These Hidden Veggie Muffins sneak 4 servings of fruits and vegetables into every batch. The pureed spinach turns them brightly-colored and fun, which in my house means tricking my toddler into thinking they’re candy.
These sweet muffins are vegan, oil-free, nut-free, and super easy to make gluten-free, too! Plus they have minimal added sugar!
For more delicious vegan muffin recipes, try these Grain-Free Banana Bread Muffins, Lemon Blueberry Muffins or Classic Vegan Blueberry Muffins.
Want more kid-friendly vegan recipes? Try this Easy Vegan Mac and Cheese or Healthy Oatmeal Cookies.
Why You’ll Love These Hidden Veggie Muffins
- Toddler-friendly yet wholesome ingredients– These muffins may have hidden veggies, but your kids will never know! They’re a great way to sneak an extra serving into your picky eater’s diet.
- Quick & Easy – This recipe comes together in one bowl, and makes 16 muffins in under 35 minutes. These muffins store well in the fridge or freezer, so one batch goes a long way!
- Meal Prep – These make for the perfect easy breakfast on-the-go, or packed away for school lunches. Make a double batch and freeze one for later!
Ingredients
- Banana – This recipe uses 2 bananas for some natural sweetness and also as an egg replacement. They help keep these muffins moist.
- Zucchini – Grated zucchini is the first of the fresh veggies in this recipe. It adds some bulk without changing the flavor at all. You can easily swap this with different veggies like yellow squash, or even carrots – though you will get a slightly different color.
- Spinach – Spinach is the secret to the bright color for these muffins and another hidden veggie.
- Applesauce – The applesauce helps keep these muffins fluffy and oil-free.
- Oats – The oats help absorb some added moisture from the fruits and vegetables, as well as give these muffins some nice texture.
- Cinnamon – The cinnamon is an optional flavoring here. You can omit it or even add more spices like nutmeg or cardamom if you’d like.
- Sugar* – Make sure to select a vegan sugar (see notes). For refined-sugar-free, swap for 1/2 part maple or agave syrup.
- Baking essentials – All-purpose flour (or whole wheat flour), baking soda, baking powder, salt, and vanilla extract make up the remainder of this recipe. You can easily swap for a 1:1 gluten-free flour and opt for gluten-free certified oats to make these hidden veggie muffins gluten-free.
Helpful Equipment
In addition to measuring cups and spoons, the following equipment is helpful for this recipe:
- Standard muffin pan or mini muffin tin (This recipe makes 16 standard muffins and 30 mini muffins)
- Box grater
- Potato masher (optional)
- Large bowl
How to Make Easy Veggie Muffins
This is a detailed step-by-step guide on how to make this full recipe including photographs. For the quick version, skip ahead to the recipe card below!
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
First, mash two bananas in a large mixing bowl.
Next, make the spinach/applesauce puree by adding the spinach and applesauce into a blender and pulsing until smooth. If you don’t have a blender, you can chop the spinach into very small pieces and mix it with the applesauce, but you will not get as bright of a color. The taste should be unchanged.
Add the spinach puree, sugar, grated zucchini, and vanilla extract into the mixing bowl with the mashed bananas. Stir until everything is evenly mixed.
For best results, do NOT squeeze the excess water out of the shredded zucchini, this is important for the final moisture content!
Add the remaining dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix only until no streaks of flour remain. If you overmix the muffin batter at this step, you will lose out on fluffy muffins and be left with dense, chewy bites.
If the batter is too dry at this step, add a splash of water or oat milk.
Use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to portion the muffin batter into individual muffin cups. This recipe yields about 16 standard muffins or about 30 mini muffins.
Note: If you are baking these as mini-muffins, you will want to reduce the bake time by about 10 minutes to a total of 13-15 minutes.
Once the muffins are portioned out, bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow them to cool on a wire rack for a few minutes before serving. Enjoy!
How to Store Veggie Muffins
- Room Temperature: These muffins store well at room temp loosely covered for 2-3 days.
- Fridge: You can store these muffins in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-5 days.
- Freezer: These muffins freeze well for up to 3 months.
Variations
You can easily use different vegetables for these muffins. Here are my favorite substitutions and swaps:
Instead of 2 mashed bananas, try:
- 1 cup sweet potato puree (for more savory muffins)
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 mashed avocado (great option for adding good fats)
Instead of shredded zucchini, try:
- 1/2 cup shredded yellow squash
- 1/2 cup shredded carrot
Instead of spinach, try:
- equal parts kale
Note that the bake time will vary based on the different veggies used!
