Gluten-Free Carrot Oat Muffins
These fluffy Gluten-Free Carrot Oat Muffins are packed with whole grain oat flour, plenty of grated carrot, and there’s no refined sugar or dairy. They’re so easy to make and they make a great meal prep breakfast or snack!
It’s always a good day when breakfast tastes like one of your favorite cakes. These Gluten-Free Carrot Oat Muffins are like eating carrot cake for breakfast — no frosting necessary!
There are a whopping two cups of grated carrot in the batter, and it’s lightly spiced with the warm flavors of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
The muffins are made with whole grain oat flour, which lends a soft texture and tender crumb, plus there’s no refined sugar, dairy, or gluten in this recipe.
I adore these muffins, and they get rave reviews every single time. 🙂
Why you’ll love this recipe
- These carrot and oat muffins are wholesome, fluffy, and packed with warming spices and plenty of grated carrots.
- There’s no refined sugar, minimal oil, and they’re both dairy- and gluten-free.
- They come together quickly and are so easy to make.
- They make an easy meal prep breakfast and they’re freezer friendly.
Recipe ingredients
I loaded up these oatmeal carrot muffins with my favorite mix-ins and spices! I provided acceptable ingredient substitutions in the notes below whenever possible.
- Oat flour. See my post on How to Make Oat Flour to make your own, or purchase your favorite store-bought brand.
- Carrots. You’ll need 2 cups of grated carrots, which is equivalent to about 3 medium carrots. They may be peeled or unpeeled.
- Coconut sugar. Substitute the coconut sugar with maple sugar, granulated sugar, or brown sugar.
- Almond milk. I used unsweetened almond milk in this recipe, but you may substitute it with your favorite dairy or non-dairy milk.
- Coconut oil. The coconut oil may be substituted with your favorite oil.
- Eggs. Two large eggs are essential to provide structure to the muffins.
- Spices. These carrot and oat muffins include cinnamon, ground ginger and nutmeg, but the spices can be customized with what you have on hand.
- Add-ins. Unsweetened shredded coconut and walnuts are optional add-in’s. The muffins can be customized with your favorite add-in’s such as raisins or pecans.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and quantities.
How to make gluten-free carrot muffins
These gluten-free carrot muffins are extremely easy to prepare. They include a few basic ingredients, and minimal prep is involved.
Pro tip: Grate the carrots up to a few days in advance and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake the muffins. Use a food processor to get the job done even faster.
See the recipe card below for full instructions.
- Whisk the coconut oil, coconut sugar, and eggs until frothy, then whisk in the almond milk and vanilla extract.
- Add the oat flour, baking powder, spices, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until no lumps remain.
- Fold in the grated carrot and coconut until well incorporated.
- Divide the batter evenly between (12) muffin cups and top with walnut pieces. Bake at 400 degrees F for 18-20 minutes or until set.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You may freeze these muffins for up to 3 months. To thaw, place them in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat in the microwave for 10-15 seconds before serving if desired.
Of course! I love using both to make the muffins taste like carrot cake, but you can omit the coconut and walnuts if preferred.
I have only tested this recipe with oat flour, so I don’t recommend substituting it with another type of gluten-free flour.
Recipe notes
- Pro tip: Grate the carrots up to a few days in advance and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake the muffins. Use a food processor to get the job done even faster.
- Let the melted coconut oil cool for a minute or two before whisking in the eggs to avoid scrambling them.
- Raisins or pecans are also great additions to the muffin batter.
- Store leftover muffins at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to one week. They may also be frozen for up to 3 months.
More oat flour muffin recipes you’ll love
- Gluten-free blueberry oatmeal muffins
- Gluten-free banana oat muffins
- Gluten-free morning glory muffins
- Gluten-free peanut butter banana muffins
- Gluten-free pumpkin oat muffins
- Oat flour zucchini muffins
Did you try this recipe? If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram
Gluten-Free Carrot Oat Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 3/4 cup coconut sugar sub with maple sugar, granulated or brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk sub with your favorite dairy or non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups oat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 cups grated carrot 3 medium carrots
- 1/3 cup unsweetened finely shredded coconut optional
- 1/2 cup walnut pieces optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, and line a standard muffin pan with paper liners.
- Place the coconut oil in a large bowl and if it’s solid, melt in the microwave for 30-40 seconds. Whisk in the coconut sugar, then add the eggs and whisk vigorously until frothy. Add the milk and vanilla, and whisk until incorporated.1/3 cup coconut oil, 3/4 cup coconut sugar, 2 large eggs, 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pour the oat flour over the top of the wet ingredients, and sprinkle over the baking powder, spices, baking soda and salt. Stir gently until almost combined, being careful not to over mix, then fold in the carrot and coconut.2 cups oat flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, 2 cups grated carrot, 1/3 cup unsweetened finely shredded coconut
- Divide the batter between the (12) muffin cavities and top with walnut pieces.1/2 cup walnut pieces
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and the top of the muffin springs back when pressed gently. Remove from heat and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely.
Notes
- Grate the carrots up to a few days in advance and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake the muffins. Use a food processor to get the job done even faster.
- The coconut and walnuts are optional add-in’s and may be omitted. Raisins or pecans are also great additions.
