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With the mornings turning cooler, my sourdough starter is taking a little longer to rise. But that hasn’t slowed down the fall baking happening in my kitchen. The warm aroma of apples, cinnamon, and pumpkin fills the house each week, and these Sourdough Pumpkin Muffins are one of our favorites
Made with sourdough discard and canned pumpkin, these muffins are soft, moist, and full of fall flavor. They’re easy to mix up and perfect for a quick breakfast, snack, or lunchbox treat. Stir in cinnamon chips or chocolate chips for a fun variation, and you’ll see why these pumpkin sourdough muffins are a must-bake this season.
And if you love baking with pumpkin, be sure to check out my favorite pumpkin sourdough recipes — a roundup of cozy fall bakes that celebrate the best flavors of the season.
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Why You’ll Love Sourdough Pumpkin Muffins
- Fall Favorite – Nothing says fall baking like pumpkin spice. If you’re looking for a healthier option, try these whole wheat sourdough pumpkin muffins too.
- Discard Recipe – A quick and delicious way to use up sourdough discard. These freeze well for grab-and-go breakfasts, just like my Cinnamon Sugar Sourdough Muffins and Sourdough Pumpkin Pancakes.
- Fall Breakfast Idea – These pumpkin sourdough muffins are soft, flavorful, and perfect for busy mornings. Just like my sourdough pumpkin waffles, they’re filled with warm pumpkin spice flavor and make the whole kitchen smell like fall.
- Mix-ins – These muffins are incredibly versatile. I especially love adding cinnamon chips, but chocolate chips, pecans, or even dried cranberries are all delicious. For another fall-inspired flavor, try my Maple Pecan Sourdough Muffins—they’re a reader favorite!
Sourdough Discard Tip: I keep a jar in my fridge that I continually add sourdough discard to. Discard is a by-product of your sourdough starter, and there is no reason to throw it away. Instead, use it in incredible sourdough discard recipes where it adds moisture and great flavor. Use older, more tangy discard in savory recipes like these Whole Wheat Sourdough Pumpkin Muffins and young/fresh discard in sweeter recipes like my fall favorite Sourdough Pumpkin Cookies.
Important Ingredients
- Sourdough Discard – Use discard straight from the refrigerator or bubbly sourdough starter. I use 100% hydration sourdough (equal parts of flour and water).
- Canned Pumpkin – Use plain canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling). Homemade pumpkin puree can be watery; if using, drain well or add a bit more flour.
- Coconut Oil – Melted coconut oil adds tenderness and moisture to these muffins. If solid, melt and cool slightly before mixing. Use room-temperature ingredients to help prevent it from re-solidifying. If it clumps, gently warm the mixture or continue as is (a little solidifying won’t hurt). You can also substitute a neutral-flavored oil.
- All-Purpose Flour – Regular all-purpose or pastry flour gives the best texture for these muffins.
- Baking Powder + Baking Soda – The leavening agents that help these muffins rise.
- Spices – Cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice add that classic pumpkin flavor.
- Cinnamon Chips (Optional) – A fun mix-in that pairs perfectly with pumpkin. I like Hershey’s Cinnamon Chips, which I usually find at my local grocery store for cheaper than online.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
Substitutions
- Flour – Swap up to half the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour – a freshly milled soft wheat is my favorite.
- Oil – Any neutral-flavored oil (canola, vegetable, avocado) or melted butter can be substituted for coconut oil in this recipe.
- Pumpkin Puree – Homemade pumpkin puree works if drained well. You could also use butternut squash puree as an alternative.
- Warm Spices – Customize the flavor with extra cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice or ginger if you don’t have pumpkin pie spice.
- Mix-ins – Stir in chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, chopped nuts, or even dried cranberries for fun variations.
- Topping – Sprinkle turbinado sugar, cinnamon-sugar or even a streusel on top before baking for a sweet, crunchy finish.
How to Make Sourdough Pumpkin Muffins
Mix the Muffin Batter
Step 1: Mix together the liquid ingredients. Add the sourdough discard, canned pumpkin and coconut oil together. Whisk until combined. Then add the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Whisk again until completely incorporated.
To a separate mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Fluff together with a fork until combined.
Step 2: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and mix with a spatula until just mixed – it’s okay if your batter has a few small streaks of flour. The key to a tender muffin is not over-mixing. Add cinnamon chips if desired.
Note: Coconut oil can solidify when it comes in contact with cold ingredients. I like to mix it together with room temperature ingredients first until combined. Then I’ll add in colder ingredients and mix quickly to combine together.
