Apple Muffins made with whole wheat flour, oil and agave are an ideal fall snack that will satisfy the whole family. They are not overly sweet, yet full of cinnamon and apple-y flavor. Plus, they are ready in under 30 minutes.

A red sweater wearing woman's hand holding an apple muffin and some other muffins in a white pan, a red apple on the side accompany.

I know you all love puff pastry apple roses and apple brownies and the smell that spreads in your home when baking it. Here is another treat you can make with apples. Enjoy it as a snack or a quick breakfast!

One of the most important things we shouldn't forget when things are hectic is not to skip meals, especially in the morning. I love these easy muffins because they make a perfect on-the-go breakfast and keep me going without lots of processed sugar. The fact that they’re great for breakfast, a snack or even dessert is just a bonus.

And if you are into healthy recipes for breakfast, go check out our fruit and yogurt parfait with granola too!

How to Make

This healthy no butter apple muffin recipe is an eternal favorite because it requires very little work and almost no kitchen equipment. Two bowls, a whisk, a muffin tin and a grater will suffice. As with many similar recipes, the method used here combines all the wet ingredients in one bowl and all the dry ingredients in another before mixing them together.

Make sure that you add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients, rather than wet to dry, to help evenly incorporate everything and avoid lumps of flour in your muffins.

Apple cinnamon muffins in a white pan on a dark background

About The Ingredients

Sweetener: This recipe uses agave instead of granulated white sugar as a sweetener which has the advantage of having a lower glycemic index. If you prefer to use another sweetener, brown sugar (as we did in the video below), coconut sugar, honey or even maple syrup can be substituted to make these easy apple muffins.
Flour: The recipe also uses whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour, which will help keep you full longer and adds a depth of flavor. What's more, olive oil and grated apple will help these apple cinnamon muffins keep moist.
Oil: We use light olive oil in this recipe because we find it lighter than butter in baked treats. If you don’t like the flavor of olive oil, you can prefer coconut oil or sunflower oil which are even lighter and not that noticeable in terms of flavor.
Flavorings: There are two main ingredients that give a nice flavor to these dairy-free muffins: Apple and cinnamon. We grate the apples before adding into the batter and it works almost like applesauce. If you want to feel the texture of apples, you can fold in some extra diced apples right before pouring it into the liners. In addition to apples, we use cinnamon as a flavoring. These two complement each other wonderfully.

In addition to the ingredients above, you can fold in some nuts as well. Walnuts, pecans or hazelnuts would be our choice.

Tip: Use the juiciest apples you can find so that you won’t need any other wet ingredients. That’s how we don’t use any milk, buttermilk or yogurt in these muffins. If the apples you use are not fresh and juicy enough, your muffins won’t turn out soft and moist.

What Type Of Apples?

Feel free to use any type of apple, but a crisp red variety, such as a honeycrisp, is ideal. A great rule of thumb is that if you like to eat the apple, you’ll also like it in baked goods. I prefer to leave the apples unpeeled when I grate them as I find that the skin adds a little bit of texture, but you can peel them before grating for a smoother consistency. Just remember to core them as no one likes apple seeds in their breakfast muffins! The same goes for the apple slices on top of the muffins.

Is this a dairy-free recipe?

Yes, the apple muffins are 100% dairy-free because they are made without milk, buttermilk, yogurt or butter. So it is very easy to turn them into vegan muffins. The only thing you need to do is to substitute flax eggs for eggs in this recipe. Don’t know how to make a flax egg? Go check out our zucchini bread with flax eggs!

Regardless of the substitutions you make, these apple muffins are out of this world and will hopefully keep you fueled up for the busy season coming. Let me know how you made them!

Woman with a claret red sweater holding a white pan full of apple muffins and apples

More Apple Desserts

More Muffin Recipes

📖 Recipe

No butter apple muffins with sliced apple topping and red apples in a white pan

3.50 from 2 votes

No Butter Apple Cinnamon Muffins

By Zerrin & Yusuf

So refreshing, soft and light apple muffins without butter and sugar. Made with whole wheat flour, these keep you full for a long time.

Yields: muffins

PRINT PIN

PREP 10

COOK 15

TOTAL 25

INGREDIENTS

3 eggs
½ cup agave maple syrup, coconut sugar, brown sugar
½ cup olive oil
1 and ¾ cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup apple grated (I used 2 apples)
2 apples thinly sliced for topping
1 teaspoon cinnamon for topping

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix eggs and agave until smooth.
Add in olive oil and continue mixing.
In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
Add these to the wet mixture and mix with a spatula.
Fold in grated apple.
Share batter into muffin liners, top with thin apple slices and sprinkle cinnamon over them. Bake for 15 minutes.
Check if they are done with a toothpick.
Remove the muffin tin from oven and let it cool.

Video

NUTRITION

Calories: 117kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 1gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.003gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 80mgPotassium: 48mgFiber: 1gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 66IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 24mgIron: 0.3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

ADDITIONAL INFO

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Tried this recipe? Leave a comment below!

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