These quick, easy, moist, and flavorful applesauce muffins contain unsweetened natural applesauce, walnuts, rolled oats, cinnamon, and brown sugar. They are a great on-the-go satisfying breakfast or snack.
Make a batch today and freeze half for later in the week. If you like this recipe, try apple cookies, apple cinnamon bread, and applesauce cake.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Spices: ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. You can also add a pinch or two of ginger and ground cloves.
- Applesauce: preferably unsweetened. If using sweetened applesauce, reduce the brown sugar to 1/4 cup.
- Oatmeal: old-fashioned rolled oats
- Nuts: substitute pecans, hazelnuts, almonds, macadamia, or pistachio nuts for the walnuts.
How to make Applesauce Muffins
Whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Then, in a large bowl, beat the eggs and add the applesauce, vegetable oil, and brown sugar, stirring to combine.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture in several increments, stirring a few times. Then add the rolled oats and chopped walnuts and stir just until everything is incorporated.
Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling almost all the way up. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for about 5 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin. Please find the full recipe, including recipe quantities, at the bottom of the post.
How to freeze these apple sauce muffins
First, let the muffins fully cool by removing them from the tin about 5 minutes after they come out of the oven. Place the muffins on a wire cooling rack, and do not wash the tin yet. Once the muffins have thoroughly cooled, place them back in the tin. Place the tin on a flat-level surface in the freezer. Once fully frozen, please put them in a heavy-duty freezer zipper bag, removing as much air as possible. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Preparation Tips
- For accurate measuring, always scoop the flour into the measuring cup with a spoon. Then, level it off with a table knife, pushing the excess back into the flour canister.
- Use paper liners in your muffin tin so you don’t have to grease the pan. With liners, the muffins will never stick, the pan is easier to wash, and the muffins stay somewhat protected in their little package. I like the unbleached chlorine-free baking cups.
- Do not overmix the batter. Mix just until combined and no further. Overmixing the batter can cause overactive gluten, leading to tough and gummy muffins.
How to make a muffin light and fluffy
- Always bring any eggs, butter, and milk to room temperature.
- Increase the baking temperature (around 425 degrees Fahrenheit) for the first 5 minutes, then reduce to 350 for the remainder of the cooking time.
- For a higher rise, I like to use a combination of baking powder and baking soda.
- Do not overmix the batter. This can result in dense, chewy muffins that are not light and fluffy.
- White flour produces a lighter, fluffier muffin than whole grain or whole wheat flour. That is not to say that some whole wheat muffins are not absolutely delicious. It just depends on what you want the result to be from your muffin.
Storage and Reheat
Muffins can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week. To reheat, pop them in the microwave for 15-20 seconds.
More Muffin Recipes
Applesauce Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ⅓ cups all natural unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup rolled oats
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Add baking cups to a standard size 12-count muffin tin.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add the applesauce, vegetable oil, and brown sugar, stirring to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in several increments, stirring a few times. Add the rolled oats and chopped walnuts and stir just until everything is incorporated.
- Spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling almost all the way up. Bake for 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake for 11-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin to a wire rack to cool.
Notes
- For accurate measuring, always scoop the flour into the measuring cup with a spoon. Then, level it off with a table knife, pushing the excess back into the flour canister.
- Use paper liners in your muffin tin so you don’t have to grease the pan. With liners, the muffins will never stick, the pan is easier to wash, and the muffins stay somewhat protected in their little package. I like the unbleached chlorine-free baking cups.
- Do not overmix the batter. Mix just until combined, no further. Overmixing the batter can cause overactive gluten, leading to tough, gummy muffins.
Nutrition
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StamC
What an amazing recipe! These muffins were everyone’s favorite and disappeared in no time.
So easy to make and so delicious
Beth Pierce
Thanks! So happy that you like the applesauce muffin!
StamC
What an amazing recipe! These muffins were everyone’s favorite and disappeared in no time.
So easy to make and so delicious
Beth Pierce
Thank you! So glad that you liked them!
Joan
Great muffin! My husband ate four in one sitting.
Beth Pierce
LOL! That is awesome!
Shirley
I would have thought that the quantity of applesauce, would allow to reduce the oil—to at least 1/4-1/3 C. ?
Thinking re recipes that substitute applesauce for oil.
Vicki S. Erdmann
I want to make these using chunky sweetened applesauce, because that’s the kind we like. Would it work to cut out some or all of the brown sugar?
Beth Pierce
Yes you could certainaly cut the brown sugar back.
Carol Reynolds
I used 1/2 the sugar, so 1/4 cup. I was out of Allspice but it was still okay. They work without any nuts as well (someone in family cannot have them, alas). Also, in paper muffin cups, our muffins stuck substantially to the bottom of the paper cup, but I’ll use a muffin tin just greased next time. They really were good.
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Carol! Glad that you liked them!
Claudia Krusch
I made these muffins, and hubby loved them! So delicious and moist.
Tammy
A perfect morning muffin…I’m craving one of these right now with my coffee. They are so easy to make and delicious!
Jupiter Hadley
We love muffins in our house – so easy to make ahead and then just have for breakfast. I have not had applesauce ones before – thank you for the recipe we will have to try it.
Karen
These muffins omg!!! They are sooooo good! Thanks for the great recipe, it is easy to follow.
Ella English
My kids went totally crazy when I made them these apple sauce muffins. They are the bomb!
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Ella! So glad that the kids like them!
Krissy
My son has a nut allergy and doesn’t like oats. Do you think this would still come out ok without either of those ingredients?
Beth Pierce
Yes, I do think they would be fine and still delicious.
Karen Havling
Made these this morning. Quick, easy, and tasty! I didn’t have walnuts, so subbed pecans.
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Karen!
Stacy
These turned out well! I love the spice combination, (a bit heavy handed on the Cinnamon!)! A perfect Fall recipe. Thank you for sharing this!
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Stacy! I am so glad that you liked them!
Jupiter Hadley
We are looking for some new breakfasts and this sounds great! Thank you so much for the recipe.
Beth Pierce
My pleasure Jupiter. They freeze really well too!
Khushboo
These muffins were really so soft and yummy. I will make these again real soon.