These cute little grain-free muffins are dense and fudgy with bursts of sweet apple and warming chai spices. The recipe uses ingredients you probably already have on hand and it all comes together in one bowl. Each muffin is packed with protein (about 8g per muffin) along with magnesium, calcium, and zinc. They’re a perfect pre or post run snack or packable lunch treat!
Ingredient Highlight
Almond butter! This nut butter made from almonds is rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats, fiber, protein, vitamin E, vitamin B6, and zinc to name a few.
Servings 12 muffins
Prep Time 10 minutes 
Cook Time 20 minutes Ingredients
- ¾ cup (210g) unsalted creamy natural almond butter or any nut or seed butter
- ¼ cup (57g) olive oil
- ¼ cup (87g) maple syrup
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp (10g) vanilla extract
- 1 cup (108g) walnuts, chopped
- ¼ cup (38g) hemp seeds optional
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ cups finely chopped granny smith apples about 1 large or 2 medium
- I tested this using the Kirkland brand organic almond butter. It’s runny and smooth – if your nut or seed butter is thicker, then you may need to add an extra tablespoon or two of olive oil.
- This will give a protein boost, but you can skip and just add an extra ¼ cup chopped nuts.
- Be sure to chop the apples finely so that you get an even distribution and better flavor.
- You could use any apple variety. I also tested these with frozen blueberries and really struggled to decide which I liked more, but since it’s fall I went with apples. Try them using 1 heaping cup of frozen blueberries in place of the apples and increase the bake time by 5 minutes.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a standard muffin tin with parchment muffin cups.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond butter, olive oil, maple syrup, eggs, and vanilla until totally smooth (this will take about 30 seconds, get an arm workout in!).
- Add the walnuts, hemp seeds (if using), spices, salt, and baking powder and mix until well combined. Stir in the apples.
- Scoop the batter into the muffin cups, filling them just below the brim. Bake for 15-20 minutes (18 minutes was my sweet pot) or until no longer doughy. Don’t overbake!
- Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes.
Items you can prep ahead (optional)
- Finely chop 1 ½ cups apples
- Make the muffins
Substitutions:
- I don’t think these muffins can be easily made vegan since they rely heavily on eggs to give it texture. You could try a liquid vegan egg replacement.
- To make nut-free, sub with sunflower butter or tahini and sub the walnuts with roughly chopped pumpkin seeds.
- Sub almond butter with peanut butter if you want a apples and peanut butter version!
Storage:
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
Leftovers + Repurposing:
- These are great cold, at room temperature, or warm. You decide which you like best!
- Warm it up, cut in half, and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for dessert.
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