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These sweet potato muffins are moist, fluffy, and secretly healthy! Made in just one bowl, these muffins have no flour, oil, or eggs in them.
Sweet potato muffins are one of my absolute favorite things to use sweet potatoes for. It’s got an almost identical texture to pumpkin puree but has a more pronounced flavor. We’ve made sweet potato brownies and a sweet potato cake with it, but I think muffins might be my favorite.
I know the idea of sweet potatoes in a dessert may sound a little odd, but think of it this way- it’s no different than adding banana to muffins to bread. Kids and adults love it, and they make such a wholesome snack.
Table of Contents
Why this recipe works
- Made in one bowl. Everything is blended together in either a food processor or blender, so there is barely any cleanup.
- Secretly healthy. Using oats as the base, these muffins are high in fiber and protein, and the addition of sweet potato takes nutrients to another level. They are also completely dairy-free.
- Ready in under 30 minutes. From prep to plate, this recipe comes together in under 30 minutes.
- Kid friendly. These are perfect for lunch boxes or even a healthy breakfast.
What we love about this sweet potato muffin recipe is just how versatile they are. You can enjoy a couple as a healthy breakfast or add some healthy frosting on top for a guilt-free dessert.
Ingredients needed
This recipe calls for pantry staple ingredients that you probably already have on hand. Here is what you’ll need:
- Rolled Oats. I used old fashioned oats, but quick oats will work too. They will be blended to a flour-like consistency.
- Coconut sugar. While any sugar works, I like the refined nature of the coconut kind.
- Baking powder. Gives the muffins the rise and fluffiness.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg. To give a delicious warm flavor to the muffins, and brings out the natural sweetness of the sweet potato.
- Salt. To bring out the natural sweetness of the muffins.
- Mashed sweet potato. I precooked a sweet potato in the microwave until soft and tender. Once cool, I used a stick blender to pulverize it into a smooth texture. You can use my method for baking sweet potatoes or air frying sweet potatoes too.
- Milk of choice. Any milk works, I used unsweetened almond milk.
- Almond butter. A healthier alternative to traditional butter or oil. You can also use cashew or peanut butter.
- Egg OR replacement. These muffins work with both traditional eggs and also egg replacements.
How to make sweet potato muffins
Step 1- Make the batter. Start by adding all the ingredients into a high-speed blender or food processor. Pulse everything together until a smooth and thick batter remains.
Step 2- Pour into muffin tin. Next, distribute the mixture amongst a 12-count muffin tin.
Step 3- Bake. Bake the muffins for 25-27 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Step 4- cool then serve. Finally, let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Tips to make the best recipe
- Do not overbake the muffins as they will continue to cool as they are cooling down. Once you insert a toothpick in the center and it comes out clean, remove it from the oven.
- While delicious on their own, these muffins taste even better with some mix-ins. Try chopped pecans, chocolate chips, or other spices (pumpkin pie spice is great!)
- If you find canned sweet potato puree, you can use that instead of baking one from scratch. Just make sure there is no added sugar in them.
- If you are worried about your muffins sticking to the muffin pan, use muffin cups or muffin liners.
Dietary swaps and substitutions
The beauty of these muffins is just how easy they are to adjust to your personal preferences or dietary habits. Here is what we’ve tested:
- Make them gluten-free. For gluten-free sweet potato muffins, replace the rolled oats with certified gluten free rolled oats or gluten-free flour.
- Swap out the almond butter. Any smooth nut or seed butter works. You could try coconut oil but I can’t vouch for that.
- Cut the sugar. Use a sugar substitute instead of the coconut sugar.
Storage instructions
To store. Muffins can be kept at room temperature, provided they are to be enjoyed within 3 days. To keep sweet potato muffins fresh, store them in an airtight container and keep in the fridge. They will keep fresh for 7 days.
To freeze. Place muffins in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.
More healthy muffin recipes to try
Frequently Asked Questions
If you use light colored sweet potatoes, they are prone to turn slightly green when baked in muffins. They are still 100% edible.
Almond flour is considered the most accurate substitute for oat flour. If you choose to use that instead, do not blend the ingredients together. Instead, whisk them in a large mixing bowl.
Sweet Potato Muffins
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats oats ground into a flour
- 1/2 cup sugar I used coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 cup mashed sweet potato
- 1 cup milk
- 1 large egg or any egg substitute
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons almond butter See post for substitutions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 10-12 muffin tins with patty pans and set aside.
- In a large high-speed blender, combine all the ingredients and blend until a smooth batter remains.
- Evenly distribute the batter amongst the 12-muffin tin until almost full. Top with extra cinnamon and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick or skewer comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and allow to sit for 10 minutes, before removing and allowing to cool on a dry surface.
Love these muffins! I think about sweet potatoes! Yum! I did some modifications as I wanted no refined sugar. I substituted half apple sauce and half alternative brown sugar. I used oatmilk. Topped each muffin with 4 dark chocolate chips.
This looks yummy. Just have a lot of sweet potatoes and wanted dessert of it. Great.
These sweet potato muffins are too delicious for words!
Do you cook the sweet potato first to be able to mash it? It doesnt say cooked sweet potato but an uncooked one is very hard to mash.
Yes you’ll need to.
Sooo delicious. Even my picky grandson liked it.
Love that, Flora!
Is this two cups of oats, then ground into a flour, or two cups of ground oat flour?
two cups ground total 🙂
Would this recipe work for purple sweet potatoes? Do I need to adjust the recipe at all if I am using purple sweet potato?
Thanks!
I haven’t tried but I don’t see why not!
Exceeded my expectations. The muffins turned out very good. I used date syrup instead of sugar. The batter is sticky in terms of clean up. I will make these again.
Is the baking powder surely 1 tablespoon?
Yes 🙂
Is the almond butter or any type of nut butter nesscary overall? Not a fan of it
Made these this morning but mixed all ingredients in a bowl with a whisk. Used light brown sugar. Put dark brown sugar on top before baking for 30 minutes.
These are so moist and delicious and not too sweet. Thank u for such a healthy and satisfying snack.
So moist, nutty and delicious! Made these for post partum snacks and they were definitely a hit!
These muffins are amazing!! They taste like gingerbread and are just delicious. I used a roasted sweet potato that got caramelized from baking which gave it an extra sweet and caramelized flavor. I also used sunflower butter to give it a yummy flavor and extra sort of sweetness. Will definitely be making these again!
Thanks, Karen!