Enjoy breakfast the healthy way! Whip up a batch of these healthy breakfast muffins as a perfect on-the-go meal or snack to stay on track throughout the day. Even kids love them!
Original post: February 2011 | Updated: December 2023
Why This Recipe Works
Every time I make a batch of these totally scrumptious healthy breakfast muffins, I cannot control myself. My family is lucky if they can grab a few!
Here are a few reasons why this is such a great recipe:
- These easy muffins can be adapted to fit a gluten-free diet.
- No preservatives or weird ingredients included in this delicious recipe. Just a few wholesome ingredients, along with sweeteners and flour!
- Eat as many of them as you’d like for breakfast. No guilt!
- Not only are they packed with healthy ingredients, they are also super easy breakfast muffins.
- Make a huge batch and freeze some for later use.
- These aren’t just for breakfast. They make great healthy snacks, too!
Recipe Ingredients
All-purpose flour – For a gluten-free muffin, use almond flour.
Light brown sugar – For an even healthier recipe, replace the brown sugar with any of the following natural sweeteners: honey, agave syrup, coconut sugar, pure maple syrup or cane sugar.
Leavening agents – Baking soda and baking powder work their magic to help these muffins rise to perfection. Make sure they are both fresh and in date!
Nutmeg – Don’t stop here! If you love warm spices, consider adding a bit of cinnamon, allspice or even pumpkin pie spice to the dry ingredients.
Salt – Just a bit of salt will do! Any variety adds a nice salty touch, such as sea salt or kosher salt.
Old-fashioned rolled oats – If you’re aiming for a gluten free recipe, check the label to make sure it does not contain gluten.
Quick-cooking oats will work in place of rolled oats, but note that the texture may change.
Raisins – Any dried fruit can replace the raisins. Cranberries, dried cherries or dried blueberries all taste great.
Olive oil – Replace olive oil with vegetable oil, canola oil or coconut oil.
Egg – For an egg-free recipe, replace the egg with 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce or a flax egg.
Milk – Replace milk with almond milk or soy milk for a dairy free recipe.
Carrots – Not only do carrots add vitamins and nutrients, they also add moisture! Purchase them shredded at the grocery store or use a cheese grater and do it yourself.
Banana – One ripe, mashed banana will add delicious flavor and moisture to the recipe.
How To Make Healthy Breakfast Muffins
Step 1
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt until there are no lumps.
Stir in oats and raisins. Add the wet ingredients: oil, egg, milk, carrots and banana.
Stir until combined.
Step 2
Fill each cup in the muffin pan with 1/4 cup batter.
Bake 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean. Serve warm!
Recipe Notes
- A quarter cup of chopped walnuts would be good in these muffins if you like extra crunch.
- Try to let them cool completely off before you dive into one. The smell will make it difficult, but they will keep their shape better if you allow them to cool.
- An added dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt taste great and add moisture.
- Chia seeds would be a great addition to this healthy breakfast treat!
- Give them a fall flair by adding 1/2 cup pumpkin puree.
- Add a bit of indulgence by including up to 1 cup of chocolate chips.
How To Store Muffins
When storing muffins, you have two great options:
- Freeze them – Place them in a sealed container or into a heavy duty freezer-safe bag. Place in the freezer for up to 4 months for best results.
- Room temperature – Store them in an airtight container on the counter for 3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Grated vs Shredded Carrots
The difference between grated carrots and shredded carrots is the size of the pieces of carrots. Grated carrots are created using a smaller blade resulting in smaller, resembling the size of crumbs.
Shredded carrots are made using a bigger blade which produces longer, thin strips of carrot.
Rolled Oats vs Quick Oats
Rolled oats are made for enduring higher temps for longer periods of time, making them more able to hold their shape and being chewier.
Quick oats cook more quickly and contain a creamy, smooth texture.
How Ripe Should Bananas Be for Banana Bread or Muffins
The best types of bananas for baking are ripe bananas! Their peels should have a deep yellow appearance with brown dots. They can also be entirely brown with no visible yellow color.
Make sure there is no mold present, as this can be the perfect way to make yourself sick.
Best Muffin Recipes
- Banana Crumb Muffins are a delicious way to use up ripe bananas. You will love the crumb topping with brown sugar as an afternoon treat on these tender treats.
- You have just met your new go-to Blueberry Muffins recipe! These muffins turn out great every time, they are moist and totally packed with blueberries.
- You will never need another Chocolate Chip Muffins recipe after trying this one. These are indulgent and moist and yummy!
- These Blueberry Apple Muffins are the perfect way to start your day. Made with sour cream instead of milk, these homemade muffins are moist, tender, delicious muffins packed with juicy blueberries and tons of tasty apples!
- Simplify your morning by making these indulgent Cake Mix Chocolate Muffins! Only a few minutes of your time and 4 ingredients are required to make this super easy recipe. Add a bit of fun to breakfast this week!
Healthy Recipes For Picky Eaters
- Easy to prep and out of the oven in 25 minutes, this Cinnamon Roll Baked Oatmeal is a breakfast delight! Not a single morsel will go to waste. It’s the healthy-ish version of one of your favorite indulgent breakfast treats!
- Peanut Butter and Banana Cookies require only 3 ingredients and are done in 15 minutes! They are the perfect healthy treat for kids and adults.
