I first made this recipe when I wanted to make a super nutrient-dense muffin for my three kiddos to enjoy for easy breakfasts and snacks, and figured out how to easily pack in tons of fruits and veggies.
As the name suggests, these apple banana carrot muffins (aka ABC muffins) do just that! The fruits and veggies not only add lots of nutrients, but they also add a lovely natural sweetness and moisture. Plus, kids won’t ever guess what’s in them. I added a little extra sweetness with pure maple syrup, plus hearty omega-3s and fiber from flaxseed meal.
These baby and kid-friendly muffins make the perfect on-the-go snack, and can easily be frozen and reheated during busy weeks. Tony and I love these with almond butter on top, too (no, they’re not just for kiddos!) Bake up a batch and share with the family this week.
Ingredients in these apple, banana, carrot muffins
We’re packing these tender muffins with fruits, veggies, and whole grains to keep them deliciously hearty. Here’s what you’ll need to make them:
- Flour: I like to use a mix of all purpose flour and white whole wheat flour to keep them nice and fluffy. You can also use ALL white whole wheat flour for a heartier option.
- Flaxseed meal: add a boost of omega-3s, fiber, vitamins, and minerals with flaxseed meal.
- Fruits & veggies: these muffins get their moisture and even more nutrients from fresh carrots, banana, and applesauce. I love using cinnamon applesauce for extra flavor!
- Maple syrup: a little pure maple syrup adds the perfect amount of sweetness (along with the ripe banana).
- Milk: feel free to use any milk you’d like. I typically use unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
- Oil: keep the muffins moist with extra-virgin olive oil or melted and cooled coconut oil.
- Egg: you’ll need 1 egg to help them bake up properly.
- Baking staples: don’t forget the vanilla extract, cinnamon, baking powder AND baking soda, and a little salt.
Try these yummy mix-ins
Boost the protein, healthy fats, or flavor in these ABC muffins with:
- Hemp hearts
- Chopped walnuts or pecans
- Chopped dates or raisins
Can I make them vegan or gluten-free?
- To make them gluten-free: simply use a gluten-free all-purpose flour.
- To make them vegan: I haven’t tested these using an egg alternative, but feel free to try using 1 flax egg and let me know how they turn out.
An easy way to add more protein
I think you could get away with adding a scoop of protein powder to these. My fav is Vital Proteins collagen peptides because it is unflavored. Let me know if you have any favorites in the comments below.
Want to make a loaf instead?
It’s easy! Here’s how to do it:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F, and line an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Make the recipe as directed, and pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake the bread for 50 to 60 minutes until a tester comes out clean.
Make mini muffins for littles
I love making baby-friendly apple, banana, carrot muffins by turning them into mini muffins! Here’s how:
- Make the batter as directed in the recipe.
- Divide the batter into a mini muffin pan that’s been lined with mini muffin liners and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
- Bake for 14 to 18 minutes until a tester comes out clean.
Don’t forget these muffin-baking tips
- Use room temp ingredients. Be sure your egg, milk, and (if using) coconut oil are cooled before using them so that they don’t coagulate when you mix the batter.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Mix the dry ingredients into your wet ingredients until they’re just combined. If you overmix the batter, your muffins may turn out dense.
- Use muffin liners & spray. I always recommend spraying your muffin liners with a bit of cooking spray to prevent any sticking.
Celebrate with kid-friendly cupcakes
These kiddo and baby-friendly apple, banana, and carrot muffins would make the perfect cupcakes for celebrating! Add a fun frosting like this one to give to little ones for special occasions.
How to freeze these apple, banana & carrot muffins
Freeze these muffins to have nourishing, on-the-go breakfasts any day of the week! Simply wrap muffins individually and place them in an airtight container or freezer-safe bags. When you’re ready to enjoy them, reheat them for 30-45 seconds in the microwave or simply thaw them at room temperature.
Tools you’ll need
Get all of my go-to kitchen tools here!
More muffin recipes you’ll love
- Blender Banana Spinach Muffins (kid-friendly!)
- Healthy Peanut Butter Banana Muffins (dairy free + gluten free)
- The Best Healthy Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins (gluten free!)
- Oh So Fluffy Vegan Banana Oatmeal Muffins
- Pumpkin Banana Flax Chocolate Chip Muffins
Get all of my muffin recipes here!
I hope you love these kid and baby-friendly apple, banana, carrot muffins! If you make them be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
ABC Muffins (apple, banana & carrot muffins!)
