These delicious applesauce carrot muffins are inspired by my son's favorite "healthy" treat from our local farmers' market. A combination of carrots, apple and coconut plus oat flour, spices and a hint of maple, make this the perfect muffin for breakfast or snack time. Plus everyone can enjoy them since they're gluten free and dairy free!
Any carrot cake lover is going to love the spice flavor in these muffins. If you're looking for more gluten free carrot cake inspired treats, check out my carrot cake coffee cake or my carrot cake whoopie pies.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- It's gluten free and dairy free.
- It's easy to make, no mixer required.
- It has fruits and vegetables and even a picky kid will love it.
Ingredient List
While this muffin recipe has a few more ingredients than my normal posts, it is still super easy to make.
- Gluten Free Oat Flour - I use Bob's Red Mill brand. You can also grind your own by placing gluten free oats in your food processor and processing about 10 seconds until it is a coarse powder.
- Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend - Again, I use Bob's Red Mill brand. You can use your own blend, but results may vary. Weighing your flour will provide the best results.
- Baking Powder - helps the muffins rise tall and have a fluffy texture inside.
- Salt, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, & Allspice - all provide levels of flavor to get that carrot cake vibe in these muffins.
- Sugar - You can also substitute coconut sugar if you prefer.
- Egg
- Oil - I use a light flavor olive oil in this recipe. You can use your preferred light flavored cooking oil or melted coconut oil.
- Vanilla
- Maple Syrup
- Non-Dairy Milk - The milk just supplements the moisture from the applesauce and carrots. Oat flour will absorb a good amount of moisture while it sits. If you're not dairy free, you can replace this with regular milk or even water in the same measure.
- Unsweetened Applesauce
- Carrots - You will need grated carrots for this recipe. It's best to grate them yourself, as the pre-grated ones from the grocery store are a little dry. I have also tried chopping them with a food processor, but they come out more like little chunks in the muffins, which changes the texture from soft to grainy.
- Shredded Coconut - You can use sweetened or unsweetened coconut.
Substitutions & Variations
- Not Dairy Free - use dairy milk in the same measure.
- Make it Vegan - Replace the single egg with an additional 3 Tablespoons of applesauce.
- No coconut - If you don't like coconut, you can leave it out entirely or replace it with raisins or chopped nuts in the same measure.
How to make this apple carrot muffin recipe
As with all of my muffin and quickbread recipes, this one uses the muffin method for mixing. The muffin method gives you perfect muffins every time with nice tall domed tops, just like you find in a bakery.
STEP 1: Combine the gluten free flour, oat flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice together in a large mixing bowl. Whisk until well mixed and set aside.
STEP 2: Crack the egg into a second smaller bowl. Whisk it until it is frothy, like soap bubbles.
STEP 3: Add the oil, vanilla, maple syrup, milk and applesauce to the beaten egg. Whisk until smooth.
STEP 4: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold together with a spatula for about 10 strokes.
STEP 5: Add the grated carrots and shredded coconut to the mixture and fold about 5 times more until it's evenly distributed in the batter.
STEP 6: Divide the batter evenly among 6 lined muffin cups. Sprinkle the top with gluten free oats. Let the batter rest while the oven preheats, then bake.
Baking Tip
To check for done: gently poke the top center of one muffin with your finger. If it springs right back it is baked through. If it leaves an indentation, bake another 2 minutes and recheck.
How to Store & Reheat
Store leftover muffins in an airtight container and refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat by microwaving a single muffin for about 15 seconds or until warm to the touch.
Recipe FAQs
In these muffins, you can replace the applesauce with a similar fruit puree, like pear, mashed banana, mashed sweet potato, pumpkin puree or even dairy free yogurt.
Yes. Once the muffins have cooled to room temperature, wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap and then place them inside an airtight container or freezer bag. You can freeze them for up to 3 months.
More carrot recipes to consider:
If you try this recipe, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the comments below.
Recipe
Applesauce Carrot Muffins
Ingredients
- ¾ Cup Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend (111 g)
- ½ Cup Gluten Free Oat Flour
- ½ Cup Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon Allspice
- 1 Egg
- ¼ Cup Olive Oil
- ¼ Cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- 2 Tablespoon Maple Syrup
- 1 Tablespoon Non-Dairy Milk
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- ½ Cup Grated Carrots
- 3 Tablespoon Sweetened Shredded Coconut
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the oat flour, gluten free flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and sugar. Whisk together until well combined.½ Cup Gluten Free Oat Flour, ¾ Cup Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend, 1 teaspoon Baking Powder, ¼ teaspoon Salt, ½ teaspoon Cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg, ⅛ teaspoon Allspice, ½ Cup Sugar
- Crack the egg into a second smaller bowl. Whisk until frothy, like soap bubbles.1 Egg
- Add the oil, vanilla, maple syrup, milk and applesauce to the egg. Whisk until smooth.¼ Cup Olive Oil, 1 teaspoon Vanilla, 2 Tablespoon Maple Syrup, 1 Tablespoon Non-Dairy Milk, ¼ Cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold together with a spatula about 10 strokes.
- Add the carrots and coconut to the mixture and fold together about 5 more times.½ Cup Grated Carrots, 3 Tablespoon Sweetened Shredded Coconut
- Divide the batter into 6 lined muffin cups. Sprinkle the tops with oats (for decoration) if you wish.
- Let batter rest in muffin pan while you preheat your oven to 400F.
- Bake the muffins in preheated oven for 27-29 minutes, until tops spring back when gently poked.
- Remove from cooked muffins from muffin tin within 10 minutes to avoid wet bottoms. Serve immediately or store for later.
Notes
Tiffany is the recipe developer, stylist and food photographer behind Well Fed Baker. As a lifelong baker who had to go gluten free and dairy free in 2016, Tiffany strives to share allergen friendly recipes that never feel like they are free from anything.
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