Applesauce Muffins

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Big, bakery-style, fluffy applesauce muffins made with healthier and more wholesome ingredients! Crunchy sugared-topping and moist interior. Delicious! Recipe via chelseasmessyapron.com

Big, moist,  fluffy Applesauce Muffins have so many more wholesome ingredients than you’ll find in typical bakery-style muffins! These muffins have a soft, moist interior with a crunchy and sweet cinnamon-sugar topping. 

Try some of our other nutritious muffin recipes next — these Healthy Banana Muffins, Healthy Zucchini Muffins, or Healthy Blueberry Muffins are all fan-favorite recipes!

Applesauce Muffins

Applesauce Muffins

Applesauce is a wonderful ingredient to add to baked goods — we love it in this Applesauce Cake, these Applesauce Brownies, and let’s not forget this amazing Applesauce Bread! And now, we’ve got it in muffins — yay! 
 
These muffins are big, fluffy, and bakery-style-esque, but made with much healthier ingredients than most bakery muffins. They’ve got a fraction of the sugar and myriad other nutritious ingredients, which we’ll discuss below.
 
Process shots: combine dry ingredients; mix; combine wet ingredients; mix all.

Ingredients

There are several ingredients that make Applesauce Muffins taste amazing while keeping them on the healthier side. Take a look and see what I mean:

  • Applesauce. The moisture in applesauce, its sweetness, acidity, and fresh flavor all benefit baked goods — both in flavor and texture. Besides being nutritious, applesauce works as a great fat replacer in these muffins. You don’t need butter and there’s a lot less oil in these muffins because of the applesauce.
  • Honey Vanilla Greek Yogurt. Our favorite yogurt to use in these muffins is Honey Vanilla Greek yogurt (made by Greek Gods®). The Greek yogurt not only adds texture and thickness to the muffins, but it also loads them up with protein — Greek yogurt is a wonderful source of it!
  • Large egg: The egg not only contributes protein to these muffins, but it also adds flavor, color, and richness.
  • Coconut oil: This oil is better nutrition-wise than many oils and adds a nice, but very subtle, coconut flavor.
  • White whole-wheat flour: If you’d like even more health benefits in these healthy applesauce muffins, use white whole-wheat flour instead of plain white flour. White whole wheat flour contains fewer calories and carbs, plus more protein, fiber, and minerals than refined white flour.

Process shots: add dry ingredients to wet; mix to combine; divide into muffin tins; bake

Healthy Applesauce Muffins Quick Tips

  • Cool the coconut oil: While the coconut oil needs to be melted, you don’t want it hot when you add it to the other wet ingredients. Allow plenty of time for it to get back to room temperature or it will get chunky when it comes in contact with cooler ingredients.
  • Use room-temperature ingredients: This goes along with the tip above, but the closer in temperature the ingredients are, the better everything integrates together.
  • Use a flavorful yogurt: Whatever yogurt you choose to use, make sure you like it plain or it won’t add a lot in way of flavor to these muffins. I recommend getting a vanilla-flavored Greek yogurt instead of plain. I also recommend full-fat yogurt, so these muffins don’t end up overly watery. For a stronger apple flavor, try a full-fat apple-flavored Greek yogurt.
  • Generously grease the muffin tin. I don’t recommend muffin liners for these muffins; the batter sticks to the liners. Make sure to really grease the cavities well. Of course, a good muffin tin also makes a world of difference. These tins are my absolute favorite, and I’ve never had a problem with muffins not releasing nicely.

QUICK TIP

To make muffins the same size, try using an ice cream scoop or a 1/3-cup measuring cup. That keeps the size consistent and also reduces drips and spills.

Process shots: Let muffins cool on a rack; dip into melted oil; dip into spiced sugar mix; serve

What is apple pie spice?

Apple pie spice is a mixture that combines cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, allspice, and cloves to create a comforting blend that can be used in so many recipes!

I have a homemade apple pie spice recipe, or you can buy it in the grocery store. You’ll find it with all the other spices in the grocery store; sometimes it’s promoted during the fall months.

What kind of applesauce do you use for baking?

If you want these muffins to remain on the more nutritious side, we recommend using unsweetened applesauce. No additional sweetener is added to this variety of applesauce. If you’d like these muffins to be a little sweeter (or you’re used to sweeter baked goods), we recommend sweetened applesauce.
 
For a stronger spice flavor, try cinnamon-flavored applesauce.

Applesauce Muffins

Applesauce Muffin Storage

Once completely cooled, store the muffins in an airtight container in the fridge. Applesauce Muffins are best eaten within 2-3 days.

To freeze/thaw:

  1. Cool muffins completely before wrapping and freezing.
  2. To freeze: Wrap muffins individually in plastic wrap and then place in large freezer bags.
  3. To thaw: Set out at room temperature, or warm frozen muffins in the microwave.

