This is the first Muffin Monday that I’ve been able to do in a while because I was busy traveling. I’m excited to be back baking and doing so with other bloggers. It’s always fun to make a recipe knowing that others are baking the same thing because I love to see how their muffins turned out and what substitutions they made.
I have a love/hate relationship with muffins. They are sooooo good, but they are usually really unhealthy (more like cake) so I feel guilty eating them—especially for breakfast. Luckily this week we made a healthy muffin so I can enjoy them for breakfast without feeling guilty! The Carrot Spice Muffins taste similar to a carrot cake, but are not made with any butter, oil, or processed sugar—win and win! My husband and I both loved them and are devouring them pretty quickly 
.
As always, don’t forget to check out Anu’s blog, Baker Street, today to see the other awesome bloggers who participated in this week’s Muffin Monday—to beat glum Monday mornings .
Carrot Spice Muffins
*Recipe adapted from Whole Foods for the Whole Family
Ingredients
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oatmeal, ground (in food processor)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp allspice
2 1/2 tbsp honey
3 tbsp maple syrup
1 egg
1/2 cup plain yogurt (fat-free worked fine)
1/3 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)
1/2 cup (approximately) of granola (for garnish)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F and grease a 12 cup muffin tin.
In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients—flour, soda, powder, salt, and spices.
In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients—honey, maple syrup, egg, yogurt, applesauce, vanilla and carrots.
Gently add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just moistened. Fold in the raisins and walnuts.
Fill muffin cups with batter and top each muffin with a sprinkle of granola.
Bake for about 13-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Muffin Monday is an initiative started by Anuradha at Baker Street. It is a culinary journey of sharing a wickedly delicious muffin recipe every week to make the world smile and beat glum Monday mornings. If you’re interested in joining Muffin Monday, please contact Anuradha at Baker Street.
About Kristen
Beautiful muffins! Love the granola garnish on yours and the inclusion of maple syrup. Yum!
Carrie @ poet in the pantry recently posted..#MuffinMonday: Carrot Spice Muffins
Thanks Carrie! I love the flavor the maple syrup gave. Next time I want to try adding coconut
Good to have you back! Wasn’t this recipe a keeper? It’s definitely one of my favourites so far. Happy Muffin Monday!
Stay-At-Home-Chef recently posted..Muffin Monday: Carrot Spice Muffins
Thank you! I agree–this recipe is definitely a keeper. Loved it!
Kristen recently posted..The Easiest and Most Indulgent All-Natural Dessert Ever!
So nice to have you back K! Love that you added granola as a streusel.
Baker Street recently posted..Muffin Monday: Carrot Spice Muffins
Thanks A! It’s so great to be back. I love baking with everyone every week
Kristen recently posted..The Easiest and Most Indulgent All-Natural Dessert Ever!
Welcome back! Hope you had a lovely time traveling
Love the sprinkle of granola and oats along the top of yours. Very pretty and wholesome looking!
Thanks Aimee! I had a great time traveling, but it’s nice to be home and back in my routine. I loved this week’s muffin!
I love the texture of the toppings…all those nuts! Would love to sink my teeth into these luscious muffins! Great to bake with you this week!
Elizabeth @Mango_Queen recently posted..CARROT SPICE MUFFINS with CREAM CHEESE Frosting : Muffin Monday
Thanks Betty! It’s great to be back for MM. I love baking with all of you!
Do I have a favorite healthy muffin recipe? I spent at least a year trying to perfect the healthy muffin. I have a whole cookbook of healthy muffins. I heart them all.
Haha very true! I think you will love these too….they definitely need to be added to your repertoire.
whoohoo for #muffinmondays! love the healthy muffin recipe
hope you are having a fabulous month!
juniakk @ mis pensamientos recently posted..Korean Butternut Squash Porridge
Hey Junia! These muffins were sooo good. You should definitely try them if you can. I hope school is going well!
I’m loving the addition of oatmeal in & on top of the muffins, the granola crunch is a nice texture. Maple syrup too Im sure made it even tastier, great job all around!
Glad to see you baking with Muffin Monday
Thanks Caroline! I would definitely recommend using the oats, granola, and maple syrup next time you make these. They were very tasty. It’s great to be back baking with MM!
Kristen recently posted..Unbelievably Good Indonesian Pork with Eggplant Chips
Hi! I wanted to let you know that I featured your recipe post on my site, here: http://tracystreasury.com/drmom/nutrition/cookbooks/cookbooks.html . I did a post on “My Top Choices of Cookbooks to ROCK Your Socks OFF!” and one of them was “Whole Foods for the Whole Family” that this recipe came from. (A friend of mine also featured my review / your link on her site, VeronicasCornucopia.com) Thanks for sharing!
Hi Tracy! I’m so excited you featured my post on your blog. Thank you so much! I saw the pingback from Veronica’s post too and got very excited. We looooove these muffins! Please come back again soon
Kristen recently posted..Sweet Sundays: Permission Pudding—A Favorite Wintertime Dessert
I just pulled these little babies out of the oven! MMMM! DELICIOUS! And healthy! Johnny even liked them, he liked the spatula
I didnt have any granola, so they went naked but were delicious!
I’m so happy you made these Asti and I’m even happier that you both loved them…yay!!
Kristen recently posted..Did You Know….Mindful Tip and News from Around the Web