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Zucchini Carrot Muffins

4.92 from 47 votes
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posted: 07/05/17

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This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy

These Zucchini Carrot Muffins are a delicious way to sneak in extra veggies. Kids and adults alike love this sweet muffin recipe and you will too!

apple carrot zucchini muffin on a piece of wax paper

These Zucchini Carrot Muffins are chock full of healthy ingredients and taste scrumptious! Sweet apples, carrots and zucchini blend together in a moist, cinnamon muffin batter that tastes like carrot cake!

My son Gavin actually requests these for his birthday instead of cake. They’re inspired by these apple muffins that we make often. I combined that idea with my delicious zucchini muffins recipe to create a whole new muffin recipe. They’re so good, they’ve now become a permanent fixture in our family.

I would LOVE your ideas on how you get your kids to eat more fruits and veggies. Please leave a comment below and let’s swap stories!

READER REVIEW

“I have to say, this is probably the best and most perfect recipe I have ever tried. I’ve had it as muffins, but one time I had it made into a loaf. Both were perfect.”

zucchini bread muffins stacked

TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST MOIST MUFFINS

  • The veggies in this muffin recipe help make them super moist! I like to shred my carrots, apples and zucchini with a food processor or you can use a hand held grater.
  • Store muffins in a sealed container or Ziploc bag in a single layer. To keep them from getting to sticky, line the bottom of the container or bag with a paper towel, then cover the top of the muffins with another paper towel.
  • Be gentle with the batter. If muffins are coming out crumbly and dry, you may be overmixing the batter. Try to just fold in the ingredients until everything is just barely combined.
  • If the muffins seem too moist, they’re probably not cooked enough. Usually it’s because the oven isn’t hot enough or the cooking time was too short. I’ve never had an issue with the instructions in the recipe card below, so follow those directions and you should be good!
  • I cut the sugar just a tiny bit from the original apple muffin recipe, and didn’t add the streusel topping. These zucchini carrot muffins turned out absolutely amazing.
  • For added crunch, you can toss in a handful of walnuts, almonds or pecans to this muffin recipe. The beauty of this recipe is that it is so versatile you can switch things up a bunch of different ways.
  • If a super sweet tooth strikes, these muffins would taste delicious with a dollop of my cream cheese frosting! So yummy!
a zucchini carrot muffin with a bite taken out of it

MORE FAVORITE MUFFIN RECIPES

Muffins or sliced quick breads always make any breakfast or brunch seem a little more special. And they’re so easy to make from scratch so you don’t need to spend money on boxed muffin mixes. Try some of my favorite recipes:

I actually think these zucchini muffins are a little bit better than the apple original, but maybe that’s just me telling myself that I’m having a slightly healthier breakfast with my coffee. I hope you enjoy these healthy, sweet treats! Let me know in the comments below what you think of this recipe. Enjoy!

4.92 from 47 votes

Zucchini Carrot Muffins

Serves: 18 muffins
(tap # to scale)
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
These Zucchini Carrot Muffins are a delicious way to sneak in extra veggies. Kids and adults alike love this sweet muffin recipe and you will too!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar 301 grams
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup oil 250 ml
  • 3 cups flour 384 grams
  • 1 teaspoon salt 5.69 grams
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda 4.8 grams
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon 2.6 grams
  • 1 cup shredded zucchini about half a medium zucchini (150 grams)
  • 1 cup shredded carrot about two carrots (180 grams)
  • 1 cup shredded apple about one apple (150 grams)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
  • In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, and oil.
  • In another large bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Slowly add the flour mixture to the sugar and egg mixture. The batter will be very thick.
  • Mix in the zucchini, apple, and carrot.
  • Fill the muffin tins 2/3 full.
  • Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick stuck in one of the middle ones comes out with a crumb or two.
Serving: 1muffin Calories: 262kcal (13%) Carbohydrates: 21g (7%) Protein: 1g (2%) Fat: 13g (20%) Saturated Fat: 2g (13%) Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g Monounsaturated Fat: 9g Cholesterol: 21mg (7%) Sodium: 208mg (9%) Potassium: 20mg (1%) Fiber: 1g (4%) Sugar: 19g (21%)
Author: Lisa Longley
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American

did you make this

Zucchini Carrot Muffins

I’d love to see what you made! Tag me @lisasimplejoy and hashtag it #simplejoyrecipes!

