Healthy Cinnamon Apple Mini Muffins
Yields: 36 mini muffins
 
Apples were my favorite fruit as a kid, so I absolutely love these mini muffins. They basically taste like apple pie! They’re full of cozy spices and fresh apple bits, all held together with supremely tender muffin batter. Leftovers will keep for at least one week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
  • 2 cups (240g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground allspice
  • ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
  • 2 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ tsp vanilla stevia, or adjusted to taste
  • ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
  • ¾ cup + 2 tbsp (210mL) nonfat milk
  • 1 ½ cups (187g) finely diced apple (see Notes!)
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 36 mini muffin cups with paper liners, and lightly coat them with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, vanilla extract, and vanilla stevia. Add in the Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Stir in ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons of milk. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Fold in the apple.
  3. Spread the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 12-14 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.
Notes: 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, white whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the regular whole wheat flour.

I highly recommend using the vanilla 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 vanilla stevia, then substitute ½ cup (120mL) of pure maple syrup, honey or agave. If using this substitution, reduce the milk to 6 tablespoons (90mL).

Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.

I use Fuji apples because they’re naturally sweet and have a great texture for baking. It’s extremely important to cut the apples to be no larger than mini chocolate chips! This is because (a) larger chunks cause your muffins to bake unevenly and (b) larger chunks also don’t fully bake and stay pretty crunchy and raw.

This recipe will also make 12 standard-sized muffins, if you prefer. Bake at 350°F for 20-23 minutes or until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2018/01/07/healthy-cinnamon-apple-mini-muffins/