Healthy Raspberry Lemon Mini Muffins
Yields: 36 mini muffins
 
These little gems are full of sweet fruity flavors! The juicy raspberries pair perfectly with the bright citrus, making these tender muffins so irresistible. They’ll keep for at least one week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
  • 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 ½ tbsp (14g) lemon zest
  • 1 tbsp (14g) 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
  • ¼ cup (60mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice (see Notes!)
  • ½ cup + 2 tbsp (150mL) nonfat milk
  • 1 cup (140g) fresh raspberries, finely diced (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, and salt. Whisk in the lemon zest. 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 the lemon juice and 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 diced raspberries.
  3. Evenly divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 13-16 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.
Notes: Do not use a stand mixer or electric mixer! Use a whisk where instructed and a fork for everything else. Mixers will overwork the batter, and the muffins will turn out tough, gummy, and/or dense.

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.

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 2 tablespoons (30mL).

I highly recommend Meyer lemons! They perform the best out of any lemons I’ve tried. They have a slightly sweeter and brighter flavor.

Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.

When dicing the raspberries, 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.

Frozen and thawed raspberries may be substituted for the fresh, but they tend to discolor the batter.

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}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2018/02/04/healthy-raspberry-lemon-mini-muffins/