Recipe adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Hi! I'm Lisa Longley, and I am committed to giving you simple dinner ideas and recipes that are easy to make; recipes that will fill your home with joy. I am the owner and author of SimpleJoy.com and I'm so glad that you are here.

Reader Interactions

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  1. Heidi says

    5 stars
    These were AMAZING. My 17 month old daughter, my husband and I all absolutely love these. What a great recipe! Thank you for sharing!

    • Lisa Longley says

      I’m so glad you liked them Heidi!

    • Mary says

      So does the rest of her family! Her Mother and Father in law and sister in law!!! Thanks for the awesome recipe!

  2. Sarah says

    Do I have to squeeze out the excess water of the apples and zucchini after they are shredded? They seem very moist.

    • Lisa Longley says

      Hi Sarah! I didn’t squeeze out any excess water.

      • Sarah says

        They are delicious!!!! Any suggestions on reducing the amount of sugar?

        • Lisa Longley says

          I’ve been playing around with a lighter version, Sarah, but the consistency just doesn’t turn out right :/ You could try the Truvia baking blend!

          • Mary says

            Can you make these in a loaf pan? I only have one muffin pan and when it’s hot out I don’t like to keep the oven on that long! And about how long do you think that would take? Thanks again!

          • Lisa Longley says

            Hi Mary! I haven’t tried making these in a loaf pan, but I think it would work fine. The only thing is that it would definitely take longer to bake, probably close to an hour. I would suggest that instead you just cut the recipe in half and go with your one muffin pan :)

  3. Tiffany says

    I’ve got these in the oven now and can’t wait to try them! They smell delicious! I’d love to make a batch of these to bring with us on our beach vacation next month and was wondering if you’ve tried freezing them? Thank you for this recipe!

    • Lisa Longley says

      Hi Tiffany! I haven’t tried freezing them, but if you do, I would suggest doing it with paper towels between the layers so that when they thaw the towels absorb the excess moisture. Good luck and have fun on your vacation!

  4. Sarah says

    5 stars
    These muffins are absolutely delicious!! After baking, I wrapped each muffin individually in wrapping and put in the freezer. Each day, I take one out and eat as a late morning snack. They are so perfect and the highlight of my morning! Thanks for a delicious recipe.

    • Lisa Longley says

      What a great compliment! I’m so glad you like them Sarah!! Thank you for coming back to let me know!

  5. Rebecca says

    Hi Lisa! Can’t wait to try these. As far as measuring the veggies, did you pack them into the measuring cup or just loosely fill 1 cup?

    • Lisa Longley says

      I did not pack them when I made them. Enjoy!

  6. brian says

    5 stars
    These were super delicious! While I was baking I couldn’t help but remember an episode of the TV show ‘Arthur’ I saw as a kid, when their Mom tricks their youngest sister into liking Spinach by sneaking it into a muffin.

    Apparently it works better than ever! I fooled my Dad (who almost never eats enough of his veggies!) and he absolutely loves this recipe too. :D

    • Lisa Longley says

      LOL! I love this story so much Brian, thank you!

  7. sue | theviewfromgreatisland says

    OMG bring on the zucchini ~ I can’t wait to make these muffins, and maaaaaybe put a little cream cheese frosting on them? Just a dab??

  8. Joann says

    Just made these for my 18 month old grand daughter who is visiting this weekend. I wanted to make her a treat that would be fairly healthy, making her parents happy. I tried them to make sure they would like them – OMGoodness! They are delicious! She will never know there are veggies and fruits in there. Yum! Thank you for this great recipe!

    • Lisa Longley says

      So happy to hear this Joann!

  9. Katie says

    Made these last night for quick breakfasts to go with my hubbys protein shakes. Very very delicious! I think I might add in more zucchini and carrot next time and maybe less sugar. But they really are delicious as is.

    • Lisa Longley says

      Soo gold you liked them Katie!

  10. Jess says

    My kids love these! I used whole wheat flour and subbed the oil for a mashed avocado and a mashed banana because that’s what we had around. It made the batter a little dryer than I expected so I had to be careful not to overmix, but they are delicious. We ended up with about 36 mini muffins.

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