These healthy mini carrot zucchini muffins are a delicious way to add some extra veggies to your day. They contain no added sugar and make the perfect snack for on the go! Made in less than 30 minutes, they’re a great easy option for baby-led weaning or as a finger food for toddlers! {gluten-free, paleo, & vegetarian}
I’m always on a mission to add vegetables to as many foods as possible since we could all use an extra dose of veggies here and there, and these carrot zucchini muffins are definitely a tasty way to get those veggies in!
Perfectly moist, and made with no added sugar, these healthy zucchini muffins are a delicious option for the whole family. Due to their small size and soft texture, they’re the perfect finger food for babies and toddlers and are a great addition to breakfast, lunch boxes or served as an after school snack!
It’s so simple to make up a batch of these mini muffins, and they’re freezer friendly too. We love to keep a batch of these muffins in the freezer for a quick and easy bite to eat throughout the day!
If you’re looking for more mini muffin recipes, be sure to try my Blueberry Banana Mini Muffins and Almond Butter Mini Muffins Bites too!
Table of Contents
Why you will love this mini muffin recipe
There are a few unique characteristics to these little muffins that not many other muffins would meet!
- They contain a healthy dose of fibre, vitamin A and potassium since they are loaded with zucchini and carrot.
- There is no added sugar since they’re sweetened naturally with dates. But don’t worry, they are plenty sweet. You don’t even miss the added sugar.
- Rather than using refined white flour, a mixture of almond flour and coconut flour are used which lends a nice nutty flavour and plenty of healthy fats and fibre.
- They make the perfect little bite-sized snack that can be made in advance and are perfect for taking on the go!
- They are unbelievably tasty and addictive. I’m not usually a huge muffin person, but I couldn’t get enough of these little bites. And my husband and little guys were all over them too!
Ingredient Notes
- Dates: Dates add a natural sweetness, so you don’t have to add any processed sugar. Use pitted baking dates or Medjool dates with the pits removed. Soak them before blending so that they break down easily.
- Flour: This healthy muffin recipe uses a mixture of almond and coconut flour to incorporate more healthy fats and fibre. This combination also makes these muffins a gluten-free option. Use blanched almond flour for the best results.
- Cinnamon, salt and vanilla extract: For sweetness and flavour. Feel free to add in some other spices if desired.
- Coconut oil and applesauce: These ingredients replace the butter and help make the muffins extra moist. Use unsweetened applesauce to limit added sugar.
- Milk: I used unsweetened almond milk. Other plant-based milks like oat and soy will work well, as will a dairy-based milk.
- Eggs: Eggs are used to bind the ingredients together. You can try added chia or flax eggs as well for an egg substitute.
- Zucchini and carrot: Grate the vegetables with a box grater or food processor. The veggies make the muffins nice and moist as well as adding lots of nutrients to each bite.
Step by Step Instructions
- Soak the dates for at least 20 minutes in boiling water.
- Preheat the oven to 350. Grease the muffin pan or line a mini muffin pan with liners.
- In a large bowl, mix together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the dates, coconut oil, applesauce, almond milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. Pulse until smooth and thoroughly combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the food processor and pulse until well incorporated. At this point, the mixture will be fairly thick. Stir in the shredded vegetables.
- Pulse once more until the shredded vegetables are broken down into finer pieces, but still visible in the mixture.
- Evenly distribute the muffin batter across 22 mini muffin cups, filling each cup to the top.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool the muffins for at least 5 minutes in the pan.
Recipe Tips for Baby Zucchini Muffins with Carrots
When preparing this recipe, there are a several things to keep in mind to make sure that it turns out super delicious.
- Be sure to soak the dates in some boiling water for at least 20 minutes to help soften them up. Soak them even longer than that if they’re extra hard, otherwise, they won’t fully break down and you’ll be left with large chunks of dates in the food processor. We’re looking for more of a paste that will be evenly distributed throughout the muffin mixture, not large hunks of dates.
- Second, I recommend slightly blending up the shredded carrot and zucchini with the rest of the ingredients in the food processor so that they’re slightly broken down but not completely blended into the mixture. I like to still see little bits and pieces of the carrot and zucchini for some added colour. Another reason why I suggest doing this is because the shredded vegetables can be a little too big for the miniature-sized muffins and might start to overtake the muffins, so it’s better if they’re more finely chopped.
- Allow the muffins to cool for at least 10 minutes in the muffin tin. You may need to run a knife around each muffin to help nudge them out of the pan.
- To prevent the muffins from becoming too moist, I like to place a piece of paper towel on the bottom of the storage container beneath the muffins and then place another paper towel on top, and then seal with the lid. The paper towel will help to absorb some of the moisture. You can use the same technique for a zip-lock bag.
Recipe FAQs
Once you make a batch of these muffins, it’s important to store them properly to maintain ultimate freshness.
Let them cool completely, then place them in an air-tight container. You can keep them in the fridge for up to five days, or on the countertop at room temperature for 3 days.
Yes, these muffins freeze really well. Just place them in a large ziplock bag or air-tight container and store them in the freezer for up to three months.
To thaw them to eat, place them in the fridge for a few hours or overnight, or pop them in the microwave for about 30-60 seconds. Totally handy for when that snack attack hits!
I typically like to bake mini muffins at 350 F for around 15-20 minutes. You can tell if they’re done if an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Let them cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then transfer them to a cooling rack to allow air to circulate around them.
Serving Suggestions
These carrot zucchini muffins are great for a quick snack, or you can enjoy them as part of a balanced breakfast with:
- Fruit
- Scrambled or hard boiled eggs
- Spread with almond or peanut butter
- A smoothie (try it with this Simple Green Smoothie!)
