The summer I turned ten, my family moved to an older yet larger house across town, and we inherited a backyard full of fruit trees. Figs, plums, avocados, peaches, apples, oranges, two types of lemons… The woman who lived there before us definitely had a green thumb!
Just a week or two after we moved in, the peaches fully ripened and began falling from the tree. Mom decided to try canning them, and she bought dozens of glass jars with metal lids.
That weekend, we pulled out a ladder and harvested as many ripe peaches from the tree’s branches as we could. After bringing bags and bags of peaches into the kitchen and seeing them cover nearly every inch of the counter tops, we set to work peeling the peaches and sterilizing the jars.
Hours later after sealing the last lid on the final jar, we finally sat down and looked around at our work. Rows of filled jars replaced the bags of peaches on the counter tops, and we carefully transferred them to a special shelf in the pantry. It was quite the project but totally worth it!
Years later, we cut down the peach tree after it became diseased, so now I have to go to the grocery store for fresh peaches instead of my parents’ backyard… But these Healthy Peach Mini Muffins are always worth that supermarket trip!
They’re really moist and tender with just a hint of cinnamon, and my favorite baking extract gives them an elevated and sophisticated flavor, just like you’d taste in a fancy bakery’s muffins. With no refined flour or sugar and only 31 calories, they’re great for quick grab-and-go breakfasts or snacks, too!
Let’s go over how to make these healthy peach mini muffins!
You’ll start with white whole wheat flour (like this!). Such a thing actually exists—and it’s not a combination of white (aka all-purpose) flour and whole wheat flour! White whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of soft white wheat (hence the name!), whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. They have the same health benefits, but white whole wheat flour has a lighter taste and texture… And that lets the tender texture of these healthy peach mini muffins truly shine!
You’ll also mix in a bit of cinnamon. My grandma always added lots to her famous peach pie, so I do the same with all of my peach baked treats! This is my favorite kind of cinnamon because it has a stronger, fuller, and slightly sweeter flavor.
With just ½ tablespoon of butter, these healthy peach mini muffins get the rest of their tender texture from Greek yogurt. If you’ve been to my blog before, you know how much I love baking with it! Greek yogurt adds the same moisture to your muffin batter as extra butter or oil but for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your muffins a protein boost, too!
Hooray for low calorie, higher protein peach muffins!
You’ll sweeten your healthy peach mini muffins with another one of my favorite ingredients: liquid stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing refined or artificial (aka it’s clean eating friendly!). It’s also highly concentrated… You just need 2 teaspoons for all 36 mini muffins!
This is the kind I buy because I love its sweet flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertaste like with some other stevia products. Although you can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, I buy mine online here because that’s the best price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
Of course, we can’t make healthy peach mini muffins without the peaches! Both fresh and canned in 100% juice will work. I love that—it means I can eat these peach muffins all year round!
Just like in my grandma’s famous peach pie, I also add a bit of almond extract (like this!) to these muffins. That’s the secret ingredient! It adds a lovely elegant and sophisticated flavor, and it makes the muffins taste a bit sweeter, too. It’s my favorite baking extract!
One last thing! Low fat muffins, like these peach mini muffins, stick to liners like superglue… So before adding the batter, you must coat your muffin liners with cooking spray. This handy trick means the liners peel away from the muffins much more easily!
I’ve started baking a batch of these almost every week… Can you blame me?? They’re that good! ?? 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 healthy peach mini muffins!
| Healthy Peach Mini Muffins | | Print |
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2 tsp almond extract
- 2 tsp liquid stevia, or adjusted to taste
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp (30mL) distilled plain white vinegar (see Notes!)
- ¾ cup (180mL) nonfat milk
- 1 cup (200g) diced peaches (see Notes!)
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 36 mini muffin cups with paper liners, and lightly coat them with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, almond extract, and liquid stevia. Add in the Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Stir in the vinegar. 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.) Fold in the diced peaches.
- Evenly divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 14-16 minutes or until the tops feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the gluten-free flour, use as follows: 1 cup (120g) millet flour, ½ cup (60g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten-free flour blends (like this one!) will also work, if measured like this.
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
If you’re not a fan of almond extract, substitute vanilla extract.
I highly recommend using the liquid stevia! It’s one of my favorite ingredients, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too. I buy mine online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. If you prefer not to use the liquid stevia, then substitute ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150mL) of pure maple syrup, honey or agave AND reduce the milk to 2 tablespoons (30mL). Alternatively, substitute ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (120g) of coconut sugar, brown sugar, or granulated sugar AND reduce the milk to ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons (105mL).
Do not omit the vinegar! You can’t taste it in the finished muffins—I promise! The vinegar reacts with the baking soda to do two things: (a) make the muffins rise and (b) give them a more tender texture.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
When dicing the peaches, cut them to be no larger than the size of chocolate chips. Larger pieces prevent the muffins from baking evenly, and the muffins will collapse and turn dense while cooling.
