These delicious keto muffins will make you jump out of bed, eager to start your day. With a tender base and a cinnamon crumb topping, they taste just as good as anything from a bakery!
In case you haven’t noticed, I love keto coffee cake. And I love muffins. So these Coffee Cake Muffins are a dream come true for me. They are the best of both worlds, and it’s like having your own bakery, right at home!
I am perpetually amazed at all the delicious things I can create with low carb ingredients. And a little ingenuity too, of course. I’ve been experimenting with these alternative to flour and sugar for over a decade. Whoa! That kind of blows my mind.
And I plan to play and experiment with these things for many decades to come. I truly love it. And when the recipes turn out as well as these Keto Coffee Cake Muffins, it’s very gratifying too!
Why you will love these keto muffins
These have long been one of my most popular recipes, and with good reason. These muffins are incredibly tender and not overly sweet. And the perfect accompaniment to a cup of coffee.
I was inspired to create these muffins after making a New York Crumb Cake for my cookbook, The Ultimate Guide to Keto Baking. The crumb topping was so good, I found myself jonesing to use it in other recipes.
So I took that same topping idea and added it to tender almond flour muffins. Then I drizzled it with a little vanilla glaze, such as you might find on coffee cake in a bakery.
While these take a bit more effort than other keto muffins recipes, they are absolutely worth it. And they have only 3.9g of carbs per serving!
Reader Reviews
“Delicious muffins! We loved them! Will definitely make again! Thank you!” — Leila
“These are great exactly as written. Everything I have tried from your website has been great! Thanks for all the work you do to make sure the recipes work and are delicious!” — Becky
“All I can say is, wow! I’ve dabbled in keto recipes from other blogs over the years and the results have never been too great. But these actually look and taste like the real thing! My kids loved them too, which is the ultimate compliment. I’ll definitely be trying out more from your blog. Thank you!!” — Tova
Ingredients you need
- Almond and coconut flour: A combination of both is used for both the crumb topping and for the muffin base.
- Sweetener: A brown sugar replacement like Swerve gives the crumb topping a classic flavor. You can also use it in the muffins, or you can use a granular sweetener. See the Expert Tips for more sweetener options.
- Butter: Both the topping and the muffins take melted butter.
- Protein powder: You can use whey protein, egg white protein, or pea protein. I don’t recommend collagen as it will make the muffins gummy and hard to cook through.
- Almond milk: I use a little almond milk to thin out the muffin batter but you can also use regular milk or water.
- Cinnamon: A little ground cinnamon in the crumb topping is tasty!
- Pantry staples: Eggs, baking powder, vanilla extract, and salt
Step-by-step directions
1. Prepare the topping: Whisk together almond flour, Swerve, coconut flour, and cinnamon. Drizzle with the melted butter and stir to combine well. Set aside.
2. Make the muffin batter: In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, sweetener, protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the butter, eggs, almond milk and vanilla until well combined.
3. Assemble: Divide the batter in a standard muffin tin lined with parchment or silicone liners. Top each with some of the crumb topping.
4. Bake the muffins: Bake at 325ºF for 25 to 35 minutes or until a tester inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let cool completely in the pans.
5. Drizzle with glaze: To make the icing, whisk together the sweetener, water, and vanilla. Add more water if the mixture is too thick. Drizzle lightly over the cooled muffins.
Expert tips
Press the topping gently into the muffin batter after sprinkling it on. That helps it stick better as the muffins rise during baking.
Test your muffins for doneness. Because of the crumb topping, it can be tricky to tell if the muffins are fully baked. Normally I just touch the tops and if they are firm and springy, they’re done. In this case, I suggest using a tester like a toothpick and inserting it into one of the muffins. If it comes out dry with a few crumbs attached, they’re done.
The drizzle is optional. But it makes them extra delectable and like something you’d see at a bakery!
Sweetener options
You can really use any sweeteners you like best, but there are some things to keep in mind. Allulose sweeteners tend to make baked goods brown very quickly so your muffin and topping may become quite dark. Keep your eye on them while they are in the oven.
The drizzle really needs a powdered sweetener to thicken properly. Swerve works best, in my opinion, as it provides the best structure. BochaSweet and allulose may require more sweetener to get a good drizzling consistency.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can easily make these keto muffins dairy free. Simply swap out the butter for a healthy oil like coconut or avocado oil. Then make sure to use egg white or pea protein powder.
You can store your keto muffins in a covered container on the counter for 4 days, or place in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week. You can also freeze them for up to 2 months.
This keto coffee cake muffin recipe has 7.6g of carbs and 3.7g of fiber per serving. That comes to 3.9g net carbs per muffin.
More healthy muffin recipes
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Try these delectable keto pumpkin muffins with a rich gooey cream cheese center. They’re a delicious fall breakfast or snack. So good that you might even want to eat them for dessert!
Protein Muffins
Start your day off right with these easy protein muffins. Packed with fiber, healthy fats, and 12g of protein per serving. And plenty of chocolatey goodness too!
Morning Glory Muffins
Keto Morning Glory Muffins are packed full of low carb, sugar-free goodness! A great healthy breakfast option.