- Yogurt (like this Homemade Raspberry Fruit-on-the-Bottom Yogurt)
Recipe variations for carrot & zucchini muffins
- To make egg free: To make these mini veggie muffins vegan, you can replace the eggs with flax or chia eggs.
- Different add-ins: Try adding raisins, mini chocolate chips, or some chopped walnuts.
- Spices: For a different flavour, try adding nutmeg, ground ginger, or additional cinnamon.
Looking for more healthy muffin recipes? Check out these!
- Mini Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Spinach Banana Muffins
- Carrot Cake Muffins
- Mini Strawberry Muffins
- Mini Sweet Potato Muffins
- Mini Turkey Apple Meatloaf Muffins
- Mini Egg Bites
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a rating and review!
Carrot Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup pitted dates softened
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup shredded carrot
- 1/2 cup shredded zucchini
Instructions
- Soak the dates for at least 20 minutes in boiling water.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease the muffin pan or line a mini muffin pan with liners.
- In a large bowl, mix together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the dates, coconut oil, applesauce, almond milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. Pulse until smooth and thoroughly combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the food processor and pulse until well incorporated. At this point, the mixture will be fairly thick. Stir in the shredded vegetables and pulse once more until the shredded vegetables are broken down into finer pieces, but still visible in the mixture.
- Evenly distribute the muffin batter across 22 mini muffin cups, filling each cup close to the top. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool for at least 5 minutes in the pan.
Notes
- Be sure to soak the dates in some boiling water for at least 20 minutes to help soften them up. Soak them even longer than that if they’re extra hard. Otherwise, they won’t fully break down and you’ll be left with large chunks of dates in the food processor. We’re looking for more of a paste that will be evenly distributed throughout the muffin mixture, not large hunks of dates.
- I recommend blending up the shredded carrot and zucchini with the rest of the ingredients in the food processor so that they’re slightly broken down but not completely blended into the mixture. I like to still see little bits and pieces of the carrot and zucchini for some added colour. Another reason why I suggest doing this is because the shredded vegetables can be a little too big for the miniature-sized muffins and might start to overtake the muffins, so it’s better if they’re more finely chopped.
- Allow the muffins to cool for at least 10 minutes in the muffin tin. You may need to run a knife around each muffin to help nudge them out of the pan.
- To prevent the muffins from becoming too moist, I like to place a piece of paper towel on the bottom of the storage container beneath the muffins and then place another paper towel on top, and then seal with the lid. The paper towel will help to absorb some of the moisture. You can use the same technique for a zip-lock bag.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published May 2019 and was updated August 2021 to include better tips and photos.
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I made these today with the following substitutions:
no egg, instead vegan egg replacer
no oil, ~1/3 c apple sauce (one single serving size)
white rice flour instead of coconut flour
made in regular muffin tins, made 8 larger muffins
baked between 23-25 minutes.
Thanks so much for sharing your substitutions! Glad you found a way to make this recipe work for you!
hi Is there a substitute for coconut flour?
Unfortunately, I haven’t had a chance to test the recipe with a coconut flour alternative so I’m not 100% sure how it would turn out without it. Coconut flour is highly absorbent so it’s needed to absorb some of the extra moisture from the veggies. Let me know if you find a suitable replacement!
I love how healthy this is for the babies and toddlers! (and all of us, I suppose haha). Perfect balance of sweetness, and a nice mushy texture. However, because of the texture I actually wouldn’t even call them muffins. They seemed more energy ball-ish, in a way. My husband just called them “almond flour veggie bites.” I thought that worked! ;)
Yes, the almond flour and veggies do give them a nice soft texture, but they’re baked in a mini muffin tin, so I just went with muffins haha! I like your husband’s creative title too ;) So glad your family enjoyed them!
Can I use almond flour so can I sub that for regular? I don’t have dates or apple sauce, what can I sub for that?
I personally haven’t tried out any of those substitutions so I’m not 100% sure how it would turn out. You could try using mashed banana or a bit of maple syrup instead of the applesauce and dates to add some extra sweetness. Let me know how it turns out if you decide to try it out!
Hello … How much do you have a glass … 200 ml or 250 ml? Because I do not know now in what proportions to add flour
For the flour, if you were to measure it by weight, the almond flour would be 112 grams and the coconut flour would be 28 grams. Hope that helps!
Excellent! These were delicious and baby loved it!
That’s amazing! So happy baby enjoyed them!
These look amazing!
My daughter is 10 months and only have egg yolks and not egg whites, will it make a huge difference to only use the yolks? Also, can I use prunes instead of dates (as I have prunes in my pantry currently but not dates) Thank you =)
Thanks Marcy! I haven’t personally tried using just yolks or subbing in prunes instead of dates, but you could certainly try it out! If you find that the batter is too dry when mixing, you may wish to add an extra yolk to account for the missing egg whites. Keep me posted on how they turn out!
These look delicious! I couldn’t find almond flour in my store though. Could you please suggest some alternatives? Thank you!
Thanks Erika! You could also try brown rice flour or oat flour. It might require that you tweak the recipe and fluid called for to get the taste and consistency right. I haven’t tried these muffins with any other flours other than the ones listed, so please let me know if you experiment with another flour.
I made these 4 days ago, they were AMAZING! My kids want more. Have you made them in the 12 count muffin cups? I was wondering what the baking time would be.
So glad you guys loved these muffins! I haven’t made them in the larger muffin tin. You could try baking them for slightly longer, maybe 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees F? Please keep me posted on how they turn out if you decide to make them in the larger tin!
I love carrot muffins and the combination with zucchini is simply perfect! Such a great idea for a healthy snack!
Thanks so much Natalie! Who knew that carrots and zucchini packed in a muffin could be so tasty?!