My parents hosted a small party for the Super Bowl last month, inviting their old college friends who currently lived in the area over for an afternoon of food, drinks, and funny commercials. (My dad, one other man, and I seemed to be the main people who focused on the game!)
Because Dad loves cooking, but rarely has the time, he spent the morning enjoying every minute of chopping vegetables, seasoning pork tenderloins, stirring quinoa, frying bacon, and lighting the coals in the Weber grill outside. Mom ran out to the grocery store to pick up appetizers and small bites, like crudités and dip, chips and salsa, cheese and crackers, and dried fruit and M&Ms.
She also returned with two cakes, and she explained that even though I provided plenty of these cookies and these incredible truffles, she purposely bought them because one of our guests never had cake growing up since it was too expensive for her family to afford, so cake was always an extra special treat.
I peeked inside the boxes and immediately smiled… Because Mom knew I wouldn’t have the time to bake homemade ones (I had my plate full {no pun intended!} with The Healthy Jumpstart!), she purchased two of my favorites: chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache and carrot cake with cream cheese frosting!
Although our guests served themselves at least one slice after the halftime show, we still ended up with plenty of leftovers of each flavor. I fell asleep thinking of those extra slices of carrot cake, and they were the first thought that popped into my head the next morning, too!
Waking up with those delicious cake thoughts would’ve been so much easier to handle if I had these Healthy Carrot Cake Mini Muffins lying around too! I could’ve satisfied that cake craving first thing… Without any guilt! These muffins contain no butter, refined flour or sugar, and they’re just 33 calories!
I can’t be the only one who loves “dessert” for breakfast… Right?? ?
To make these healthy muffins, you’ll start with whole wheat flour. Just regular ol’ whole wheat flour! (Or gluten-free, if you prefer!) This is the kind I use because it has a lighter flavor and rises higher than other brands. You’ll also whisk in plenty of cinnamon and a hint of nutmeg for those iconic cozy spice flavors!
Although this recipe includes just 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, these muffins still have the same texture as a traditional carrot cake! That’s all thanks to one of my favorite ingredients in healthy baking… Greek yogurt! Greek yogurt adds the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your mini muffins a big protein boost, too.
You’ll skip the refined sugar and sweeten your healthy mini muffins with another one of my favorite ingredients instead: vanilla crème stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly, and it’s highly concentrated. You just need 1 ¼ teaspoons to sweeten all 36 muffins! This is the kind I buy because I love its warm vanilla flavor, and I don’t notice any strange aftertastes like with some other stevia products. You can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, but I always purchase mine online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
Now for the most important part… The carrots! You’ll use freshly grated carrots in these muffins. Don’t use store-bought pre-shredded carrots! They’re thicker and drier than freshly grated, so they won’t soften while baking. To ensure that your carrots fully soften, I highly recommend using the smallest holes on your box grater. (Sometimes carrots grated with the traditional sized holes still turn out a little “al dente” with a hint of crunch!)
Before you bake your muffins, I have one last special tip… If using liners like I did in these photos, make sure you generously coat your liners with cooking spray! Low-fat muffin batter (and cupcake batter!) sticks to liners like superglue, so coating them with cooking spray allows the liners to peel back easily from the muffins. If you forget to spray them—or don’t quite spray them well enough!—then seal your muffins inside of an airtight container for 24 hours to help loosen the liners a bit more.
Are you as excited as I am about “dessert” for breakfast?? ? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your mini muffins and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Healthy Carrot Cake Mini Muffins | | Print |
- 2 cups (240g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ tsp vanilla crème stevia
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ¾ cup (180mL) nonfat milk
- 2 cups (180g) freshly grated carrots (see Notes!)
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 36 mini muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter or coconut oil, egg whites, vanilla extract, and vanilla crème stevia. Stir in the Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 4 equal parts.) Gently fold in the carrots.
- Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 13-16 minutes or until the tops are firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack.
This is my favorite whole wheat flour because it allows my baked goods to rise higher and have a more tender texture than some other brands. White whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the whole wheat flour.
I highly recommend using the vanilla crème stevia! It’s one of my favorite ingredients, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too. (I always buy mine online here because it’s the cheapest price I’ve found!) If you prefer, 8-10 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave may be substituted for the vanilla crème stevia, and the milk should be reduced to 3-5 tablespoons to compensate for the added liquid.
Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.
I highly recommend using the finest holes in your box grater for shredding the carrots! I used the standard-sized holes, and some carrots still had a teensy tiny crunch after baking. Using the smallest holes (the “finely shredded” size) will ensure your carrots fully bake through. Do not substitute store-bought pre-shredded carrots.
Be VERY careful if using liners! Generously coat the liners with nonstick cooking spray before adding the muffin batter. This batter will stick to liners like superglue if they aren’t coated with cooking spray.
If you prefer, this recipe will yield 12 standard sized muffins. To bake standard-sized muffins, preheat the oven to 425°F instead. Bake them at 425°F for 7 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (without opening the oven!) and continue to bake for an additional 12-15 minutes. The muffins will be done when the tops feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, low sugar}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♥ The Ultimate Healthy Carrot Cake
♥ Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
♥ Carrot Cake Bran Muffins
♥ Carrot Cake Scones
♥ Single-Serving Carrot Cake Mug Cake
♥ Carrot Cake Pancakes
♥ Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cookies
♥ Classic Carrot Cake
♥ Carrot Cake Protein Muffins
♥ Loaded Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cookies
♥ Carrot Cake Granola
♥ Classic Carrot Cake Cupcakes
This is a fantastic recipe! Amazing recipes you have!
