I am too excited about this muffin recipe to wait until St. Patrick’s Day! I’ve had great luck in the past using pureed spinach to turn pancakes green, so I knew I could make a green muffin. Not only do I think these turned out fantastic, even Mr. Picky loved them, too. Although I did tell him a little lie and said I used green food coloring and he just lit up, eyes wide, “Really?! You did?! Really, Mom?! Like the unhealthy kind?!” Honestly, I’m a little disappointed that my son actually thinks I would use food coloring in a muffin. And just as disappointed that he would be excited to eat that same muffin. I had to lie again. Actually, buddy, it’s a natural green food coloring which gets its color from spinach. Bummed out face. I know for a minute there he thought I suddenly turned into an exciting mom, one who would take risks and dare to use carcinogens! “Oh. They’re still good, I guess.”
And they are good! These muffins are lightly sweet, moist, simple and BRIGHT GREEN because they are loaded with spinach! St. Patrick’s Day is a HUGE opportunity to get green foods into your kids because they are expecting them. You’re showing your spirit. On any other day, green muffins are you just trying to sneak leafy greens into your kids who are not fooled. But the closer we get to March 17th, green muffins are part of the fun!
This is a very basic muffin recipe. The spinach is undetectable and the banana is very subtle. But if you hate banana, you might be able to sub 1/2 cup of applesauce. I think adding walnuts or chocolate chips would be great, too. One of my daughters suggested cream cheese frosting, although then these become cupcakes which is fine, too. These tasted best the day they were made and the next day, too. They lasted just fine a few days on the countertop in a sealed container, but I would freeze what you don’t think you’ll eat within a couple days. Let me know if you make these and if you get lucky!
Green Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour, white whole wheat flour or spelt flour (or use 2 cups of King Arthur Multi-purpose Gluten-free Flour + 1 teaspoon xanthan gum)
- 2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine ground sea salt
- 1 large egg
- ¾ cup pure maple syrup, Grade A or Grade B
- ¾ cup dairy or non-dairy milk, such as almond milk
- ¼ cup unrefined coconut oil, melted
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 5- or 6-ounce bag of fresh baby spinach leaves
- 2 medium ripe bananas, mashed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with unbleached parchment liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a blender add egg, maple syrup, milk, oil, vanilla and spinach. Process until pureed.
- Add spinach mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in the mashed banana.
- Scoop batter into prepared muffin tin, filling cups about ¾ full. I like to do this with a large ice cream scooper. Bake about 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Store at room temperature up to 3 days. These freeze nicely!
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Have you tried these with any other flour? I’d like to try with garbanzo bean flour
Hmmm….garbanzo bean flour is not my favorite for sweet recipes. It has a very bean-y flavor. You can do a GF flour blend with rice, oat, sorghum if you’re interested or a GF flour blend like King Arthur. You have to add xanthan gum though.
Would you be able to recommend a healthy icing to go with these?
Some people like lightly sweetened whipped coconut cream as an icing. Or I posted a healthified faux cream cheese icing with this recipe:https://pamelasalzman.com/whole-wheat-carrot-cake-with-dairy-free-frosting-recipe/ 🙂
Hi there! This recipe sounds great, I can’t wait to try it. I am wondering if honey would work instead of maple syrup??
Thanks!
Yes, absolutely. Same amount 🙂
Could you substitute spinach for kale?
I think someone tried that but I don’t remember. Spinach blends really well into the liquid mix, kale not as well. But it’s worth a try!
Could I sub AP flour or GF AP flour? If so, what would the conversion be? Thanks!
yes, absolutely. AP flour is 1 to 1. For GF flour you need to find a GF flour BLEND that is a 1 to 1, like Bob’s Red Mill or King Arthur.
These muffins are great! My 6yr old and 4yr old twins love them – I’ve made 2 batches in 2 days to keep in the freezer as the demand is high. I used a flax egg and added chia seeds the second time. Anytime all 3 really enjoy something, I know I’ve found a winner – thank you!
How great! Thanks for letting me know. 🙂
These are fantastic! Such a hit with everyone, especially my little ones that are often anti-greens. They have actually asked me to make these over and over…Thanks for such a great recipe!!
Great news!
These muffins are addictive! In a good way, of course. Big hit with my husband and 13 yr old son.
Great!
Made today and cooked in donut pans. Finished in exactly 20 min and made about two dozen. Excellent recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Donuts! Best idea I’ve heard all day. Thanks for the great idea!
What can I say–I’m a sucker for a healthy donut! Glad I could inspire you back! On a side note, I followed the recipe exactly, except I used 1 cup all purpose and 1 cup self-rising flour, both unbleached white bc that’s what I had.
How cool. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing. I made these for St. Paddy’s and they turned out great. I also used 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all-purpose flour and almond milk.
I always love hearing adaptations. Thanks for sharing!
These were wonderful! My son has problems with dyes so we are always looking for fun recipes without dye. This made 18 muffins and my kids each ate 4 (during the course of the day). They are not spinach eaters so I was so happy to get some spinach in their diets! Thank you for the great recipe! It was perfect for st Pattys day…or any day! A new fav! Btw, I used 1/2 white ww and 1/2 all purpose flour and they came out great!
That’s amazing! By the way, even people who don’t have problems with dyes shouldn’t eat dyes. Yuck, yuck, yuck! You’re a good mama. 🙂
I just made another batch of these for my sons birthday party tomorrow (at his request). I want to frost them. Do you have any amazing frosting recipes up your sleeve? I thought about trying the cashew cream recipe from your site, but I’m almost out of cashews…
I love the cashew cream frosting, but that’s really the only one I have that’s kind of healthy. Otherwise I would just do a cream cheese frosting with a little honey or Grade A maple syrup and a drop of vanilla. 🙂
Thank you! I ended up making a whipped cream with 2T of maple syrup and a dash of vanilla. I sprinkled a little Maggie’s naturals green sprinkles on at the last minute. The kids loved them, but I didn’t think they were quite right… I will experiment with your cashew cream or cream cheese frosting before the next birthday.
I’m sure they were still good with the whipped cream, but I know what you mean. 🙂