside.
3. Using either a zester or grater, grate the zest from one medium orange and keep aside.
4. Line a muffin tray or pan with muffin liners. Also preheat the oven at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 to 12 minutes. Use the same temperature for preheating in the convection mode of a microwave oven.

Make Orange Juice Mixture

5. In another bowl, take ½ cup raw sugar and ¼ cup oil. You can use regular sugar or your preferred sweetener instead.
6. Mix and keep aside.
7. Prepare the orange juice using a manual juicer, an electric juicer, or a blender. Note: If using a blender, remove the seeds from the orange segments before blending, then strain the orange juice through a fine sieve.
8. Add 1 cup orange juice to the sugar + oil mixture.
9. Stir briskly and very well till the sugar dissolves and the mixture looks even.

Make Muffin Batter

10. Add this orange juice mixture to the sifted flour mixture.
11. Add the orange zest.
12. With a wired whisk, stir the mixture to a smooth batter. Don’t over mix.
13. Here’s the orange muffins batter ready to be poured in the muffin liners.
14. Spoon the batter in the muffin liners till it reaches ¾ of the way up the sides of the liners. Gently shake or tap the pan to release excess air bubbles.

Bake Orange Muffins

15. Place the muffin tray in the preheated oven. Bake the orange muffins at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 to 25 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean. The recipe yields 8 regular-sized orange muffins. Temperatures in ovens differ, so do keep a check while baking. Note: Your oven might bake the muffin in 15 minutes or even 30 minutes. The final check is that a toothpick should come out dry or with fine crumb particles. There should be no stickiness. Use the same temperature for baking in the convection mode of a microwave oven.
16. Place the muffin pan on a wired rack to let the muffins cool for about 10 minutes. Then remove the muffins from the pan. You can serve orange muffins plain, dust them with icing sugar or cocoa powder, or prepare any chocolate icing.

How To Make Chocolate Glaze

1. To prepare the chocolate glaze, take 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons orange juice, 2 to 2.5 tablespoons raw sugar (or regular sugar), ½ tablespoon neutral flavored oil, and 2 to 2.5 tablespoons water in a small pan or sauce pan. Add more water if required.
2. Mix everything and keep the pan on a low heat on the stove top. 3. Stir till the mixture thickens a bit and the sugar completely dissolves.
3. When the glaze is still warm, spread it on the orange muffins, with a small spatula. To keep the mess to a minimum, place the muffins on a wired rack and keep a plate or tray underneath while spreading the icing.  You can also slice the muffins from the center and then spread the glaze on the base slice. Cover with the top slice and then spread the glaze on the top.
4. Allow the glaze to cool before serving orange muffins. Serve these orange muffins with a glass of milk or ginger tea or filter coffee or as an after meal dessert. Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Apple Muffins Banana Muffins Blueberry Muffins (With Whole Wheat Flour) Eggless Chocolate Chip Muffins Recipe Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. This Orange Muffins recipe post from the archives first published in Feb 2015 has been republished and updated on 30 April 2022.

title: “Orange Muffins Recipe With Chocolate Glaze " ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-21” author: “Barbara Mercer”

About These Orange Muffins

The orange muffins recipe is adapted from the Orange Cake Recipe that I had shared earlier. But I also decided to add a thin, orange-flavored chocolate glaze this time around. As a result, these tasty little treats are reminiscent of the chocolate oranges available around the winter holidays. They are utterly delightful! Eggless cakes, muffins, and cookies are often made at our home, as we have a serious sweet tooth. In fact, I have already posted few muffin recipes like my Banana Muffins and Chocolate Chip Muffins because we are so fond of them. These simple sweets are made with nutritious whole wheat flour, freshly squeezed orange juice, and a mere ½ cup of sugar, meaning they are perfectly acceptable to eat for breakfast or to pack into your or your kid’s tiffin as a treat. Boasting a soft, light texture and a tender crumb, you’d never guess these simple orange muffins were vegan. They also take just 15 minutes (!!!) of preparation and will be ready for sharing in under an hour.

