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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.
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!
I absolutely loved this recipe. I had extra sweet potatoes and did not know what to do with them, until I came upon this recipe. So happy I found it. I did add extra Ground ginger to it and it was amazing.
Just made them and they are sooooo good!! Made them vegan and switched sugar for honey.
I finally had a chance to make these. They. Are. Amazing. Thanks so much for the recipe!!
You are so welcome, Patrick!
Hi!
I can’t wait to try these Flourless Sweet Potato Muffins but I just had a few questions. 1) The video at the top of the page shows you using a blender and you added carrots. How much carrot are you supposed to add since it doesn’t say anything about it in the recipe. 2) Is there something I could use instead of nut butter? This time I was going to try making them with peanut butter (is that alright?) but in the future, I’d like to make them with something else so I can bring them with me to work. I’m a teacher and our entire school must be nut-free. I imagine, based on the ingredients (other than the nut butter) that these would almost be like a spice cake muffin or carrot muffin 🙂
Thanks in advance!
Hi there! Yes you can add a littlw carrot to it 🙂
Thanks for the reply! I tried these before I received the reply and I don’t know if I did something wrong or they’re just not for me lol. I used peanut butter (since that’s what I had on hand) but that’s all you could smell almost 🙁 It just seemed like a weird mix of sweet potato and peanut butter 🙁 What kind of nut butter do you use? Liked the consistency of the batter and the smell of it until I added the peanut butter. Could you also leave out the nut butter?
Thanks again!
still photos look different (risen well) compared to the video? maybe it’s just me. thanks for posting
So welcome!
I just made this for my toddler and I and they were delicious! Most importantly he ate them up too! Thank you!!
That means so much- Cheers, Marilyn! 🙂
Arman, not being hugely impressed with very many gluten free muffin recipes thus far, your sweet potato muffins are a game changer for us! I did add a few handfuls of shredded coconut and added about 1/2 tsp. ground ginger – these are to die for! Also love the idea of sweetening with coconut sugar (also ground it finer whole grinding the oats). Such a fan of your site! Dianna
Thank you SO much for your kind words, Dianna- It means a ton!
Hello! I loved the recipe and I am wondering, do you think I can prepare them in the night and bake in the morning? Would I leave the dough in the refrigerator? Do you think that would work? Thank you
Hi Karin! I’ve never tried it, but I can’t see it not working- It doesn’t contain yeast and as it’s egg-free, it doesn’t rise too much 🙂
Hello!!!
First of all, I made them and my husband and I just loooved them!!! So since it is me and him only, I baked half and the second half I kept it on the freezer. Two mornings later I added a extra 1/2 tsp baking powder and they turned out so good as the first bake. Thank you for this recipe!!!
I can’t tell from the picture or the other comments… did you use yellow sweet potato or orange yams for the recipe?
Can’t wait to try these!
Hi Kellie! I used orange, but any should work!
Thanks Arman! 🙂
Pet peeve: when a recipe has “flourless” in the title and I get all excited, thinking I’ll be able to make it for my daughter who has an intolerance to grains… Only to find out there is in fact flour in it! Oat flour, or some other gluten-free flour… But it’s still flour. Sorry… I really do like a lot of your recipes (and I might just have to make this one for myself and hide it from my daughter!?), but quite a few if them have deceived me in that way and I just had to comment on it.
I started with your mom’s blueberry cake/load recipe and now I’m just working through anything that is AIP with my favorite foods.
What would you sub the nutmeg and cinnamon for if you were me and liked sweet potatoes for their savory expressions? It’s in the oven now, i sprinkled salt across the top instead of more cinnamon and i also felt like sprinkling drinking chocolate powder across the top for a sweet salty treat.
Hoping the warm fall spices do okay with the combo but figured if not, i’d trim the top off. Doubt it will be a disaster but we’ll see!
🙂 Hi Bee!
YES!!!! This totally works savory- Can you handle dairy/cheese? Swap out the sweetener and add 1/2 cup shredded cheese of choice- I also add some cayenne pepper too 🙂
I’ve made these twice now – love them! Just wanted to share that I used Agave the first time and Honey the 2nd time in place of the 1/2 c. of sugar – I lessened the amount to 1/3c – turned out perfect AND healthier 😉
meant to say *still healthy* – not healthier! 😀 – I didn’t have another sweetener on hand.
Thanks so much for the feedback, Paige- I’m so glad you enjoyed them and those changes sound perfect 🙂
Made these today and yummy! I used coconut flower sugar only a quarter cup and added a few walnuts. Love the spice in them. Mine turned out a little heavy. Maybe because I used a gluten free flour mix (123 Gluten Free brand) think I needed a bit more baking powder or cook an extra few minutes. But still delicious! Thanks.
Hi Donna! I’m so glad you enjoyed them- Thanks for the feedback regarding that flour blend- I’ve never tried it before!