Keto Coffee Cake Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
- ½ cup almond flour
- 3 tablespoon Swerve Brown
- 2 tablespoon coconut flour
- ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup butter melted
Muffins
- 2 cups almond flour
- ⅓ cup Swerve Sweetener
- ¼ cup unflavored whey protein powder
- 3 tablespoon coconut flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter, melted
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Drizzle
- ¼ cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 2 tablespoon water
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Crumb Topping:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, Swerve, coconut flour, and cinnamon. Drizzle with the melted butter and stir to combine well. Set aside.
Muffins:
- Preheat the oven to 325F and line a standard muffin tin with parchment or silicone liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the butter, eggs, almond milk and vanilla until well combined.
- Divide the batter among the prepared muffins cups. Top each with some of the crumb topping and bake 25 to 35 minutes or until a tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Let cool completely in the pans.
Drizzle:
- Whisk together the sweetener, water, and vanilla. Add more water if the mixture is too thick. Drizzle lightly over the cooled muffins.
Cindi says
Hi Carolyn!
Love all of your recipes that I’ve tried so far!
I’ll be making these in the mountains this weekend..Elevation about 5400 feet. Will that change anything? Also, heavy cream okay to replace almond milk?
Thanks!
Cindi
Carolyn says
Use the standard changes for high elevation baking that you would use for conventional recipes. I don’t know exactly what those are but there are some great online sources. Straight cream is not a good replacement for almond milk, it’s too thick. But you can do half cream and half water.
KDubb says
I’ve made many of Carolyn’s recipes at high altitude with no changes. They turn out perfect.
Rosemary Lare says
What can I substitute for the Protein powder?
Carolyn says
Nothing! 🙂 YOu need a protein powder to help them rise properly.
TX24K says
Your coffee cake refers to whey protein concentrate but the muffins link is whey protein isolate. Can either the isolate or concentrate be used in both recipes?
Carolyn says
Interchangeable.
Maggie says
Love this muffin recipe! The muffins are so moist and delicious! They’re just perfect with a cup of coffee! Thank you for another great one! Next time I want to make muffins, it will be a hard choice between making this recipe and your Chocolate Protein Muffin recipe!! Both are so good!
Barb says
Is there anything else besides swerve i tried cookie recipe and it tastes like menthol ,Thank you
Carolyn says
Please read this: https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/best-keto-sweeteners/
Julie says
Just popped these out of the oven!! They smell out of this world
Cher Bartlett says
Wow! Saw these and had to try them. 100% a raving hit! I had to add twice as much swerve for the drizzle. Next time I’ll use 1 T of water. But what a hit! Keep’em coming!
Cher
Krystin Daniels says
oh my goodness I made these today and can absolutely confirm they are delicious and so worth the little bit of extra effort. thank you Carolyn!
Carolyn says
Do these freeze well?
Carolyn says
Yep!
Marie says
Hello,
May I use egg white protein instead?
Thank you so much!
Marie
Carolyn says
Yes, that works.
Ashley Siegrist says
These came out great! Added some chopped walnuts to the crumble topping. Very good. Also didn’t have almond milk. I used unsweetened oat milk which worked fine. Mixed a small amount of butter with icing to make it thicker.
Cyndi says
Made these this morning- easy and delicious! Even my 3 year old loves them!
Fonda Carver says
I want to make these but all I have is half and half. Can I substitute that for the almond milk?
Carolyn says
Sure!
Debbie says
Could I use egg white protein powder instead of the whey protein powder?
Carolyn says
Yes, that works.
janice says
Hi. Can you tell me how to store the muffins and how long will they last?
Thanks.
Carolyn says
A covered container on the counter for 4 days, or in the fridge for up to a week.
Sadia says
Hi, can I skip the protein powder?or any substitute?
Carolyn says
It’s necessary for a better rise and texture. You can skip it but they won’t be as good.
Kisha says
These are FANTASTIC!!! Thank you!!
Lonna Adkins says
Something went wrong with my muffins, and I’m wondering if you could help me out. I followed all of the ingredients to the letter I did it just the way you did and I sprinkled the crumb topping on top and put them in the oven and when I checked them and they came out the batter had gone up over the top of the crumb topping so the crumb topping is buried inside the muffin. I don’t know what I did can you help me?
Carolyn says
Sounds like you had too much wet ingredients in there… do you live at elevation, by chance? Or were you using a convection oven?
Lisa M Jones says
I notice that many of your baking recipes contain coconut flour. I’m highly allergic. Is there an easy substitution I can use? I know it serves a purpose but I can’t use it. Thanks
Carolyn says
I have a ton of recipes that don’t contain any coconut flour. You could try those. It’s such a unique flour, it’s hard to replace. Oat fiber might work.
Ellen Turner says
I made these yesterday & they turned out great! I had some sour cream to use up, so I added that in that instead of the almond milk, added cake batter extract instead of vanilla, coconut oil in place of butter & then just kept my fingers crossed! I might add a full cup instead of 1/2 cup of sour cream next time for a little more moistness, but not totally necessary. Your recipes are spot on, and I just wanted to thank you for your expertise. I call you my keto scientist when I tell my friends about your recipes! My sweet tooth love you!