These moist and fluffy vegan carrot muffins are the perfect breakfast treat. They are scented with cardamom and nutmeg and you can even make them wholegrain!
If you love carrot desserts, like vegan carrot cake and vegan carrot cupcakes, or yummy, fluffy muffins like these vegan applesauce muffins, you will be grooving on these vegan carrot muffins studded with sliced almonds and scented with cardamom and nutmeg. There is no egg or dairy in these but they are so flavorful and delicious you might not be able to stop at one!
The cardamom in particular gives these muffins a quality that is faintly evocative of a vegan carrot halwa, that incredibly tasty cardamom-scented Indian pudding you are likely familiar with. Vegan yogurt and applesauce add moisture, as do the carrots, so there's only a small quantity of oil needed to make these ultra tender.
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Why you will love these vegan carrot muffins
- They are incredibly crave-worthy. Carrots are amazing in nearly anything but they are especially wonderful in desserts. When the muffins bake up that great carrot flavor concentrates, adding even more sweetness. The nutty almonds provide a nice, contrasting crunch. This is a great breakfast for anytime of year but it's an especially wonderful recipe for Easter.
- They are easy to make. This is a dump-and-go recipe so you just throw everything into one bowl, mix it all up, scoop the batter into the cupcake tins, and bake. The only work you need to really do is grate the carrots and a food processor can make this happen in a couple of minutes, with a hand grater taking just a little bit longer.
- They are kid-friendly. No one, young or old, will be able to resist these. They are sweet and fragrant and they'll make anybody you offer them to feel a bit extra special.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour. You can make these whole wheat by using 1 cup whole wheat flour and one cup all purpose, or use 2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour.
- Leavening: 1 teaspoon baking soda + 2 teaspoon baking powder
- Spices: 1 teaspoon cardamom + 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar. I like these sweet, but you can cut down the sugar to up to ¾ cup if you prefer less sweetness in the muffins.
- 1 ½ cups finely grated carrots. This is about two medium carrots or three smallish carrots.
- 1 cup sliced almonds
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup vegan yogurt. Make sure you use unsweetened yogurt.
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Ingredient substitutions
- For a natural sweetener, use the same quantity of maple syrup instead of sugar. The batter will be more loose but it will bake up just fine.
- You can substitute the almonds with pecans or walnuts. Toast the pecans or walnuts lightly before chopping them. You don't need to toast the sliced almonds. You can also use pumpkin seeds if you are nut-free.
- The cardamom can be replaced with an equal amount of cinnamon. Or with ground ginger for a lovely warmth.
- You can add the zest of an orange into the batter. Orange and carrots go together nicely and this will add another layer of flavor to the muffins.
- You can also stir in a half a cup of raisins into the batter. Reduce sugar by ¼ cup if you do this.
- Scatter some oats on top of the batter in the muffin tins before baking, instead of almonds, for a different look and even more healthfulness.
- I don't use flax eggs here because I find they sometimes turn muffins gummy. But if you want a health boost from flax sub the applesauce with a tablespoon of flax stirred into three tablespons of water.
How to make vegan carrot muffins
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit/205 degrees Celsius.
- Place the all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cardamom and nutmeg in a bowl and whisk.
- Add the remaining ingredients--sugar, carrots, almonds (or chopped walnuts or pecans. Save some nuts for decorating the top, if you like), oil, applesauce, vegan yogurt, vanilla and apple cider vinegar. Use a spatula to mix, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure there is no dry flour. Don't overmix. The batter will look quite thick.
- Let the batter stand five minutes. This will give the carrots a little time to express their juices and it will be easier to scoop into the muffin tins.
- Mix the batter quickly one last time, then scoop into a muffin tin lined with paper muffin liners or sprayed with oil. If you saved some almonds for the top sprinkle them on now.
- Place the muffin pan into the oven and bake five minutes, then, without opening the oven, reduce temperature to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C and bake 18 minutes more or until a toothpick in the center of a muffin comes out clean or with crumbs sticking to it.
- Let the pan stand on a rack for 5-10 minutes to cool, then unmold the muffins and place them on a rack to cool.
Storage and freezing instructions
- Fridge: The muffins will keep nicely in the fridge for up to four days.
- Freezer: To freeze the muffins cool them completely and place in freezer bags or an airtight container. Freeze for up to three months.
- Reheating: Before eating frozen muffins thaw them completely. You can also reheat in the microwave. Unwrap the muffins, then place on a microwave safe plate and heat 30 seconds for each frozen muffin.
