What a glorious morning for Morning Glory Muffins. Or perhaps it’s a glorious afternoon, if you’re one of those people who prefers muffins as a snack. Whenever you choose to enjoy them, these keto muffins are going to be a hit! Tender, delicious, and packed full of goodness.
With shredded zucchini, flaked coconut, crunchy walnuts, and sugar-free cranberries, they have all the texture and flavor you crave. You will be hard pressed to believe that they didn’t come from your favorite bakery. And with less than 6 grams of carbs per muffin, they are a deliciously smart way to start your day.
If you’re a muffin fanatic like me, be sure to try my Keto Blueberry Muffins too. And if you prefer to bake with coconut flour, check out this recipe for Keto Zucchini Muffins.
If you aren’t familiar with morning glory muffins, let me assure you that they are delicious. They are rather something like everything-but-the-kitchen-sink muffins. The conventional version contains a rich array of veggies, fruits, nuts, and spices. They usually have carrots, apple, pineapple, coconut, walnuts, raisins, and cinnamon or ginger.
To make them keto-friendly, I used a combination of almond and coconut flour. I also ditched the apple, pineapple, and raisins, swapping in some grated zucchini and some keto dried cranberries. The end result was fabulous. Just as hearty and packed with goodness as I remember them, without all the carbs.
Reader’s Thoughts
“The first time I made these, I kind of gave a side eye to the ingredients because how could such a combo of ingredients be good together. But I was missing bran muffins and decided to give it a try. I was wrong; the ingredients come together to make magic! Now they are some of my favorite muffins!” — Misty
Why you will love these muffins
- Easy to make: Don’t be put off by the long ingredient list, these muffins are an easy one-bowl recipe.
- Perfect for busy mornings: They are hearty, filling, and easy to grab and go!
- Great texture: With shredded zucchini, a little carrot, some nuts, coconut, and sunflower seeds, you can see the goodness in each bite.
- Tastes like the classic: They have all the cozy, spiced flavor of traditional morning glory muffins.
- Moist and tender: All the shredded veggies keep them from drying out.
- Hearty and filling: They are low in carbs but high in fiber, to keep you fuller longer. Make ahead: They freeze beautifully so you can stock your freezer with easy breakfasts or snacks.
Ingredient Notes
- Keto flours: This recipe uses both coconut flour almond flour. As with any almond flour recipe, the finer your flour, the finer the consistency.
- Sweetener: I like to use some brown sugar substitute for this recipe, for added flavor.
- Protein powder: You can use whey protein, egg white protein, or plant-based protein. The added protein adds nutrition but it also helps the muffins rise better.
- Nuts and seeds: For added protein and crunch, these muffins are filled with unsweetened flaked coconut, chopped walnuts and sunflower seeds.
- Sugar free dried cranberries: I add these for a touch of sweetness. You can use store bought or learn how to dry cranberries at home.
- Veggies: This recipes includes both grated carrots and zucchini.
- Kitchen staples: Butter, eggs, baking powder, vanilla extract, cinnamon and salt.
Overview: How to Make This Recipe
- Combine the dry ingredients: Mix the flours, sweetener, baking powder, spices, nuts, seeds, and dried cranberries together.
- Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the melted butter, eggs, carrots, zucchini, water, and vanilla.
- Bake the muffins: Divide the batter between 16 muffin cups lined with parchment or silicone liners. Bake until golden brown and the tops are firm to the touch.
- Cool the muffins: Let cool completely in the pan before removing.
Tips for Success
- Prep your ingredients before you begin mixing things together. That means grating the carrots and zucchini, chopping the walnuts and cranberries, and melting the butter.
- This recipe makes 16 muffins. It’s a big batch so if you don’t have more than one muffin pan, you may need to work in batches. You can also cut the recipe in half easily.
- Whisk all of the dry ingredients together, including the chopped nuts and seeds, before you add in the wet ingredients. The grated carrot and zucchini is considered a “wet” ingredient.
- The protein powder helps the muffins rise properly and hold their shape. You can skip it if you must but expect your baked goods to be more dense.
Sweetener Options: I used an erythritol based sweetener for this recipe, as allulose tends to make them overly brown. If you do choose to use allulose, you may want to drop the temperature by 25 degrees. Watch them carefully while they are in the oven.
Frequently Asked Questions
Although carrots contain more sugar compared to other low carb vegetables, you can still eat them in on the keto diet. In this recipe, a small amount is spread over a large number of muffins. The carrots add less than 1g of carbs to each muffin and are unlikely to affect your state of ketosis.
These muffins are firm enough to just place in a container or a freezer bag and pop in the freezer. They can last several months that way. Bring them to room temperature or warm them in the microwave before serving. They will keep well in the refrigerator for up to a week.
This keto morning glory muffin recipe has 5.9g of carbs and 3.0g of fiber per serving. That comes to 2.0g net carbs per muffin.