Fill the Muffin Pan
Step 3: Scoop muffin batter into the wells of a muffin tin that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, or lined with parchment paper or cupcake liners. Fill the tins about 3/4 of the way full. This recipe makes about 24 muffins.
Bake the Pumpkin Muffins
Step 4: Pre-heat the oven to 350ºF. Bake muffins in a fully pre-heated oven for about 18-20 minutes until the tops spring back and the muffins are baked through.
Step 5: Let the muffins cool for about 5 minutes in the muffin tin before removing to a cooling rack. Spray and fill the muffin tin with the rest of the batter and bake the second batch. Allow the muffins to cool almost completely before enjoying.
How to Store Leftovers
Sourdough pumpkin muffins can stay at room temperature for about 24 hours. After 24 hours, place in a ziplock bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or re-heat when ready to enjoy. We like throwing these frozen muffins into school lunch boxes. They thaw throughout the morning and are perfect by lunchtime.
Amy’s Recipe Tip
Make them Mini! I love making a mini version of these in a mini muffin tin. This recipe makes about 48 little pumpkin muffins that bake in around 12 minutes. They’re the perfect bite-sized snack for kids, lunchboxes, or a quick grab-and-go treat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This recipe works well as a loaf. Fill a greased loaf pan about 3/4 of the way full with the muffin batter and bake at 350ºF for about 60–70 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. For more tips and a full guide, check out my Sourdough Pumpkin Bread recipe.
Put some coconut oil in a liquid measuring up. Warm up the coconut oil (I use the microwave) until it’s a liquid and warm, but not hot. If it is really hot, add a little bit of the solid coconut oil to the hot oil and mix it to bring down the temperature. Use as directed in the recipe. You can also substitute the oil in this recipe for a different neutral-flavored oil.
Yes — both work in this recipe. Using active starter or fresh discard will give you a lighter texture and milder flavor, while older discard will add more tangy sourdough taste.
Yes, you can cut the sugar slightly without affecting the texture, though the muffins won’t taste as sweet.
Sourdough Pumpkin Recipes
If you tried these Sourdough Pumpkin Muffins
or any other recipe on my website leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Happy Baking!
Sourdough Pumpkin Muffin Recipe
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Ingredients
- 425 grams canned pumpkin, about 1 15-oz can, not pumpkin pie filling
- 245 grams sourdough discard, about 1 cup, see recipe notes
- 220 grams packed brown sugar, about 1 cup
- 100 grams coconut oil, melted, about 1/2 cup
- 3 large eggs, 150 grams, room temperature
- 4 grams vanilla extract, about 1 teaspoon
- 280 grams all-purpose flour, about 2 cups
- 10 grams baking powder, about 2 teaspoons
- 5 grams baking soda, about 1 teaspoon
- 8 grams ground cinnamon, about 1 Tablespoon
- 4 grams pumpkin pie spice, about 1.5 teaspoons
- 6 grams salt, about 1 teaspoon
- 80 grams cinnamon chips, about 1/2 cup, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- To a medium sized bowl add the canned pumpkin, sourdough discard and melted coconut oil together. Whisk until combined. Add in the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Whisk until completely incorporated.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Fluff together with a fork until combined.
- Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together until just a few dry streaks remain. Add the cinnamon chips or other desired mix-ins and gently mix until spread throughout the batter.
- Lightly grease two 12 cup muffin tins with cooking spray. If you'd like to use muffin liners, put them in each cup and spray with cooking spray before filling. Fill each muffin tin about 3/4 of the way full with muffin batter.
- Bake muffins at 350ºF for 20-22 minutes until a toothpick is inserted and it comes out clean. Remove to a cooling rack and let cool completely. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love your sourdough muffin recipes!!! I made a streusel type topping and sprinkled over the top (trying to replicate Big Apple Bagels pumpkin spice muffins (their’s aren’t sourdough but are plenty tasty). I also used jumbo muffin pans so recipe made 12 versus 24. Just had to bake them about 5 minutes longer.
Anyway, they are fabulous. I gave some to a couple friends and they just raved over them.
Thanks for your recipes!!!
Yum! That sounds delicious. Thanks for the review and sharing your baking with friends!
Delicious moist not too sweet even with chocolate chips. Love that it uses a whole can of pumpkin and a bunch of discard. I made 15 big muffins SO GOOD!😊 yummy 😋
I’m glad you loved these muffins – enjoy!
These muffins were delicious! I made them mini and added chocolate chips to them. They were a hit in my house! Will be making these again!
Thanks for the review! I’m glad you love the recipe!