These easy banana carrot muffins are light, moist, and perfectly sweetened. Enjoy with a warm cup of coffee for breakfast, a light afternoon snack, or a decadent dessert when topped with vegan cream cheese frosting!
There’s nothing like a decadent carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. It has always been one of my favorite types of cakes.
At our wedding, I had a carrot cake with our coffee station for guests to munch on throughout the night.
These banana carrot muffins are inspired by my favorite cake. Plus, these vegan muffins are allergy friendly and free of dairy and eggs. A sensational plant-based breakfast idea!
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Why You’ll Love These Banana Carrot Muffins
- Vegan
- Gluten-Free Option
- Dairy-Free and Egg-Free
- Full of fresh fruit and veggies
- Perfect for picky kids!
- Makes for an excellent breakfast, snack, or dessert
- Allergy-friendly!
Ingredients and Substitutions
All-Purpose Flour: When measuring your flour be sure to use the spoon and knife method so that you don’t get packed flour. Instead of scooping your measuring cup into the flour, use a spoon to fill the cup, then a knife to level it off. For a high-fiber version of this muffin, use white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour. For a gluten-free version, use a 1:1 gluten-free flour mix.
Baking Soda and Baking Powder: You need both baking soda and baking powder. This helps the muffins to rise.
Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon gives these muffins a warm spice flavor. You could also use pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon for more depth of flavor.
Organic Cane Sugar: I opt for organic cane sugar, but if you want to use unrefined sugar you can use coconut sugar instead.
Ripe Bananas: You’ll need two ripe bananas. The browner they are the sweeter the flavor of the muffins.
Shredded Carrot: You’ll need one cup of shredded carrots, that’s about the equivalent of 2-3 large carrots.
Avocado Oil: The moistness of the muffins comes from the avocado oil. You can use any type of vegetable oil of your choice. I like avocado oil because it does not have a distinct flavor, and it’s not inflammatory. For oil-free muffins use unsweetened applesauce.
Unsweetened Almond Milk: Use unsweetened to help control the sweetness of the muffins. Almond milk adds the necessary moisture needed for all of the ingredients to come together in a smooth batter.
Instructions for Banana Carrot Muffins
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Peel and shred 2-3 carrots until you have one cup of shredded carrots.
Step 2: Combine the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cinnamon). Whisk to combine. Set aside.
Step 3: In a blender or food processor blend the bananas, almond milk, and avocado oil until smooth.
Step 4: Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients, and add the shredded carrots. Fold it all together with a spatula until combined. Don’t overmix.
Step 5: Line your muffin pan with 12 muffin cups. Scoop ¼ cup of batter into each cup to fill ¾ of the way full.
Step 6: Place the muffins in your preheated oven for 15-18 minutes. Insert a toothpick in the center of each muffin. If the toothpick comes out clean, the muffins are done, if not, place them back in the oven for a few more minutes.
Step 7: Allow the muffins to cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are A LOT of gluten-free flours available. Not all of them work the same way as white or wheat flour. Instead of opting for a single type of gluten-free flour, use a blend. This will help ensure that the muffins turn out light and fluffy, and aren’t gummy and dense.
If you want to make your own blend try using brown rice flour, chickpea flour, and arrowroot starch. To make your own flour use 1 ½ cups of each flour mix and store in a sealed container for your baking needs.
As written, these muffins are 169 calories, and 5 grams of fat. See the nutritional information in the recipe card for the complete nutrition facts. To increase the nutritional value of the muffins, consider using whole wheat flour to increase the fiber. You can also substitute applesauce for oil to reduce the fat. These substitutions will decrease the calories and fat. You can also substitute cane sugar for another type of sugar such as maple syrup or coconut sugar that is not as refined, as well as reduce the overall amount of sugar used from ¾ cups, to ½-1/4 of a cup. The mashed bananas and carrots give these muffins a boost of vitamins and minerals such as beta-carotene and potassium.
Serving Suggestions
These muffins taste great all on their own. If you’d like to turn it into a dessert, consider topping it with vegan cream cheese frosting.
Need a little something more with your banana carrot muffin, try pairing it with my spinach apple smoothie or homemade oat milk.
Storage
Allow the muffins to cool completely. Transfer them to an airtight container to retain their moisture. Keep at room temperature for up to 4 days. Or transfer the muffins to the refrigerator to keep for up to 7 days. You can also freeze the muffins by transferring them to an airtight freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature.
