Apple Carrot Muffins

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I’m stepping into fall with the most delicious recipe for Carrot Apple Muffins. Packed with fresh apples, carrots, oats, and applesauce, these cozy muffins are a wholesome twist on Sunshine Muffins (aka Morning Glory Muffins). Spiced with cinnamon and topped with a brown sugar oat crumble, they’re the perfect way to start a crisp fall morning!

There are a few steps involved, but trust me, none of them are complicated. This is an easy recipe to whip up over the weekend as a sweet breakfast treat for the kids or for meal prepping quick on-the-go breakfasts during the week.

Why You’ll Love These Apple Carrot Muffins

• This recipe uses simple ingredients (you probably have them on hand right now), fresh veggies and fruit, and hearty oats.
• This is a great recipe for kids. These muffins are sweet enough to taste like carrot cake, and make a really good muffin to pack in lunch boxes for school time or to have on hand the next time you need a wholesome snack!
• Whether you’re grabbing one for the kids on the way to school or enjoying some fresh muffins with your coffee, they are a great way to start the day.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Below are the ingredients needed for making the most delicious apple and carrot muffins with a buttery brown sugar oat topping. The topping is completely optional, but very highly recommended! This recipe will make 16 muffins spread between two pans.

For the Muffin Topping

• Melted unsalted butter
• Quick oats – these are used both in the topping and in the muffin. The quick oats give the muffins a lovely crumble topping and absorb a lot of sugar to keep them from burning onto the pan.
• Brown sugar – I use light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar works just as well!
• Ground Cinnamon
• Kosher Salt

Apple & Carrot Muffin Batter

• Oats – Quick oats add a great texture and absorb the excess moisture from the grated apple and carrot. As the oats bake, they make the muffins nice and fluffy! Do not use instant oats or instant oatmeal.
• Grated Apple – Any type of apple will do for this recipe. I love using a sweet apple like a honey crisp or pink lady, but a granny smith works great too.
• Grated Carrots – You’ll need one big carrot or two small. I like to grate them myself to make sure they bake into the muffins well.
• All purpose Flour
• Ground Cinnamon
• Baking Powder and Baking Soda – Baking powder helps the muffins rise, and the baking soda helps with browning and tenderizing.
• Kosher salt – I like a coarse Kosher salt. The salt helps to balance out the sweetness from the sugar and fruit in the muffins.
• Unsalted Butter – This is to add more moisture to the muffin, but solidifies at room temperature so that the muffins hold their shape and are easier to eat.
• Unsweetened Applesauce – For moist muffins and added sweetness. You can use homemade applesauce or store-bought, just make sure there is no sugar added.
• Granulated White Sugar – For extra sweetness, without weighing down the muffin.
• A Large Egg – This will bind all the ingredients together and get the muffins to hold their shape.
• Vanilla extract – Vanilla adds warmth and extra flavor to the muffin batter.

Note: This recipe has been updated from old fashioned oats to using quick oats. The original recipe required processing 3/4 cups of old fashioned oats. The quick oats cut down on the prep time, but if you only have old fashioned oats on hand, use those in the topping and for the muffins, run the oats through a food processor for a few seconds to chop them finer.

Equipment

• Standard muffin tin- I use two 12-cup muffin pans for this recipe.
• Box grater

How To Make Apple Carrot Muffins

Step 1:

Start by making the topping. Combine the quick oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Give the ingredients a quick stir to mix everything together.

Step 2:

Melt the butter and pour it over the dry ingredients. Stir until all the ingredients are well coated and moistened.

Set the topping aside and make the muffin batter.

Step 3:

Preheat the oven to 400° and line two muffin pans with paper liners. Spray the top of each muffin tin with cooking spray, so that the muffin tops don’t stick.

Step 4:

In a large bowl, whisk together the quick oats, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until well combined. Set aside.

Melt the butter in a separate bowl until just melted but not hot, and set aside.

Step 5:

In a large bowl, whisk together the applesauce and sugar. Add in the egg and the vanilla and whisk until well incorporated.

Step 6:

Drizzle the melted butter into the applesauce and egg mixture. Whisk while you drizzle to evenly distribute the butter into the wet ingredients.

Step 7:

Pour the oat and flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir the batter until almost fully mixed. The batter should be lumpy with some flour streaks showing.

Step 8:

Add the grated apple and carrots to the lumpy batter.

Gently, fold the carrots and apples into the batter until evenly distributed and no flour streaks remain. Do not overmix.

Step 9:

Divide the batter between 16 muffin cups. I like to use an ice cream scoop to divide the batter evenly. Grab your oat topping and generously top each muffin with the oats.

Bake the muffins at 400° in a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. The muffins are done when a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Removing The Muffins From The Pan:

Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool just enough to be handled, but still warm. Carefully take the muffins out of the pan and set them on a cooling rack to finish cooling. You may need to use a butter knife to loosen the muffin tops off the pan. Serve and enjoy!

Pro Tips

• Do not overmix the batter. Add the grated apple and carrots before the batter is fully mixed. Folding in the apple and carrot last minute will avoid overmixing and prevent tough muffins.
• Shred the carrots yourself. The already shredded carrots from the grocery store are too thick and bulky.
• Take the muffins out of the pan while they’re warm. This will help keep the muffin tops from sticking to the pan.

Variations and Substitutions

• Stir ground flax seeds into the batter.
• Swap the applesauce for Greek yogurt.
• Stir in toasted nuts like walnuts or pecans.
• Add extra flavor by grating in some orange zest, or adding a pinch of nutmeg and ginger to the batter. You can add two teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice in the fall.
• Replace the unsalted butter in the topping and muffin batter with melted coconut oil.

FAQs

Storage

Store muffins at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three days. The topping will begin to soften after the first day.

If you want to keep the muffins longer and keep the topping crisper, you can store them in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Can You Freeze Apple Carrot Muffins?

Yes! You can freeze these muffins by storing them in a freezer bag in a single layer. They’ll keep in the freezer for up to a month. Thaw at room temperature before serving and warm the thawed muffins in the microwave to refresh the texture.

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