Ingredients
- Dry ingredients
- 1 cup (120g) all purpose flour (or sub white whole wheat flour for a more hearty muffin)*
- ½ cup (57g) white whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup (30g) flaxseed meal
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Wet ingredients
- 1 cup shredded carrots (from about 2 large carrots)
- 1 overripe spotty medium to large banana, mashed
- ½ cup (125g) applesauce (cinnamon applesauce is delicious)
- ⅓ cup (104g) pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup (60g) unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of choice)
- ¼ cup (50g) extra-virgin olive oil (or melted and cooled coconut oil)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Optional mix-ins
- ½ cup chopped dates or raisins
- ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- 3 tablespoons hemp hearts, for a protein boost
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prepare muffin pan: Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin liners and spray the inside of the liners with nonstick cooking spray to prevent sticking.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, white whole wheat flour, flaxseed meal, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well combined. Set aside.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a separate large bowl, add the carrots, mashed banana, applesauce, pure maple syrup, milk of choice, oil, egg and vanilla extract. Whisk together until well combined. Make sure most of your ingredients are at room temperature to avoid the oil coagulating.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a wooden spoon until just combined and smooth. Fold in any optional mix-ins (I love chopped toasted walnuts in these muffins!).
- Bake the muffins: Evenly divide the batter between the muffin liners. Bake muffins for 20 to 25 minutes until a tester comes out clean.
- Allow muffins to cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before enjoying! These are delicious with almond butter and a drizzle of honey on top.
- To store: Store muffins in an airtight bag or container for 1 day, then transfer to the fridge for up to 5 days. Store in an airtight container or bag in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This recipe was originally published on February 25th, 2025, and republished on March 11th, 2026.
substitutes for flaxseed meal?
protein powder may be a good option or you can just sub with white whole wheat flour and that should work okay!
Can you use whole wheat pastry flour instead of white WW flour?
Yes that will work!
Is there a substitute for maple syrup?
I’ve seen readers substitute honey with success, but note that I haven’t tested it!
There’s way too many ingredients and it’s too labour intensive.
Coconut oil is high in cholesterol. White flour turns to sugar when digested. I don’t know what white whole wheat flour is.
So, it’s not for me or my family.
Thx.
These were insanely easy to make and so delicious! I added in 1/4 cup of collagen and hemp seeds for an extra boost of protein. I will definitely make these again!
The perfect breakfast or snack!
If you have time to leave a dumb comment you have time to Google what things are.
Made these yesterday with my toddler and they were wonderful! I think we’ve devoured half the batch!
Such a great snack!
I made the recipe without modifications and the muffins were delicious. Moist and with just the right touch of sweetness, Perfect for my kids and adults to enjoy too.
So happy to hear that!
What can I substitute the flax meal with? My husband is allergic to flax seed.
I made these today for my family with no modifications other than honey instead of syrup. They all loved them. Thanks for a fun new muffin recipe.
Perfect! Glad they were a hit!
I was wondering your thoughts on using monk fruit sweetener instead of maple syrup?
I don’t bake with alternative sweeteners like monk fruit, stevia, etc. so I’m not sure how it will turn out! Those sweeteners do tend to be MUCH sweeter than maple syrup, honey, etc.
Wow these were so yummy!! I used cinnamon applesauce, two tablespoons of my collagen peptides, and i added raisins and walnuts as the mix ins, perfect breakfast 🙂
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
Really enjoyed these!!! Do you think using oat flour the next time I make these would work?
I wouldn’t recommend swapping the flour in here – sorry! The texture will be much different.
Made these muffins today moist delicious and so satisfying I didn’t have carrots so I sub’s zucchini and I didn’t have applesauce so I grated an apple instead so perfect!! Thankyou so much
So glad those swaps worked out well!!
Super easy to make! Very flavorful and moist, I will definitely be making these again.
So glad you loved them!
Delicious! Will definitely be making these for my baby and toddler again! Love all the nutrients packed into this recipe.
Absolutely! Perfect breakfast or snack 🙂
My whole family is obsessed with these! We added the hemp seeds, walnut (pecans the second time) & unsweetened shredded coconut! So good!! Perfect snack for preschool, preworkout or afternoon pick me up!
So happy to hear that!!
These are delicious for an afternoon snack too. My future son in law called them Morning Glories. His mom made a similar recipe
YES love that!!
These muffins were amazing!!!! I am always looking forward to getting recipes in my email and was so excited to try these out – 10 out 0f 10 for sure! Thank you Monique!!
I’m so glad!! Such a great snack or breakfast 🙂
These turned out delicious! I lowered the maple syrup to 1/4C and used pecans as my add-in. I will add some collagen to up the protein next time like you suggest.
Amazing! Glad you enjoyed!
If I don’t use flaxmeal how shoukd I adjust the recipe- thank you
Hi! You could try replacing it with more flour.
My muffins were really dense and did not puff up nice, would you be able to tell me why
Hi! There could be a number of reasons – make sure to measure your flour using the spoon-and-level method, and be sure you don’t overmix the batter! Lastly, check the date on your baking soda to ensure that it’s fresh.
