Healthy Whole Wheat Morning Glory Muffins
These healthy morning glory muffins are made with white whole wheat flour, oats, and unsweetened applesauce, and they bake in a standard muffin tin in about 22 to 25 minutes. They’re soft and moist, packed with fruits and veggies and lightly spiced with cinnamon and ginger. Everything comes together in two bowls, with no mixer.
As a dietitian, here’s my favorite part: they’re fluffy but still dense, so they feel like a hearty breakfast. I added oats for extra texture and fiber, and every batch has about 4½ cups of fruit and veggies (carrots, apple, raisins, applesauce, and orange juice). I leave out the coconut, pineapple, and nuts because I don’t like those in my muffins.
Recipe Highlights
- They’re healthy. With about 200 calories per muffin, they’re made with whole grains, oats, and real produce, they give you fiber and staying power while still being tasty.
- They have no refined grains. It uses white whole wheat flour plus oats instead of all-purpose flour, so you get more fiber and a softer crumb than regular whole wheat. There are no refined flours in this recipe.
- They’re delicious. They remind me of carrot cake except packed with nutrition.
Ingredient Notes
- White whole wheat flour: It’s milder and lighter than traditional whole wheat. Spoon it into your measuring cup and level it off. Scooping straight from the bag packs in extra flour, which is the number one cause of dry muffins. [Add your all-purpose swap result if you tested one.]
- Oats: Old-fashioned rolled oats or quick oats both will work.
- Unsweetened smooth applesauce: Sweetened applesauce makes the muffins too sweet and can make them gummy. Chunky applesauce leaves wet pockets.
- Fresh orange juice and zest: Zest the orange before you juice it. Bottled juice works in a pinch, but you’ll lose some brightness.
- Carrots: Shred them on the medium holes of a box grater. Pre-shredded bagged carrots are drier and cut in longer strands, so measure by packed cup and chop them a bit shorter. [Note what you tested.]
- Apple: Use a firm, tart apple such as Granny Smith or Honeycrisp. Grate it, then press it gently between paper towels so it doesn’t make the batter watery.
- Oil or melted butter: Either works. Oil gives a slightly moister muffin that stays soft longer, and butter adds flavor. [Add your preference from testing.]
- Baking soda: The recipe uses 2 teaspoons, which is a lot and it helps these rise since they’re dense. It’s balanced by the acidic orange juice, brown sugar, and applesauce.
How to Make Healthy Morning Glory Muffins (Step by Step)
1. Prep. Position an oven rack in the center and preheat to [375F]. Line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners, or grease it well with nonstick spray.
2. Prep the produce. Zest the orange, then juice it. Shred the carrots on the medium holes of a box grater. Grate the apple.
3. Mix the dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt for 30 seconds, until the baking soda and spices are evenly distributed and there are no clumps.
4. Mix the wet ingredients. In a second large bowl, whisk the eggs and brown sugar. Whisk in the melted butter) applesauce, orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla until fully combined. Fold in the carrots, apple, and raisins.
5. Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to fold the batter, scraping the bottom of the bowl, just until you no longer see dry flour. It should still look a little lumpy. Note**The batter will be thick and scoopable, not pourable.
6. Fill the tin. Use a 1/4-cup or large cookie scoop to fill each cup to the top of the liner. These muffins don’t rise much, so filling them fully gives you a nice dome.
7. Bake. Bake on the center rack for [22 to 25] minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. They’re done when the tops spring back when pressed lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
8. Cool. Let the muffins rest in the tin for 5 minutes, then move them to a wire rack. Cool for at least 10 more minutes before eating. They finish setting as they cool.
CAROLINE’S TIPS
Expert Tips from the Testing Kitchen
- Shred your carrots yourself. They retain more moisture and I think the muffins come out more fresh. Matchstick carrots from the store are dried out by the time you’re cooking with them.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Stop folding as soon as the flour disappears. Whole wheat flours build gluten quickly, and a lumpy batter is fine for this type of recipe.
- Use paper liners with a light coat of nonstick spray, or grease the tin well to make sure the muffins don’t stick to the pan. Waiting until the muffins have cooled 5 minutes helps to prevent the liner from sticking to the muffins too.
Looking for more healthy breakfast ideas? Give my Kodiak Pumpkin Muffins or Baked Oats Without Banana a try.
Healthy Whole Wheat Morning Glory Muffins
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups white whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup oats
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp salt
Wet Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ⅓ cup neutral oil or melted butter
- ½ cup unsweetened smooth applesauce
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- ½ cup orange juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups shredded carrots about 4 large carrots
- 1 cup finely chopped or grated apple about 1 large apple
- ½ cup raisins
Instructions
- Position an oven rack in the center and preheat to 375F. Line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners, or grease it well with nonstick spray.
- Zest the orange, then juice it. Shred the carrots on the medium holes of a box grater. Grate the apple.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt for 30 seconds, until the baking soda and spices are evenly distributed and there are no clumps.
- In a second large bowl, whisk the eggs and brown sugar. Whisk in the melted butter) applesauce, orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla until fully combined. Fold in the carrots, apple, and raisins..
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to fold the batter, scraping the bottom of the bowl, just until you no longer see dry flour. It should still look a little lumpy. Note**The batter will be thick and scoopable, not pourable.
- Use a 1/4-cup or large cookie scoop to fill each cup to the top of the liner. These muffins don’t rise much, so filling them fully gives you a nice dome.
- Bake on the center rack for 22 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. They’re done when the tops spring back when pressed lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Let the muffins rest in the tin for 5 minutes, then move them to a wire rack. Cool for at least 10 more minutes before eating. They finish setting as they cool.
Notes
- Bottled orange juice plus 1/2 teaspoon of orange extract or a bit of lemon zest works fine if that’s all you have.
- They keep 2 days at room temperature in an airtight container, up to 5 days in the fridge, and up to 3 months in the freezer.
- If you like, you can add 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut or 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans as mix ins at the end.
