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These One Bowl Vegan Carrot Cake Muffins are perfect for an easy on-the-go breakfast! They’re also Gluten Free, Oil Free, and Refined Sugar-Free.
Dessert for breakfast? I’ll never say no to that 😉
These Vegan Carrot Cake Muffins are subtly sweet, perfectly spiced, and a healthier version of a classic dessert.
Heck, considering these are made with wholesome ingredients and no refined sugars, I’d say they’re perfect for any time of day. Plus, you only need one bowl to make them!
I like my baked goods with a little bite + texture to them, so it’s no surprise that I love Carrot Cake. Not only are these fluffy muffins abso-freakin-lutely delicious, but they’re Gluten Free too! Which, if we’re being honest here, is no easy feat 😉
Also, most Carrot Cake is usually loaded with Sugar and Butter. However, I decided to take a different route with these muffins. They’re subtly sweet, thanks to some Maple Syrup and the natural sweetness from the Carrots themselves. Plus, I used Almond Butter instead of oils to make them moist (in a good way) and flavorful!
A Few Final Thoughts:
- This recipe makes 12 regular sized muffins, but if you would like them to be larger or “bakery style”, it will make 8 instead.
- Some Carrot Cake contains Raisins, but I know how some people feel about those 😉 If you are a fan, you can fold in 1/3 cup with the shredded Carrot.
- These muffins are great for Meal Prep, and also freeze well! Just thaw before enjoying — unless you like eating solid bricks of ice…. (<– that was a joke. Please don’t try them while still frozen)
If you’re looking for more healthy baked goods, you’ll also love this Fluffy Vegan Banana Bread and these Salted Caramel Apple Breakfast Bars!
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
PrintVegan Carrot Cake Muffins (Gluten Free)
These Vegan Carrot Cake Muffins are perfect for an easy on-the-go breakfast! They’re also Gluten Free, Oil Free, and Refined Sugar-Free.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 25 Minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 12 Muffins 1x
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp Ground Flax + 6 Tbsp Water
- 1 ½ cups Oat Flour
- ¼ cup Almond Flour
- ¼ cup Brown Rice Flour
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
- ½ tsp Salt
- ½ cup Maple Syrup
- ¼ cup Almond Butter
- 2 tbsp Unsweetened Plant Milk
- 1 tbsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 ½ cup Shredded Carrot
- ⅓ cup Walnuts, chopped
Instructions
- First, preheat the oven to 350F. Combine the Ground Flax and Water in a small bowl, stir, and set aside for 5 minutes to thicken.
- Add all of the Flours, Baking Powder, Cinnamon, and Salt to a bowl. Mix well, and form a “well” in the center of the dry ingredients.
- Pour the Flax Egg, Maple Syrup, Almond Butter, Plant Milk, and Vanilla Extract into the center of the well. Mix these ingredients together, and slowly incorporate the dry mix into the wet, until a thick batter forms.
- Next, fold in the shredded Carrot and Walnuts until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Divide the batter evenly into a greased or lined muffin tray – this will make 12 normal sized muffins or 8 jumbo muffins. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick comes out cleanly.
- Store at room temperature for up to 4 days, the fridge for up to 7, or the freezer for one month.
Notes
- Ground Flax may be substituted for ground Chia Seeds
- I have not tested this recipe with any other flour combination, and thus do not recommend substitutions – try at your own risk!
- Maple Syrup may be substituted for another liquid sweetener
- Almond Butter may be substituted for another Nut or Seed Butter of choice – just keep in mind that this will affect the final flavor.
Want to save these Carrot Cake Muffins for later? Pin the recipe to your Pinterest boards:
I love this recipe! It’s so simply and easy to make 😄 I subbed the almond butter with 1/4 cup of apple sauce! Added half a cup of shredded coconut flakes, 2 more tbs of milk, 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar and an additional 1/2 tsp baking soda, and nutmeg + ginger to taste. Thank you for making this recipe! Its my new favorite.
