These healthy Mini Carrot Zucchini Muffins are a delicious way to add a few extra veggies to your day! They contain no added sugar and make the perfect snack for on the go! Also great 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.
I have been wanting to try out a new mini muffin recipe for the looongest time since the Blueberry Banana and Almond Butter Mini Muffins Bites were such popular snacks in our house.
I figured that mini muffins would be the perfect vehicle to house some extra veggies.
So through this little muffin experiment, we wound up with Healthy Mini Carrot Zucchini Muffins.
And they were SO good!
What makes these Mini Carrot Zucchini Muffins special?
There are a few unique characteristics of these muffins that not many other muffins would meet.
- They contain a healthy dose of fibre, vitamin A and potassium since they are loaded up with zucchini and carrot.
- There is NO ADDED SUGAR since they are sweetened naturally with dates. But don’t worry, they are plenty sweet. You don’t even miss that 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 is perfect for taking on the go!
- They are unbelievably tasty and addictive. I’m not usually a big muffin person, but I couldn’t get enough of these little bites! And my husband and little guy were all over them too!
Tips for Making Gluten-free Zucchini Muffins
When putting together this recipe, there are a several things to keep in mind to make sure that it turns out super delicious.
First, you’ll want to be sure to soak the dates in some boiling water for at least 20 minutes. If you can soak them even longer than that, it’s even better. I tend to give this tip for most recipes involving dates since oftentimes they require some softening up before blending them.
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.
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.
Can I freeze these Mini Carrot Zucchini Muffins?
Once you make a batch of these muffins, it’s important to store them properly to maintain the ultimate freshness.
You can keep them in the fridge for up to three days, or better yet, store them in the freezer.
Just place them in a large ziplock bag or air-tight container and store them in the freezer for up to a month.
If you want to thaw them out, 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!
Aren’t those the best types of snacks?!
Mini Carrot Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup dates softened
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp melted coconut oil
- 2 tbsp unsweetened apple sauce
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp 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. 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, egg, and vanilla extract. Pulse until 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 16 mini muffin cups, filling each cup to the top. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool for at least 5 minutes in the pan.
Nutrition
Looking for more mini muffin recipes? Check out these recipes!
Mini Almond Butter Muffin Bites
Mini Turkey Apple Meatloaf Muffins
Looking for more healthy Baby-Led Weaning recipes, tips and meal ideas?
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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!
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?!