Flaxseed Muffins
This fiber-packed recipe for Flaxseed Muffins features a soft and sweet homemade orange muffin made with oat bran, spelt flour, flaxseeds, and raisins. However, the ingredients are super flexible, and the flavor options are endless. Makes 24 muffins.
If you’re wondering if you can add flax seed to muffins, the answer is YES, and this quick and easy flax seed muffin recipe will show you the best way to make it happen. You’ll make two dozen naturally sweetened muffins with a combination of oat & spelt flour, fresh orange flavor, and just enough flax seed to turn each muffin into a nutritional powerhouse.
Let’s break down the benefits of adding flaxseeds to muffins, shall we? Flax seed is a good source of dietary fiber, protein, and iron, and it can help improve digestion, so if you ask me, sneaking flaxseeds into a moist and delicious orange muffin is a no-brainer.
As for customizations, the options are endless. This simple flax seed muffin recipe leaves plenty of room for personalizing with different flavors, mix-ins, and toppings, so feel free to have fun and get creative with your muffins.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Nourishing. These muffins are a good source of protein and fiber.
- Easy. This recipe is fuss-free and great for baking beginners.
- Adjustable. The base flax seed muffin is the perfect canvas for your choice of flavor, topping, and mix-ins.
- Serving options. These yummy muffins are perfect for breakfast on the go, an afterschool snack, and a late-night sweet treat.
- Make ahead. They’re perfect for baking a batch to enjoy now and a bunch to freeze for later.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Oat bran – Oatmeal is the center of the oat groat, while oat bran is the outer layer that contains more protein and fiber. It adds texture and structure to the muffins.
- Spelt flour – Spelt flour is wheat flour made from the entire grain, so it’s higher in essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. You can also use white whole wheat flour or unbleached all-purpose flour.
- Golden flax seed – I like using ground golden flax seed as it is just as nutritious and tasty as brown, but with a light golden color. You can use golden or brown flaxseeds in this recipe, just make sure to buy the ground flax- not whole seeds.
- Oranges – A combination of fresh oranges and orange zest blended directly into the muffin batter for vibrant orange flavor.
- Baking powder – Activates during the breaking process, causing the muffins to rise.
- Sea salt – Improves flavor and texture.
- Purecane Brown sweetener – This is an excellent all-natural option for a tasty zero-calorie brown sugar substitute that does not affect the flavor or texture of the muffins. You can also use regular brown sugar.
- Buttermilk – This liquid element adds moisture and a delightfully tangy taste and helps make a moist and tender crumb. Don’t substitute the buttermilk with milk or DIY buttermilk (milk + lemon juice or vinegar). Making that swap will affect the texture of the muffin.
- Oil – To make soft and fluffy orange muffins, you’ll need a quality neutral-tasting oil like avocado or olive.
- Eggs – Help bind the ingredients into a batter together while creating a “crust” on top.
- Baking soda – Helps the muffins rise while still staying dense and moist.
- Golden raisins – I love sweet and juicy golden raisins, but you can use any small dried fruit or berry here.
How To Make Orange Flaxseed Muffins
Step 1: Prepare for baking. Preheat your oven to 375F and line two 12-cup muffin pans with paper cupcake liners.
Step 2: Combine dry ingredients. Add oat bran, flaxseed, baking powder, and sea salt to a large mixing bowl, and stir to combine. Set the dry mixture aside.
Step 3: Blend wet ingredients. Add peeled orange wedges, orange zest, sweetener, buttermilk, oil, eggs, and baking soda to a high-speed blender, and blend until smooth and well combined.
Step 4: Mix muffin batter. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture, and mix with a large, sturdy spoon until just blended. Finally, add the raisins and stir to incorporate.
Step 5: Pour batter and bake. Using an ice cream scoop, divide the batter evenly between the lined muffin cups, then immediately transfer to your preheated oven and bake until the muffins pass the toothpick test (18-20 minutes). Mine were perfect at 18 minutes. *oven temps can vary slightly
Step 6: Cool. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling before storing.
Recipe Tips
- All refrigerated ingredients must be brought to room temperature. This makes it easier for the wet ingredients to absorb the dry ingredients as you mix them.
- The fresh oranges and orange zest give the muffins a prominent citrus fruit flavor. Don’t skip the zest!
- Do not fuss with the batter more than you need to. An overmixed muffin can be tough and chewy.
- Fill each liner no more than ¾ way full. If there’s too much batter, the tops may spill over the side of the tin as they bake.
- For fluffy muffins with a moist and tender crumb, don’t let the batter sit once it’s mixed. Instead, immediately pour it into your muffin pan, and get the pan into the hot oven asap.
- Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then finish cooling on a wire rack.
Variations
The base flax seed and oat bran muffin are easy to mix and match with different flavors and mix-ins. See below for ideas.
- Citrus fruit flavor – Swap the oranges with lemons, limes, or grapefruits.
- Fresh berries – Coat diced strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, or pitted cherries in flour before adding to the batter.
