Made with a nutrient-packed ingredient list, these tender Baby Muffins are a perfect first muffin. They are easier to chew than a regular muffin, have three kinds of produce, are added sugar free, and they boast a solid dose of healthy fats—exactly what the littles need!
Baby Muffins
I am a super fan of muffins for kids since they are so convenient and endlessly versatile. And they can be a helpful way to offer foods the kids aren’t always interested in eating straight up. But when making muffins for babies, there are a few specific considerations I like to keep in mind. Here’s what makes these special:
- These have healthy fats from eggs.
- The tender muffins are easier to chew than traditional ones as they are moister. (Bready textures can be tricky for some kids)
- The flavor and sweetness comes from fresh bananas, apples, and carrot.
- These are made without added sugars, which is recommended for babies.
- They freeze well, so you can store half of the batch for a future week—yay for easy meals
TIP: I am usually very straight forward in the way I name recipes, but I did think “ABC” was fitting here and it’s a helpful way to remember what’s in the muffins (Apples, Bananas, and Carrots…see? Fun!)
Sugar Free Toddler Muffins
You can, of course, totally serve these muffins to a toddler and they are great for one year olds I’ve been making them for my two younger kids and we top them with a little jam to add some sweetness (which is just their preference, you can try them plain first if you want!).
Ingredients in Baby Muffins
Here’s a look at what you need to make these muffins.
- mashed very ripe banana (about 2 small bananas)
- shredded apple (about 1 small apple)
- shredded carrot (about 1 small carrot)
- milk (dairy or nondairy)
- egg
- melted butter, slightly cooled
- pure vanilla extract
- whole wheat flour
- rolled oats
- cinnamon
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
TIP: To make these dairy-free, use melted coconut oil. To make them gluten-free, use cup for cup gluten-free flour.
How to Make Baby Muffins Step-by-Step
Here’s a look at the process involved in making this recipe. Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full information.
- Preheat the oven and grease a mini muffin tin. Mash the banana and shred the apple and carrot on a box grater.
- Stir together the ingredients until uniformly smooth.
- Divide among the prepared muffin tin.
- Bake!
TIP: Serve diced to babies 9+ months. You can also serve a whole muffin to a BLW baby for them to munch on.
What’s the texture of these muffins like?
These are deliberately very moist (and moister than regular muffins) to ensure they are easy for baby to chew and swallow. They will be moist and very tender when fully cooked, so know that is on purpose! (My middle kiddo didn’t master bready foods easily until she was well over 1 year old, so I am mindful that this texture is trickier for some kiddos and did my best to make these very appropriate for little eaters.)
TIP: For veggie muffins for older kiddos who are fine with a variety of textures, you can also check out my Zucchini Carrot Muffins!
Finger Foods for Babies
I love having easy prep-ahead recipes that I can use for baby meals and these muffins work well for breakfast, lunch, or snack time. You can pair them with diced fruit, applesauce, scrambled eggs, shredded cheese, or any other favorite finger food or puree.
TIP: Find my Master List of the Best Early Finger Foods for Babies for more ideas.
Can I freeze these muffins?
You sure can! Freeze, once fully cooled, in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge or at room temperature. You can also store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
TIP: You can serve these chilled, at room temperature, or slightly warmed. Diced up, they make a great baby snack!
Tips for Making the Best Baby Muffins
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Serve chilled, at room temperature, or slightly warmed.
- Freeze, once fully cooled, in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge or at room temperature.
- To make these dairy-free, use melted coconut oil.
- To make an egg-free version, see this similar Sugar-Free Banana Muffin.
- Be sure to use a very ripe banana for the best natural sweetness—there are no added sugars in this muffins, so you need those natural sugars.
- You can serve topped with butter, applesauce, apple butter, or jam (especially for older kids!) to add more sweetness.
- If you want to make these sweeter, you can add ¼ cup sugar to the batter.
- Serve baby as much muffin as they want according to their appetite.
- For veggie muffins for older kiddos who are fine with a variety of textures, you can also check out my Zucchini Carrot Muffins!
I’d love to hear your feedback on this recipe, so please rate and review it below in the comment field!
ABC Baby Muffins (Apple, Banana and Carrot!)
Ingredients
- 1 cup mashed very ripe banana (about 2-3 small bananas)
- ½ cup shredded apple (about 1 small apple)
- ¼ cup shredded carrot (about 1 small carrot)
- ¾ cup milk
- ¼ cup melted unsalted butter (slightly cooled)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- ½ cup rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degree F and grease a 24 cup mini muffin pan with nonstick spray.
- Place the banana, apple, carrot, milk, butter, egg, and vanilla into a medium bowl. Stir together.
- Gently, but thoroughly, stir in the flour, oats, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Divide batter among the prepared muffin pan, filling each cup to the edge. (You'll use about 2 tablespoons batter in each mini muffin cup).
