Healthy Carrot Cake Oatmeal Muffins
Yields: 13 muffins
 
These are some of my all-time favorite muffins! They’re supremely moist and tender with lots of sweet carrots and cozy spices, and the soft yet hearty oats help keep me full all morning. I always feel like I’m sneaking carrot cake for breakfast whenever I eat one of these! Leftovers will keep for at least 5 days (if not longer!) if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and they also freeze well.
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F, and coat 13 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. (If using liners, then line 13 muffins cups with liners and coat them with cooking spray.)
  2. In a medium bowl, stir together the oats, Greek yogurt, 6 tablespoons of milk, and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a third bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, and stevia. Stir in the oat mixture, mixing until no large lumps remain. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining ¾ cup of 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.
  3. Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 29-32 minutes or until the top feels 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: Instant oats are also known as “quick-cooking” or “one-minute” oats. They’re smaller and thinner than old-fashioned oats. To make your own out of old-fashioned oats, add ¾ cup (75g) of old-fashioned oats to a blender or food processor, and pulse until they’re ⅛ to ¼ of their original size.

For the gluten-free flour, use the following: 1 cups (120g) millet flour, ½ cup (60g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum. Most store-bought gluten-free flour blends (like this one!) will work as well, if measured like this.

Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted in place of the whole wheat flour.

Remember to measure your oats and flour correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own!) Too much of either will make your muffins turn out dry. This is especially true of the oats because they act like sponges and soak up lots of moisture from the batter.

The muffins require 2 full egg whites. The whites contain the majority of the protein in eggs, and that protein is required to ensure the muffins maintain their shape and texture while cooling. Without both egg whites, the muffins may collapse while cooling and turn out much denser.

For sweeter muffins, increase the liquid stevia by an additional ¼ or ½ teaspoon.

I do not recommend substituting for the liquid stevia, if at all possible. (It’s one of my favorite ingredients, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!) I buy it online here because that's the best price I've found. However, if you really prefer to omit the liquid stevia from the muffins, substitute 1 cup (192g) granulated sugar, brown sugar, or coconut sugar and reduce the milk to ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150mL). You may also substitute 1 cup (240mL) of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave and reduce the milk to 2 tablespoons (30mL) instead. The baking time may vary with either of those substitutions as well.

Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.

Do not substitute store-bought pre-shredded carrots (also called “matchstick” carrots). They’re too thick and dry, and they don’t soften properly while baking.

Do not use an electric mixer to mix up the batter. This will result in dense or tough muffins. Use a whisk where instructed, and use a fork for everything else.

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low sugar}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2019/03/17/healthy-carrot-cake-oatmeal-muffins/