- Store leftover muffins at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to one week. They may also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
27 Comments on “Gluten-Free Carrot Oat Muffins”
Moist, but fluffy enough. I don’t have baking powder, so I used one heaped teaspoon of baking soda and it was just as much as needed, sufficiently leavened with no hint of the yucky soda taste.
The amount of batter is a bit awkward – at least for my tray it’s too much for 12 muffins and I had to bake 3 more muffins separately. The batter consistency is a bit awkward to handle, I made quite a mess filling the cups, next time I’ll try using a laddle instead of a spoon.
I’m sorry the batter was awkward for you. I’m glad the muffins worked out for you in the end and thank you for the review!
Would I be able to use maple syrup as the sugar in this recipe or would that be too much liquid additions?
Thank you
I do use maple syrup in a lot of my muffin recipes, but I haven’t tried it in this particular one. If you want to use it, I would suggest using less maple syrup as it’s much sweeter than coconut sugar, probably around 2/3 cup. If you try it I’d love to hear how it works out!
I LOVE muffins but I’m often trying to find healthier versions. I know it’s for me and my family won’t like them because they like the full fat, full sugar, full flavour baked goods but after leaving these to cool on the counter, every member of my family came to eat one and RAVED! This recipe is definitely a keeper! Moist, just sweet enough and light. I had to keep them in the oven a little longer and used regular milk but otherwise, followed the recipe to a T. Yummy!!
I’m so happy to hear that your family loved these Laura! I really appreciate your feedback! 🙂
I added 1/3 cup raisins, replaced the coconut oil with butter and mixed in the walnuts to the batter. It was great! The walnuts and the raisins give it a good texture. I would have added coconut flakes but I didn’t have any. I also used cow’s milk instead of almond because again if didn’t have any on hand. Thanks for the great recipe! I’m sure I will try a few variations. The flavour is awesome. This was a life savour for an impromptu trip with the kids tomorrow, nothing puts a smile on their faces like muffins!
Thanks so much for your feedback Rachelle! 🙂
Is there something I can substitute for the coconut? Im not a fan.
I’m excited to try these!!
Thx!
You can simply omit it and they’ll turn out great.
These muffins are absolutely amazing. I admit, I did add pineapple and raisins and accidentally forgot the baking soda. But they still turned out fantastic. The texture was incredible. I made three mini cakes too as a layered carrot cake to surprise hubby for our anniversary. The praise just didn’t stop…and he usually isn’t a fan of gluten free options….although he’s never been able to tell the difference with any of the homemade things so far. This is by far, my new favourite carrot cake recipe. And my gluten cake is incredible. Even if I could still eat gluten, this would be my new carrot cake recipe. Tastes exactly like my regular carrot cake. So glad I found your site.
I’m glad you love the recipe and I truly appreciate your feedback! The oat flour has a soft, cake-like texture, so I love the idea to bake it like a cake with pineapple and raisins. Thank you for the great idea!
You can really sink your teeth into these! These are nice and dense–just like I like’em! I made them last night and had to substitute a couple things (low fat milk for almond and monk fruit sweetener for the sugar). And I always add chia seeds for extra goodness. The recipe is a keeper and one that is now in the rotation…thank you!!
I’m so glad that you enjoyed these Elese and thank you for sharing your substitutions! I truly appreciate your feedback. 🙂
My husband and I love this flourless carrot cake oatmeal muffins recipe!!!! This is our new go to carrot cake recipe!!!
The oat flour is an ingenious choice!
It makes it a more exciting way to get my oatmeal in the morning!!!
It also made the muffins so moist and flavorful, that I’ve made 3 batches in two weeks.
I made a few changes as I’m trying to cut back on sugar as well. I used 1/4 c of sugar and substituted honey for the rest of the sugar. I also used slightly less carrots, (because I didn’t have enough) and added shredded zucchini and a little bit of crushed pineapples!
Thank you for an amazing and desert healthy option!!!!
Correction
Sorry this recipe has me too excited!!!
The end of the last comment should say:
Thank you for an amazing and healthy dessert option!!!!
😘
I’m so glad you love this so much Karen and thank you for the feedback — it means a lot!
I made these this morning and substituted ground quinoa flakes for the oatmeal…..they turned out amazing! Light and fluffy and so tasty!
I have some quinoa flakes and will have to try that next time! Thank you for your feedback Tracy!
Could I substitute the egg with a flaxseed egg?
Hi Veronica! I’ve never tried that so I’m not certain that a flax egg would work.
I’m pretty sure I’m going to grow ears and start hopping around soon too Marcie! I’m loving all the carrot cake recipes these days. And these flourless muffins look like a must try for the Easter weekend! And thanks for sharing a link to my donut recipe 🙂 Much appreciated!
‘Tis the season for all things carrot right? 🙂 And you’re welcome, I’m drying to try your donuts!
I have a neighbor whose husband loves sweets but is trying to avoid gluten…he will love these.
That’s pretty much me right now, so these muffins are perfect for me!
I LOVE that these are flourless! I’m such a big carrot cake fan, too! You’re right though, you can’t always have carrot cake, so at least you have some good healthy options! I also dig that you can make them in one bowl. Have a great week, Marcie!