Both fresh peaches and peaches canned in 100% juice (and thoroughly drained!) will work.
This recipe will also make 12 standard-sized muffins, if you prefer. Bake at 350°F for 18-22 minutes or until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, lower sugar}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Peach Pie Bran Muffins
♡ Healthy Honey Peach Scones
♡ Healthy Small Batch Maple Peach Muffins
♡ Healthy Peach Pie Pancakes
♡ Healthy Peach Crumble
♡ Healthy Peach Pie Banana Bread
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy mini muffin recipes!
Dear Amy:
My family and Iove your weekly emails with new and exciting healthy recipes. Your peach muffin recipe that is posted today — it does not specify what type of vinegar is recommended for the recipe. Can you please let me know what will work best?
I really appreciate you! Wishing you joy! :0)
I really appreciate your readership and interest in my recipes, Dorrie! That means a lot to me that you’re receiving my emails. 🙂 Thanks for catching that about the vinegar — all fixed in the Ingredients list! Just plain white vinegar! I can’t wait to hear what you and your family think of these mini muffins!
Amy, these look delicious! I’ve been super into baking with peaches lately so will have to put your recipe into my rotation!
You’re so sweet — thank you!! I’d love to hear what you think if you try these muffins! 🙂
Dear Amy,
Thanks for this recipe. The muffins are delicious! Last night I did it for the first time, and I am so excited. I used apricots ( the peaches which I had at home were …. not useble 😀 ), but the muffins taste perfect. I love them.
I’m so glad you loved these muffins, Lenka! I love your idea of using apricots. I’ll have to try that sometime! 🙂
My wife and I love muffins, so this recipe is right up our alley.
Hi Amy your timing couldn’t have been better. Peaches are everywhere in our local markets here in Kansas. Made a batch this evening before heading off to work. Had to grab a warm one on the run. Delish!!!
Great minds must think alike Terry! 😉 I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins!!
Hi! I’m new to your blog and am already loving reading all the recipes! I just got 3 boxes of peaches for a local fundraiser and am scrambling to figure out what to do with all of them! I’m curious, is there anyway these can be sized up to normal sized muffins? Will it affect rising? Will it need a longer baking time?
I truly appreciate your interest in my recipes Alyssa! That means a lot to me! 🙂 I’ve actually covered this exact question in the Notes section of the recipe, located directly underneath the Instructions. I know it can be easy to miss! 😉 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these muffins! (And if you need more peach recipes, you can find all of mine here!)
Just tried out the muffin recipe, they turned out awesome! I was careful not to over mix the batter this time and used a little more stevia than the recipe suggested. The outside had a nice crisp crust with a soft inside. The only issue I had, and I think this is more of a general muffin-making issue than the recipe, is that they appeared to be raw at the bottom. Now, I did some research online and I’m not entirely sure if it’s actually because they are raw or just because they are wet from steam collecting at the bottom of the muffin. Have you ever encountered this problem and do you have any tips to avoid it?
I’m so glad you enjoyed these muffins Alyssa! I’m happy to try to help solve that mystery. Did you make mini’s as written or standard sized muffins? How long did you let the muffins sit in the muffin tins after baking and before transferring them to a wire rack? The other culprit would be that your peaches were much juicier than mine, so they added a lot more liquid to the batter and would therefore need to be baked longer. However, it’s usually the middles of the muffins that turn out raw, while the tops and bottoms bake all the way through (the tops because they’re exposed to the air in your oven; the bottoms because they’re touching the hot bottom of your metal baking pan). Does that make sense? 🙂
This recipe looks amazing!!! I’m always looking for healthy options for my family!
Can I use Almond flour instead?
Thanks!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Claudia! I typically don’t advise substituting almond flour in this recipe because the muffins turn out denser and don’t rise as much. (Gluten is the protein in wheat-based flour that enables baked goods to rise and hold their shape while cooling!) But if you’re fine with that texture, then the flavor should remain the same! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these muffins if you try them!
These look delicious and the recipe is simple. I am trying to find something to make from your website to take to the mountains next weekend with 6 friends. I am thinking peach or Apple or pumpkin bread or muffins.
Would these be suitable to bake in advance and freeze? If so, do you wrap each one individually and then seal or just put in a container? I am concerned about having time at the last minute, but I can do bake before I leave if necessary. Thanks!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Shawna! That’s so sweet of you to bake treats for your friends and your weekend getaway. 🙂 These mini muffins do freeze well! When freezing them, I put them on a baking sheet first, then stick that in the freezer for about an hour. Once they’re mostly frozen through, then I’ll put about 9 mini muffins in a sandwich-sized zip-topped bag (or however many fit comfortably!) and squeeze out as much air as I can before sealing it shut. I can’t wait to hear what you think of them!