These Carrot Muffins are perfect for breakfast, snack time, or grabbing on the go with coffee. Shredded carrots and apple keep them moist, while cinnamon and raisins add just the right touch of warm sweetness.
For more easy breakfast favorites, try blueberry muffins, banana chocolate chip muffins, or zucchini muffins.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights: Carrot Muffins
This carrot muffin recipe takes all the goodness from my carrot cake (which is my most requested recipe from friends and family) and turns it into a breakfast treat.
- Flavor: Wholesome, mildly sweet flavor and moist texture in every bite.
- Difficulty: It’s a great beginner recipe for young cooks in the kitchen; they bake up in just a few steps.
- Technique: Combine wet and dry ingredients separately, then stir just until combined to keep the muffins light and moist.
- Serving Suggestion: Delicious warm with butter, cream cheese, or peanut butter or just as a grab-and-go snack.
- Freezing: Freeze beautifully for quick breakfasts.
Total Time: 45 Minutes Servings: 12 Muffins Cooking Method: Baked
Ingredient Notes
- Carrots and Apples: This recipe uses shredded carrots and shredded apples. Be sure to shred them finely so they blend evenly into the batter and make the muffins soft and flavorful.
- Dry Ingredients: Typical muffin ingredients like flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt hold the muffins together and produce a tender crumb.
- Wet Ingredients: Sugar, eggs, and oil help make these muffins moist. Use an oil (like vegetable oil) that has a mild flavor.
- Variations: Swap the raisins for dried cranberries, chopped dates, or chocolate chips. Add walnuts, pecans, or coconut for texture, and use nutmeg, ginger, cloves, or pumpkin pie spice for extra warmth. A little orange zest adds a fresh finish.
How to Make Carrot Muffins
- Combine Ingredients: Wet in one bowl, dry in another (full recipe below).
- Mix: Mix the wet and dry ingredients just until combined. Fold in carrots, shredded apples, and raisins.
- Bake: Scoop batter into prepared tins and bake until golden.
Carrot Muffin Storage
Keep cooled muffins in a zippered bag or airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
To freeze, pop fully cooled muffins into a zippered bag, label the bag with the date, and freeze for up to 3 months.
Muffins and More…
Did you make these Carrot Muffins? Leave a comment and a rating below.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs
- 2 cups shredded carrot
- 1 apple peeled and shredded
- ½ cup raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Greased or line muffin tins.
- In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
- Whisk sugar, oil, and eggs in a separate bowl.
- Stir wet mixture into dry mixture just until combined.
- Lightly fold in carrots, apples and raisins.
- Divide the mixture into prepared muffin tins.
- Bake for 25 to 29 minutes or until tops are golden and a toothpick comes out clean.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Breakfast, Muffins, Snack
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Yummy
can this recipe be made as a bread?
I haven’t tried this recipe in a loaf pan but I might recommend this carrot bread recipe.
What healthier oil can be substituted for vegetable oil?
You could likely use your favourite oil, but it may change the taste slightly.
I used this recipe for my muffins and it was delicious. I have used it three times already, and it’s now my go to simple recipe. I did make an adjustment, instead of 3 tsp baking powder, i used 2 tsp b.powder and 1tsp b. soda, and it came out lovely.
can i use baking soda instead of baking powder
For best results we recommend using baking powder as instructed in the recipe.
Baking soda causes a nice spread in a cookie, but without sufficient acid, it won’t provide much rise in a cake or muffin. This batter is mildly acidic from the apples which will serve to react the soda before baking and you’ll lose all the gas before eggs can cook and set the batter.
Baking powder is just baking soda + cream of tartar (an acidic remnant of the winemaking process). It causes gas bubbles to be released twice: once when the batter is mixed and again from the heat of the oven as the batter sets. It provides a good lift.
Blah blah blah, you can mix up your own baking powder by combining baking soda with cream of tartar. You’ll want to do a search to determine how much of each. Happy baking!
These are very good. I think less oil would be better. mine turned out very greasy.I used monk fruit in place of sugar and added walnuts. so good.
Made this tonight and the muffins were fantastic. Didn’t have apples, but I did have two sachets of brown maple sugar oats, so I substituted them to make it fancy. The muffins are medium sized – made 12 as promised – and I will be eating them for breakfast for the rest of the week. Saving this recipe for the future…guess I found my go-to for my favorite kind of muffin 😊
has the sugar been eliminated from this recipe? I see it crossed out but no further mention of it. i dont want to leave it out if it is required
The sugar is used in step 3.
Sounds delicious, could I use 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup regular flour?
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure Ramona, but that should work just fine. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
Family favourite! I add 1 extra tsp. of cinnamon & 1/2 tsp of nutmeg.
I subbed crasins for raisins and left out the apple. These were good, but much too sweet.
I am glad you enjoyed them!
You know crossings are much sweeter than raisins yeah ?
What are crossings??
these are DELICIOUS!! i added a banana and juice from one orange use cran and raisins. love them!
Best cupcake recipe ever
These were great. I used 1 cup rye flour and 1 cup AP because that’s what I had on hand. I also swapped out the grated apple for applesauce and the raisins for walnuts and added a pinch of nutmeg and a pinch of ginger.
These are so good, and I made them with gluten-free flour. I used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 in the blue bag. Exact same process but when I first made them, I didn’t have any apples so I just used extra carrots and I substituted Craisins for the raisins. They’re still absolutely delicious and moist.
Absolutely delicious! I added 1/2 tsp. of nutmeg as I love it. Everyone loved them.
so delecious and it was moist JUST like you said in the title. we do really need to spend time with pennies.
these muffins are excellent!! alittle too sweet becausei like to sprinkle w raw sugar before baking, wonder if I could use half the amount without messing up the dough during baking.. Help!
I have only made this recipe as listed, but other readers have used reduced sugar with good results. I would love to hear how it turns out for you.