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Carrot Ginger Orange Muffins are here for those who love a healthy treat with a kick of spunky flavors. Made with oats instead of flour and sweetened with pure maple syrup, they’re a feel-good snack you’ll feel good about repeating.
As you know, I’ve been on a quick bread bender for some time now, which is precisely why I’ve had to change this strategy to muffins so that I don’t bore you with my loaves.
I combined my Oatmeal Orange Loaf with my Carrot Ginger Cake to make the perfect hybrid, showcasing beautiful warmly-spiced carrot, ginger, and orange flavors.
For me, this dynamic trio is everything I want in a tasty treat. It’s fresh, it’s flavorful, it feels like your taste buds are celebrating Taste Bud Appreciation Day…there’s just nothing more gratifying!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Wholesome: We’re using all healthy ingredients that are minimally processed for a lower sugar, lower fat muffin that’s a good source of complex carbohydrates.
- Magical Flavors: It’s as though carrot cake, orange cake and holiday spices gave each other a very special hug to produce this bundle of joy. The flavors are just terrific!
- Easy to Customize: Use it as a base recipe for other muffin adventures. You can add fresh or dried fruit for a totally different flavor.
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Pin ItIngredients for Carrot Ginger Orange Muffins:
Quick Oats: Instead of using all-purpose flour, I blend up some oats to act as flour instead. The end result is fluffy muffins that are loaded with complex carbohydrates for a slow-burning treat.
Carrots: One of the main starts of the show, fresh carrots get grated up and mixed in for a hidden veggie situation.
Fresh Ginger: Ginger adds a subtle spice and a kick of ginger flavor, which I just love in baked goods. Use 1 teaspoon of ground ginger if you don’t have fresh on hand.
Orange Zest: A generous amount of orange zest gives these muffins a soft citrus essence to put the finishing touches on the flavor profile.
Eggs: A couple of eggs help the batter rise to its full fluffy potential.
Pure Maple Syrup: A little pure maple syrup sweetens the carrot ginger orange muffins to the perfect level of sweetness.
Avocado Oil: Brings moisture, richness, and a tender crumb to the muffins. You can also use melted coconut oil or melted butter.
Unsweetened Applesauce: Adds moisture and subtle sweetness without a lot of calories. You can swap it out for Greek yogurt or cottage cheese, too.
Ground Cinnamon: Adds to the warmly-spiced appeal, giving your taste buds a hug.
Vanilla Extract: A splash of vanilla adds a lovely warmth. If you don’t have it on hand, skip it.
Baking Powder: The leavening agent that helps the batter rise to a fluffy texture.
Sea Salt: Salt enhances all of the flavors so that the muffins reach their full tasty potential.
Ways to Customize
- If you prefer sweet treats, you can add 1 to 3 tablespoons of brown sugar or coconut sugar to the muffin batter.
- Mix in ⅓ cup of raisins or dried cranberries for some extra sweetness and a pop of tangy flavor.
- Add in ⅔ cup of chocolate chips for the ultimate celebration of all the wild flavors in one muffin.
- Swap out the carrots for shredded zucchini.
- Omit the grated carrot, ginger, and orange zest and replace them with 1 cup of fresh blueberries, raspberries, chopped strawberries, or apples.
- Turn this into cupcakes by frosting the muffins with cream cheese frosting.
How to Make Carrot Ginger Orange Muffins:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a muffin tin with paper liners, or spray it with cooking spray. Transfer the oats, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and sea salt to a high speed blender and blend for 60 seconds or until a flour forms.
- Mix the eggs, applesauce, pure maple syrup, avocado oil, and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl until the wet ingredients are well combined.
- Pour the flour mixture into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix well.
- Then, add in the grated carrots, ginger, and orange zest.
- Mix thoroughly until everything is combined.
- Pour batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling the holes ⅔ of the way up. Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 20-24 minutes, or until the muffins test clean in the middle. Insert a digital thermometer into the center of a muffin. If it reads 190 degrees F or higher, the muffins are ready.
Allow the muffins to cool to room temperature before peeling off a paper liner to enjoy one. If you try peeling when the muffin is still warm, you’ll lose some muffin to the liner.
Storage Options
- Room Temperature: Store in an airtight container or a zip lock bag at room temperature for up to 2 days.
- Refrigerator: Store muffins in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: For longer term storage, freeze muffins in a freezer bag for up to 2 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Swap out the oats for 1 2/3 cups of regular all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, or gluten-free all-purpose flour. If you do so, there is no need to use a blender, as you can just mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
If you love baking muffins, also try some of my other reader favorites.
More Healthy Muffin Recipes:
- Blueberry Cottage Cheese Muffins
- Almond Flour Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Banana Oat Muffins
- Almond Flour Sweet Potato Muffins
- Oatmeal Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
Carrot Ginger Orange Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups quick oats
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¾ tsp sea salt
- 2 large eggs
- ⅔ cup unsweetened applesauce , or cottage cheese or Greek yogurt
- ⅓ cup pure maple syrup
- 4 Tbsp avocado oil
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ Tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 ½ cups grated carrots
- 2 navel oranges, zested
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a muffin tin with paper liners, or spray it with cooking spray.
- Transfer the oats, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and sea salt to a high speed blender and blend for 60 seconds or until a flour forms.
- Mix the eggs, applesauce, pure maple syrup, avocado oil, and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl until the wet ingredients are well combined.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix well. Then, stir in the grated carrots, ginger, and orange zest until thoroughly mixed.
- Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tray, filling the holes ⅔ of the way up. Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 20-24 minutes, or until the muffins test clean in the middle. Insert a digital thermometer into the center of one of the muffins. If it reads 190 degrees F or higher, the muffins are ready.
- Allow the muffins to cool to room temperature before peeling off a paper liner to enjoy one. If you try peeling when the muffin is still warm, you’ll lose some muffin to the liner.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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