Gluten-Free Carrot Cake Muffins
on Jan 25, 2022, Updated Mar 18, 2024
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
These gluten-free carrot cake muffins have all the flavors you love from your favorite carrot cake but in muffin form. They are sweetened with maple syrup, moist and fluffy, and perfect for on-the-go!
Carrot cake is one of those either you love it or hate it type of desserts. I personally am not a fan of carrot cake, but I couldn’t stop myself from snacking on these muffins! I had SO many carrots that I wanted to use up and wanted to come up with ways to use them with freezer-friendly recipes. I started off by making some cheesy carrot balls, which were a HIT with my boys, but still had some leftover carrots that I wanted to make into a sweet treat. Carrot cake is the first sweet treat that comes to mind when I think of carrots, so I turned them into these mini gluten-free carrot cake muffins. They are sweetened with a little maple syrup and make the perfect breakfast or snack! If you love these little muffins, be sure to also try out these carrot oatmeal cookies!
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need
Here is what you’ll need to make these gluten-free carrot cake muffins:
- Carrots: The star ingredient for these carrot cake muffins.
- Oat Flour: I love baking with rolled oats as they are packed with nutrition! Make sure to use certified gluten-free rolled oats to make these muffins gluten-free. You can purchase oat flour as is, or make your own by grinding up rolled oats into a flour.
- Eggs: Used as a binder to help hold the muffins together.
- Greek Yogurt: Used to help the muffins obtain a fluffy texture.
- Milk: I use full-fat whole milk, but any type of milk may be used.
- Maple Syrup: The main source of sweetness for these muffins.
- Vanilla Extract: To enhance the sweetness of the muffins.
- Cinnamon/Nutmeg: Warm spices for added flavor.
- Baking Powder: Leavening agents to help the muffins rise.
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Recipe Substitutions & Additions
- Oat Flour: The gluten-free oat flour may be replaced with all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour, but keep in mind that the muffins will no longer be gluten-free.
- Eggs: You may replace the eggs with flax eggs. To make a flax egg, combine 3 tablespoons of water with 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed. Let the mixture sit in the fridge for about 15 minutes until it forms a gel-like texture.
- Greek yogurt: You may replace the Greek yogurt with a dairy-free yogurt, like coconut milk yogurt.
- Milk: You may replace the milk with a dairy-free alternative like coconut milk or oat milk.
Step By Step Instructions
- Whisk the eggs and yogurt together until smooth.
- Add in the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla, and whisk together until combined.
- Grate the carrot using the smallest size hole of a cheese grater. You should have about ½ cup of grated carrots.
- Add in the grated carrots and mix until combined.
- Add in the oat flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix until incorporated.
- Pour the mixture into a mini muffin pan and bake the muffins at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. If using a normal-sized muffin pan, bake a few minutes longer.
Storage Instructions
Let the muffins completely cool and store them in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge. To freeze, store in a freezer-safe Ziploc bag once cooled for up to 3 months. To reheat, simply microwave the muffins for 20-30 seconds, or until warmed through!
Tips For Success
- This recipe makes 24 mini muffins. You may make regular-sized muffins by adding a few more minutes to the total bake time.
- I used the smallest size hole on my cheese grater to grate the carrots, but you may use a larger size hole if you prefer larger carrot chunks in the muffins.
- I like to use a silicone muffin pan to bake these muffins as they pop out easily without any sticking. If using a regular mini muffin pan, be sure to coat with a cooking spray beforehand.
Other Carrot Recipes You’ll Love
Carrot Fritters
Carrot Oatmeal Cookies
Oven-Baked Zucchini Carrot Tots
Cheesy Carrot Bites
If you tried these Carrot Cake Muffins please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below! I love hearing from you!
Carrot Cake Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup grated carrots
- 2 eggs
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt
- 3 tbsp milk
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup oat flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp baking powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
- Whisk the eggs and yogurt together until smooth.
- Add in the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla and whisk together until combined.
- Grate the carrot using the smallest size hole of a cheese grater. You should have about ½ cup of grated carrots.
- Add in the grated carrots and mix until combined.
- Add in the oat flour, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix until incorporated.
- Pour the mixture into a mini muffin pan and bake the muffins for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. If using a normal-sized muffin pan, bake a few minutes longer.
- *For an optional cream cheese frosting, mix together 4 oz of softened cream cheese, 2 tablespoons of maple pure and ⅛ teaspoon of vanilla extract until smooth.
Notes
- This recipe makes 24 mini muffins. You may make regular-sized muffins by adding a few more minutes to the total bake time.
- I used the smallest size hole on my cheese grater to grate the carrots, but you may use a larger size hole if you prefer larger carrot chunks in the muffins.
- I like to use a silicone muffin pan to bake these muffins as they pop out easily without any sticking. If using a regular mini muffin pan, be sure to coat with a cooking spray beforehand.
Hi, would almond flour or regular flour work for these?
Normal flour should work but the texture of the muffins would be a little different😊
Hello, I’m Peggy, thanks so much for these healthy and delicious recipes! What a nice name for it! Beautiful family! God bless y’all!
All the best!
Plain Greek yogurt?
Hi Michelle! Yes, I used plain Greek yogurt😊
easy and delicious!