★★★★★
These are so good! I shared the recipe with the rest of my family and it’s been a hit even though they’re not veg of any variety
★★★★★
Favorite stories include when non-vegans love a recipe!
Really tasty and aromatic with the cinnamon and vanilla. I only had sliced almonds and used that instead of walnuts and worked nicely especially in combination with the almond butter. I don’t refrain from using oils and when I had them in the oven I thought oh wait I didn’t add oil but it was oil free recipe all along which I didn’t mind. I also just ran out of brown sugar and only have raw but I don’t like to bake with it so this was a perfect compromise, sugar is really not needed here.
★★★★★
Glad you enjoyed it – thanks so much for making the muffins!
These were delicious! Thank-you for a healthy sweet treat, I have printed a lot of your recipes ????????????????
★★★★★
That makes me so happy! Thanks Jan 🙂
Hey Caitlin,
My muffins are always still raw on the inside but almost burned on the outside. Do you have any ideas what I’m doing wrong? ????
Is the oven at the correct temperature? Your altitute could also affect this – sounds like you need to reduce the baking temperature, but bake for a longer period of time
I make different kinds of healthy muffins all the time and these are the best consistency. I did make substantial changes though – I used whole wheat flour instead of rice flour, and applesauce instead of maple syrup. They are soooooo moist and not too sweet!
★★★★★
I made this recipe as is and they were great, but too sweet for my tastes. I’ve made the recipe three more times, but I made them into waffles. It has been so hot out so I did not want to turn on my oven. The first time I used 1/4 cup maple syrup and 1/4 cup applesauce. It was really great that way, but still sweet. The next time I used 2 T. maple syrup and the rest applesauce. The third time I replaced the maple syrup with applesauce completely. I also add more milk to give the batter a slightly thinner consistency. I really liked all the versions I made. And I highly recommend turning muffin recipes into waffles when it’s hot out.
Thank you for creating this recipe. It’s one of my favorites!
★★★★★
I made these for Father’s Day and they were delicious! I talked to my mom tonight and she said she thinks he already ate them all so it’s safe to say he loved them too haha
★★★★★
Aw, that is so great to hear! 🙂
Hi Caitlin,
I made this recipe, and they turned out soooo good!! Thank you so much for your wonderful recipes.
Yay! Thanks for the feedback, Marie 🙂
Caitlin, just made these with whole wheat flour and tahini instead of the almond flour + brown rice flour and almond butter. It definitely is denser. The tahini I don’t think was as successful but nevertheless I have breakfast for the rest of the week 🙂 Awesome recipe, I’ve been craving carrot cake lately and this definitely helped!
Excellent. Looking forward to making other cakes
is there any way to view the nutritional information?
Hi Maddie, I do not display the nutritional information of my recipes, but there are plenty of free calculators online 🙂
Loved these I used peanut butter instead of almond butter and also sub rice flour for all purpose flour. They came out great I think next time I might add applesauce to make them a little less thick.
Hi, love this recipe but i am not gluten free and was wondering if this recipe would work with regular all purpose flour?
It might be a little more dense with all purpose flour, but should still work. As I said in the recipe notes, I can only recommend the blend that I have tested for this!
Love your recipes , they all are amazing ! Would like to try some carrot cake muffins, as I see them more often now))) One question: I do not understand why in USA oats are gluten free , as in Europe and other countries oats are considered to be gluten containing grain ( they have similar protein called avenin). Anyway, you are great inspiration( thanks to you I become vegan))))
Oats are naturally gluten free but are generally not considered as such as cross contamination is an issue.
This looks so good! I was wondering, do you think it would work to use just a combination of the almond flour and oat flour and not use brown rice flour, if you don’t have it on hand? And would it affect the texture if I used just 1/4 cup of maple syrup instead of 1/2 cup, to cut down a little on the sugar content? These look so good, and I <3 carrot cake !
Hi Marie, please see the notes for my flour recommendations. Also, I would not recommend reducing the maple syrup, as the liquid ratios need to remain the same.