These healthy morning glory muffins are wholesome and filling. They are fruit-sweetened, which makes them refined-sugar-free, and packed with whole-grain goodness. The perfect substitute for a bowl of cereal.
I usually double the recipe to make 2 dozen muffins and freeze them so that I always have a quick and healthy snack available. Perfect for on-the-go breakfasts or packed into a school lunchbox.
Mix and Match Ingredients
The best thing about healthy morning glory muffins is that you really can mix and match the ingredients to suit whatever you have in your kitchen.
Here are a few simple substitutions:
- Swap the grated carrot for grated zucchini or beet.
- Instead of apple, use 1/2 cup of fresh berries.
- The ripe banana is only added for sweetness. Feel free to leave it out altogether for a savory muffin, or swap it for chopped dried fruit.
- Oat flour is very breakfasty, but it can be replaced by any wholegrain flour.
Soaked and Fermented Flour
I pretty much start all my gluten-free baking with soaked and fermented flour. It improves the texture and digestibility of baked goods by breaking down complex starches. It also gives these muffins a nice tangy sourdough-like flavor.
However, it’s definitely not necessary for this recipe, so feel free to skip it if you are short on time. Also, do not soak and preferment gluten-containing flour, like whole wheat, rye or spelt. They will develop gluten and it will be difficult to mix in the remaining ingredients.
Here are the steps to prefermenting the flour:
Use a fermented liquid, like cultured buttermilk, milk kefir, or yogurt.
- Mix 1 cup of liquid with 1 cup of oat flour in a glass mixing bowl or measuring cup. If it seems liquidy, mix in the remaining 1/2 cup of flour. This will depend on how thick the liquid is. Usually, milk kefir can manage 1 1/2 cups of flour, but yogurt is better with 1 cup of flour.
- Cover the bowl with a tea towel, and leave it on the counter to soak and ferment for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
- Follow the rest of the recipe, starting with step 4. The soaking liquid and flour in the preferment replace those in the ingredient list. Just be sure to add the extra 1/2 cup of flour if you were only able to soak 1 cup of flour.
Healthy Morning Glory Muffins
These healthy morning glory muffins are perfect for breakfasts on the go, school lunches, or afternoon snacks. Naturally fruit-sweetened, they are refined sugar-free. They also freeze really well, so make a double batch!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 12 muffins 1x
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Fermented
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups oat flour (see notes for substitutions)
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 ripe banana
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup grated carrot (about 1 medium carrot)
- 1/2 cup grated apple (about 1 medium apple)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
Optional Add-Ins
- Shredded coconut
- Chopped walnuts
- Pumpkin seeds
- Raisins
- Flax or chia seeds
Instructions
- I usually like to start all my gluten-free baking by soaking and prefermenting the flour. It not only hydrates the flour but also improves the flavor and texture of the baked good. See the section above if you want to preferment the flour.
- When you are ready to bake the muffins, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Prepare a muffin tin by either greasing the cups or using paper liners.
- Mix the flour and buttermilk in a large bowl.
- Mash the banana and mix it into the batter. (I find it’s easiest to mash the banana before peeling it, by gently squeezing it in the skin).
- Stir in the remaining ingredients, including this grated carrot, apple, spices, salt, and baking soda. At this point, you can add up to 1/4 cup of an additional add-in. I recommend toasted walnuts or pumpkin seeds for a bit of protein.
- Divide the batter among 12 muffin cups.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Notes
- This is not a very sweet muffin. If you have a sweet tooth, add a 1/4 cup of sugar or honey to the recipe.
- If you don’t have oat flour on hand, use any whole grain flour, like brown rice, buckwheat, or wholewheat. Alternatively, you can grind rolled oats in a food processor until it is flour-like.
- This muffin is perfect for all sorts of different flavors. See the section above for optional ingredient swaps.
Keywords: sugar free, breakfast, healthy, soaked, prefermented, fall, winter, spring
These worked really well! My kids have been enjoying them.
★★★★★
Great! I love having a stash of muffins on hand.