I’ve been looking for a recipe like this for ages! Amazing as I am gluten, dairy, egg, yeast and even sugar free. I’m just cooking these… Even before they went in the oven the dough tasted yummy (and I’ve even left the sugar/sweetener). My only worry is they are still cooking and have been in for twice as long as you said. The bottoms are still really soggy! The tops have gone really nice and crispy and the bits I’m sampling as they cook (just checking them) are delicious! It’s just the timings – am I doing something wrong? Hoping to get these right as they are perfect ingredients and taste good so far! Thanks! : )
Hi Nicola! Yay- I’m so glad you’ve tried it out!
Hmmmm…Do you mind me asking if you used canned sweet potatoes or you steamed your own? They tend to impact the cooking time a little it! The bottoms shouldn’t be soggy though- The centre should be really moist…..
These are the best healthy muffins I have ever made. They are delicious and moist, and I will definitely be making them again for my family.
Wow- Thanks so much for your kind words, Kelly- I appreciate it! 🙂
I am seriously excited to make these muffins. I have all the ingredients at home already, including the palm sugar. Woot woot!
Oooh, it depends! I gotta have my green tea fix all the time, but I do love people! I love all of the recipes you collected in this post, Arman, including yours! Knowing that I am the biggest sweet potato fanatic, it’s time for me to go crazy!!
I like the idea of putting sweet potato into muffins. #spudlove
White potato flourless muffins one day 😉
Arman, I am 100% not trying to be snarky here, but genuinely curious. Is oat flour not considered a flour? I’m wondering why you call these flourless when they have oat flour. Honest question. 🙂
Hi Maryea! No worries at all- I don’t consider them to be a flour as they started out as rolled oats. From what I’ve seen on many blogs, they title recipes flourless when using oats/oat flour- I guess it’s a personal preference. I’ve called all my ‘oat flour’ recipes which don’t use standard flours ‘flourless’, so will continue to do so 🙂
Dear Arman, these look wonderful. What a wonderful array of recipes my friend. Have a wonderful weekend, Catherine
Thanks so much Catherine 🙂
These muffins look so good, as do the other recipes!
Thanks so much, Joanne!
Wow these look fantastic. They almost make me want to ditch college and leave for Columbus so you can make them for me, but I would miss your COOKIES! 😉
My favorite way to eat sweet potato is probably in bewb muffins.
Hahaha AMEN. BEWB muffins for life!
I remember having a caffiene dependency and it was the worst! If I didn’t have coffee in the AM I got a headache. I finally got off it and have been decaf ever since. I still drink coffee but just for the taste and warmth.
My favorite form of sweet potato is fries or chips. Nothing better 🙂
Oh wow- I’m impressed! I am so lost without coffee!
I love the dual personality intro, lol. Those oven fumes will do that to ya. 😉
These muffins though. They’re everything. I want to stuff my cheeks full of them!
Hahahaha SEE? this is why I can’t use ovens.
Hope you have a great Thanksgiving today, Sarah! eat some Tofurkey. 🙂 (ew, don’t).
Such a beautiful crumb. <3
Thanks Kate!
Oh my gosh sweet potatoes. I love them. Your muffins look awesome, but I’m also totally drooling over the home fries. My favorite way to eat a sweet potato is either roasted or in a casserole on Thanksgiving with marshmallows on top. I totally want lunch now.
HOW amazing do they look? I like white potatoes more but then saw them….hello.
YUM to the OOOOOOOO! These look heavenly!
Thanks Kaila! Hope you have a fantastic day today!
I’m all about flourless muffins! I love sweet potato too, especially this time of year!
Thanks Natalie! Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!
Send a basket of treats already, would you? The end.
Dear USPS.
Thank you.
This is the best sweet potato muffins recipe I’ve ever made and i’ve made tons of them. Super moist and fluffy! Making them again now!
Love these gorgeous muffins, Arman. Yeah, let’s not rush the holidays (or days in general.) I’m with you, gonna savor the November days and THEN we’ll free fall into Christmas. Throw me a muffin!
Throwing ten at you 🙂 Have a fantastic day today, Allie! 🙂
I’m so excited to try this recipe! We are trying to cut down on carbs so I’m wondering if I could substitute almond or coconut flour?
Hi Nicole! I’ve never tried it with those but let me know if you do 🙂
Hi Arman,
Do you have any suggestions for replacing the oats? Thanks!
Hi Shelley! You could try ground up quinoa flakes- A reader had success with that 🙂
Hi Nicole- did you ever try with coconut or almond flour?
I can’t believe it’s already November, goodness gracious, skidamarinki doooooo! <- Sorry. These muffs look so tastic, I want the whole lot of them! You just brilliant, sir. You brilliant.
Hahahah I am stealing that line.
Thanks so much buddy!
this is why i love sweet potatoes, they can be incorporated into any meal ranging from enchiladas to muffins! I can’t get enough!
Yummy! 🙂
Oh man I want to eat every single recipe you just posted right now! I need to eat breakfast!
It’s too good!