- Bake for 16-20 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out cleanly. (I do 18 minutes in my oven.)
- Let cool for a few minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully. Dice up to serve to a baby eating finger foods or offer one whole to a baby eating baby led weaning-style foods.
Video
Notes
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Serve chilled, at room temperature, or slightly warmed.
- Freeze, once fully cooled, in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge or at room temperature.
- Dairy-free: Use melted coconut oil instead of butter and nondairy milk.
- Egg-free: Omit the egg. Increase the baking soda to 1 teaspoon. Proceed with the recipe.
- These taste best when the banana is very ripe, so the outside should have a lot of brown spots (which indicate sweetness).
- I use a box grater to shred the apple and carrot.
- To make with all-purpose flour, make as directed but use ¼ cup milk only.
- To make without oats, replace the oats with the same amount of all-purpose flour.
- You can serve topped with butter, applesauce, apple butter, or jam (especially for older kids!) to add more sweetness.
- If you'd like to make them sweeter for older kiddos, add ¼ cup sugar to the batter.
My 2 year old devours these muffins. One of my favorite things to give him. How long would you recommend cooking for bigger muffin tin size?
I would estimate 20-24 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out cleanly.
These are so good and my 18 month old loves them! They are a great way to incorporate fruits and vegetables and are so soft and flavorful. A great thing to keep in the freezer for a quick snack. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m so glad to hear that!
Could I use oat flour instead of regular flour to make gluten free?
I haven’t tried that so I can’t say for sure. They may not bake through in the middle in the exact same way.
I made these for my 13mo and he absolutely loves them! I’ll definitely be making them again. Thank you!
Hello! I just made these this morning. My 4 year old and 1 year old are going to town on them. However, they are still pretty mushy on the inside. I even cooked them for 3 extra minutes. I followed your instructions to the T. I am not a baker by any stretch of the imagination, but the only thing I can think of is the honey crisp apple I used was very juicey. I did my best to squeeze out the juice before adding to the mix. Do you have any suggestions before I try to make another batch?
Thanks!
Cassie
I would make sure your baking soda is fresh and if your apple is dripping, you can squeeze it gently.
If I substitute wheat flour and oats with a total of 1 and 1/2 cups of all purpose flour, what would be the quantity of milk that need to be added?
I haven’t tested that but my best guess is 1/2 cup milk.
Is there anything you could substitute for oats? My son has FPIES and it is a trigger food for him.
You can do all purpose flour instead.
So would you do 1/2 cup all purpose flour in addition to the 1 cup of whole wheat flour already in the recipe? Could you just do 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour?
Quick, easy and super delicious muffins!!😋
Just made these today and they taste soooooo goood. My 1yr old loved it soooo much. Would love to try your other muffins recipes as well!!
They do taste fantastic and love that they don’t have added sugar but why did they stick to my unbleached muffin liners 🙁 I lost have the muffin peeling it out .
You will notice that I don’t use muffin liners or recommend them as my muffins don’t have enough fat to come off of them easily. If you want to use them, you will need to lightly spray them with nonstick spray to avoid this issue.
Made a batch of these as mini muffins and froze them. My 19mo kiddo enjoyed them! About to make another batch as we just finished them two months later!
Can we make these in a regular muffin tin instead of mini? And how should we adjust bake time? Thank you!
They bake through best in a mini muffin pan so use that if you can!
I baked them in a regular tin and they came out fine. I can’t remember how long they baked — I would just start taking them out and testing them at 18 minutes.
Thank you for making it easier for me to pack toddler lunches. Great muffin recipe!!
This recipe was great, my kids (and I) loved it! I switched apple sauce for the butter because I was out and they turned out great.
Excited to try this! Do you know if almond flour would work instead of wheat flour?
It will not. If you do that the muffins will be mushy since almond flour is not a good direct substitute for wheat flour.
How would you incorporate puree ABC into this recipe? My bub is tired of purees but I have a ton.
If you use purees instead of the fruit the way I have it, you will need to adjust the flour to ensure the muffins aren’t mushy on the inside. I haven’t tried that though, so I can’t say what exactly you’d want to do. Let me know if you try it!
Best muffin recipe we’ve tried! My picky toddler gobbles these up, he loves them! We add a little bit of maple syrup to the batter. They’re so good!
Hi, these muffin seem so delicious. I made them as per directions only did half cup spelt flour and half cup all purpose flower. Unfortunately they collapsed in the.middle after taking them out … I don’t think I over mixed it… any idea if the spelt whole weed flour mixture could be the reason? I will definitely make them again ..
Hi- I haven’t tested them with spelt flour, so I can’t say exactly how that would work here. Let me know if you keep experimenting though.