First, read our General Recipe Tips. Then, enjoy this recipe!  This same recipe makes either a carrot cake or carrot cake muffins.

What You Need:

• 1 box Marion's Gluten-Free Cookie & Muffin Baking Mix
• 2 large eggs or equivalent egg replacer (analysis with 2 large eggs)
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon low sodium baking powder
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
• ⅔ cup extra light olive oil
• ⅓ cup raisins
• 1 ½ cup grated carrots
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• Optional ingredient: ½ cup finely chopped walnuts

Directions:

• Line baking pan with paper cups or spray with GF baking spray.
• Grate and measure 1 ½ cups of carrots (about 2 medium size carrots).
• Optional chop and measure ½ cup of walnuts.
• Measure ⅓ cup of raisins.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place Marion's Cookie and Muffin Mix in a bowl; add baking powder and cinnamon. Mix with whisk.
• Add egg and olive oil.
• Mix (with electric mixer) for 10 seconds at low speed and 1-2 minutes at high speed.
• Add chopped carrots, and vanilla extract and mix for 30 second to 1 minute at medium speed.
• Using a spoon or medium size ice cream scoop, fill baking cups.
• As muffin: Bake 20 to 25 minutes depending on your oven. Do tooth pick prick test after 20 minutes. As bread: Bake 30 to 45 minutes depending on your oven.

Nutritional analysis for 1/12 of the recipe: Calories 211, Calories from Fat 115, Total Fat 13g, Saturated Fat 2g, Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 35mg, Sodium 60mg, Total Carbohydrate 24g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 7g, Protein 2g, Vitamin A 55%, Vitamin C 2%, Calcium 8% Iron 4%

View the Cream Cheese Icing Recipe.

A word about the "good stuff" in these carrot cake muffins: At 68 grams, our large carrot cake muffins are a bit larger than the usual FDA serving size. Still, they are a bit lower in calories than most muffins you would purchase in a coffee shop or store. They also treat your taste buds to delicious flavor while treating your body to lower amounts of sugar and sodium, 8 grams of healthy whole grain per serving, and all-natural ingredients, and they bake with heart-healthy fats. As an extra touch for a very special breakfast or brunch, you may enjoy adding the cream cheese icing or a tablespoon of your own favorite reduced-sugar cream cheese.  If you would like to sneak a bit of extra fiber into your muffins, go ahead and add 1-2 tablespoons of flax seeds. Yum and you get the extra health benefits of the flax!

Additional variations and suggestions:

• For moister muffins: Add 4 tablespoons of unsweetened apple sauce to the dough before baking.
• Vegan and low-cholesterol version: Replace the 2 eggs with 3 teaspoons of Chia/Salba seeds. (This reduces the calories per 68 gram muffin by 10 and results in absolutely 0 cholesterol.)
• Cut the calories in half: For a tasty, nutritious lunch box treat make this recipe into 24 mini muffins. Change the baking time to about 15-18 minutes. You can freeze each muffin in a storage bag and pop them out of your freezer to be placed in a loved one's lunch box. 
• Make ahead: These muffins and min-muffins freeze well for you to enjoy whenever you like.