Do you use unsweetened applesauce? If I do, will I have to change the amount of maple syrup?
I use unsweetened!
These were so yummy 🙂 I added collagen, hemp seeds, raisins and walnuts, i love the hidden veggie in here too!
Amazing! Glad you enjoyed!
My super picky anti fruit and veg daughter loves these! They are a hit in our house!
So happy to hear that!
Hi- can this be baked in an 8 x 8 pan or a loaf pan?
A loaf pan should work!
Delicious, as all Monique´s recipes! Another great muffin for a quick breakfast or an elevated snack.
Absolutely! Glad you loved these!
Can I use crushed pineapple instead of apple sauce?
I haven’t tested it! Let me know if you give it a try 🙂
These are so light and fluffy and a perfect grab and go snack. We didn’t have any apple sauce, so subbed that for greek yoghurt. Once this batch is finished, I’m going to make them again, properly this time with the apple sauce – can’t wait!
Perfect! Such a great breakfast or snack 🙂
Can I use just all purpose flour instead of using both all purpose and white whole wheat?
That should work!
My kids complain about the lack of chocolate but overall enjoy this recipe quite a lot! I like that it has carrots, raisins and banana, along with some healthy seeds. I’m also looking forward to freezing some to use as a road trip breakfast or snack. Thanks once again for all your recipes, they have been game changing!
Haha my kids often feel the same way, but I’m glad they still like these! Such a great on-the-go snack 🙂
These are delicious but…Not sure why but these stick to my baking paper terribly, any tips?
Hmmm try spraying the insides of your muffin liners with nonstick cooking spray!
Hi Monique, I just wanted to say thank you so very much for this delicious recipe! On a cold winters day in Sydney Australia it was so lovely to have for my breakfast. I had three for my breakfast drizzled with almond butter and hazelnut butter. What I did differently was because I did not have any flaxseed meal I just left it out and did not substitute with anything else. Looking forward to sharing with friends and loved ones the remaining muffins. 🙂
Such a great, cozy breakfast! So glad you enjoyed!
A favorite on weekly rotation in our house!
I’m so glad!
Greetings Monique from Sydney Australia. I made your stunning recipe and I would give it a 10 out of 10! The taste was fantastic and I enjoyed three muffins drizzled with a little almond butter and a little hazelnut butter. I did not have any flaxseed meal, so just left it out entirely. I so look forward to making this again soon. Thank you for sharing it with all of us.😊
Perfect! So glad you loved these!
My 6yo daughter and I made these today and they were a hit! Will definitely be adding these to our muffin rotation. A few adjustments we made – used only golden whole wheat flour, almond milk and subbed applesauce for oil.
Perfect! So happy to hear that!
Fun tasty muffin, my kid loved it
Works well with wholemeal flour
I think it’s improved by adding ginger
So happy to hear that! Ginger sounds delicious, too 🙂
I’m not the best baker, but these turned out flawless. Used cinnamon applesauce as suggested and added hemp seeds. My 3.5 year old has been eating them for breakfast every day this week, which, if you have a toddler, know that is high praise.
So happy to hear that!
So yummy & easy to make- my whole family loves these!
I’ve made these muffins so many times, they’re that good! I make them GF using 1 cup GF flour and 1/2 cup oat flour. I always add the hemp seeds and even Vital Proteins Collagen for extra protein. Thanks for the great recipe!
I’m glad those swaps work out well! Such a great breakfast or snack 🙂
Approved by my 5 and 1 year old (and parents too)! Used 144g all purpose flour and 1 scoop of plain protein powder which for me is about 33g. These will be added to my muffin rotation for sure!
Amazing! Glad everyone loved them!
Yummy high fiber muffin recipe. I added pecan pieces and chopped dates and it was great. FYI, Monique, if you haven’t tried parchment paper non-stick baking cups, they’re amazing and no need for spraying muffin liners. Thanks for another good recipe.
Love that! And YES great call!
My 3 and 1 year old LOVE these! It’s a fun activity to make them together *and* they are a nutritious snack to have on hand.
So fun! Perfect for kiddos 🙂
I made these for my 11 month old and they were fantastic! The only substitution I made was using dates instead of maple syrup. I softened 5 of them in hot milk and then blended them. I used the mini muffins pan and baked them for 13 minutes. I am in high altitude and they still came out perfect! Thank you!
The perfect snack! I’m glad that swap worked out well 🙂
Made these for my little ones and it was a 10/10 hit. I only used a splash of maple syrup and honestly I think I’ll just leave the maple syrup out altogether next time. I used unsweetened cinnamon applesauce and added a TBSP of hemp hearts. Mine had to bake for around 30 minutes, but they turned out perfect!
Perfect! Glad they were a hit!