Ingredients & Substitutions

Despite being absolutely packed with flavor, this simple recipe for vegan orange muffins doesn’t require much to make. Here’s what you’ll need to gather:

Whole Wheat Flour  – I prefer to use whole wheat flour (atta) in my bakes to add an extra boost of nutrition. If you don’t have any on hand, you can easily swap in all-purpose flour (maida) or bread flour instead.Sugar – Feel free to use unrefined cane sugar, powdered jaggery, or regular sugar.Oranges – Fresh citrus not only tastes better, but it also has the added benefit of a secret ingredient: zest! Be sure to only remove the orange colored zest as the white pith is quite bitter. Also, word to the wise — zest before you cut and juice the oranges. For purchasing knowledge, I got 1 cup of orange juice from 3 medium oranges.Salt – Even sweet things need a bit of salt to balance them out!Baking Soda & Baking Powder – Yes, you need both. No, they cannot be used interchangeably. Also, please note that baking powder begins to react as soon as it is added to liquid, so you’ll want to make sure you preheat the oven before you make the batter lest you miss out on some of the rising power.Corn Starch – If corn isn’t part of your diet, you can use 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour (maida), rice flour, or tapioca flour instead. You can also swap in an equal amount of either chickpea flour or gram flour, arrowroot flour or potato starch.Neutral Oil – Any neutral oil will work well here. Try canola, corn, vegetable, avocado, or grapeseed oil.Cocoa Powder – I prefer to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder because it is less bitter, but whatever you have on hand will work just fine. Cacao powder is also perfectly acceptable.

How To Make Orange Muffins

Sift Dry Ingredients

1. First, sieve 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1 tablespoon corn starch, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and a pinch of salt in a mixing bowl or pan.
2. Keep the sifted dry mixture aside.
3. Using either a zester or grater, grate the zest from one medium orange and keep aside.
4. Line a muffin tray or pan with muffin liners. Also preheat the oven at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 to 12 minutes. Use the same temperature for preheating in the convection mode of a microwave oven.

Make Orange Juice Mixture

5. In another bowl, take ½ cup raw sugar and ¼ cup oil. You can use regular sugar or your preferred sweetener instead.
6. Mix and keep aside.
7. Prepare the orange juice using a manual juicer, an electric juicer, or a blender. Note: If using a blender, remove the seeds from the orange segments before blending, then strain the orange juice through a fine sieve.
8. Add 1 cup orange juice to the sugar + oil mixture.
9. Stir briskly and very well till the sugar dissolves and the mixture looks even.

Make Muffin Batter

10. Add this orange juice mixture to the sifted flour mixture.
11. Add the orange zest.
12. With a wired whisk, stir the mixture to a smooth batter. Don’t over mix.
13. Here’s the orange muffins batter ready to be poured in the muffin liners.
14. Spoon the batter in the muffin liners till it reaches ¾ of the way up the sides of the liners. Gently shake or tap the pan to release excess air bubbles.

Bake Orange Muffins

15. Place the muffin tray in the preheated oven. Bake the orange muffins at 180 degrees celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 to 25 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean. The recipe yields 8 regular-sized orange muffins. Temperatures in ovens differ, so do keep a check while baking. Note: Your oven might bake the muffin in 15 minutes or even 30 minutes. The final check is that a toothpick should come out dry or with fine crumb particles. There should be no stickiness. Use the same temperature for baking in the convection mode of a microwave oven.
16. Place the muffin pan on a wired rack to let the muffins cool for about 10 minutes. Then remove the muffins from the pan. You can serve orange muffins plain, dust them with icing sugar or cocoa powder, or prepare any chocolate icing.

How To Make Chocolate Glaze

1. To prepare the chocolate glaze, take 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons orange juice, 2 to 2.5 tablespoons raw sugar (or regular sugar), ½ tablespoon neutral flavored oil, and 2 to 2.5 tablespoons water in a small pan or sauce pan. Add more water if required.
2. Mix everything and keep the pan on a low heat on the stove top. 3. Stir till the mixture thickens a bit and the sugar completely dissolves.
3. When the glaze is still warm, spread it on the orange muffins, with a small spatula. To keep the mess to a minimum, place the muffins on a wired rack and keep a plate or tray underneath while spreading the icing.  You can also slice the muffins from the center and then spread the glaze on the base slice. Cover with the top slice and then spread the glaze on the top.
4. Allow the glaze to cool before serving orange muffins. Serve these orange muffins with a glass of milk or ginger tea or filter coffee or as an after meal dessert. Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Apple Muffins Banana Muffins Blueberry Muffins (With Whole Wheat Flour) Eggless Chocolate Chip Muffins Recipe Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. This Orange Muffins recipe post from the archives first published in Feb 2015 has been republished and updated on 30 April 2022.