carrot quinoa muffins on a black plate with muffins in a tray and the background and tea towel on the side.

These quinoa carrot muffins are protein-packed, fiber-rich, and naturally sweetened with bananas and maple syrup. The vanilla-flavored Botanica Perfect Protein is naturally sweetened with monk fruit and provides an extra boost of sweetness and protein. Plus, the carrot quinoa muffins are gluten-free, flour-free, and oil-free. They are packed with whole foods and are great for toddlers’ lunch boxes.

Once baked, uncooked quinoa blended with almond milk, bananas, maple syrup, and eggs yields perfectly moist, oil-free muffins. The grated carrot adds a slight texture and is a great way to get veggies into your diet. Psyllium husk helps to thicken the batter for the best texture. Cinnamon is a naturally sweet spice that pairs perfectly with the carrot and quinoa base to spice the oil-free muffins.

I was inspired to make these quinoa carrot muffins for toddlers as I was looking for a healthy muffin recipe for my little girl’s preschool lunch box that was satisfying, refined sugar free, and made without processed flours and oils. Not to mention, they had to be yummy so that my little girls would eat them!

It took me a few times to get this quinoa carrot muffin just right without adding extra flour. The key to making the perfect-tasting quinoa muffins was not to soak the uncooked quinoa beforehand. Soaking caused the quinoa to absorb too much water, thus making the batter too runny and the muffins too moist. But when I blended uncooked quinoa with the wet ingredients into a smooth batter and added the baking powder, baking soda, carrot, and psyllium, the batter had a perfect consistency and baked beautifully.

Carrot Quinoa Muffins Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked quinoa
1. 5 cups grated carrot
2 ripe bananas
2 large eggs
¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
¼ cup maple syrup
¼ cup Botanica vanilla protein powder (or your favorite vanilla-flavored protein powder)
2 tbsp psyllium husk
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp olive oil

How to Make Flourless Quinoa Muffins:

Preheat the Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease the cups with olive oil.
Blend Wet Ingredients with Quinoa: In a high-powered blender, combine the uncooked quinoa, bananas, eggs, almond milk, and maple syrup. Blend until the mixture is smooth and the quinoa is broken down into a batter-like consistency.
Mix the Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the vanilla protein powder, psyllium husk, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda.
Combine Wet and Dry: Pour the blended wet mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir until combined. Gently fold in the grated carrots.
Scoop and Bake: Divide the batter evenly into the muffin cups, filling each about ¾ full. Bake for 30 minutes.
Cool and Serve: Let the muffins cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Use a butter knife to scrape along the edges to loosen the muffin from the tray.

Store these muffins in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. They also freeze well – thaw them for a quick snack or breakfast on the go.

3 carrot quinoa muffins on a black plate with a muffin cut in half on the side and muffins still in a muffin tray in the background.

Tips and Substitutions:

Botanica’s perfect protein (vanilla flavor) helps thicken the batter and boosts protein and sweetness. You can use another protein powder, but remember that the taste may vary depending on the protein powder you use. The vanilla-flavored botanica perfect protein powder has a very slightly sweet flavor that is not overpowering with sweetness like many flavored vanilla protein powders on the market. You can also use a gluten free four in replacement of the protein powder to help thicken the batter with no added extra sweetness.
Sub the almond milk for any plant-based milk or even plain water, as the main purpose is to help blend the uncooked quinoa with the wet ingredients.

Nutritional Profile and Benefits

These quinoa carrot muffins deliver on both flavor and nutrition. The quinoa muffins contain all the essential amino acids from the combination of eggs, quinoa, and protein powder. These oil free muffins are low fat, high protein and contain healthy carbohydrates.

They also contain ample amounts of B vitamins and magnesium for energy production and choline from the eggs, which is a crucial nutrient to prevent fatty liver. Cinnamon, a fantastic spice for insulin resistance, is used to spice these quinoa carrot muffins.

According to Cronometer (a fantastic app for tracking your macronutrient and nutritional intake), these oil free muffins yield approx 11 muffins, with each muffin containing:

133 calories
5 grams protein
20 grams carbohydrates
2 grams fat

Anyone looking for refined sugar-free and flour-free muffins that are also low fat and oil-free will love these muffins made with uncooked quinoa that is blended with the wet ingredients for the perfect replacement for processed flours used in most muffin recipes. The nutrient-dense muffins are perfectly moist, naturally sweet, and delicious muffins that are great for a quick breakfast on the go or to pack into your child’s lunch box for a healthy treat!