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APPLESAUCE MUFFINS
These applesauce muffins may not look like much but trust me, you should make them asap!
I have to confess that I made these muffins twice in one day…. They were so yummy and my kids could not get enough of them, plus my 2 year old ate the puffy rounded tops off most of the first batch of muffins. So I basically felt obligated to make more just so we could enjoy those puffy and rounded muffin tops 🙂
But for real, they look plain and probably boring but WOW you will be blown away with how moist, soft, and perfect these muffins bake up.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR THE BEST APPLESAUCE MUFFINS
All-Purpose Flour – I always use unbleached all-purpose flour but feel free to use whatever flour. To make these a bit healthier you could even use white whole wheat flour. Be careful when using whole wheat flour because it tends to make baked good tough and more dense. For best results, stick with all-purpose flour. I have never baked with almond flour or those other “non-flours” so I can’t say for sure but I am sure it would work just fine, just make sure it’s an equal substitute.
Granulated Sugar & Brown Sugar – You can adjust these amounts to taste. The recipe as is is lightly sweetened and we love it as is.
Applesauce – Use sweetened applesauce for best results. If you use unsweetened you may need to add a bit more sugar, depending on if you want the muffins sweet or not.
Sour Cream – I always use the full-fat, real sour cream because it tastes better but feel free to use whatever sour cream you prefer.
Milk – I always use whatever highest percentage of milk I have in the fridge. I’ve used whole milk and 1% milk in this recipe with great results.
MY TIPS FOR THIS RECIPE
- Adjust the cinnamon to your liking. The original recipe calls for 2 1/2 teaspoons but I find that 1 1/2- 2 teaspoons is what we prefer.
- Be sure not to overmix the batter. Just mix it until there are no flour streaks that remain in the dough.
- For a mess-free way of filling the muffins tins, use a cookie scoop or ice cream scoop.
- The muffin liners will be almost full of the batter and that’s ok! The recipe makes the perfect amount for 12 muffins exactly.
- All ovens are so different so set the cook time for the minimum and go from there. Mine are perfect right at 17 1/2 minutes. The tops will be puffy and round, and the middle should look done and not wet looking. You also don’t want to over cook these so watch them carefully. You can also tell if muffins are done when you lightly press the tops of them with your finger and it should spring back.
TRY THESE OTHER MUFFIN & BREAD RECIPES
- Whole Grain Cinnamon Applesauce Bread
- Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins
- Cinnamon Banana Bread Muffins
- Mini Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Lemon Zucchini Bread
- Coconut Lemon Poppyseed Muffins
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bread
Applesauce Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup applesauce (I use sweetened)
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners and lightly spray them with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, and egg with a whisk. Mix until it's dark in color and thick.
- Add the applesauce, sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract. Stir with the whisk until combined.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula just until combined and no flour streaks remain.
- Scoop the batter into each muffin cup filling each one nearly full. Recipe makes the perfect amount for 12 muffins exactly, so each muffin cup will be full.
- Bake for 17-20 minutes or until top are puffy and rounded.
- Let muffins cool in the pan or eat one warm. It's glorious! Store leftovers in a covered Tupperware or a gallon-sized Ziploc bag.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Made this for my 2 year old this morning. He LOVED them. Thank you for the simple quick recipe.
Loved these but made a few changes. I used whole wheat flour instead of AP, used olive oil instead of canola, used unsweetened apple sauce but kept the sugar the same. I put 2 tsp of cinnamon and next time I will put 3 (but we love cinnamon!) will definitely make again!
Forgot to rate lol
Can you add raisins to these muffins? And can you freeze them?
Yes, adding raisins would work just great. As far as freezing, I don’t personally freeze stuff but muffins normally do freeze well so I see no reason why you couldn’t freeze these muffins.
My whole family LOVED this recipe and devoured them immediately!
This is delicious! I added a scoop and a half of protein powder to half the batch. They were a little more dense so next time I’ll add a little more applesauce. But both kinds, with and without protein, were delicious! Super easy and my 4 year old loved making them together. Will definitely make again! Also we love cinnamon so we added extra which was perfect!
