We recently took a trip to Portland, Oregon where I visited several of our favorite bakeries and coffee shops. Perhaps my favorite is Crema – home of the biggest, fluffiest, most perfectly sweet zucchini muffin I’ve ever had.
Since I’ve already mastered the art of the Gluten-Free Zucchini Cake (<- OMG have you tried it yet?), I wanted to venture into the land of carrot cake. This recipe would certainly work as a cake, but I wanted to go the healthier route that didn’t require frosting.
Muffin tin, loaf pan, cake pan: Whatever route you choose this 1-bowl, vegan, gluten-free recipe is going to blow you away! I literally couldn’t stop eating these (always a good sign).
The recipe starts with some of nature’s best sweeteners: Banana, apple and carrot.
You can either use applesauce or grated sweet apple (a tip I got from a friend). I’ve tried both and they work well. Plus, it replaces some of the oil to provide plenty of moisture.
Top these muffins with crushed walnuts for an extra kick of healthy fats, protein and Omega 3 fatty acids.
In an ideal world I would eat a handful of walnuts every day; sometimes on top of a muffin, sometimes in granola, sometimes straight from the jar. It doesn’t always happen but it’s a personal goal of mine. Can’t get enough of these nutrient-packed nuts.
Not only do these muffins require just one bowl, they’re also vegan and gluten free and surprisingly healthy!
The only exception to the “healthy” label is the brown sugar (which I don’t mind in reasonable amounts). But if you’re looking to keep this recipe more natural, I’ve included muscovado (an unrefined brown sugar) as a substitution suggestion.
You’re going to love these wholesome, fruit- and veggie-packed muffins. They’re
Tender and light
Fluffy
Golden brown
Perfectly sweet
Loaded with carrot and apple
Wholesome
Hearty
Satisfying
Healthy
& Simple
Keep these muffins on hand for a quick, on-the-go breakfast or snack. I love packing these when we’re going on trips instead of having to buy super sugary and processed alternatives.
If you make this recipe be sure to take a picture and tag it #minimalistbaker on Instagram! I love seeing what you guys cook up. Cheers!
1-Bowl Carrot Apple Muffins (Vegan + GF)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Tbsp flaxseed meal
- 4 Tbsp water
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup mashed very ripe banana
- 1/4 cup agave nectar or maple syrup (or honey if not vegan)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (or finely grated apple)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (or sub muscavado)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup plain almond milk (unsweetened)
- 1 heaping cup (packed) grated carrot
- 2/3 cup gluten-free rolled oats
- 1/2 cup almond meal
- 1 heaping cup gluten-free flour blend
- 1/4 cup raw walnuts (chopped // for topping)
Instructions
- Prepare flax eggs in a large mixing bowl by mixing flaxseed meal and water and let rest for a few minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C).
- Prepare muffin tin with liners or lightly grease them.
- To the flax eggs, add mashed banana, agave or maple syrup, olive oil and whisk to combine.
- Next add applesauce, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and whisk to combine.
- Add almond milk and stir.
- Add grated carrot and stir.
- Add oats, almond meal, and gluten-free flour blend and stir.
- Divide evenly among 12 muffin tins, filling them all the way up to the top, and top with crushed walnuts (optional).
- Bake for 32-36 minutes, or until deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. When you press on the top it shouldn’t feel too spongey, so don’t be afraid of over baking! The GF blend just takes longer to bake.
- Remove from oven and let set in the pan for 15 minutes. Then flip on their sides still in the pan to let cool completely.
- If you try to unwrap them too quickly, they have a tendency to stick to the wrappers.
- Once cooled, store in a covered container or bag at room temp to keep fresh. Freeze after that to keep fresh.
Video
Notes
*If baking in a loaf pan or cake pan (8×8), bake for 45 minutes – 1 hour and check every 5 minutes thereafter for doneness.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
Elle Russell says
Hi I’m confused about the flax egg measurements. In the recipe it says use 1 1/2 tbl ground flax and 4 tbl water but in the link about how to make a flax egg it says to use 1 1/2 tbl flax seed and 2.5 tbl water. Can you clarify?
Hi Elle, sorry for the confusion! Use 1 1/2 Tbsp flaxseed meal + 4 Tbsp water in this recipe.
