I may receive a commission if you purchase through links in this post. I am not a doctor; please consult your practitioner before changing your supplement or healthcare regimen.
Keto Morning Glory Muffins are simply bursting with fun, moist ingredients! But instead of lots of grated carrots and raisins, look for great low carb ingredients with a similar outcome! This recipe can even be made nut-free. High protein, low carb and Paleo, enjoy a new favorite breakfast recipe.
Ingredients in Keto Morning Glory Muffins
The concept of Morning Glory Muffins is to throw together all kinds of fruits and vegetables in a wholesome muffin base — to create a super moist and sweet breakfast treat, or snack. Morning Glory Muffins often include grated carrots and raisins, but don’t have to. One source said that the 1960s backyard garden was a great inspiration for these muffins.
I’ve included a bit of grated carrot in my low carb muffin, but this does not even add 1 net carb per muffin. You’ll also use some basic Keto baking ingredients + several fun mix-ins!
Eggs — This basic ingredients helps to create the rise in Morning Glory Muffins, and also provides great protein and fat.
Coconut flour — I love making low carb baked goods with coconut flour. It provides a little fiber, has no negatives … and usually requires eggs, which means more protein in baked goods.
Protein Powder — I wanted to make a high protein muffin recipe for my family that tasted like the big, sweet, wheat-based Morning Glory Muffins of my youth. So I found a protein powder that gave this muffin that super healthy, a little hippie/earthy flavor that I have always loved (formerly from whole wheat flour).
It’s hard to find the perfect protein powder for everyone’s needs, and I’ve never found one until now that works well for my body. The powder I’ve chosen for this recipe is organic seed-based (nut-free); so it’s also dairy-free. And it has only 3 seeds as the 3 ingredients! No fillers, emulsifiers etc. Made by Perfect Supplements, per scoop this protein powder has a whopping 17 grams of protein! That’s on the higher side. This product is Keto, Paleo and Vegan … and it tastes simply lovely in these muffins! (Find it HERE. Use code BEAUTIFUL10 at check out for 10% off your entire order.)
Or, you can use finely ground pumpkin seeds. Grind them in your coffee grinder, or wherever you can get the fine grind. I give this option in the recipe below.
Grated zucchini and carrot — I use 1/2 cup grated carrot in this recipe, and this does not even add one net carb per muffin. But if you want to omit the carrot to reduce net carbs a little (or maybe you never buy them), you can sub in extra zucchini for the carrot. There’s a 1/2 cup of each in this recipe. They add nice moistness and are classic spice cake-like veggies when grated into baked goods.
Mix-ins — Pecans and shredded coconut are both classic Morning Glory Muffin ingredients. If you wish to omit either, you can! (For nut-free, omit pecans. If you don’t like shredded coconut in baked goods, omit the coconut.) If you keep them both in, Keto Morning Glory Muffins are a trail mix kind of a muffin, studded with nubby-textured treats.
Chocolate chips — Because I love chocolate, and I know most of you do too, I’ve subbed the raisins (you’ll find in traditional Morning Glory muffins) for chocolate chips. I didn’t think you’d mind … but omit them, if you prefer. Or for Paleo, sub back in raisins. Chocolate chips actually go great in a spice cake setting, right at home. (Omit for GAPS, unless homemade.)
Avocado oil — Avocado oil is a convenient, pourable fat that works great in muffins. You could also use melted butter or coconut oil, if you prefer.
Sweetener — For Keto, this recipe uses low carb granulated sweetener. For Paleo, choose between maple sugar and coconut sugar. (For GAPS or Paleo, use honey.) The sweetener not only makes this muffin sweet, it also contributes moistness to the muffin and the right texture.
Spices — Ginger, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg create a kind of traditional spice-cake flavor for Morning Glory Muffins. Leave one or two of them out if you don’t have them all in your pantry. But I do love the flavor each adds.
How to make Keto Morning Glory Muffins
This is a one-bowl recipe, so super easy!
We simply stir the dry ingredients together in a big bowl. Add the wet ingredients, and stir well.
Makes 6 plump muffins. I use a muffin pan that has slightly taller cavities and line my pan with squares of parchment paper.
This batter is nice and thick, so it won’t be runny when you’re filling the muffin pan.
I bake these muffins at a lower temperature than most baked goods, 325 degrees Fahrenheit, to keep the tops from darkening too much while the inside cooks fully.