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Healthy Applesauce Muffins

5 from 7 votes
Big, moist, fluffy Applesauce Muffins are made with more wholesome ingredients than you'll find in typical bakery-style muffins! These muffins have a soft, moist interior with a crunchy and sweet cinnamon-sugar topping. 
Print Recipe

Healthy Applesauce Muffins

5 from 7 votes
Big, moist, fluffy Applesauce Muffins are made with more wholesome ingredients than you'll find in typical bakery-style muffins! These muffins have a soft, moist interior with a crunchy and sweet cinnamon-sugar topping. 
Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American, Healthy
Keyword applesauce muffins
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 10 -11 muffins
Chelsea Lords
Calories 328kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 and 1/2 cups white flour (or white whole wheat flour)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice Note 1
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 cup applesauce sweetened or unsweetened -- Note 2
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 cup vanilla or apple-flavored full-fat Greek yogurt Note 3
  • 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

Sugared Topping

  • 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice (or use ground cinnamon)
  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar not packed
  • 1/4 cup melted coconut oil

Instructions

  • PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C). Coat 12 cavities of a muffin tin with nonstick spray and lightly flour. Do not use muffin liners as these muffins will stick to them. Set aside. Melt the coconut oil in the microwave-- after melting, set aside to cool to room temperature. Remove the Greek yogurt and egg from the refrigerator so they can come to room temperature.
  • DRY INGREDIENTS: In a large bowl, add in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, apple pie spice, and cinnamon. Mix until combined.
  • WET INGREDIENTS: In another bowl, combine the applesauce, room temperature egg, Greek yogurt, cooled coconut oil (don't add it in hot or even warm!), vanilla extract, brown sugar. Whisk until well combined.
  • COMBINE: Mix the wet and dry ingredients until JUST combined. Over-mixing yields denser muffins.
  • BAKE: Fill up 10 to 11 muffin cavities evenly with the mixture -- each cavity will be a little over 3/4ths the way full. You should use all the batter on 10 to 11 cavities so fill them pretty full. We typically get 10 full muffins from this recipe. Fill any empty cavities of the muffin tin halfway up with water to ensure even baking. Bake for 17-23 minutes or until a fork when inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • COOL: Remove and allow to cool for a few minutes before removing the muffins from the tin. After cooling about 5 minutes, use a spoon to coax the muffins out and onto a wire cooling rack. Let muffins cool to warm on wire cooling rack.
  • TOP MUFFINS: In a small bowl, toss together the apple pie spice or cinnamon and brown sugar. In another small bowl add the melted coconut oil. Dip the warm muffins in the melted coconut oil and then dip them in the sugar mixture. Spoon extra sugar mixture on top and press it into the muffin. Repeat for all the muffins.
  • STORAGE: Once completely cooled, store the muffins in an airtight container at room temperature. Applesauce Muffins are best eaten within 2-3 days. To freeze/thaw: Cool muffins completely before wrapping and freezing. To freeze: Wrap muffins individually in plastic wrap and then place in large freezer bags. To thaw: Set out at room temperature, or heat frozen muffins in the microwave.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Apple pie spice is a mixture that combines cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, allspice, and cloves to create a comforting blend that can be used in so many recipes! I have a homemade apple pie spice recipe, or you can buy it in the grocery store. You’ll find it with all the other spices in the grocery store. For a more spiced/flavorful muffin add up to 1 full teaspoon to the batter.
Note 2: If you aren't used to lower-sugar treats, use sweetened applesauce. If you want these muffins to be more nutritious and less sweet, use unsweetened. Cinnamon-flavored applesauce is also nice for a more spiced muffin.
Note 3: Whatever yogurt you use, make sure you like it plain or it won’t add a lot in way of flavor to these muffins. I recommend getting a vanilla-flavored Greek yogurt instead of plain. I also recommend full-fat yogurt, so these muffins don’t end up overly watery. For a stronger apple flavor, try a full-fat apple-flavored Greek yogurt.

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 328kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 189mg | Potassium: 101mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 34IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 2mg

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

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14 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I made these for my family yesterday! Everyone loved them so much I decided to make another batch today! This time I used some over ripe bananas that I had leftover from last week’s grocery run instead of applesauce. I just pulled them out of the oven and my baby doesn’t want to wait for them to cool. We’re currently eating them hot but the favor is amazing! Thanks for the recipe!

    1. The recipe calls for white (all purpose) flour so that’ll work great 🙂 I don’t see why sour cream wouldn’t work, but haven’t personally tested that!

  2. Was it cornstarch that was called for? It’s an odd addition for a baked good. I was assuming you meant baking soda, but went ahead and used cornstarch. They turned out very dense

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