Where are my fellow muffin fans? I have yummy and healthy blueberry muffins for you! Healthy, unrefined, orange-scented blueberry muffins for the win!
Blueberry muffins are so my fave kind of muffins.
And, you know me: I like muffins!
No matter where I am or what mood I’m in, sitting down and enjoying a blueberry muffin instantly takes me back to being a kid again.
Problem with your typical blueberry muffin, though, is that it’s just filled with refined sugars and flours and likely lots of unnecessary fats and other unhealthy oils.
I know, right… but… blueberry muffins??
What are we ever to do?
Well, I decided I needed more blueberry muffins in my life.
I needed them on a regular basis.
I needed them as a snack or a breakfast or a sweet treat.
I needed them… to be HEALTHY and good for me.
Which means I made healthy muffins. Healthy blueberry muffins. Actually, I combined the flavors of orange muffins and the flavors of blueberry muffins and I made orange blueberry muffins.
And, I know, it’s different.
But, stay with me, peeps… because it’s also glorious…
I’m tellin’ ya – it’s super tasty and a great way to enjoy your blueberry muffins again.
HOMEMADE ORANGE-SCENTED BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Making healthy blueberry muffins was not enough, I wanted to add in a lil’ something special to brighten up the blueberry muffins and I found the best way to do this was with some fresh orange zest.
I know – you’re totally thinking, “Lacey, why on earth would you add orange zest to a perfectly good blueberry muffin? They’re great the way they are!” “You can make healthy orange muffins instead of messing with the old fashioned blueberry muffins.”
Truth to be told, I could’ve followed a classic recipe for orange muffins and make orange muffins. But I really wanted orange blueberry muffins. And I wasn’t disappointed.
I mean, even Dustin, who practically cried when I told him I added orange zest into the blueberry muffins he was craving for so long, took one bite and then happily declared them to be the best blueberry muffins he’d ever had.
So more blueberry orange muffin for us! All day, any day!
HOW TO MAKE YOUR BLUEBERRY MUFFINS HEALTHY
To make the yummy blueberry orange muffin healthy, you have to do just a few easy steps:
- remove all processed sugars (and replace with natural sweetness, like ripe bananas);
- remove all processed flours (and replace with unrefined flours like spelt flour and coconut flour);
- remove all processed oils (and replace with the awesome healthy substitute of mashed bananas).
See? Super easy to replace those unhealthy ingredients with natural, unrefined ingredients!
WHAT IS SPELT FLOUR?
I make these tasty orange scented blueberry muffins with coconut flour and spelt flour for a delicious combination of flavors and health benefits – so good for your taste buds and your body!
In case you don’t know what is spelt flour, well, spelt flour is a healthy and more nutritious alternative to all-purpose flour. Spelt is a whole grain that contains calcium, selenium, vitamin B1, vitamin B6, and vitamin E.
BANANAS AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO PROCESSED SUGAR
Bananas are one of the best sugar alternatives. I use them ALL the time to naturally sweetness my shakes and baked goods.
They’ll add a sweet taste to your blueberry muffins, but the muffins will stay healthy and you don't even taste the bananas. Also, using bananas as sugar alternatives in homemade baked treats is a great way to use up overripe bananas. Plus, bananas are loaded with fiber, contain magnesium, vitamin C and vitamin A. Healthy sugar alternatives are definitely better than processed sugar, peeps!
If you don't have bananas, you could also use unsweetened applesauce.
BAKING TIPS FOR ORANGE BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
After you prepped the batter for the blueberry orange muffin…
- fill the muffin cups evenly - about ¾ of the way full because the muffins will rise while in the oven;
- transfer the muffin tray to the oven and bake for approximately 12-15 minutes;
- to check if the muffins are done, use the toothpick trick – insert a toothpick into the center of the orange blueberry muffins and see if it comes out clean. If it does, the muffins are ready. If not, bake for a couple more minutes and repeat the test.