Thanks Jai! 🙂
Can’t wait to try these. These can be a nice alternative to your classic carrot cake. I lost count the number of times I baked your classic carrot cake. My fussy 3 year old son simple loves your classic carrot cake. It’s so moist and soft.
I can use the frosting of your classic carrot cake to these muffins as my son simple adores your healthy frosting.
I think these muffins are slightly better when it comes to sugar in the sense that they don’t have maple syrup where as your classic cake includes the maple syrup.
Anyway will give them a try next week with that frosting of yours.
Thanks again for your wonderful recipes!!!!
Do you think spelt flour would work instead?
I’m so glad you’re enjoying my classic carrot cake recipe Roberta! That truly means a lot to me, especially that your fussy son loves it too. I’m honored! 🙂 I haven’t worked much with spelt flour before, but other readers seem to have good luck substituting it for whole wheat flour in my recipes. I can’t wait to hear what you two think of these muffins! (And in case you’re interested, my ultimate healthy carrot cake recipe contains less maple syrup than my classic carrot cake recipe!)
Amy, I swear you can read my mind. Last night I was thinking about my upcoming birthday and what a healthy alternative to a big birthday cake would be.. and as a kid my favorite birthday cake was a carrot cake. So I wake up this morning to find this recipe! I am going to make these up instead of a cake!!! Your so wonderful. Thank you.
Awww that means so much to me Lynn!! Happy belated birthday! I loved seeing your beautiful photo of these muffins on Instagram — it made my heart so happy! ♡
Amy, these carrot cake muffins are definitely an exception when it comes to “dessert” for breakfast! ? I can’t believe they’re only 33 calories a piece! I shouldn’t be surprised since it’s one of YOUR recipes. ? I can’t wait to try these delicious muffins out! ? They look amazing!! ? Perfect timing with Easter right around the corner. ?
You’re such a sweetheart to say that about my recipes Sabrina — thank you!! ? When I finally realized that carrot cake was a semi-traditional Easter treat, it became one of my favorite holidays. I love carrot cake almost as much as I love chocolate! ?
You’re so welcome, Amy!! ? I only speak the truth. ? Yes! Easter has always been a favorite for me too! My family has hosted a party for the rest of the family every year! Besides the food, Easter eggs hunts were always so much fun! ?? and very competitive ? lol. I’m currently working on a Paleo carrot cake recipe that might have your name written all over it! ??
Awww you’re a true gem Sabrina!! ?? Your family’s Easter celebrations sound like so much fun!! We used to celebrate Easter with my grandparents in AZ too. One year, it actually snowed — and we threw snowballs at my grandpa’s truck when he drove home from singing in the church service! ? I can’t wait to see your carrot cake recipe!!
Aw thank you, Amy!! ?❤ You’re so sweet! Back at ya! ??That’s so awesome! ? Sounds like your Easters are just as fun!! Where I grew up we got snow, but I don’t remember ever getting snow during Easter time! I’m sure your grandpa loved getting snowballs thrown at him ?
He was certainly surprised! 😉 One of my favorite Easter memories! I hope you and your family enjoy your Easter celebrations this year, sweet friend!
Thats it, I am going to try these!
I simply have to.
I can’t wait to hear what you think of them Izzy! 🙂
I love these muffins! They are great!! Thanks for sharing.
I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins Amy! 🙂
Amy, I want to make full sized carrot cake muffins that taste like moist carrot cake. Would this be the best receipe, or one of your other carrot recipes like classic, ultimate, or pound cake. BTW, I made your apple pie pie oatmeal cookies and they were great!
I’m so glad you loved my apple pie oatmeal cookies Marty! That means a lot to me. 🙂 I’ve actually included the instructions on how to make these as full-sized muffins already in the Notes section. If you prefer bran muffins, then I have a carrot cake bran muffin recipe here. I can’t wait to hear what you think of either of those!
Can I substitute the liquid stevia for coconut sugar? If so, how much? Thanks!
Yes, although the taste and texture of the muffins may be different. 🙂 You’ll need 10 tablespoons of coconut sugar, and reduce the milk to 6-8 tablespoons to compensate. The batter should be very thick, closer to “wet” cookie dough than typical thin cake batter. I can’t wait to hear what you think of these Samantha!
Thanks! I ended up only adding 6 tablespoons of coconut sugar. I ran out as I was making them :(. I also added about 1 tablespoon of agave to make up for it. I mixed in 1/2 of almond milk and 2 extra tablespoons. It turned out SUPER moist and just the right amount of sweetness for me! I don’t enjoy super sweet things so the amount of sweetener was perfect. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
I’m so glad that you enjoyed these mini muffins Samantha — and what a happy ending, after running out of coconut sugar! 😉
I’ve been so hungry for carrot cake and I thought for sure someone was going to bring some Easter but nobody did I had my husband buy carrots find me use them I love your muffin recipe I have more carrots or betray more of your recipes thank you so much it was great they were nice and moist perfect
I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins Donna! I’d be really disappointed if my Easter didn’t involve carrot cake either. 😉
I want to try this for my husband but I don’t have vanilla cream stevia. I want to substitue this with egual powder sweetener or stevia powder sweetener. How many tsp of powder sweetener can I use? Thank you
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Anna! You’re so sweet to want to make these for your husband. You’ll need your preferred sweetener’s equivalent of 8-10 tablespoons of granulated sugar, or slightly more, depending on how sweet you like your muffins. Every stevia powder has a different sweetness concentration, so I don’t know what the exact equivalent would be for your product. The product’s packaging (either Equal or stevia) should tell you that! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you and your husband think of these!