Healthy Applesauce Muffins

These healthy applesauce muffins are quick and easy to make in one bowl! This whole wheat muffins recipe is made with applesauce, fresh apples and cinnamon. Make a batch of these healthy breakfast muffins for your freezer.

Muffins are a busy mom’s best friend. They’re freezer-friendly, portable, and perfect for make ahead breakfasts.

You can make healthier, more wholesome muffins without sacrificing flavor or texture. Take my one bowl healthy banana muffins and chocolate black bean blender muffins, for example. So many of you have made these healthy muffin recipes and loved them!

These cinnamon apple muffins are the perfect thing to satisfy your cozy fall baking cravings. We love this muffins recipe so much that I’ve made four batches in the past two weeks!

I plan to keep a stash of these apple muffins in my freezer all autumn long. I usually grab one for a morning snack, along with a piece of fruit. 

How do you make healthy muffins?

When I’m creating a healthy muffin recipe, there are three ingredients that I replace with more nutritious options: the white flour, the fat/oil, and the sugar. For healthy muffins:

• Use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour. I like to use white whole wheat flour because we prefer its milder flavor. You can find white whole wheat flour in many grocery stores.
• Replace some of the butter with unsweetened applesauce, mashed banana or Greek yogurt. You can also use other fruit or vegetable purees, such as pumpkin puree. I like to keep a small amount of butter in my muffin recipes for flavor. I’ve tried to replace it completely and the flavor is always lacking. These ingredients also add moisture so that your muffins will be soft and moist, not dry.
• Use unrefined sugars instead of white granulated sugar or brown sugar. I always use either honey, pure maple syrup or unsweetened applesauce in my muffins, and you can use them interchangeably. I find 1/3-1/2 cup to be the perfect amount. You can add less sweetener if you are making muffins with ripe banana, since the banana adds a lot of sweetness.

Making this applesauce muffin recipe is so simple. Let me walk you through the steps.

How do you make homemade applesauce muffins?

1. Melt the butter in a large bowl in the microwave. If you do not have a microwave, melt it on the stove.
2. Add the remaining wet ingredients to the bowl and whisk to combine.
3. Add the dry ingredients, except for the whole wheat flour, to the bowl. Whisk to combine well.
4. Mix in the flour using a rubber spatula. Stop mixing when the flour is not quite mixed in.
5. Mix in the apples, being careful not to over-mix the batter. When making muffins you want to mix until just combined for the best texture.
6. Scoop the batter into greased muffin pans and bake.

You can serve these muffins warm from the oven or at room temperature. If you freeze them, let them defrost at room temperature for about an hour. You can also defrost them in your microwave using low power or the defrost setting.

Serve these healthy apple muffins plain or spread with almond butter or peanut butter. For breakfast, add a piece of fruit and yogurt or a Instant Pot hard boiled egg to round out the meal.

More healthy breakfast muffins

• Apple Banana Muffins
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Light and Fluffy Blueberry Banana Muffins
• Even more Muffin Recipes

For more delicious fall baking, try my Healthy Apple Bread and favorite Apple Pie Recipe next!

4.78 from 9 ratings

Healthy Apple Muffins (One Bowl Recipe)

Servings: 15 muffins

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 16 minutes mins

Total Time: 31 minutes mins

These healthy apple muffins are quick and easy to make in one bowl! This whole wheat muffins recipe is made with applesauce, fresh apples and cinnamon. Make a batch of these healthy breakfast muffins for your freezer.

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Ingredients

• ▢ 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1/4 cup
• ▢ 1/2 cup honey or pure maple syrup
• ▢ 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• ▢ 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• ▢ 1/4 cup milk, dairy, almond, etc.
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ▢ 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
• ▢ 1 large baking apple, chopped (1 1/2 cups, no need to peel)

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray muffin pans (regular size or mini) with cooking spray. I like to use coconut oil spray.
• Place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave. You could also melt the butter in a pot on the stove.
• Add the honey or pure maple syrup, applesauce, plain Greek yogurt, milk, eggs and vanilla to the bowl with the butter. Whisk until well combined.
• Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Whisk until well combined.
• Add the white whole wheat flour. Use a rubber spatula to mix it in until almost combined.
• Add the chopped apple, reserving a few apple pieces for the tops of the muffins, if desired. Use the rubber spatula to mix in the apple until just combined.
• Scoop the batter into the greased muffin pans, filling each well about 2/3 full. If you reserved some of the apple pieces, press them into the tops of the muffins.
• Bake regular size muffins for 16-18 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Bake mini muffins for about 12 minutes.
• Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
• Store muffins in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Serving: 1muffin, Calories: 134kcal, Carbohydrates: 22g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 34mg, Sodium: 194mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 12g

Nutrition information is an estimate.

Cuisine: American

Course: Breakfast

Tried this recipe?Mention @kristines_kitchen on Instagram or tag #kristineskitchenblog.