HOW TO MAKE A CRUMB TOPPING FOR BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Nothing beats the taste, flavor, and deliciousness of blueberry muffins. Except maybe… blueberry muffins with crumb topping. The additional awesomeness of blueberry crumb muffins is brought to you today by a few simple and healthy ingredients. To make the crumb topping for muffins:
- place softened coconut oil on a parchment paper and place in the freezer for up to 15 minutes to harden;
- in the meantime, in a mixing bowl, mix coconut flour, coconut sugar, and cinnamon;
- remove the coconut oil from the freezer and break it into small pieces;
- add the coconut oil pieces and stir to combine;
- top each muffin with the flour-cinnamon mixture – the coconut oil will melt in the oven and, when combined with the flour-cinnamon mixture, will create a crunchy topping.
It’s so easy to make the crumb topping for muffins, don’t you think?
STORING OR FREEZING HEALTHY BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
After learning how to make blueberry muffins, we have to move to the next steps - how to store muffins and how to freeze muffins. However, if you want to reach this point, I highly recommend making a double batch because the first one will disappear immediately.
How to store muffins:
- place the healthy muffins in Ziploc bags;
- seal the bags and store the muffins at room temperature for up to 3 days.
How to freeze muffins:
- to freeze the orange blueberry muffins, place them in Ziploc bags or wrap them in foil;
- store them in the freezer for up to 3 months;
- thaw the muffins at room temperature or heat them in the microwave on high for approximately 30 seconds.
3 MORE HEALTHY MUFFIN RECIPES
One muffin recipe is never enough. Especially when we’re talking about healthy muffins. So I have more. Not another muffin recipe but 3 more muffin recipes that will make delicious and healthy muffins.
PALEO APPLE MUFFINS WITH CRUNCHY CRUMB TOPPING
Healthy, full of flavor, and totes delicious, these Paleo Apple Muffins with Crunchy Crumb Topping will fill your home with a wonderful smell while baking them. Oh, the smell of freshly baked muffins. It’s so good.
For extra taste and flavor, these Paleo Apple Muffins are topped with a delicious and crunchy crumb topping that is so, so good. Get the recipe.
HEALTHY BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
These healthy Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins are the PERFECT way to use ripe bananas and don’t use any refined flour, refined sugar or oil!
These healthy muffins are soft, dense, filled with amazing banana flavor and chocolate goodness. Get the recipe.
30-MINUTE HEALTHY PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
Light and sweet, these 30-Minute Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins are packed with pumpkin flavor.
This is my go-to muffin recipe during Fall. But I wouldn’t say no to this muffins the rest of the year. Get the recipe.
Healthy Blueberry Muffin Recipe
The Best Healthy Blueberry Muffins
Equipment
- muffin tin
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
FOR THE DRY INGREDIENTS:
- ½ cup coconut flour
- ½ cup spelt flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
FOR THE WET INGREDIENTS:
- 3 bananas mashed
- 5 eggs
- 3 tablespoon raw honey melted
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest 1 orange
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
FOR THE CRUMB TOPPING:
- 2 tablespoon coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoon coconut flour
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil softened
Instructions
- Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and greasing a regular muffin tin with coconut oil.
- Next, in a large mixing bowl, combine the coconut flour, spelt flour, baking powder, sea salt, and ground cinnamon.
- In a separate mixing bowl, add ripe bananas and mash until smooth using a fork or potato masher. Once the bananas are fully mashed, add the eggs, raw honey, vanilla extract, and fresh orange zest, and stir to combine.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together until just incorporated. Then, add in the fresh blueberries and fold into the batter.
- Fill each muffin cup evenly - the muffins will rise some so try to fill them about ¾ of the way full.
- Spread 2 tbsp. of the softened coconut on a sheet of parchment paper and place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to harden.
- While the coconut oil is hardening, mix the remaining coconut flour, coconut sugar, and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl. Once the coconut oil is hardened, remove it from the freezer and break into small pieces. Then, add into the mixing bowl and stir to combine. (As the coconut oil melts in the oven, just like with butter, it will produce a crispy, crunchy topping for the muffins.)
- Top each of the muffins with the coconut flour and cinnamon mixture.
- Place into the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the center comes out clean.
Video
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Susan M Horrigan
if you dont have ripe bananas and are using the unsweetened applesauce, how much applesauce should I use?
