If you crave for something sweet during your fitness journey, please make these easy and delicious carrot muffins at home instead of reaching out for those unhealthy sugary treats from outside!
These carrot muffins are love at first sight! Or love at first bite! Honestly!
If you haven’t yet had a chance to taste carrot muffins, I sincerely request you to try your hands on these. I can guarantee that you will be pleasantly surprised, if not shocked, by the amazing taste & flavors of these carrot muffins!
Baking your own muffin or cake has its own advantage! When you successfully bake one, you feel like being at cloud 9 as you pull the baked goodies out from the oven!
It is that ‘top-of-the-world’ feeling that still motivates me to bake, even though I have almost omitted sweets from my meals.
For that rare & occasional sweet bite on a rare & occasional cheat day, I prefer to make something at home instead of ordering a dessert from outside that will be loaded with high sugar, fat and carb.
Plus, my better half craves homemade muffins & cakes which were quite a frequent affair earlier in my kitchen, but have come to minimal nowadays.
So, this bunch of scrumptious carrot muffins was for him and I just had one! Thankfully, these muffins refrigerate well for a week; just warm it up in the microwave before serving or eating and you are good to go!
What are carrot muffins?
I would like to describe these muffins as a delicious lot of sweet treats that are loaded with the goodness of carrots, apples and a heavenly aroma imparted by cinnamon!
Muffins are my favorite type of sweet treat of all time and since the time I learned to bake a good batch of muffins, my happiness has known no bounds!
Baking in itself is therapeutic and when you bake such wonderful stuff, you should be happy for yourself!
These elegant carrot muffins will not only bring a smile to your face, but also would delight everyone who gets this treat from you!
Ingredients for carrot muffins
Carrot: Fresh & vibrant carrots are the showstopper in these carrot muffins! Get your hands on the bright orange carrots which are freshest of the lot!
The specs of orange inside the muffins look so pretty and appetizing that you can’t stop at having just one! Trust me, I know how tough it was!
You may use red carrots which are available here only in winter; I plan to try these again with red carrots when they are in season.
Walnut: This is a must-have add-on and I insist you add nuts to your carrot muffins! If you like any other nuts instead of walnuts, by all means add those; but definitely add a handful of coarsely chopped toasted nuts.
The crunch that these nuts add to the carrot muffins, makes them so much more enjoyable for our senses that you will hopelessly fall in love with them!
Cinnamon: After walnuts, if there is any other ingredient which is a must-have add-on in these carrot muffins, then that has to be cinnamon powder!
Thanks to cinnamon powder, your home will start smelling like a gourmet bakery when you bake these carrot muffins! Don’t skip it!
Apple: These muffins are also loaded with the subtle sweetness from a freshly grated apple which also adds moisture to keep your muffins soft and prevent them from drying out.
All-purpose flour/Maida: The base of these carrot muffins is our good old all-purpose flour which we call ‘maida’. You can sift your flour before using but it is not mandatory.
Sugar: A regular muffin uses regular sugar, no fancy stuff! These carrot muffins are sweetened with the regular granulated white sugar.
I prefer to grind the sugar in my dry blender before using it in my cakes or muffins; I feel that way it distributes evenly in the batter and you do not end up with clumps of sugar in one muffin.
Baking soda and baking powder: Use both the raising agents in your carrot muffins for a beautifully risen and fluffy bunch of muffins which will melt in your mouth.
Eggs: Two large eggs are what you need for your fluffy carrot muffins. Always use eggs at room temperature for even mixing and to maintain the right temperature of the final batter for it to bake evenly.
Salt: A pinch of salt is needed to bring out the flavors of all ingredients.
Oil: These carrot muffins are oil based and you can use any flavorless oil for these. Canola oil, sunflower oil or any vegetable oil would be perfect in this recipe.
Vanilla extract: For any cakes or muffins with eggs, I always use vanilla extracts to kill any eggy smell. Use the pure vanilla extract for the best flavor!
How to make carrot muffins?
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F and place the oven rack at the center of the oven.
Step 2: Place paper liners in each cup of a 12 cup muffin pan.
Step 3: Toast the walnuts in a frying pan (without adding any oil or fat) until they become fragrant and slightly change their color.
Step 4: Transfer them to a chopping board and let them cool enough to handle. Then chop them coarsely and not too fine so that you get a bite when savoring your carrot muffins.
Step 5: Now prepare the carrots by peeling them first, then give them a quick wash. Grate the carrots using a coarse grater, not the fine one. You will need about 120 grams of grated carrots.
Step 6: Similarly peel the apple and grate them using the same coarse grater. Set it aside.
Step 7: First we will combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon powder. Take your time here and give them a good mix using a wire whisk to evenly distribute all the ingredients.
Step 8: Add the chopped walnuts and stir them in.
Step 9: For wet ingredients, take a separate mixing bowl and add eggs, oil and vanilla extract. Whisk them through.
Step 10: Now pour the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients along with grated carrot and grated apple.
Step 11: Fold the wet into dry ingredients using a spatula stirring just until moistened. Do not overmix; just ensure all dry flours are evenly mixed in.
Step 12: Equally divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups and bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a carrot muffin comes out clean.
Step 13: Take the muffin pan out of the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 14: Now remove the muffins from the pan and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
Step 15: Your delicious carrot muffins are ready to devour! Serve them warm on their own or with a light spread of butter!
More delicious muffin recipes from Flavor quotient
- Low Fat Banana & Zucchini Muffins
- Red Velvet Muffins with Kiss of Choco Chips
- Tutti Frutti Vanilla Muffin
Recipe inspiration: Joy of Baking
- Raw carrot, grated - 120 gms (1 & ⅓ cup) (about 2-3 peeled carrots)
- All-purpose flour/maida - 175 gms (1 & ⅓ cups)
- Granulated white sugar - 150 gms (¾ cup)
- Baking soda - ½ tsp
- Baking powder - 1 tsp
- Salt - ¼ tsp
- Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp
- Walnuts- ¼ cup, toasted & coarsely chopped
- Apple - 1, small, peeled and grated
- Eggs - 2, large, at room temperature
- Flavorless oil - ½ cup (canola, sunflower or vegetable oil)
- Vanilla extract - ½ tsp
- Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F and place the oven rack at the center of the oven.
- Place paper liners in each cup of a 12 cup muffin pan.
- Toast the walnuts in a frying pan (without adding any oil or fat) until they become fragrant and slightly change their color.
- Transfer them to a chopping board and let them cool enough to handle. Then chop them coarsely and not too fine so that you get a bite when savoring your carrot muffins.
- Now prepare the carrots by peeling them first, then give them a quick wash. Grate the carrots using a coarse grater, not the fine one. You will need about 120 grams of grated carrots.
- Similarly peel the apple and grate them using the same coarse grater. Set it aside.
- First we will combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon powder. Take your time here and give them a good mix using a wire whisk to evenly distribute all the ingredients.
- Add the chopped walnuts and stir them in.
- For wet ingredients, take a separate mixing bowl and add eggs, oil and vanilla extract. Whisk them through.
- Now pour the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients along with grated carrot and grated apple.
- Fold the wet into dry ingredients using a spatula stirring just until moistened. Do not overmix; just ensure all dry flours are evenly mixed in.
- Equally divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups and bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a carrot muffin comes out clean.
- Take the muffin pan out of the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Now remove the muffins from the pan and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
- Your delicious carrot muffins are ready to devour! Serve them warm on their own or with a light spread of butter! Enjoy!
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