These healthy carrot cake muffins are prepped in just 10 minutes and topped with a creamy coconut butter glaze. They make for a perfect breakfast, snack or even a light and fluffy dessert. The muffins are gluten free, dairy free, and vegan.
Gluten free carrot cake muffins
I have had my fair share of gluten free muffins, and I always get nervous making them myself because they easily can dry out in my opinion.
The combination of almond flour and rice flour are really lovely in these. I used the same flour combination to make my vegan blueberry muffins, and they are a true crowd favorite.
With the shredded carrot addition and the coconut butter glaze, these turn out incredibly moist, fluffy and absolutely divine.
Ingredients you'll need
- Coconut oil
- Maple syrup
- Unsweetened applesauce
- Non-dairy milk
- Vanilla
- Brown rice flour
- Almond flour
- Kosher salt & spices
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Carrots
A creamy coconut butter glaze
The glaze on top of these muffins really ties everything together so well. It's made with coconut butter, sweetener, lemon juice, vanilla and non-dairy milk.
It's truly a very simple and straight forward recipe that I use time and time again. I first made it for my keto strawberry muffins and have been repeating it since.
I've even made it to dip fruit into... truly fantastic!
If you want these to be more of a dessert, I'd recommend topping them off with vanilla frosting.
I have a killer recipe for keto buttercream frosting that would be killer on top.
How to make healthy carrot cake muffins
Heat oven: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Line a cupcake or small muffin tin with 10 parchment liners. Very lightly coat or spray with extra oil and set aside.
Wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all of the wet ingredients until well combined.
Dry ingredients: Sift in the dry ingredients. Stir softly until everything has been well incorporated, but do not over mix. Fold in the shredded carrots.
Pour batter: Fill each parchment liner about ¾ full. Don't worry too much about it going too high. The muffins won't rise too high. The batter should divide evenly among 10 liners.
Cook: Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. While they are cooking, prepare the glaze.
Prepare glaze: Using a double boiler method or in a small glass bowl in the microwave, gently melt the coconut butter until smooth throughout.
Add sweetener: Remove from heat and stir in sweetener. The mixture will be quite thick at this point and that's okay. Slowly pour in about 1 tablespoon of almond milk at a time.
Watch the consistency closely. You will want it to be between thin and thick. I found that having equal amounts coconut butter and almond milk was perfect.
Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Taste for adjustments and spoon on top of the cooled down muffins. Enjoy!
Recipe substitutions and questions
Can I use a paleo flour instead of the rice flour?
There isn't a paleo flour that substitutes 1:1 for rice flour.
How long will these keep?
I keep them on the counter in an airtight container for 1 day. Then, I will transfer to the refrigerator for another 2-3 days.
Are they very sweet?
Not at all. They are very balanced and would work well for breakfast but can also be enjoyed for dessert.
More paleo breakfast recipes you'll love
Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins
Ingredients
Muffins
- ¼ cup coconut oil melted and cooled
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce or 1 egg
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup brown rice flour see notes
- ½ cup blanched almond flour
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon dried nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon dried ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup carrots grated
- ¼ cup pecans and walnuts finely chopped, for topping
Coconut Butter Glaze
- ¼ cup coconut butter
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar see notes
- ¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Muffins
- Heat oven: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Line a cupcake or small muffin tin with 10 parchment liners. Very lightly coat or spray with extra oil and set aside.
- Wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all of the wet ingredients until well combined.
- Dry ingredients: Sift in the dry ingredients. Stir softly until everything has been well incorporated, but do not over mix. Fold in the shredded carrots.
- Pour batter: Fill each parchment liner about ¾ full. Don't worry too much about it going too high. The muffins won't rise too high. The batter should divide evenly among 10 liners.
- Cook: Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. While they are cooking, prepare the glaze.
Coconut Butter Glaze
- Prepare glaze: Using a double boiler method or in a small glass bowl in the microwave, gently melt the coconut butter until smooth throughout.
- Add sweetener: Remove from heat and stir in sweetener. The mixture will be quite thick at this point and that's okay. Slowly pour in about 1 tablespoon of almond milk at a time.Watch the consistency closely. You will want it to be between thin and thick. I found that having equal amounts coconut butter and almond milk was perfect.
- Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Taste for adjustments and spoon on top of the cooled down muffins. Add a sprinkle of crushed pecans and walnuts
Notes
- There isn't a 1:1 substitute for rice flour besides another kind of rice flour. I'd recommend sticking to the recipe.
- You can alternatively use Swerve or erythritol as the sweetener. Be sure to run it through a coffee or spice grinder if it's granular and not powdered.
Mari says
Wow, I don't usually bake with rice flour, but the texture of these muffins is light and fluffy with that little bit of grainy-ness like cornbread, that I really enjoyed. I subbed in 1/4c buttermilk that I had to use up, plus added currants. I only 3/4 filled seven muffin cups before I saw it should make 10, but they still baked up in 25min and rose nicely too - maybe due to the buttermilk? Also just sprinkled some toasted pecans on top to reduce sugar, still plenty sweet enough. Thanks! Will make these again and again!