These healthy chocolate chip applesauce muffins are made with almond flour and only sweetened with applesauce (no added sugar). They are great for making ahead of time and serving to the kids for breakfast or snack. This applesauce muffin recipe is gluten free, dairy free and paleo friendly.
Baking with applesauce has quickly become a favorite of mine because it naturally sweetens baked goods and adds moisture to any recipe.
These chocolate chip applesauce muffins are my newest obsession - my kids love them too! They are moist and chewy, loaded with chunks of dark chocolate and even better, only sweetened with applesauce.
I consider them healthy enough for breakfast, but tasty enough to enjoy for dessert. (Try them topped with a little coconut cream - so delish.)
Why You'll Love these Chocolate Chip Applesauce Muffins
- healthy - made without refined sugar, oil or flour
- gluten free and paleo friendly - made with almond flour and tapioca starch
- dairy free - no butter or milk, but still moist and delicious
- low in sugar - only sweetened with applesauce
- easy to make - a simple, one bowl muffin recipe
- kid approved - my children devoured each batch I tested
Ingredients
Here's a list of what you need to make these gluten free chocolate chip applesauce muffins:
- blanched almond flour
- tapioca starch
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- eggs
- unsweetened applesauce
- vanilla
- dark chocolate chips (I used 85% dark mini chocolate chips)
How to Make Chocolate Chip Applesauce Muffins
These almond flour applesauce muffins are so easy to make! Just one bowl required and they bake in less than 30 minutes.
First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with 11 silicone muffin liners and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. This includes the almond flour, tapioca starch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Mix in the wet ingredients. This includes the eggs, applesauce and vanilla.
Lastly, fold the chocolate chips into the batter.
Scoop the batter into your lined muffin pan, filling each slot nearly to the top. You should get about 11 muffins.
Place the muffins in your oven and bake at 350 degrees for 26-28 minutes. When done, the muffins will be golden brown with nice, rounded tops.
After baking, remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool about 5 minutes in the baking pan. Then transfer them to a wire cooling rack, remove them from the silicone liners.
Storage
These healthy chocolate chip applesauce muffins are best stored in a sealed container in the fridge. They'll last well up to one week.
If needed, they can be frozen and then thawed before eating (or warmed in the microwave).
Frequently Asked Questions
I have only tested this applesauce muffin recipe with almond flour, but tigernut flour should work as a replacement. Unfortunately there aren't any other good swaps for almond flour.
Yes! You can mix in chopped nuts, dried fruit, seeds or spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg. I haven't tried adding in any fresh fruit, but blueberries may work.
Tapioca starch can be swapped with arrowroot starch and possibly sweet potato or potato starch. It is necessary for the moist, chewy texture of these muffins.
More Recipes with Applesauce
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Healthy Chocolate Chip Applesauce Muffins (Gluten Free)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 26 minutes
- Total Time: 36 minutes
- Yield: 11 muffins 1x
Description
These healthy chocolate chip applesauce muffins are made with almond flour and only sweetened with applesauce. They're gluten free, dairy free and paleo friendly.
Ingredients
- 2 cups blanched almond flour (190g)
- ½ cup tapioca starch (60g)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- â…“ cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with 11 silicone muffin liners and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. This includes the almond flour, tapioca starch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Mix in the wet ingredients. This includes the eggs, applesauce and vanilla.
- Fold the chocolate chips into the batter.
- Scoop the batter into your lined muffin pan, filling each slot nearly to the top. You should get about 11 muffins.
- Place the muffins in your oven and bake at 350 degrees for 26-28 minutes. When done, the muffins will be golden brown with nice, rounded tops.
- After baking, remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool about 5 minutes in the baking pan. Then transfer them to a wire cooling rack, remove them from the silicone liners.
- Best stored in an airtight container in the fridge, up to one week.
Katie
My whole family love these applesauce muffins! Enjoy!
Danielle
Perfect texture! So good my whole family can’t get enough
Kristin
Delicious. A great way to use up homemade applesauce. Refined Sugar-free and oil free without compromising the taste or texture.
Katie
So glad you liked them! Thank you for leaving a review 🙂
Brenna
Can I use corn starch instead of tapioca starch? Or another alternative?
Katie
Arrowroot starch would be the best alternative.
Hilda Slager
Can you use an already prepared gluten-free flour blend Bob’s red Mill?
Katie
It's possible that it would work in place of the almond flour and tapioca starch, but I have no idea what quantity you would need.
Judy
Haven't tried this yet but plan to - just wondering - can you add protein powder to these (unflavored - I use Vital Proteins when baking) to give them a little more protein for those who we are trying to get to GAIN weight (elderly Mom) but loves muffins? If so, would I just add an extra egg and about a 1/4 cup more applesauce? (I usually add about 1/2 cup protein powder to recipes like this, but those usually have oil so I just up the amount of each of the liquids by a little and it works out).
Katie
Hi! If you're just adding Vital proteins collagen, then you should be able to add 1/4 cup to the batter without it making much of a difference. If it is an actual protein powder though, they tend to be more absorbent and I think an extra egg and applesauce would work.