- Transform rice cakes into colorful, flavorful snacks by topping them with delicious ingredients! Rice Cake topping combinations include turkey and tomato, pears with honey, cream cheese and cucumbers or a fried egg with avocado slices and sriracha!
- These No Bake Granola Bars are the perfect snack for little ones. Filled with dried fruit and chocolate, peanut butter and honey, you will satisfy your sweet tooth with a snack you can feel good about eating.
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If you make this recipe and love it, stop back and give it a 5-star rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and leave a comment. THANK YOU!
Easy Healthy Breakfast Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour or almond flour
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp coarse salt
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup skim milk or almond milk
- 2 carrots shredded
- 1 banana ripe, mashed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg and salt until there are no lumps.1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup light brown sugar, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp coarse salt
- Stir in oats and raisins. Add oil, egg, milk, carrots and banana and stir until blended. Fill each muffin cup with ¼ cup batter.1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, 1/2 cup raisins, 3 tbsp olive oil, 1 large egg, 1/3 cup skim milk, 2 carrots, 1 banana
- Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Serve warm!
Notes
- A quarter cup of chopped walnuts would be good in these muffins if you like extra crunch.
- Try to let them cool completely off before you dive into one. The smell will make it difficult, but they will keep their shape better if you allow them to cool.
- An added dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt taste great and add moisture.
- Chia seeds would be a great addition to this healthy breakfast treat!
- Give them a fall flair by adding 1/2 cup pumpkin puree.
- Add a bit of indulgence by including up to 1 cup of chocolate chips.
These look delicious. Would oat milk work in place of the skim or almond?
Hi Candy, I think it would work well if you have that on hand. I’ve not personally used oat milk but sounds like a great option. Let me know how it works out – others would appreciate your tip too!
Would you be able to swap out the sugar for a more natural sugar like coconut sugar or honey? Would the ratios be the same? Thanks
Or Dates?
I think it would be great! I haven’t tried it myself but if you do, let us know!
I haven’t tried it myself but I don’t see why not! If you do, come back and let us know!
Hello, how long do these muffins stay good? Or how can i preserve them to make them last longer>
Hope this helps! Thanks –
FREEZER – Make up a second batch of these muffins to pull out when you’re ready for them. Road trip? Day trip? Weekend fun? These make great snacks!
AIR-TIGHT CONTAINER – On the counter for 3 days, in the fridge for about 5 days.
This is a complete rip off of Martha Stewards Morning Muffins.
Well thank you for the compliment! I’ve never tried hers but there are many versions of healthy muffins out there so I’m glad to share mine.
I hope it’s the five stars I picked and not the zero stars. These are delicious and so easy to make. I used brown rice flour and cranberries as I used what I had in hand.
The house smells so good.
Those are great tweaks – I like using what I have on hand too. Thanks for sharing!
I reduced B. sugar by 1/4 cup added 1/2 raisins & sweetened cranberries, omitted salt added roasted & salted sunflower seeds plus a mix of chopped raw pecans, pistachios & almonds. Delish!
Sounds great – thanks for sharing!
Do you think I could replace the all purposed flour with almond or hazelnut flour?
Thanks. 🙂
Hi Tiffany,
That is something I haven’t tried but I think that it should work just fine! Mainly you just want to make sure the consistency gets to the right spot. Since I haven’t used those flours, I recommend adding a half cup at a time just to see how to works. I imagine it’ll work just great – I’d love if you reported back!
If i leave out oats do i need to add more flour? What is your suggestion? Thanks!
Yes, that would work. I would add it slowly since it’s a different consistency and soaks up any wet ingredients at a different rate and find a good gooey consistency. Let me know how it works out!
I love these! I make a double batch and freeze them. My 16 month old likes them too, and it's about the only way I can get him to eat carrots 🙂
I made these, put them in for 23 minutes, and they burned. I am terribly sad.
I made these last night and they are delicious. I'm a little disappointed my daughter didn't like them, but I suspect swapping the nutmeg for cinnamon might fix that.
Just made these! Didn't have carrots.. but did the exact recipe, adding in cranberries, cinnamon, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, and walnuts (made for my husband for breakfast). Baked for only 15-16 minutes and are Delicious! Thank you!
My son's lunch period at school is pretty late so I'm always looking out for healthy & delicious breakfast items that will also keep him full. These are perfect! Loads of vitamins & the fiber keeps his hunger at bay. Thanks!
Hi Adrienne! The shredded carrots equalled somewhere around 1 1/2 cups (165 grams) total. Hope this helps!
Megan
Hi!
I tried this recipe today (with some tweaks for current pantry inventory & allergies), came out pretty good, if not super carrot-y. How much carrot (in oz/grams) would you say your 4 medium carrots amounted to?
Thanks!
The recipe actually calls for TWO carrots, not FOUR, Adrienne. Reducing to two carrots might ‘fix’ your super carrot-y muffins, if that’s what you’d like.
Emily – maybe try applesauce instead of banana? That way it will help keep the muffins moist.
I greatly dislike banana. Do you think I can leave it out without any problems? Or is there something I can substitue with? Thanks. Looking forward to trying these out!
I was curious, so I figured out the calorie count for this. I substituted vegetable oil for the olive oil and after that each muffin turns out to be 168 calories. (that is including an assumption that the banana would be 100 calories and the carrots are 100 calories)
Thank you so much for this recipe. I now make them weekly. Delicious, filling and healthy.
best ever. ever.
threw in crushed pinapple and grated zuchini…