Soaked version of Keto Morning Glory Muffins
If you like to pre-digest your seeds and nuts for gentler digestion, see that version in the Recipe Notes below. I create a kind of yogurt with the protein powder (we ferment it overnight), which adds tang to the muffins and makes the protein powder that much more nutritious.
How to store Muffins
If you plan to eat Keto Morning Glory Muffins the next day after baking, just wrap them and leave on the counter at room temperature.
For storing 2 days or longer — wrap, and refrigerate or freeze.
To garnish …
If you like the idea of icing these muffins, I used my Keto Orange Creamsicle Frosting. It’s a citrusy cream cheese frosting, that tastes great at breakfast time.
Now that’s a fun topping that you can also smear on the insides of the muffin if you want a real treat.
But these muffins don’t need any garnish. Just make the frosting if — you want a little something extra special.
Keto Morning Glory Muffins (high protein, low carb, Paleo)
Equipment
- muffin pan
- oven
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- ½ cup coconut flour
- ½ cup Perfect Supplements Plant-Based Protein Powder or use finely ground pumpkin seeds, ground to a powder in your coffee grinder
- ½ cup zucchini , grated
- ½ cup carrot , grated (optional: For Keto, you can replace this with more grated zucchini if you wish; this amount adds a little less than 1 net carb to each muffin.)
- ½ cup pecans or walnuts (omit for nut-free)
- ½ cup chocolate chips optional
- ½ cup avocado oil
- ½ cup low carb sweetener , granulated OR for Paleo: maple sugar or coconut sugar (use honey for GAPS or Paleo)
- ¼ cup coconut : dried and finely shredded (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon ginger , grated
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda , sifted
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
- Line muffin pan with liners. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Stir together dry ingredients in large mixing bowl: coconut flour, seed-based protein powder, optional chocolate chips, walnuts, shredded coconut, sweetener (if using Keto/Low Carb or Paleo granulated option), cinnamon, allspice, baking soda, sea salt and nutmeg.
- Add to same bowl the wet ingredients: eggs, (honey if making GAPS version), fat of choice, grated zucchini, optional grated carrot and fresh ginger.
- Stir together until fully combined, without over-mixing.
- Scoop batter into prepared muffin pan, making six muffins. Bake in preheated oven until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and edges are brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool and enjoy.
Notes
How to make this recipe a "soaked" muffin (a sourdough of sorts)
I know many of my readers like sour doughs and pre-digesting/fermenting batters as much as I do! So here's how you do it with this recipe: You'll need three extra ingredients:- ½ cup probiotic sour cream (or yogurt)
- 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons psyllium husk powder
- ½ teaspoon inulin for low carb OR 1 teaspoon coconut or maple sugar
Soaked muffin process photos
(I used white carrots in the muffins below.)
Nutrition
B says
These are AMAZING!! I used coconut oil and honey, and left out the chocolate chips and nuts. Thanks for this recipe!
Megan says
I’m so glad, Betty! Thanks so much for taking a moment to share! 🙂
Jill says
How much flour equivalent would you need if I wanted to swap out coconut flour.
Megan says
Hi Jill, 1/4 cup coconut flour + 1 egg is about the same as 1 cup of flour, BUT I wouldn’t try that necessarily. Subbing for coconut flour can be tricky. I haven’t tried that swap, so I can’t recommend it.
Jennifer Floyd says
Can’t wait to try!! Based on your nutrition macros this is 1NC but when I input it comes out to 6 NC and I took out the chocolate chips and used a monk fruit sweetener. Can you confirm.
Thank you again! No matter what I’m making these for Christmas!!!
Megan says
Hi Jennifer, great! 6NC per muffin is right! 🙂 Enjoy!
Wendy says
Yes, I’m a little confused about the net carbs? It says 6 carbs, 5 g fiber. I thought that equaled 1 net carb?? I’m not a keto expert though, so just wondering??? Thank you:)
Megan says
Hi Wendy, sure. So the fiber gets subtracted from the total carbs to get the net carbs number. Net carbs are what matter because they’re what get converted to energy. My nutritional data shares the net carbs in a recipe, so the calculation is done for the reader. The fiber number is given as well, because it’s very important that Keto eaters get 20 or more grams of fiber daily, so it helps to be aware of that number.
Barbara says
These sound wonderful. I don’t have a yogurt maker. What else can be used for the soaked muffins version?