Jovial Diets
Hello Lacey, Thanks for sharing this delicious healthy muffin recipe. Really I liked your ideas of using a ripe banana as sweetness, spelt flour & coconut flour instead of processed flours.
Dustin
Love these muffins
Lacey Baier
Yea, they are shockingly delicious!
Heidi
Amazing! But when I made these they got watery and were a bit flattened.. I was wondering if you would know what could have caused that. Could it be the bananas? Love your recipies and blog!
Lacey Baier
That's so interesting....and you followed the directions exactly?
Cathy
Hi Lacey,
This looks really good, but is it necessary to put the topping on the muffin?
Lacey Baier
No, it's not necessary, but it will add additional flavor and texture 🙂
Ashley S.
I am a young professional with a few housemates, and it is a tradition in our home to enjoy a delicious breakfast together on each others birthdays. This morning I made these for my best friend/roomate on her birthday, and they are incredible! Thanks for the recipe! It made her day extra special. 🙂
Lacey Baier
That's so cool! What a wonderful tradition 🙂
AshleyG
These muffins are fantastic! I can smell mine cooking in the oven as we speak. Easily interchangeable with other citrusy backnotes! well done!
Lacey Baier
Yay!!
Dianne H.
Hi Lacey,
Well this is yet another delicious recipe! My kids gobbled these up, they could hardly wait for them to cool! Next time I may use lemon zest instead of orange.
Keep up the good cookin'
Thanks!
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Oh, so happy to hear your kids enjoyed them. I'm curious about the lemon substitution -- would love to hear how they turn out if you do try it 🙂
Jessica
I made these muffins thru are pretty good, they have a nice crown! The crumb topping seems like twice as much as needed though
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Hi Jessica! Thanks for sharing! I agree -- it does seem like it's a lot of crumb topping, but I like piling it on 🙂
Kate
Lacy, I made these muffins this weekend and had my out of town guests raving over them. They were such a hit that I posted your recipe (giving you credit of course) on my new food blog! Thanks so much! I love your site and your recipes!
lacey - a sweet pea chef
That's so great, Kate! I'll check out your blog soon! Thanks for the blog love and good luck with your site!
molly
made these this morning...so easy, so good. thank you for sharing. i love your site!
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Yay, Molly!!!! So glad they turned out for you and you enjoyed the muffins. Aren't they SO yummy? 🙂
Thanks for the kind words as well! Take care!
Kelly
So why do eggs have to be room temp? Having the salmon for dinner - and gonna bake these tomorrow with the little one!!! THanks!
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Hi Kelly! I hope you enjoy the pan-roasted salmon and baking with the little one tomorrow!
Though it's not absolutely vital to have your eggs at room temperature when baking, it is recommended for a few reasons: (1) to get maximum volume when beating egg whites and (2) to aid in creating the water-in-fat emulsion. If cold eggs are introduced to a room temperature butter/sugar mixture, the emulsion can break, which will result in the batter losing air cells. All this basically means is the cake may be grainy or flat in texture, dry or look uneven and may even sink. Plus, Ina Garten always tells you to, so I follow her lead. 🙂 Hope that helps to explain it!
Lelah
Who needs cookbooks when you have A Sweet Pea Chef? Made these for dessert tonight and they came out great!
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Heehee! 🙂 Yay, I'm so glad you liked the muffins, Lelah!
Ally
Lacey,
I've made blueberry baked items before and was wondering if there was a trick to preventing the blueberries form bleeding?
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Hi Ally, good question! I'm not so sure there's any trick with fresh blueberries other than to just do what you can to keep their skin from breaking. I was very careful with these blueberries when folding them into the batter, but the time in the oven made several of them burst and bleed a bit.
Heather
Wow, look at the tops on those things! They look fabulous.
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Thanks, Heather!
Jun
I like this combination - orange scented blueberry muffins. Have to try this soon!
lacey - a sweet pea chef
Thanks, Jun! I hope you enjoy them...they are super yummy
Rochel @ barefootandcooking
These look delicious. I have a slight addiction to blueberries. I'm going to go make these now. Thanks.
lacey - a sweet pea chef
I hope you like them, Rochel! Thank you!