These whole wheat applesauce muffins are the kind of healthy everyday muffin I keep making on repeat lately. One bowl, pantry ingredients, warmly spiced with cinnamon, hearty enough to actually keep you full, but still soft and fluffy enough to feel like a treat with coffee.

4.96 from 22 votes
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These muffins are AMAZING!! Just the right amount of sweetness and SO flavorful! I love a recipe that you can make in one bowl, too!

Lisa
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The muffins that taste like a cinnamon donut…just healthier.

Okay, team. We’re doing something a little wild today: no veggie in this muffin. I know. Shocking. 😂 But these whole wheat applesauce muffins were born out of my love for easy, hearty muffins that taste good enough you actually *want* to make them, but aren’t such a production that you need to block off an hour just to get them in the oven. And these are so it. They’re the kind of muffins you can mix up quickly on a random Tuesday, stash in the fridge for breakfasts and snacks all week, and know you have something tasty waiting to pair with your coffee in the morning.

These started as a spin-off of my oatmeal pumpkin muffins because I wanted that same one-bowl, minimal-effort energy…just with applesauce taking center stage instead. And you know what? Applesauce really earns its keep here. It keeps the muffins beautifully moist without needing a ton of oil, helps create that lovely soft crumble, and adds a natural sweetness that means we can keep the added sugar pretty modest. Because truly, is there anything sadder than a dry, crumbly muffin? Absolutely not. The combination of whole wheat flour and oats gives these muffins a hearty, satisfying texture, while lots of cinnamon brings that warm, cozy flavor that makes the whole house smell incredible while they bake.

I also just love how realistic these applesauce muffins are for normal everyday life when you’re trying to eat a little better without making everything feel complicated. No fancy ingredients. Not time consuming. Just one bowl, about 10 minutes of mixing, around 20 minutes in the oven…done. We’ve been enjoying these for breakfast with bowls of yogurt, as a quick afternoon snack smeared with peanut butter, and absolutely paired with a hot cup of coffee or tea (depending on the point in the day) whenever I get a moment to slow down and linger on the couch for a minute. They’re that perfect level of lightly sweet while still being filling enough to make you feel good after eating them, and very much live in the same practical muffin lane as the oatmeal carrot muffins so many of you love. I really do think these are going to become a regular in your kitchen too, my friends.

Okay, let’s bake these muffins together. Just you and me….

A glass bowl with a whisk and 2 eggs, applesauce, oil, greek yogurt, maple syrup and vanilla before being mixed together.
Mix up the applesauce, the oil, eggs, Greek yogurt, vanilla, and maple syrup.
Glass bowl on a pink marble table with an applesauce/egg/yogurt mixture with cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt sitting on top of the mixture before being mixed in.
Add the cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to the bowl.
A glass bowl with cinnamon applesauce mixture in it with a whisk.
Now whisk that in.
A glass bowl with a wet applesauce cinnamon mixture withe whole wheat flour and rolled oats sitting on top of the mixture before being stirred in.
Now add the flour and rolled oats to the bowl.
A glass bowl with the flour and oats being stirred into the applesauce cinnamon mixture with a wooden spoon.
Mix those in, but don’t over mix….that can lead to dense muffins.
A glass bowl with with batter for cinnamon applesauce muffins in it. There is a metal muffin scoop in the bowl with the batter and a metal muffin tin lined with liners next to it. 3 of the muffin compartments have batter in them.
Scoop the batter into a 12-hole lined muffin tin.
A metal muffin tin filled with the cinnamon applesauce muffin batter and a hand sprinkling coconut sugar over the tops of the uncooked muffins.
Sprinkle a little coconut sugar or brown sugar on top.
Baked cinnamon applesauce muffins in a metal muffin tin sitting on a pink marble table. There are cinnamon sticks, muffin liners, a bowl of rolled oats and a white napkin on the table surrounding the tin.
Bake.
A side view of a cinnamon applesauce muffin on a white plate with lite liner peeled back. There are more muffins on the plate surrounding it. The plate is on a table with rolled oats scattered around, a blurred cinnamon stick and a white bowl of applesauce.
4.96 from 22 votes

Healthy Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins

Yield: 12 muffins
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Cuisine: American
Course: Breakfast
Author: Taesha Butler
These whole wheat applesauce muffins are the kind of healthy everyday muffin I keep making on repeat lately. One bowl, pantry ingredients, warmly spiced with cinnamon, hearty enough to actually keep you full, but still soft and fluffy enough to feel like a treat with coffee.
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Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup (244 g) unsweetened applesauce
  • ⅓ cup (78.86 ml) plain Greek yogurt
  • 2 large eggs, can sub 2 flax eggs
  • ¼ cup (59.15 ml) avocado oil, or neutral oil
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • ⅓ cup (78.86 ml) maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1¼ cups (150 g) whole wheat flour, sub cup-for-cup gluten-free flour for GF. Also, if using GF flour, be sure to let your batter rest for 15 minutes before portioning onto the muffin tin so your flour can hydrate.
  • ¾ cup (75 g) rolled oats, use certified gluten-free if gluten-free is needed
  • 1½ Tablespoons coconut sugar, (optional topping)

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 375℉. Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners or grease with oil.
    • Since this muffin recipe uses less added oil than most traditional muffin recipes, I find that silicone liners or disposable liners with a natural food-grade silicone coating (I like If You Care baking cup liners) work best to prevent sticking. If using traditional paper liners without a coating, lightly spray them with cooking spray before filling so the muffins release more easily after cooling.
  • Add applesauce to a large bowl, along with eggs, yogurt, oil, vanilla and maple syrup. Whisk together well.
  • Add baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl with the applesauce mixture. Whisk together again to incorporate everything.
  • Add the flour and rolled oats to the bowl. Stir until just combined. Do not over mix, as this can result in dense muffins.
  • Spoon the batter into the 12 prepared muffin cups, filling about ¾ of the way. Sprinkle the coconut sugar evenly over the tops of the muffins. This is optional but adds a nice little sweet crunch to the top.
  • Bake until the tops of the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20-22 minutes. If you have a kitchen thermometer, cook until the muffins have an internal temperature of 200℉. This will ensure they are cooked through, but not overcooked.
  • Allow them to cool in pan for 15 minutes before enjoying. Once cooled completely, store in an air-tight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or in your freezer for up to a month.
Serving: 1muffin, Calories: 159kcal, Carbohydrates: 23g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.003g, Cholesterol: 31mg, Sodium: 197mg, Potassium: 113mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 56IU, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 52mg, Iron: 1mg
Nutritional information provided here is only an estimate shared for convenience and as a courtesy. Information will vary based on ingredients + brands used to create the recipe.