These Healthy Toddler Muffins are delicious for breakfast, but also work as a healthy snack or lunch. This is an easy muffin recipe for kids. Make one batter and choose from 4 different mix-ins to get variety, including a vegetable muffin!
Toddler Muffins that are healthy, quick, and tasty
Coming up with toddler breakfast ideas has been one of the trickier things in the household recently. But these toddler muffins have become a favorite recipe.
- It is quick to make;
- mama is happy because it's healthy;
- the toddler likes the different varieties;
- and of course everyone devours them because they are tasty.
Sure, I often plop his favorite bowl of cereal (which I love, because it's made from beans, so extra health benefits!) in front of him and get to my morning coffee ASAP.
But I love making breakfast a family affair, and our toddler loves getting involved in anything we are doing. So we try to have him help make his own breakfast.
How can your toddler help in the kitchen?
Our toddler often demands to make these Toddler Pancakes when he wakes up.
With these pancakes, he likes to pull out the ingredients from the cupboard, help measure out the ingredients, and mix the batter together. I do the stovetop cooking, but he likes watching me scoop on the batter and flip the pancakes.
Another favorite breakfast idea is to allow our toddler to choose his own porridge toppings from these 10 toddler friendly porridges.
Our toddler looks at the pictures, points to the one he wants, and mixes everything together in his favorite oatmeal bowl, which is conveniently shaped perfectly to hold everything in it.
Recently, we introduced him to these Toddler Muffins - and it was a hit!
With these Toddler Muffins, our toddler can do the following:
- help pull the ingredients out from the cupboard,
- measure out the ingredients,
- mix the batter together,
- line the muffin tin with the cups,
- and scoop the batter into the muffin cups.
TIP: We love these 12-cup mini muffin tins. Small enough to rotate around so he can line the entire muffin tin with paper cups and scoop muffin batter into each of the cups. (The 24 cup pans are too big to reach in the middle.)
TIP: A small cookie scoop is the best way for my toddler to scoop the muffin batter into the cups. I help him squeeze it to release it, but I'm sure he'll figure it out soon!
It's quite a fun and involved process (albeit much neater and quicker when I just do it myself - 10 minutes tops).
This is an easy muffin recipe for kids that they can help make
This easy muffin recipe for kids is as healthy and easy as you want it to be.
With one batter, you can get up to four different toddler muffins. You choose 1, 2, 3, or 4 favorite ingredient mix-in, and simply split the batter into separate bowls, then add in the mix-in of choice at the end.
If you think you have a winning combo that will have your kid proclaiming these as the best toddler muffins, then by all means make the entire batch with only one mix-in.
Regardless, this recipe for healthy kids muffins offers flexibility and variety. You can even get a vegetable muffin for your kids by using the carrot and raisins mix-in option.
The four mix-in's I've made so far are:
- blueberry,
- apple cinnamon,
- carrot and raisins, and
- chocolate chips.
This Healthy Toddler Muffin is delicious for breakfast, but also works as a healthy snack or lunch
I chose what I thought were flavorful mix-in ingredients that were naturally sweet to make up for that fact that these kid muffins are made with little sugar added (you can leave out all the sugar if you prefer too). Instead, these Toddler Muffins use a grated apple in the batter as a natural sweetener.
After making this Toddler Muffin recipe a couple of times now, I have found my toddler's favorites are apple cinnamon and carrot + raisins. (As he loves apple cinnamon so much, he also loves this healthy apple pancakes!)
A healthy kids muffin recipe that also packs well for lunch and snack
He would happily eat those for breakfast several times a week, and then eat them for lunch and snack. It works out conveniently too, because they pack so well into his yumbox.
For a healthy kids muffin, I found them pretty tasty. I even spied my husband taking the occasional bite off my son's plate while he was feeding him.
The small size of these muffins makes it easy for our toddler to handle, while we eat eat them as if they were healthy donut holes. Enjoy these muffins with a cup of coffee, or in our toddler's case, a glass of oat milk!
Here's one more favorite toddler breakfast recipe that would fit in perfectly in that yumbox too: Easy Fruit Salad with Yogurt.
Our favorite tools for making these Toddler Muffins
Wilton Non-Stick Mini-Muffin Pan, 12-Cup (2-Pack)
Wilton Primary Baking Cups, Mini, 150-CountOXO Good Grips Cookie Scoop, SmallYumbox Leakproof Bento Lunch Box Container
Toddler Muffins
Print Recipe Save RecipeIngredients
Muffin Base
- 1 ⅓ cups white whole wheat flour (also called golden wholegrain flour)
- ¾ cup old fashioned rolled oats (jumbo rolled oats)
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds (milled flax seeds)
- 1 small apple - grated with peel
- 2 medium eggs
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup unsalted butter - melted
Apple Cinnamon (enough for ¼ of the muffin batter)
- ½ small apple - chopped into ½-cm pieces
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Blueberries (enough for ¼ of the muffin batter)
- 1 handful blueberries (blueberries vary in size, but aim for about 2-3 blueberries in each muffin)
Carrot and Raisin (enough for ¼ of the muffin batter)
- ¼ medium carrot - grated
- 1 tablespoon raisins
Chocolate Chip (enough for ¼ of the muffin batter)
- 2 tablespoons dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C. Grease or line a 24-hole mini muffin tin.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, and flax seeds. Fold in the grated apples.
