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Moist Vegan Carrot Muffins

5 from 52 reader reviews
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 9
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Ingredients

  • ¾ cup non-dairy milk
  • ¾ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground flaxseed
  • 2 cups white whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, not packed
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 6 tablespoons neutral-flavoured oil, such as refined coconut or sunflower (coconut oil should be melted before measuring)
  • 2 tablespoons applesauce
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon orange zest
  • 2 cups shredded carrot, not packed (2-3 medium carrots)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease 9 cups of a standard muffin tin (or 12 cups for smaller muffins--see notes).
  • In a medium bowl, combine the non-dairy milk, apple cider vinegar, and ground flaxseed. Whisk to combine and set aside for 5 minutes.
  • In a large bowl, combine the white whole wheat flour, light brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
  • In the medium bowl with the non-dairy milk mixture, add the oil, applesauce, vanilla extract, and orange zest. Give the mixture a whisk to combine. Add this wet mixture to the large bowl with the flour mixture. Stir with a spatula until just combined (this is a stiff batter). Add the shredded carrot and stir until just combined. Avoid over-mixing!
  • Portion the muffin batter out evenly amongst the 9 greased muffin cups in the tin. Slide the muffin tin into the oven and bake until the domes are puffed up, golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the center of one muffin comes out clean, about 23-25 minutes.
  • Let the muffins cool and enjoy! Cooled muffins will keep in a tin or sealed container for 4-5 days. You can also freeze these muffins in a zipper seal bag for up to 1 month.

Recipe Notes

  • I prefer these muffins with puffed up, domed tops. If this isn’t a deal breaker for you, you can stretch the batter out to 12 smaller muffins. I would check these smaller ones after 18 minutes of baking.
  • If you want to try making these gluten-free, I recommend turning to an all purpose gluten-free flour blend, such as King Arthur or Pamela’s. Please note that I haven’t tested this, so cannot guarantee results.
  • I love using white whole wheat flour here, but light spelt or all purpose flour will both work.
  • If you would like some whole grain goodness (but still a lighter texture) here, feel free to replace half of the flour with whole wheat or whole spelt flour. 
  • I’ve tried fine and coarse grated carrot with these muffins and both were great–finely grated is good if you need to hide the vegetable aspect ;)
  • Refined coconut oil is my preferred oil for vegan baking. Rich and buttery without a strong coconut flavour.
These moist vegan carrot muffins with domed  tops are easy to make, coming together in about 30 minutes. These flavourful breakfast treats are all about the carrot and spices, so they’re totally nut-free. Shredded carrots, cinnamon, nutmeg, buttery coconut oil, orange zest, and vanilla shine in every bite of these wholesome, not-too-sweet muffins.