Protein Cupcakes

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5 from 128 votes
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Healthy flourless protein cupcakes needing just four ingredients and quick, easy and delicious! Made with no butter, oil, flour, grains or sugar, these brownie muffins are super fudgy and gooey on the inside, and are naturally gluten free, vegan, paleo and dairy free!

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

Yes, shape.

Hear me out.

“No one has mini muffin tins!”

“I ate five in one go, I should have made normal muffins”

“I want to try this out so bad, but I only have a standard muffin tin.” 

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

When I first posted those mini brownie bites, I just wanted to share a mini version of one of my most-made and favorite recipes- mini brownie bites, I just wanted to share a mini version of one of my most-made and favorite recipes- These flourless protein brownies. Safe to say, I must agree with the reader who lamented eating 5 in one go.

Mini = More.

Bites = More.

As cutesy as they are in miniature form, if you are after a clean eating and protein packed snack, these muffins take the cake muffin. It also gives nobody the ‘I don’t have a mini muffin tin’ excuse to be used! 

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

The other day, I was in the homewares section of the department store and noticed some obscure baking dishes and trays. As cool as they were to look at, I was a little perplexed as to why someone would choose to make muffins shaped like pineapples or bars with stars in them.

BARS WITH STARS IN THEM.

Sorry, that particular mold was just stupid. After seeing some of these odd shaped baking dishes, it made the mini muffin pan look standard. 

TL;DR- Muffin tin or mini muffin tin, you’ll get the same results.

Let’s go back to the brownies!

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

Something I preach often with many recipes here is that they are healthy alternatives to traditional classics. If you are set on making Betty Crocker like brownies, or something sweet to serve at church on Sunday, these will NOT make the cut.

Let’s showcase a stark difference-

Betty Crocker’s first ingredient- Sugar.

My first ingredient- Mashed banana (or pumpkin). 

Just a minor KEY difference. For those who are here for the version which you could pretty much polish off in one sitting guilt-free? Read on. 

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

These flourless protein brownie muffins need just four ingredients and one bowl or blender to whip up! Texture wise, they are super fudgy, gooey on the inside and naturally sweetened! Unlike traditional brownie muffins which are typically based around flour, butter, sugar and oil, these contain none of those! Instead, these brownie muffins use a mashed starch, protein powder, cocoa powder and drippy nut butter. Because of the ingredients used, they are completely vegan, gluten free, paleo, grain free, dairy free and refined sugar free! 

For the protein powder, I always stick to my three tested options- This casein protein powder, this vegan protein powder, and this paleo friendly protein powder. Dietary restrictions aside, I’d recommend using the casein protein powder as the first option. It gives it a thick and glossy texture (in the batter) which results in those crackly tops (as pictured). This also works with the vegan protein powder blends too. I do NOT recommend whey based protein powders, as they either become incredibly sticky or turn baked goods into rubber. Trust me, if you want a hockey puck muffin, then feel free to use the whey protein.

For the nut butter– I usually stick to drippy almond butter or cashew butter, as they are mild tasting and don’t overpower the brownie muffins. If you enjoy the taste of peanut butter, feel free to use that- It WILL be very evident. For those with nut allergies, this works great with sunflower seed butter, soy nut butter and wow butter. I don’t recommend tahini, as it had an oily texture, coupled with being slightly bitter. 

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

HACK! If you prefer a sweeter brownie (especially if you don’t use the banana, and opt for a different starch), I’d recommend adding some granulated sweetener of choice (I prefer using monk fruit sweetener, a stevia blend) or some pure maple syrup. If you go the maple route, you’ll need to cook it a little longer and it will be ridiculously fudgy! 

Don’t want protein powder? Use this recipe and just bake it in the muffin pan.

WHAM BAM THANK YOU, MA’AM. 

Make these healthy 4 Ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins and eat five in one sitting.

