These mini healthy applesauce muffins for toddlers are made with whole wheat flour, oil, are dairy-free, and lightly sweetened. They’re perfect for little hands and make for a fun breakfast that kids will love!
This recipe is adapted from my best applesauce muffin recipe (it’s so good!). Basically all I did was cut the recipe in half, reduced the baking soda, and used whole wheat flour, and brown sugar and honey (or maple syrup) for sweetness. It worked out perfectly!
The muffins came out really soft and moist; much better than I expected. The pictures really don’t show how soft they are but believe me, they are.
And the flavor is amazing! I made them for my kids but I couldn’t stop munching on them.
By the way, this mini applesauce muffin recipe is such an easy one. It comes together all in one bowl and only takes 10 minutes prep; quick to make and quick to bake. There are no crazy ingredients either. It’s just a simple, straightforward recipe.
We’ve been having lots of cereal for breakfast lately and we all know that stuff is loaded with sugar. So I’m trying to cut back on the junk food breakfasts.
I usually make muffins but many muffin recipes just turn out to be ones for cupcakes apparently so I always have to come up with my own and I’m so glad because I get to share them with you.
I like making these kinds of healthy muffins for toddlers because it’s so convenient. They can have them for breakfast, snack or a healthy dessert. We can even take them on the go to the park and they’re great for the lunchbox too. They’re just good all around.
I really love whole wheat muffins but only if they don’t actually taste whole wheat. They’re so much more filling and nutritious compared to their white-flour counterparts.
I don’t like to sacrifice taste just for fewer calories either so any healthy muffin recipe that I post here on the website is a great one!
Healthy breakfasts aren’t so bad once you find the right recipes. And I’ve come to learn that making little changes can really have a big impact on your overall health like baking with applesauce for example.
It’s a great healthy alternative to oil and butter. I actually used it for that purpose in this healthy banana applesauce muffin recipe. Surprisingly it’s the most popular recipe on my blog!
Ever since I learned this I’ve been making a lot of muffins with applesauce.
There’s hardly any sugar in this recipe and I know at first glance it looks like it’s not enough, but it is! Remember, the applesauce itself is sweet (even though it’s unsweetened) and natural sweeteners are twice as sweet as refined sugar, so not to worry. These are kid-approved.
If you only have the sweetened applesauce on hand I recommend that you reduce he brown sugar to 1 tablespoon.
I find that they have the perfect amount of spice. The original recipe called for a pinch of nutmeg but I left it out because it just seemed iffy since it’s a kids’ recipe. They taste great without it though so they’re not missing anything.
And these muffins are so easy to eat and so light in texture that they can definitely pass for baby muffins. Honestly, these would be the perfect addition to a baby’s finger food diet.
More Healthy Muffin Recipes
- Healthy Oatmeal Applesauce Muffins
- Healthy Pumpkin Banana Muffins
- Healthy Oatmeal Banana Muffins
- Healthy Greek Yogurt Chocolate Chip Muffins
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Mini Healthy Applesauce Muffins (Toddler-Friendly)
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Ingredients
- 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar or brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup Reminder: No honey for babies under 1 year old
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line mini muffin pan with mini muffins liners, spray with nonstick cooking spray, or lightly grease with oil and set aside.
- In a large bowl combine the applesauce, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt (mixture should be completely smooth). Stir in the honey/maple syrup.
- Beat in the oil, egg, and vanilla extract.
- Add the flour and baking soda and mix until fully incorporated. Do not over mix.
- Scoop the batter into the mini muffin pan filling the cups almost to the top.
- Bake for 10 – 11 minutes.
- Cool in pan 10 minutes then remove.
Notes
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12 comments
These are really good!! Just straight foward no fuss really moist tender muffins. I substituted melted butter for oil and no brown sugar, just maple syrup.
Thanks for posting.
I’ve never tried them with butter and maple syrup only but that sounds so good!! I’m really happy you liked them.
I forgot to add I was making them for twin 1 year olds and a toddler, hence the substitutions. They gobbled it up so fast. It’s a keeper for sure!!
That’s awesome! It’s so satisfying when they actually eat what you make, especially when it’s something new.
Remember not to use honey if you’re serving these to babies under 1 year–even after baking, it can contain botulism spores that babies’ digestive systems aren’t mature enough to destroy.
I completely forgot about this. Thank you so much! I’m going to make a note of it in the recipe.
My 3-year-old and I made these today for her baby brother. We used a mashed banana/applesauce combo and left off the vanilla. I only got about 16 mini muffins–maybe I overfilled. But they are tender and delicious! In fact, I may need to make a full-sized version. The baby loved them, too. Thanks for a great, easy recipe!
That’s a delicious combo! Yes, I believe you overfilled but they still turned out great so it doesn’t matter. You’re welcome! I’m so happy that both little ones enjoyed these muffins. This is the full-sized version. Enjoy.
These were great and I love that there’s less sugar! Made them in regular size muffin pan and they made about 8
I really glad you like them! Thanks for telling me this. It’s good to know how many regular sized muffins this recipe yields.
Very good, simple and quick recipe that I made for my 10-month-old grandson (using maple syrup). I’m sure he will love these. thanks for a great recipe!
You’re welcome. I think he’ll like them too! Thanks so much for the 5-star rating, Vivian.