Baking Tips
- Use whole carrots, and go ahead and peel them with a vegetable peeler. You can either use a box grater to shred the carrots or use your food processor. Using fresh carrots is important, as it improves the flavor of the muffins. I don’t recommend using baby carrots.
- Use ripe bananas. If the bananas are starting to brown even better. They will add a natural sweetness to the muffins.
- If you like a less sweet muffin, reduce the sugar. Use ½ a cup instead of ¾ of a cup.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Fold the ingredients together until they are combined. Overmixing will cause your muffins to become tough.
- Use a measuring cup to fill your muffin cups to ensure they all come out even. A ¼ cup measuring cup is perfect. It will fill your muffin liners ¾ of the way full.
- Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract for more flavor and a ¼ cup of chopped walnuts or pecans for extra crunch.
Recipe
Banana Carrot Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 2 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¾ cup Organic Cane Sugar reduce for lower sugar
- 2 ripe bananas mashed
- 1 cup shredded carrot about 2-3 large carrots peeled and shredded
- ¼ cup avocado oil or unsweetened applesauce for oil-free version
- ¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Peel and shred 2-3 carrots until you have one cup of shredded carrots.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cinnamon). Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- In a blender or food processor blend the bananas, almond milk, and avocado oil until smooth.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients, add the shredded carrots. Fold it all together with a spatula until combined. Don't overmix.
- Line your muffin tin with 12 muffin cups. Scoop ¼ cup of batter into each cup to fill ¾ of the way full.
- Place the muffins in your preheated oven for 15-18 minutes. Insert a toothpick in the center of each muffin. If the toothpick comes out clean, the muffins are done, if not, place them back in the oven for a few more minutes.
- Allow the muffins to cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Bill Guthrie
Just made these this morning, Oct 20, 2021, they are great! I had to sub for applesauce ( used coconut cream) and nuts (used raisens) thank you!
Loressa
These were so easy and TASTY,!
Megan Smith
Hello! Can you use coconut sugar?
Alison Corey
Yes, you can use coconut sugar.
Veronica Bamfield
Hi There,
It’s just impossible to get applesauce here in the UK, especially on lock-down and on a very low income
Is there an easy (low cost) alternative?
thank you
Alison Corey
Hi Veronica!
If you can’t find applesauce I recommend using a different fruit or vegetable puree. The purpose of the applesauce in this recipe is as a substitute for oil. Oil creates moisture in a baking recipe. Other fruit purees do the same thing. So any type of fruit puree could work. You could use pumpkin, extra banana, or pear. Or if you’re not opposed to using oil, you could also use oil as a substitute.
Sandy
I was out of applesauce but had a jar of apple butter and it worked great. Stewed prunes works great as an oil replacer too .
Dineke
You can very easily make your own apple sauce! Get some sweet-sour apples like Elstar, jona gold, or kanzi. Cut them in chunks. Put them in a pot with a small (one finger height or so) amount of water. Bring to boil then lower the temperature to simmer. Stir the apples often and squash them with a fork when tender. No need to add anything else. If you want it smoother squish it through a sieve. 2 apples would already be enough for this recipe. Great to make a larger batch though for more baking or eating it as a side for dinner.
Suzy
We are all about muffins in our house and keep our freezer stocked with them! Thanks for this new variety to try out!
Heidy L. McCallum
I made these this morning and I have to tell you—your recipes could easily turn me away from meat products forever. The entire family enjoyed this recipe and asked me to make another batch! I feel like I am winning today thanks to your recipe.
Beth Neels
We loved these muffins! I had one breakfast today and one for dessert yesterday and didn’t even feel bad about it! Thanks!
Kelly Anthony
These banana carrot muffins are a great alternative to a carrot cake that is usually full of butter and sugar. These will make perfect after school snacks for my girls.
Chocoviv
Looks so good!! Follow on IG and Pinterest too…
Alison Corey
Thanks!They are a great healthy breakfast option! Thanks for the follow!
Marissa
It’s been such a long time since I’ve had carrot cake. I like the idea of substuting apple sauce for the oil (my mom has been doing that for years), but I wonder if you can use sweetened applesauce and then cut down on the sugar or not need to add sugar at all?
Alison Corey
Yes, you can actually cut the sugar in half with this recipe. They won’t be quite as sweet but the natural sweetness of the banana adds enough for me. I wouldn’t use sweetened applesauce, but just reduce the sugar by half.