JAnelle says
I ran out of GF flour so I substituted garbanzo bean flour. Equally as yummy.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Janelle. Thank you for sharing! xo
Andrea says
Hi; thanks for your suggestions. I did put the amount of grated apple as the recipe suggested (1/2 cup), and other bakers seemed to have cut the sugar without ill effect. Also, I did allow the muffins to cool as the recipe said (with the 15 mins in the tin, then on their side til cool). So, the flour seems to be the culprit as these were definitely too wet and no amount of cooking would’ve helped. I forgot to say I used Almond flour instead of Almond meal, so I hope that wasn’t an issue? Do you think it was okay to use the Bob’s Red mill 1:1 GF flour? If that blend is okay, what would you suggest I use for amount? Closer to 1.5 cups? Thx for your help.
Ah, got it! That blend should be okay (assuming you’re referring to the blue bag, not red bag version). We would say try increasing the almond flour and 1:1 GF blend so it doesn’t get too gummy from just more GF blend. It’s hard to say a precise amount, but you could add 1 Tbsp more of each at a time, until the batter resembles the consistency in the video. Hope that helps!
Andrea says
Hi! I tried this muffin today and was excited to have something dairy free and GF, too. I made a few modifications/choices:
-used grated apples instead of apple sauce
-reduced brown sugar to 1/4 cup packed
-changed amt of baking soda to what was suggested below – 1 tsp each of baking soda and baking powder
-used unsweetened almond milk
-used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten free 1:1 Baking Flour
Sadly, I had the same issue as Olivia below and after cooking for approx 45 mins, they still had some bounce to the top, and they turned out totally gummy inside. Perhaps way more flour was needed? I put a heaping cup. Any thoughts on the issue? I’m really anxious to try them out and have success, as they look and smell delicious. Thanks.
Bummer. Sorry that happened, Andrea! We think a couple things may have been at play. Apples might add more moisture than applesauce and using less sugar could also impact the texture. If those factors weren’t contributing, then using more flour and letting the muffins cool fully before enjoying would be our next recommendations. Hope that helps!
Jayne Chillo says
Can this recipe be used w whole wheat or all purpose flour
Hi Jayne! We haven’t tried them with whole wheat flour, but are guessing you might need a bit less.
Michele says
I made pulp muffins for the first time using this recipe. I appreciate the clear steps and options; substitutes, that could be considered. I printed the recipe because I plan to make these time and time again. They are not only tasty but they are beautiful too.
These muffins are spectacular and I plan to make more pulp muffins! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Amazing! We’re so glad they turned out well with that modification. Thank you for sharing, Michele! xo
Freezedried says
Yum, I made this with a few minor changes, einkorn flour, date sugar, less olive oil, threw in also apple pie spice, 2 tsp bak powd, not as many almonds, and it came out grrrrreat! Thanks for the recipe. Worth the grating time. It’s -40 F, gave a couple, made more than a dozen, to the ravens outside.
We’re so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks so much for sharing your modifications as well!
Nadine says
Hello
what can I use to substitute the rolled oats? Rolled oats don’t do well with my tummy but oat flour is ok
Also, how would I modify if I also wanted mashed bananas?
Hi Nadine, We haven’t tried this recipe without oats, but it could work to increase the gluten free blend and almond meal in place of the oats. For the mashed banana, you could try more applesauce. Hope that helps!
Teil Fuller says
hello. what can i use in placement of the almond meal?
Hi Teil, cashew flour would be the next best option. If nut-free, you could try sunflower seed meal, but keep in mind it may change the color (to green). Hope that helps!
Erin B. says
I’ve come back to this recipe time and time again, even printing it out, which is a testament to how much I like it! Substitutions I’ve made include:
pumpkin puree in place of olive oil (oil free),
pumpkin puree in place of banana (i was out of banana),
egg in place of flax egg (if not vegan),
ground sunflower seeds in place of almond meal,
and added raisins to make these almost like gluten free ‘bran muffins’!
They are so yummy and adaptably forgiving.
Amazing! We’re so glad you enjoy the recipe, Erin. Thank you for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications! xo
Erin says
For the most recent batch I tried grinding hemp seeds instead of almond meal/almond flour as I didn’t have almond, they still came out delicious but the hemp seeds were more like a paste so it was quite a chore to mix it properly… tastes great but I wouldn’t recommend my substitution 😂😂😂
Thank you for sharing your experience! We wonder if processing them for less time (or in a food processor maybe?) might keep them more of a flour consistency.
Amanda Ciciotti says
I want to make these for my toddler, can I use whole wheat flour? And I’d prefer to use eggs instead of the flax, is one egg enough?
Hi Amanda! We haven’t tried them with whole wheat flour, but are guessing you might need a bit less. Also, one egg should work!