Keto Morning Glory Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (150 g) almond flour
- 1/2 cup (91 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 1/3 cup (40 g) coconut flour
- 1/4 cup (27 g) unflavoured whey protein powder, (can sub egg white protein)
- 1/3 cup (28.33 g) unsweetened flaked coconut
- 1/3 cup (78.86 g) chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup (33.5 g) sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup (30.3 g) sugar-free dried cranberries, chopped
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) butter, melted
- 1/2 cup (64 g) grated carrots, loosely packed
- 1/2 cup (62 g) grated zucchini, loosely packed
- 1/4 cup (59.15 g) water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line 16 muffins cups with parchment or silicone liners. (If you don't have two muffin pans you may need to work in batches).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, coconut flour, protein powder, coconut, walnuts, sunflower seeds, cranberries, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
- Stir in the eggs, melted butter, carrots, zucchini, water, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Divide among the prepared muffins cups and bake 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown and the tops are firm to the touch. Remove and let cool completely in the pan.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Just thinking that maybe you could give the type of sweetener, instead of the brand: Erythritol instead of Swerve? Or allulose w/ monkfruit…etc
I purchase bulk and not always a “brand” name as it’s less expensive for me on a limited budget.
Thank you for the great recipes!
Just devoured two of these beauties. Yum! They have a great texture, and taste great. They are not overly sweet. I did cut down on the swerve just a bit. I even made a batch of your dried cranberries for it. There isn’t a lot of cranberries per muffin, but when you get one, it’s like finding gold. And I like that you can’t taste the coconut flour at all.
When I make your baked goods, I am always very mindful of not overbaking. I set the time to the minimum and check. They were perfect and not one bit dry.
Looking forward to eating them all week. My cappuccino and treat (usually one of your recipes) literally make my day.
Thanks again for sharing your wonderful recipes with us. You’re the GOAT!
What did I do wrong? They are very very dry and crumbly. I’m thinking it’d be good with milk for a cereal but that’s not what I had in mind. I followed the recipe exactly except I didn’t have swerve and I used stevia in the raw. The only changes I made.
Although they’re dry they’re very good tasting. I just don’t know what happened
Hi Nikki… Well, for one thing, you may have over-baked them. But also you need to understand that changes in sweeteners are going to affect the texture. Stevia in the Raw is really a TINY bit of stevia mixed with a bulking agent (maltodextrin) to make it measure more like sugar. But it doesn’t BEHAVE like sugar in baking so things lose moisture as they bake more quickly than with allulose or erythritol.
If you want to use that sweetener, you will need to adjust how you bake. Watch things very closely in the oven, check on them frequently, and don’t rely on bake times in the recipe. Rather use your eyes and your sense of touch. The minute the muffins have risen and are firm to the touch on top, you need to get them out.
These are fantastic. I made a big batch and froze them. Now on Sundays, I bring out a few. This “ketofied” version tastes the same as the regular.
So so delicious. These came into my mailbox on a cool summer
Morning and were made immediately. I would recommend to let cool in the pan. Even in Pieces though they are delicious 😋
I have not made these “yet”. Guess in all depends on if I “have” to use coconut. I can use the coconut flour, but the flaked “stuff” (probably a texture thing from my youth), won’t go near it with a 10′ pole.
Thanks,
Katy
I can’t wait to try these!!
Carolyn, these are SO good! I made reasonable subs with what I had- pecans instead of walnuts, lightly chopped shelled pumpkin seeds instead of sunflower seeds, and raisins instead of cranberries. These muffins did NOT disappoint and became an immediate favorite. Thank you for another winner. I’m 3 years into diet controlled Type 2 Diabetes and you are helping me slowly build a repertoire of amazing low carb recipes. I am eternally grateful!
Oh and I served this for dinner with your equally and shockingly amazing slow cooker breakfast casserole. Top notch meal!
Great to hear!
These are very moist and delicious! I sometimes use chopped apple or rhubarb instead of cranberries. I also use fresh cranberries cut in half instead of dried ones. Thank you for devising these recipes. I can always count on your recipes to be good.
I’m so glad you are a muffin maniac!! I live on your muffins!
These are delicious and not too sweet! My kids love them too. I put apples instead, 1 teaspoon of nutmeg and 1 teaspoon of pumpkin spice. I also used vegan butter, egg white protein powder and zero sugar-free oat milk. Yum! 😋 These are exactly the muffins I’ve been looking for! Versatile and easy!. I’d like to try blueberries or your original zucchini/carrot mix next time around. *Note: I wanted to let you know that I always come back to your site for gluten-free, sugar-free recipes time and time again. I’ve made so many flops from others but your recipes always work! They are delicious and easy to make! Thank you so much!
The first time I made these, I kind of gave a side eye to the ingredients because how could such a combo of ingredients be good together. But I was missing bran muffins and decided to give it a try. I was wrong; the ingredients come together to make magic! Now they are some of my favorite muffins!
That’s great to hear!
YUMMO!!! THESE WERE GREAT!
Delicious muffins like all your recipes
These look delicious!
Love the muffins