- Nuts & seeds – Mix chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans directly in the batter and sprinkle extra on top. You can also sprinkle pumpkin, sunflower, chia, or flax seeds over the tops before baking.
- Warming spices – Warm up the flavors with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, ginger, or pumpkin pie spice.
- Chocolate – Stir your favorite milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, or dark chocolate chips into the batter before baking.
- Toppings – A soft, warm, and tender flax seed muffin is perfect, but it’s even better topped with fruit spreads, grass-fed butter, nut butter, or a drizzle of warm honey or maple syrup.
Storing & Freezing
Storing: Refrigerating homemade muffins tends to draw out moisture and damage the texture. Instead, keep leftovers in a paper-towel-lined airtight container in a single layer at room temperature for 2-3 days.
Freezing: These muffins are best freshly baked, but to extend the shelf-life of extras, you can wrap them individually in plastic and freeze them in an airtight container for 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving, or pop a frozen muffin in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.
Recipe FAQ
Does flax seed have a taste?
It has a mild, lightly nutty, and pleasantly earthy taste flavor, so it’s a great way to add nutrients to baked goods without overpowering the flavor. When added to these muffins, it improves the taste and texture of the whole recipe.
How do I reheat flax seed muffins without drying them out?
To reheat these muffins without drying them out, I suggest loosely wrapping the muffin in a damp paper towel and microwaving it in 30-second increments on low (50% or less) until warm.
More Ways To Use Flaxseed
Everything Zucchini Bran Muffins
If you love this recipe I would be so grateful if you could leave a 5-star 🌟rating in the recipe card below. I love reading your comments and feedback!
Stay posted on my latest cooking adventures through social media @ Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. Don’t forget to tag me when you try one of my recipes!
*This recipe was updated from the original recipe post published August 3, 2011 with new photos, recipe tips, and a sugar substitute modification to cut calories and added sugar. The base recipe remains the same.
Flaxseed Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups oat bran
- 1 cup spelt flour or white whole wheat flour or unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup ground golden flaxseed
- 1 tbsp fresh orange zest
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 large oranges quartered, peeled and seeded
- 1 cup Purecane zero-calorie brown sugar substitute you can also use regular brown sugar.
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup avocado oil
- 2 whole eggs
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup golden raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Line two 12 cup muffin pans with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, combine oat bran, flour, flaxseed, baking powder, and sea salt.
- Set aside.
- In a blender, combine oranges, zest, Purecane brown (or granulated sweetener of choice), buttermilk, oil, eggs, and baking soda.
- Blend well.
- Pour orange mixture into dry mixture.
- Mix with a large spoon until just blended.
- Gently fold in raisins.
- Using an ice cream scoop, drop batter evenly into muffin cups.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Mine were perfect at 18 minutes.
- Cool in pans for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.
Notes
- All refrigerated ingredients must be brought to room temperature. This makes it easier for the wet ingredients to absorb the dry ingredients as you mix them.
- The fresh oranges and orange zest give the muffins a prominent citrus fruit flavor. Don’t skip the zest!
- Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, instead of packing it tight, so you don’t end up with too much flour.
- Do not fuss with the batter more than you need to. An overmixed muffin can be tough and chewy.
- Fill each liner no more than ¾ way full. If there’s too much batter, the tops may spill over the side of the tin as they bake.
- For fluffy muffins with a moist and tender crumb, don’t let the batter sit once it’s mixed. Instead, immediately pour it into your muffin pan, and get the pan into the hot oven asap.
- Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then finish cooling on a wire rack.
Nutrition
- Chocolate Cherry Green Smoothie - July 14, 2025
- Crockpot BBQ Pulled Pork - July 8, 2025
- Reese’s PB Overnight Oats - June 23, 2025
Greetings. This is my first time on your blog, but you have a terrific one. I am always on the look out for new blogs, new ideas. I especially appreciate all the details you d0. Great photos makes it seem like anyone can replicate the recipe!
I am asking, would you please consider posting a few of your favorite recipes on erecipecards.com
http://erecipecards.com/
It is a tool for bloggers to see and to be seen. Your posts would fit in perfectly.
in addition, all photos, recipe titles as well as your blog name would link directly back to your blog. Thus giving you new attention and potentially new readers.
Or, if you just want to take a look at a lot of fellow food bloggers all in one place. A great learning experience to get ideas about how to establish your own blogging voice!
Please take a look. If you have any ideas or questions, please do not hesitate to write
Dave
http://erecipecards.com/
[email protected]
And BTW, we are working on a page of “ads” for link ups (especially if you start submitting. I already have an overindugent Friday link up, yours would be a wonderful contrast!
I have all of this but spelt flour (which I can find)! Great post!!
Healthy and so delicious looking… I am bookmarking this, and I intend to try this recipe soon… Thanks for sharing!
Amee – these look amazing and SO healthy! My hubby loves muffins that have all the good stuff in them. He would rather have these than birthday cake!