Veggie-Loaded Chocolate Protein Muffins

Name: Veggie-Loaded Chocolate Protein Muffins
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 eggs (can sub flax eggs); 1/3 cup maple syrup or honey; 1 cup butternut squash puree (or sub with pumpkin or sweet potato puree); 1 cup cooked and cooled green lentils (about 1/3 cup dry. See above for cooking suggestions); 1/4 cup oil (I use coconut oil or avocado); 2 tsp apple cider vinegar; 1 cup loosely packed spinach (or kale); 1/4 cup milk of choice; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour (or white whole wheat flour for a lighter muffin); 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp baking soda; 1/4 tsp salt; 1/4 cup cocoa powder; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; 1/4 cups chocolate chips ( or to taste and optional)

December 1, 2020 By Taesha Butler 41 Comments

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These Chocolate Protein Muffins are the perfect healthy breakfast! Packed with veggies AND protein, they’re delicious, easy to make, adaptable + super kid-approved!

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Chocolate protein muffins fresh out of the oven. Some are still in the muffin tin and others are on the table with extra chocolate chips scattered around them.

Veggie-Loaded Protein muffins

Like most parents, I am always looking for protein-packed breakfast options that my daughter will not only eat…but will be super jazzed about seeing on her breakfast plate.

And if we can throw veggies into the mix, well that breakfast recipe just got even better!

Add chocolate and put everything into a muffin form….and magic has just happen in the kitchen.

That is basically how I felt when these Veggie-Loaded Chocolate Protein Muffins first came out of the oven and my family INHALED them before they even had a chance to cool!

Muffins are one of my favorite easy, to-go breakfasts. They are also ideal for making ahead or stocking up the freezer with. And having a high protein option that my family adores just made me extra happy!

These chocolate protein muffins are easy to make, super delicious, and will be loved by all!

What makes these protein muffins so great?

Added protein. And not from a powder, but from LENTILS! Say what? Lentils are plant based protein powerhouses! And they disappear beautifully into muffins when mixed with all kinds of other healthy and delicious ingredients. While lentils are an unconventional muffin ingredient, these chocolate protein muffins will make you a believer in legumes in baked goods!
Veggie-loaded. Whether it is you or a family member, getting extra veggies in kinda always feels like a good thing. And I am all about adding veggies in a way that you ENJOY! And these muffins make spinach and butternut squash all kinda of enjoyable while also adding some seriously nutritionist.
Family-friendly. Your partner, kids, second cousin twice removed and everyone in between is going to love these muffins. A healthy breakfast recipe you can feel good baking up AND that you know they will happily eat.
Easy. Blend up some ingredients. Stir in some others. Pop them in the oven. Life is too short for fussy recipes and this muffin recipe is delicious AND simple to make.

How do I cook my lentils for these muffins?

Dry lentils are a great plant protein to keep in your pantry! I opt to buy and cook my lentils from dry because they are significantly cheaper that way and super simple to cook up.

To cook lentils for this recipe on the stove top, cover the lentils with water in a pot and bring the water to a boil. Reduce the heat and let the lentil simmer for about 20 minutes. Drain and let them cool a bit before adding to the chocolate protein muffin recipe.
To cook lentils for this recipe in the Instant Pot, combine 1/3 cup dry lentils with 1 1/2 cups water. Cook on HIGH pressure for 9 minutes (it will take about 5-6 minutes for your IP to reach pressure). Quick release the pressure once cook time is up. Drain and let the lentils cool a bit before adding to the recipe.
To cook lentils for this recipe in your slow cooker or crockpot, combine the 1/3 cup dry lentils with 2-3 cups of water and cook on LOW for 4 hours or on HIGH for 2 hours (depending on slow cooker). Drain and let cool before adding to the recipe.
Skip the dry lentils and buy precooked lentils! I find them in the fridge or freezer section of many health focused grocery stores! Just make sure they don’t have any seasoning before adding them to this protein muffin recipe!

A tray of chocolate protein muffins fresh out of the oven.

Suggested Adaptations

Make them vegan. Replace the 2 eggs in this chocolate muffin recipe with 2 “flax eggs“, use your favorite plant based milk in the batter and be sure the chocolate chips you are using are dairy-free. Boom! Vegan protein muffins!
Make these protein muffins gluten free. Sub the white whole wheat flour for a cup-for-cup gluten free flour blend. I like this brand.
Skip the chocolate chips. The chocolate chips make these muffins a little extra dazzling, but they can totally be omitted if you prefer or simply are out! Or, to keep the dazzle but to lighten up the sugar, just sprinkle a few chocolate chips on the top.
Replace the butternut squash puree. Swap it out with cooked and mashed sweet potato or even pumpkin puree! Or if the spinach is enough veggie-loading for you, up the natural sweetness of these muffins with replacing the squash with unsweetened applesauce or mashed rip bananas.
Sub spinach with kale. Be sure to take the ribs out of the kale and blend well in the blender, but kale totally works great in these protein muffins!

Other veggie-loaded muffin recipes to check out

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Two chocolate protein muffins stacked on top of one another. The top one has a bite out of it and there are other muffins and a glass of milk in the background.

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5 from 19 votes