Megan says
Hi Barbara, great! Any warm, steady environment. I also use a heat mat, like the kind used for sprouting seeds, or any room/cupboard in your house that’s steadily warm. 🙂
Jennifer says
Can I replace the protein powder with ground flaxseed? I know less protein but will it have the same binding effect?
Megan says
Hi Jennifer, thanks for the great question! I’m not sure how I missed your comment until now. My apologies for the late reply! Yes, you likely can!! I haven’t tried it to be sure, but I think that sub will work fine! Enjoy!
Cindy says
This recipe is amazing. Like an expensive coffee shop muffin, but healthy and keto!! I added dried currents, pecans, unsweetened flaked coconut, pumpkin seeds and half cup stevia sweetened white chocolate chips! Also added a teaspoon of baking powder. Will reduce the avacado oil next time as they were kind of oily. The whole family loved these. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Megan says
Great to hear, Cindy; thanks so much for sharing, and I’m so glad you loved the muffins! I love your inclusion of all things chunky, especially the pecans and white chocolate chips, yum! You’re welcome and best! 🙂
J. Cottrill says
All right, this is a fantastic recipe, we love it, and have made it several times.
I do use ground pumpkin seeds in place of the protein powder, and it works great (I just grind them in the blender). I also cut back the sweetener quite a bit (to less than half). And sometimes I’ll mix low sugar chocolate (like 95% cocoa) with a few goji berries or raisins (although of course that raises the sugar level up).
There is so much flavour and healthy variety in these muffins. My recommendation – make double or triple the recipe, and put some in batches in the freezer. They freeze well.
Megan says
Thanks, J, and so glad you love the muffins! YAY! Thanks for sharing what you do, too, so helpful! 🙂
Sarah says
Hi there! How much protein is in the protein powder you use?
Megan says
Hi there! 17 grams for the 2 Tablespoon scoop.
Crystal says
Hi! Can I substitute whey protein for the plant based protein powder? Thanks!!
Megan says
Hi Crystal, I’m sorry; I haven’t tried it, so I don’t know. Let us know if you try it. 🙂
Lynn says
Hi…I was wondering if you can use Almond flour instead of coconut flour? That is what I have on hand for now and want to make these! They sound great!! Thanks!
Megan says
Hi Lynn, sadly, no. The two ingredients behave differently in recipes. So sorry!
Gloria says
My kind of breakfast…a muffin and coffee. My kind of snack to….and perfect with a cup of tea in the evening while watching tv.
Megan says
Those all sound lovely, Gloria. Thanks for sharing, and I’m glad the muffins inspire good cozy home meals, sounds perfect. 🙂
Natalie says
I love to bake muffins, especially with my kids as it is always simple to prepare. We enjoyed your protein muffins for breakfast yesterday, thanks!
Megan says
Awesome, Natalie, so great to hear! Thanks for sharing and rating the recipe! 🙂
Julie says
I made these for my twins and they loved them. I love that they had a healthy profile including more protein. Will be making these again soon for sure.
Megan says
Great to hear, Julie! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Meagan says
I can not find where the carbs are for the morning glory muffin. It just shows calories. Also, it would be awesome if you could let us know what the carbs are if we opt out things like walnuts and chocolate chips or any of your subs. I made this without the walnuts and did ground up pumpkin seeds instead of protein powder. I did half the amount of sugar. Absolutely delicious. Thank you!
Megan says
Hi Meagan, I’m so glad you love the muffins. All the nutritional data is at the bottom of the recipe card, so 5 grams net carbs per muffin. Great to hear that half the sweetener worked well for you.
A says
These tasted great but came out quite compacted without any rise – I did leave out the sweetners and used a hemp protein powder, not sure if this is why? Would adding some sort of liquid like coconut milk help or maybe using less protein powder? Will definitely try again but want to get some rise next time so they’re more muffin-y!
Megan says
Hi A, whenever you leave out the sweeteners and change a recipe, you’re basically trying to make a brand new recipe. The only way to make this recipe is to follow it as-is. If you can’t have sweeteners, which is great, I’d look for a recipe like that.
Nava Morris says
These were delicious (and fluffy), even though I forgot to add the oil!! I ground golden flaxseed to replace the protein powder, and used coconut sugar. I also left out the ginger and chocolate chips, and didn’t sift the baking soda. All said, these were VERY good.