More Tips
- Not Vegan? Swap 1 banana out for 1 egg.
- Gluten-free? Swap a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour and make sure to select gluten-free certified oats to make these gluten-free muffins.
- Grain-free? Make the above swaps for gluten-free, omit the oats, and make sure to use grain-free baking powder.
- Want to mix it up? Swap the grated zucchini for yellow squash or carrot. Swap the applesauce with your kiddo’s favorite pouch flavor!
FAQ
Mmmmmm. It’s the liquid content. But also not overbaking the muffins. Keep a close eye while they are in the oven.
If your muffin liners are sticking, make sure the muffins have cooled completely before attempting to remove them.
Not in a 1:1 ratio. If you are looking for a grain-free option made without traditional flour, try these Grain-Free Banana Muffins.
Yes! Sub 2 flax or chia eggs for the banana. 1 flax egg = 1 1/2 Tbsp ground flax + 3 Tbsp warm water (same for chia).
Hidden Veggie Muffins
Equipment
- Silicone muffin cups (optional)
Ingredients
- 2 medium bananas
- 1 medium zucchini
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- ⅔ cup applesauce
- 1 cup spinach
- ½ cup oats
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- Pinch salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- First, mash two bananas in a large mixing bowl.
- Next, make the spinach/applesauce puree by adding the spinach and applesauce into a blender and pulsing until smooth.
- Add the spinach puree, sugar, grated zucchini, and vanilla extract into the mixing bowl with the mashed bananas. Stir until everything is evenly mixed.
- Add the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the mixing bowl and mix only until no streaks of flour remain.
- Use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to portion the muffin batter into individual muffin cups.
- Once the muffins are portioned out, bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Allow to cool a few minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
-
- Not Vegan? Swap 1 banana out for 1 egg.
-
- Gluten-free? Swap a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour and make sure to select gluten-free certified oats.
-
- Grain-free? Make the above swaps for gluten-free, and make sure to use grain-free baking powder.
-
- Want to mix it up? Swap the grated zucchini for yellow squash or carrot. Swap the applesauce with your kiddo’s favorite pouch flavor!
Nutrition
Please note, while all ingredients used in this recipe have been verified to be vegan and free of applicable allergens at the time of recipe creation, different brands may differ in their ingredients or processing procedures and may change their ingredients at any time. For some recipes, I do include ingredients that are processed in a facility that processes other allergens. Please make sure to check the ingredients and processing procedures for your specific purchases to ensure they meet your dietary needs.
Last Updated on February 26, 2025
I love being able to sneak veggies into my kids diet. They love these muffins!
This sounds delicious. It’s also an interesting combination of ingredients. I have not heard of putting spinach in brownies before.
I’m intrigued! I’ll have to try these with your gluten-free adjustments.
I would have never thought to put cinnamon in these, that’s so cool. I’ve pinned your recipe, thank you for sharing 🙂
– Ash (asheycakes.com)
I love zucchini, but my oldest son is a very picky eater. I try to bake healthy sweets and snacks for my family, and your recipe is excellent. Thank you for sharing.
I’m so glad! Enjoy 😊
I’ll have to try this recipe. I had a great zucchini muffin and fell in love. This is a good one for a healthy snack.
This is a great way to take advantage of a bumper crop of zucchini at this time of year.
This recipe sounds easy and yummy. Looking forward to making them for my kiddos!
These sound good! I am excited to try this recipe.
These look so good! I will have to try them! I also have a picky toddler, maybe these will do the trick.
These look so good! Delicious, healthy, colorful, and they look so easy to make!
I have just made these and they are surprisingly good. I was not sure about putting veg in my muffns but they taste good.
I loved reading this! I’m excited to try these Hidden Veggie Zucchini Muffins, especially since I have grandkids who aren’t fans of veggies. The fact that they’re quick, easy, and toddler-friendly is a huge plus. Thanks for sharing this great recipe!
Yum! I love that you add ways to alter the recipe for different dietary needs. You definitely go above and beyond for your readers!
Thank you, Jordan! I appreciate your kind words 🙂
The color on these hidden veggie zucchini muffins is fabulous. That will attrack the kiddo’s right away — maybe a few adults too 🙂