More vegan muffin recipes you might like
Vegan Carrot Muffins
These moist and fluffy vegan carrot muffins are the perfect breakfast treat, but they double up nicely for dessert too. Or add them to your kids' lunchboxes and sneak in a serving of veggies and nuts. 😉 They are scented with cardamom and nutmeg and you can even make them wholegrain if you have a mind to. The recipe is one-bowl and takes under 15 minutes to put together. It is soy-free and you can make it nut-free by skipping the almonds.
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Servings: 12 muffins
Calories: 320kcal
Equipment
- Food processor (with grater attachment, or hand grater)
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour (or use a half-half mix of all purpose and whole wheat flour, or sub entirely with two cups whole wheat pastry flour)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sliced almonds (or use walnuts or pecans)
Wet ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 medium carrots (approx. You want 1 ½ cups finely grated carrots)
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup applesauce
- ½ cup vegan yogurt
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit/205 degrees Celsius.
- Place the all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cardamom and nutmeg in a bowl and whisk.
- Add the remaining ingredients--sugar, carrots, almonds (save some almonds for decorating the top, if you like), oil, applesauce, vegan yogurt, vanilla and apple cider vinegar. Use a spatula to mix, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure there is no dry flour. Don't overmix. The batter will look quite thick.
- Let the batter stand five minutes. This will give the carrots a little time to express their juices and it will be easier to scoop into the muffin tins.
- Mix the batter quickly one last time, then scoop into a muffin tin lined with paper liners or sprayed with oil. If you saved some almonds for the top sprinkle them on now.
- Place the muffin pan in the oven and bake five minutes, then, without opening the oven, reduce temperature to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C and bake 18 minutes more or until a toothpick in the center of a muffin comes out clean or with crumbs sticking to it.
- Let the pan stand on a rack for 5-10 minutes, then unmold the muffins and place them on a rack to cool.
Recipe notes
- You can replace the cardamom with cinnamon for a different flavor. Or add ginger for a lovely warmth.
- For a natural sweetener, use maple syrup instead of sugar. If you use maple syrup your batter will be more loose but it will bake up just fine.
- You can replace apple cider vinegar with white vinegar.
- You can substitute the almonds with pecans or walnuts. Toast the pecans or walnuts lightly before chopping them. You don't need to toast the sliced almonds. You can also use pumpkin seeds if you are nut-free.
- You can add the zest of an orange into the batter. Orange and carrots go together nicely and this will add another layer of flavor to the muffins.
- You can also stir in a half a cup of raisins into the batter. Reduce sugar by ¼ cup if you do this.
- Scatter some oats on top of the batter in the muffin tins before baking, instead of almonds, for a different look and even more healthfulness.
- I don't use flax eggs here because I find they sometimes turn muffins gummy. But if you want a health boost from flax sub the applesauce with a tablespoon of flax stirred into three tablespons of water.
- The muffins will keep nicely in the fridge for up to four days.
- To freeze the muffins cool them completely and place in freezer bags or an airtight container. Freeze for up to three months.
- Before eating frozen muffins thaw them completely. You can also reheat in the microwave. Unwrap the muffins, then place on a microwave safe plate and heat 30 seconds for each frozen muffin.
Nutrition
Serving: 1vegan carrot muffin | Calories: 320kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 149mg | Potassium: 293mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 1700IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Please leave a comment and recipe rating below!
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Beth Horwitz
These are WONDERFUL! The only change I made was to add a bit of plant milk, as my flour measuring skills aren't always consistent, and the mix was a little dry. The finished muffins baked up big, fluffy, moist, and gorgeous. Thank you for this recipe.
Vaishali
Awesome, Beth! The batter is a bit thick because the carrots express their moisture as they bake, but sounds like you did just fine!
Jodie
So delicious. I adore cardamom and this recipe is such a perfect fit for it. Will definitely make again.
Vaishali
Happy to hear Jodie!
Jocelyn
These are so yummy, my husband and I just polished them off in a single afternoon. I love the scent of the cardamom. Will definitely be making these again and I'll try with whole wheat pastry flour next.
Vaishali
Hi Jocelyn, so excited to hear you loved them!
Jamie Hermansen
Could this recipe be made without the oil?
Vaishali
Yes, replace with an equal quantity of applesauce--so you'd use 1/2 cup of applesauce instead of 1/4 cup and skip the oil.