Has anyone tried this with Greek yogurt instead of sour cream? Out of sour cream right now…might have to give it a go tomorrow.
You can use Greek yogurt just make sure it’s plain and not flavored.
I know this is probably a crazy question, but is there a substitute for sour cream? We don’t have any on hand. Thank you!
You could use plain yogurt or plain Greek yogurt if you have that.
These look delicious! I don’t have sour cream, would you recommend increasing the milk?
No, I would say use plain yogurt or plain greek yogurt if you don’t have sour cream.
Can you use homemade applesauce instead of store bought applesauce
Yes, of course you can! That sounds delicious 🙂 Enjoy.
How do you think plain yogurt would work in place of sour cream?
Plain yogurt would work great!
What about using almond milk? I only have that on hand at the moment. Also, if adjusting the sugar to make up for using unsweetened applesauce, what adjustments would you make?
I personally would not make any adjustments if I had sweetened applesauce. I have used both kinds (unsweetened and sweetened) without changing the recipe and you really can’t tell that much of a difference. If you want to, you could try reducing the sugar by 2-4 tablespoons and see how that is. But again, I have never changed the recipe depending on the applesauce. I hope that helps.
Is it 200 kcal per muffin or for the whole batch?
200 calories per 1 muffin
Made these this morning!
I tried this recipe with gluten free flower and I think that there is nothing wrong with them! Very yummy!
Would this recipe work in a jumbo muffin tin?
Yes it would. Just watch the time because it may need 1-2 minutes longer cook time.
Can i add chopped apples to this recipe?
Yes that should be just fine (and yummy!)
Loved the ease of the recipe and the muffins turned out great! We love cinnamon, so I did add more….I even used cinnamon flavored applesauce!? Thanks for this yummy recipe! It’s a keeper!
Yum. Nothing wrong with cinnamon 🙂 I bet that cinnamon applesauce was delicious. I may have to try that next time I make these.
These are so good! I misread the recipe, used unsweetened applesauce and didn’t realize the mistake till i was ready to pop them into the oven! So i topped off 1/2 the batch with chocolate chips. Honestly, they were delicious even without the chocolate! 🙂
I have used both sweetened and unsweetened applesauce and there really is not a huge difference between the two. If I had to choose, the sweetened applesauce is better but you can use either one with great results.
I don’t normally leave reviews, but these are so delicious! I ate three in about ten minutes. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
You’re so welcome! Thank you for leaving a comment. And I have the same problem with these muffins ….. so good warm that you just have to eat a few!
Quick, easy and tasty. I used unsweetened applesauce and I though the sweetness was just right. I used almond milk because I didn’t have dairy milk on hand . Came out fluffy and light. Will make again.
I never leave reviews but these were so good! I didn’t have sour cream so used plain yoghurt. My 15 month old ate them up and I did too.
Can you freeze these?
I haven’t tried it personally but I have froze many different muffins successfully so I think it would work to freeze these muffins.
Can you sub out the egg??
I’ve never done it with this recipe but for other baking recipes I’ve used a flax egg in place of a real egg. Just mix 1 tbsp ground flaxseed with 3 tbsp warm water and let it sit for a few minutes until it has thickened. That ratio is to replace one egg. Let me know how it goes for you!
These muffins are absolutely scrumptious!! Hubby approved, kid approved and now to wait for baby to wake up and try! I used cinnamon applesauce and they turned out great! Thanks for sharing this easy recipe! It will be a go to muffin in our house!
Love it when a recipe is approved by the whole family!
My daughter is dairy intolerant what would you recommend in place of sour cream and yogurt as a substitute?
I’m not familiar with cooking/baking for dairy intolerant eaters but I do know that many stores sell dairy-free sour cream.
I was looking for an easy muffin recipe to make for my toddler and came across this one. At first I was hesitant about the amount of sugar that was in it, thinking that it would be way too sweet. But it was perfect! I added some blueberries to a few of them and they were delicious. I will definitely be using this recipe again. Thank you!