Protein Muffins
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This recipe for protein muffins will be your new favorite way to use protein powder! No eggs, refined sugar, or grains are needed; each muffin has 20 grams of protein!
Stop buying expensive prepackaged high protein muffins from health food stores and start making your own! Adding protein powder to muffins is my sneaky, healthy way to get more protein into my diet, and it also keeps me satisfied for way longer. Win!
My foolproof recipe uses wholesome and simple ingredients, and it’s also affordable…they also taste delicious!
The trick is to use the right kind of protein powder so the muffins bake up nice and fluffy instead of dry and crumbly. As long as you do that, you’ll be whipping these up on the regular.
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- Perfect texture. Moist and fluffy, and tastes like any good muffin out there.
- 5 healthy ingredients. No white flour or sugar. There aren’t any eggs either, so perfect if you are vegan and/or gluten-free.
- 20 grams of protein. These are perfect for a high-protein snack or wholesome dessert.
- It’s easy to customize. Think of my muffin batter as a blank slate on which you can change up the flavors. I’ve included a few of my favorites below.
★★★★★ REVIEW
“OH!! Best protein muffin I’ve made! Yum, thanks!” – Eliane
Ingredients needed
- Almond flour. Blanched almond flour, not almond meal. Using the blanched variety ensures the muffins have a lovely light and tender crumb.
- Baking powder. Just a pinch to help the muffins rise (as much as they can) and give the muffins some stability.
- Protein powder. Brown rice protein powder, casein protein powder, or a whey protein powder blend. Do NOT use a strict whey protein powder, or else your muffins will turn into hockey pucks.
- Peanut butter OR alternative. Smooth and creamy peanut butter with no added sugar. Use a cheap store-bought brand, like Skippy’s or Teddy’s peanut butter, because these are naturally thinner and mix seamlessly into the batter.
- Unsweetened applesauce. Adds some moisture to the muffins without needing any oil or butter. You can also use Greek yogurt.
- Chocolate chips. A must for any good muffin. I like using sugar free chocolate chips to keep these muffins completely sugar free.
Which protein powder is best for baking?
No protein powder is created equal, and as such, some protein powders are fantastic for baking, and some are best to be used strictly for protein shakes.
The best protein powders to use are either brown rice protein powder, casein protein powder (not dairy-free), or a blended whey protein powder. Stick to either an unflavored or vanilla-flavored powder.
Avoid using whey protein isolate or natural whey protein powder, as these two tend to soak up moisture and will yield very dense, dry muffins.
How to make protein muffins
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Make the batter. Add the dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk together. Add the peanut butter and unsweetened applesauce and mix until completely combined.
Fold through the chocolate chips at the end.
Step 2- Bake. Distribute the batter amongst 8 large muffin liners in a muffin pan (or 12 in a mini muffin tin) and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until a skewer comes out mostly clean.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Do not overbake the muffins, as they can go from fluffy to dense VERY fast. Once they are ‘just’ done on top and a toothpick or skewer comes out mostly clean, remove them from the oven, and they will continue to cook as they cool.
- If you notice the tops of muffins going brown too soon, cover them with tin foil after the 8-minute mark.
- Feel free to swap out the chocolate chips for other mix-ins, like blueberries, chopped chocolate, or even some chopped nuts.
Flavor variations
While these protein muffins taste delicious on their own, I’ve tested the batter with five popular flavors to switch things up for you!
- Peanut butter– Add some peanut butter chips on top.
- Banana– Replace the unsweetened applesauce with equal amounts of pureed banana (just blend several bananas!).
- Chocolate– Use chocolate protein powder and fold through half a cup of chocolate chips.
- Pumpkin– Switch out the unsweetened applesauce for pumpkin puree.
- Blueberry– Fold through half a cup of fresh or frozen blueberries.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftovers can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 1 week. I recommend bringing them to room temperature before enjoying, or microwaving them for 20 seconds beforehand.
To freeze: Place leftover muffins in a freezer bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
More high protein desserts to try
- Protein donuts
- Protein cookies
- Protein brownies
- Protein banana bread
- Protein mug cake
- Or any of these protein powder recipes
Protein Muffins (5 Ingredients!)
Video
Ingredients
- 2 scoops vanilla protein powder 64-67 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup peanut butter or any nut or seed butter
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line a muffin tin with 8 muffin liners and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add your protein powder, almond flour, and baking powder, and mix well. Add your peanut butter and unsweetened applesauce and mix until fully combined. Fold through your chocolate chips.
- Divide the batter amongst the muffin liners and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until a skewer comes out mostly clean. If you notice the tops browning too quickly, cover it with tinfoil around the 8 minute mark.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool for 5 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published February 2017
What happens if I use 100% whey protein? That’s all I have.
Hi Nancy- you risk the muffins drying out. Whey is infamous for that. You could try adding extra liquid and being pedantic about checking on them until done, but I really do recommend getting some casein or brown rice.
They cooked well, super easy recipe! But definitely not something kids would like to increase their protein intake. As an adult on a strict diet they’re great!
Hi Chunk- sorry to hear that! Did you use a flavored protein powder? I’ve had many families comment saying they make them for their kids who enjoy them- I think a good flavored protein powder and some chocolate chips make it a little more fun!
Love this recipe. Is it gluten.free ?
Hi Gina, it is yes!
I am a calcium oxalate stone former. Is there an alternative to almond flour?
Hi Barbara- sunflower seed flour or cashew flour works. They are both equal swaps!
Could I use regular flour?
You could, lyn, but I’d probably look to add a little milk or water to smooth out the batter. Regular flour is a little more absorbent than almond flour.
Very good! I only had chocolate protein powder, but it was still very good!
Wonderful, Rachel. I’m so glad to hear that. I’ve made them with it before for a subtle chocolate flavor.
What brand of protein powder do you use?
Thank you, LinD
great recipe
Thanks so much, Dianne- glad you enjoyed the recipe.
I love your recipes! Thank you for sharing them. Can I put vanilla and/or egg whites and/or fruit in your protein muffins? I only use unflavored protein powder.
Thank you!
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca- I wouldn’t do the egg whites, but vanilla extract and mixable fruit, like berries, are great. Try to stick to around 1/2 cup 🙂
I have made this with banana, apple sauce, and pumpkin because they are so good! I had to adjust the time with each, but they always taste great. Pumpkin is my fave so far. Added a little sugar free pancake syrup because the batter was really thick. It actually took the longest to cook with pumpkin too, but they were still delicious 😋
Thanks for the detailed review and feedback, Christina. I love that you used all three starch bases. Pumpkin does add a little something doesn’t it? I usually like banana because they remind me of banana bread protein muffins.
I love how these taste but the cooking time is not right at all. I cook it for about 20 mins. I noticed someone commented that the applesauce might’ve made it too thin. What do you think?
Hi Leslee, if you find that your batter is a little thin you can definitely add a little more almond flour. Different types of protein powder will absorb liquid differently so a little bit of balancing is sometimes required in terms of moisture and cooking time. So glad you like the taste though!
So I really love the recipe, but I was wondering if there was anything other than peanut butter or any nut butter that could be used
Hi Lys! A seed butter works really well- I’ve made them with sunflower seed butter and tahini before.
Can Greek yogurt be used instead of applesauce?
Hi Anita- I’d recommend using mashed banana or pumpkin puree over Greek yogurt- it will make the crumb nice and tender but a little gummy in the middle.
Hi. I used Greek yogurt with PB fit instead of peanut butter but found one cup of apple sauce to be too liquidy so I had to add more almond flour. I also added blueberries 😎
Oh nice on those changes Laurie- glad you tweaked it to make them into muffins 🙂