Healthy 4 Ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins

5 from 128 votes
Healthy flourless protein brownie muffins needing just four ingredients and quick, easy and delicious! Made with no butter, oil, flour, grains or sugar, these brownie muffins are super fudgy and gooey on the inside, and are naturally gluten free, vegan, paleo and dairy free!
Servings: 6
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 25 minutes

Ingredients  

  • 1 cup mashed banana or pumpkin can sub for sweet potato
  • 1/2 cup smooth nut butter or alternative I prefer almond butter
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1-2 scoops of protein powder see above content for tested recommendations
  • Sweetener of choice optional*

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 6 count muffin tin with muffin liners- These result i easy removal.
  • In a high speed blender (or mixing bowl), combine all your ingredients and blend until smooth.
  • Pour brownie mixture into each muffin tin, filling until just full.
  • Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a skewer/toothpick comes out just clean. Allow to cool in the muffin tin completely.

Notes

* Only add if you prefer a sweeter brownie muffin
For the best texture, refrigerate for an hour before consuming.
Brownie muffins are freezer friendly- Simply wrap each one up individually and thaw before enjoying.
Brownie muffins need to be kept refrigerated.
Author: Arman
Tried this recipe?Give us a shout at @thebigmansworld or tag #thebigmansworld!

More delicious protein packed sweet snacks? Gotcha covered!

These cookies are loaded with chocolate chips, but are completely guilt-free too

This low carb cake is ready in less than 60 seconds and tastes like hot chocolate! 

Chocolate for breakfast? These no bake cookie dough bites satisfy ALL cravings! 

Healthy FOUR ingredient Flourless Protein Brownie Muffins (V, GF, Paleo)- NO butter, oil, grains or flour needed to make these rich, dense, subtly sweet brownie muffins packed with protein- A quick and easy snack which DON'T taste healthy! {vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free, paleo recipe}- thebigmansworld.com

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website.

Arman Liew

I’m a two time cookbook author, photographer, and writer, and passionate about creating easy and healthier recipes. I believe you don’t need to be experienced in the kitchen to make good food using simple ingredients that most importantly, taste delicious.

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Comments

  1. These brownies look insane, Arman! I want to eat 5 in one sitting! I hear ya on the random pans…and I own several. Like a cast iron pan to make teddy bear shaped cornbread muffins. Yup, you read that right. It’s sitting right here in my basement. Along with my exercise equipment, office and beer fridge. And soon I’ll be adding these brownies to that list. 🙂

    1. Omg, a teddy bear shaped cornbread muffin? That might be useful for the forthcoming kiddie parties you have to look forward to 😀

  2. My recent snacking was not super healthy. I was snowed in, so I blamed it on my depressed state of hating winter. In short, I snacked on bugle chips and wine. These clearly look much healthier.

  3. Whenever I make something mini-sized, I have five of them instead of one large-version of them! Ohhhhh well.. 😉 Anyhow, brownies always win my heart. I am totally stoked to try these out!

  4. I’d like to try these for my granddaughter, age 8, diagnosed with Type I diabetes. How many carbs in each muffin (I’d use all you say with VegaSport pea protein. Thanks.

    1. Hi Joyce! For sure- if you go to myfitnesspal and add in that protein powder to the other ingredients, it will provide it for you 🙂

  5. I gotta biggy for ya 😉 Have ya ever made a quadruple batch of these??? I need to make for my daughter’s classroom birthday party so should I make several batches or can I just multiply the recipe?? THEN, if I use the other recipe (wo protein) how long should I cook in in tins?

      1. I don’t have time Arman that’s why I asked you silly HaHa
        I’m currently out of town and will need to make these quickly Monday morning before school (yikes–I’m feeling stressed already)

  6. My batter was super thick. Didn’t pour. I just grabbed some batter with my hands and smashed in the muffin tins. In the oven now! We shall see 🙂

  7. I made these delicious brownies today, I followed the recipe exactly and used Ghirardelli cocoa and Vega one daily essentials protein, 1 scoop. These were great, I’m about to have my second one with some unsweetened almond milk, thanks!!