Spinach Muffins – Regular & Mini Versions

Spinach muffins have been one of my family’s favorite muffins for a while. I make these muffins whenever I have a large bag of fresh baby spinach that I need to use up fast. They taste like a treat but with less sugar than store-bought muffins with spinach as a bonus. You won’t taste the spinach at all. They just make the color of the muffins vibrantly green. Don’t you think they are beautiful?

When I created this recipe, my goal was to make spinach muffins that tasted like a treat. We eat them as a snack or dessert with some added green goodness. This recipe has cane sugar in it, and the crunchiness from crystallized sugar around the edges is just too good to pass. I’ve tried making these with maple syrup instead of sugar a few times, but I keep going back to the sugar version.

Coconut flakes for more flavor

One morning, I made a mini version of these muffins and added coconut flakes for more flavor. Oh, these turned out so delicious. Thanks to the mini size, the subtle crunch was in every bite, and I ended up eating a few too many. As they cooled down, although the crunch was gone, the coconut flavor became more pronounced. They were delicious that way as well.

White whole wheat flour for more nutrients

I’m not a fan of regular whole wheat flour in soft baked goods. Instead, I use white whole wheat flour by King Arthur. This flour is milled from hard white spring wheat (vs. red wheat.) It’s equally nutritious as regular whole wheat flour, but it’s lighter in color and milder in taste. The spinach muffins with white whole wheat flour still come out beautifully green.

Helpful baking tools

For regular size muffins, I typically line the muffin tin with paper cups for easy clean-up. However, since the mini muffin cup is already so small, I recommend forgoing the liners and use a baking spray with flour in it. I like to use Baker’s Joy. A good non-stick muffin tin is also worth the investment. After trying to scrub the food out without luck, I’ve thrown away many mini muffin tins. USA pan is my favorite – The muffins will come out with no problem. For scooping the batter into the tin, this 1 tbsp cookie scoop works perfectly for mini muffins.

Freeze the muffins for later

The biggest reason why I love muffins is that they freeze wonderfully. One batch of muffins can cover a couple of weeks of school snacks (although I wouldn’t pack the same thing straight for two weeks.) Once the muffins are cooled down, place them on a tray or a baking sheet. Freeze for 1~2 hours in a single layer. Once muffins are hardened, store them in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. I used Zwilling Fresh and Save Vacuum sealer to prevent freezer burn. You can let the frozen muffins defrost at room temperature or microwave briefly (about 30 seconds per muffin.)

Also, check out beet and carrot mini muffins.

5 from 3 votes

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Mini Spinach Muffins with Coconut Flakes

Vibrantly green and coconutty mini muffins

Course Snack

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 13 minutes

Servings 24 mini muffins

Author whiteblankspace

Ingredients

• 1 cup packed baby spinach
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk I used whole milk
• 1/4 cup avocado oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour or white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup coconut flakes unsweetened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and preheat to 375 F.

2. In a high-speed blender, blend spinach, egg, milk, oil, and vanilla extract.

3. Mix flour, coconut flakes, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
4. Gently mix the wet ingredients and dry ingredients using a rubber spatula. Don’t over-mix.

5. Spray a mini muffin tin with a baking spray such as Baker's Joy that has flour in it. Using a cookie scoop, divide batter into muffin cups. Fill about 2/3 of each cups.

6. Bake for about 13 minutes.
7. Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transfer to a wire rack. If freezing, freeze in a single layer until solid and then transfer to a freezer-safe bag.

Recipe Notes

You can substitute 1/2 cup of coconut flakes with 1/4 cup of almond flour or 1/4 cup of all purpose flour

5 from 3 votes

Print

Spinach Muffins

Vibrantly green and subtly sweet spinach muffins for the whole family.

Course Snack

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 19 minutes

Servings 12 muffins

Author whiteblankspace

Ingredients

• 2 cups packed baby spinach
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup avocado oil
• 3/4 cup milk I used whole milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or white whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 425F. Insert paper cups into a muffin tin.

2. In a high-speed blender, blend spinach, eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla extract.

3. In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
4. Gently mix the wet ingredients and dry ingredients using a rubber spatula. Don’t over-mix.
5. Using an ice cream scoop, divide batter into muffin cups.
6. Bake for 10 minutes at 425F. Lower heat to 350F and bake for additional 7~9 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
7. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving. If freezing, freeze in a single layer until solid and then transfer to a freezer-safe bag.

Let’s test out this recipe

I am happy to have an eager recipe tester, Kalya, on board, who tried out this recipe and shared her feedback. Kayla is a rookie home cook, understandably, still attending high school. I’m excited to have Kalya’s feedback, as I’m sure some of the readers here are also just learning to cook. I hope you find this section helpful and relatable.

Kayla: “I have to admit that I was a little hesitant to make these because of the color, which reminded me of Shrek and pesto. I wasn’t sure if I, a very very inexperienced baker, could pull this one off but I was committed to giving it a try. I usually only turn towards box cakes and occasionally box brownies. However, these spinach muffins are perfect for beginner bakers. First, I started out by combining the wet ingredients in the blender, which turned into a really nice shade of green, almost like matcha. After I combined the wet and dry ingredients, I found that the batter was gooier than the original texture but ended up adding it to the muffin tray without adding more flour. Now looking back, I think that it was a good choice not to add more flour because the muffins turned out to be the perfect texture. Not too watery and not too stiff, just like the Goldilocks of muffins. Once I took out the muffins from the oven, the sides were a little burnt but other than that they looked really tasty. It was amazing to see that the muffins had risen A LOT and smelled AMAZING. The coconut crunch also complimented the muffin really nicely. But I do have to say that the coconut was a little bitter by itself because it was unsweetened. I was also really surprised that I could hardly taste the spinach. Despite the vibrant green color, the taste of the spinach was pretty much nonexistent, which was a plus for me! This recipe is also a really nice way of getting vegetables in your diet while still having a nice snack. These muffins would be PERFECT for Halloween because of the spooky green color and the taste accustomed to everyone of all ages. Children especially would adore these because they look intriguing and taste very good! However, if you have a sweet tooth, you can always add more sugar or icing to match your tastebuds.”

Heejee: I want to add to some good points made here. If you have little ones, you can call these muffins “Shrek,” “Grinch,” or “Hulk” muffins for extra fun. The mini muffin batter (not the regular ones) is definitely on the runnier side, but don’t be alarmed when you’re mixing the batter. I like how the texture turns out crunchy on the outside and very moist inside. For that crunchy texture, using cane sugar is a must. If you substitute the sugar with maple syrup or honey, there will be less crystalization on the edges. You can opt for softer muffins with less browned edges by lowering the oven temperature to 350 F and baking until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. I personally love the taste of coconut here, but I know coconut flakes are not for everyone. My eldest refused to eat the muffins with coconut for a long time (now she does), so I used to make a separate batch for her without coconut flakes. Add extra couple tablespoons of flour to the batter if coconut flakes are omitted.

Hello from Kayla: “My name is Kayla and I am currently trying out new recipes from this blog. From my own amateur baking and cooking experiences with making these dishes, hopefully, you guys can gain some insight and have a good laugh!”