- In a small bowl, beat the eggs. Beat in the milk and butter.
- Pour the egg mixture into the batter, and fold together, being careful not to over mix.
- Split the muffin batter evenly between 4 bowls. In each bowl, gently mix in the mix-in ingredient. You can adapt the recipe to make 1, 2, 3 or 4 varieties. Adjust the amount of mix-in as required.
- Using a cookie scoop, evenly distribute the batter into the mini muffin tin, filling each muffin cup about ¾ full. For each variety, you should be able to get 6 mini muffins.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until cooked in the middle and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before transferring to a cooling rack.
Looking for Easy Toddler Breakfast Ideas? See more recipes!
Alli says
Can you omit the brown sugar all together or sub in applesauce?
Tina Jui says
Hi Alli, I wouldn't recommend reducing the sugar completely, although if you do, your toddler may still enjoy it. This article explains it really nicely, with photos: How to Reduce Sugar in Muffins.
If you do the math for this recipe, the sugar is about 25% of the flour, but keep in mind this recipe also uses oats in the base. So it's already pushing the boundaries of a muffin as we know it - browned top, moist, and not rubbery.
As for applesauce, I haven't personally done it before, but it shouldn't be a problem. If the batter ends up too wet, you may want to reduce some of the milk. If you are worried about sugar content though, keep in mind that store bought apple sauce often has added sugar in it.
Annette says
Hi I made these muffins to serve at my daughters party day after tomorrow. But they seem a little chewy and stuck to the paper. Any idea where I went wrong?
Tina says
Hi Annette, I’m sorry you found that the muffins stick to the paper and you think they are a bit chewy. I have a few thoughts, though I’m not sure they apply to your specific situation.. muffins can stick to the paper if they are left to cool in the pan too long instead of a cooling rack. They also can stick when the muffin hasn’t cooled enough. Muffins can become chewy if the dough is over mixed. Also if undercooked.
As this recipe is for healthy toddler muffins, the ingredients naturally have a bit more heft and chew — oats, whole grain flour, flax and apple peel. Its not a particularly fluffy and light muffin, which makes it more toddler friendly actually -- it doesn’t fall apart when my little one holds it to take a bite.
I’m not sure if any of this is helpful as your party is so soon.. I hope it is though. Happy birthday to your daughter!
Annette says
Thank you for this recipe. How should I store them? In the fridge? How long will they last for?
Tina Jui says
Hi Annette, we eat them rather quickly since we all like these muffins! I would store in an airtight container overnight at room temperature, or a couple days in the refrigerator. Otherwise, they do freeze well. You can store them in a zip lock bag, and defrost individually as you need.
Catherine Perez says
I don’t have ground flax seed. Will this affect the batter mixture?
Thanks
Tina Jui says
Hi Catherine, You can bake the muffins fine without the flaxseeds in the recipe. The flaxseeds give the muffins a bit of extra binding power. I find that it works well for my toddler, so the muffin doesn't fall apart when he feeds himself. But the muffin will bake fine without the extra flax seeds too. Enjoy!
Melinda says
Can I use frozen blueberries instead of fresh?
Tina Jui says
Yes, you can. Just beware that frozen blueberries will make the batter turn blue. You can rinse and dry frozen blueberries to avoid it a little though.
Caroline says
Can't wait to make these! Do you know how long they keep after baking? I jut have one toddler so i don't want to make too many at once.
Tina Jui says
Hi - sorry for the slow response. I missed the comment. We eat them rather quickly since we all like these muffins. But I store in an airtight container overnight at room temperature, or a couple days in the refrigerator. Otherwise, they do freeze well. You can store them in a zip lock bag, and defrost individually as you need.
Naje says
Love this! Is there a way to make these without eggs?
Tina Jui says
Good question! Posting an egg free muffin recipe has been on my list to do. Generally, yes you can tweak this recipe, but unfortunately I don't have the exact measurements for it written down. If you are up for experimenting a little bit, I would start with adding a bit more flax seed, some baking soda, and some cider vinegar. In the meantime, you can try these Free From Pancakes, which do not contain egg.
Tina Jui says
Hi - I just wanted to update to let you know that I just posted an Egg Free Banana Muffin that is great for toddlers.
Robin says
So delicious! I love this recipe! Note- for anybody who wants to make these for the whole family.... ADD SALT!
Melissa says
HI Tina, thank you for sharing this recipe. I’ve been looking for a healthy recipe for my very picky toddler. I decided to try just the blueberry version and I added carrots and sunflower seeds. I can’t believe how good these are and they contain very little sugar! My toddler loves them! They also freeze very well. Thanks again!
Destiny says
Would it affect the muffins if I made them in 12's instead of 24's? Just double the time in oven maybe?
Tina Jui says
Hi Destiny, Yes you could do 12 muffins. The baking time will be longer, but not quite double the time. Personally my little one prefers the mini muffins though - you get more muffin top with each bite. Enjoy!