Megan says
Great to hear, Nava! I think you subbing in the flax helped the absence of oil added. 🙂 Thanks for sharing!!
Nava Morris says
That’s good to know for future recipes. Thanks again.
Megan says
My pleasure!
Naomi V Snider says
Ohhh, I just got these out of the oven and, well, forget about the “cool” part of “cool and enjoy” because I dove right in with a slab of butter. I think I can now safely join the muffin crowd with this recipe. This is just as everyone is saying, so delicious! It’s funny though, that I actually got 9 muffins out of it, filling my muffin cups to the brim or more. I “might have” added a little extra of the veggies because it’s difficult to grate a specified amount and when I go over I don’t want to waste so I throw it all in if it doesn’t seem like too much overage. No worries, they are great. I did grate the carrot extra finely because I didn’t want to risk having crunchy bits of carrot in there. I also used about 1/8 cup less of the oil because someone mentioned she thought it was too oily. Well next time I’ll add the full amount because mine seemed slightly dry. Nothing a little melted butter won’t fix though, right? Right! I’m so excited about this; I’ve never, ever liked baked goods made with coconut flour because they were just too eggy, but this one isn’t eggy at all. Thank you so much for sharing it!
Megan says
Great to hear, Naomi, and thank you for the wonderful review and specific details. Yes, yay for great muffins!! 🙂
Karen Galarza says
Awesome muffins! I used pistachios as I was out of Walnuts and Pecans. Added chocolate chips snd raisins and used coconut oil. THE BEST! Thanks so much for sharing! So moist!!
Megan says
YAY, Karen! So glad you loved the muffins, and thank you for sharing what you did and your results! 🙂
Jennifer R Williams says
Delicious! How wonderful to be able to have a nice baked good while observing a low carb way of eating!
I doubled the recipe, used the ground pumpkin seeds, omitted the carrot in favor of twice the zucchini, reduced the oil and sweetener (half erythritol, half allulose) by 25%, used flax eggs in place of real eggs (I’m trying to keep mostly plant-based as well), added a teaspoon of vanilla extract, and didn’t put in any add-ins. I also added about 10 minutes of baking time, because my instincts told me that they were still quite wet at 30 minutes.
I think next time I might squeeze as much of the juice out of the zucchini as I can, which might alleviate some of the wetness I thought I intuited, and I might be able to get away with even less sweetener.
All that said, these are great! Plenty fluffy for me, almost cake-like!
For those who are keeping an eye on macros and nutrients and such, my version calculates out to the following (roughly, per muffin):
176 calories
14.5g total fat
3g saturated fat
0 cholesterol
346mg sodium (might be less–I didn’t add any extra salt, actually–just relied on what might have leached into the pumpkin seeds when I soaked them overnight before dehydration–about 2 t. salt in the soaking water for 3 cups water)
9.2g total carb
5.9g fiber (all told, 3.3g net carb)
1.1g total sugars
4.2g protein
23mg calcium
3mg iron
413mg potassium (woo hoo!)
Thanks so much for the recipe!
Megan says
Hi Jennifer, great to hear, and so glad you enjoyed! Thanks so much for sharing your details!
Jennifer R Williams says
My pleasure! Thanks again for the recipe! I think I might try to sub in some lupin flour somewhere next time, but it’s so tricky! I’ll let everyone know how it goes!
Oh–and here’s the second part of the recipe–I could only put in one image at the time of my first post!
Megan says
You’re welcome, and yes, lupin flour is a tricky sub. Thanks for sharing your image. 🙂
Wendy Taylor says
Delicious and so easy!! I doubled the amount of grated carrots (can’t have zucchini) and substituted flax seed for the protein instead (can’t have pumpkin seeds). I also used a regular cupcake pan, not a muffin pan with the same amount of bake time and they came out perfect!
Megan says
Great to hear, Wendy, thanks so much for sharing!! 🙂
Wendy Taylor says
I absolutely love this recipe. To make it nut free, what flours can I substitute for the coconut flour (I have a bad allergy). I mostly need to follow a grain free, nightshade free, lectin free diet – so also use double the amount of carrots and omit the zucchini. Thank you in advance for your advice on the coconut flour substitute to make this recipe nut free!
Megan says
Thank you, Wendy! I don’t know a sub, as I haven’t made the recipe without, and coconut flour as a very unique role in baking. Sorry, and hopefully you figure it out or a variation. 🙂