Hearty Ginger Oatmeal Cherry Gluten-Free Breakfast Muffins

I’ve wanted a good muffin that was not only delicious but also a nutritiously healthy way to start the day. Sounds hard to come by, right? Well, these muffins make it easy!

In general, muffins are a great way to sneak in some good-for-you ingredients like carrots, oats, and ginger without making a bland old veggie snack. If you add just enough sweetness to your muffins, you’ll get a result that keeps you (and your family) coming back for more –which is exactly what this muffin recipe does.

I made these muffins for the first time years ago when we had an ice storm, and my food supplies were meager, and I was craving something warm and comforting — and sweet, let’s be honest — but not too sugary. Every recipe I looked up didn’t match the ingredients in my house, so I improvised and threw what I had in the bowl with the hopes it’d turn out tasty. Luckily enough, it did.

I managed to create a pretty wholesome and delicious muffin that was gluten-free, dairy-free, and low on sugar, making it an excellent option for a healthy breakfast. I even added in some ginger and cherry, which worked surprisingly well together. Now, years later, my family loves these muffins too.

These ginger oatmeal cherry muffins are the perfect gluten-free breakfast to share with friends and family, especially since they are also friendly for those with dairy intolerances.

These breakfast muffins bake up a little shorter than standard muffins, but they make up for it in flavor. I hope you love these muffins as much as I do!

How To Make Hearty Ginger Oatmeal Cherry Gluten-Free Breakfast Muffins

Ingredients 

Instructions

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Step 2

Combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

Step 3

In a separate bowl, combine mashed banana, almond milk, egg, and vanilla.

Step 4

Stir carrot, apple, pumpkin seeds, and raisins into the wet mixture.

Step 5

Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir until just combined.

Step 6

Line a muffin tray with liners or spray with non-stick spray.

Step 7

Scoop batter into muffin cups until 3/4 full.

Step 8

Place muffin tin in the oven and bake for 20-25 mins (mine took 23 mins).

Step 9

Remove from oven and let cool for 10 mins.

Step 10

Remove from tray and let cool completely on a wire rack. Serve and enjoy!

Step 11

If you have any leftovers, these muffins keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container… if you can exercise more restraint than I did!

Alternative Ingredients

Gluten-Free

Make sure your oats are gluten-free by buying the certified organic options from the store. I love Bob Mill’s Gluten-Free Organic Oats. You could also use oat flour or almond flour instead of all-purpose gluten-free flour, but the ratios will be slightly different, so be sure to look them up before using them.

A general tip for using oat flour is to reduce the all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour ratio by 25% and replace it with an equal amount of oat flour.

Ginger

If you don’t want as strong of a ginger flavor for your muffins, use powdered ginger instead of freshly grated ginger.

Sugar

Brown sugar or coconut sugar are also great alternatives if you want to sub out raw cane sugar.

Applesauce

Use ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce as a substitute for the mashed ripe banana. The banana will give your muffins a deeper flavor, but not all of us have a brown banana handy, am I right?

I’ll share a nifty trick I learned for quickly ripening a banana. If you throw a green or yellow banana in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 to 30 minutes, you should have a ripened banana ready to go! I suggest using a baking liner as the banana will probably leak while in the oven.

Another option for having a ripe banana ready to go is to throw any browning bananas in your freezer as you come across them. Many baking recipes call for ripe bananas, and it’s so much easier when you have a stash of them ready to go in your freezer.

Coconut Milk

If you don’t have almond milk, coconut milk is a great substitute–if you love coconut flavor! Using coconut milk will make these muffins taste more coconut-y, so just beware before making this swap! I personally love the coconut flavor in these muffins, but it’s not for everyone.

Nuts

Chopped walnuts would be delicious in these muffins if you have them handy in your pantry. You could add them on top of everything or sub walnuts instead of pumpkin seeds. Just grab a handful and sprinkle in the mixture before pouring the batter into the baking pan.

Chocolate

Chocolate chips are always an option if you want a little more chocolatey flavor to these baked goods. Chocolate seriously goes with so many flavors, especially ginger and cherry! I love Trader Joe’s semi-sweet chocolate chips. Enjoy Life has dairy-free chocolate chips that are so delicious!

Raisins

If you don’t have dried cherries or would rather use a different dried fruit, raisins are a great substitute. You still get the fruity flavor with every bite, and these go well with the ginger and oat notes, too.

Let me know what you think of these muffins in the comments below!

Approximate Nutritional Value per Muffin: 132 calories, 2.2 g fat, 13 g cholesterol, 26 g carbs, 11.6 g sugar, 2.8 g protein.

Hearty Ginger Oatmeal Cherry Gluten-Free Breakfast Muffins

• Author: Teri from A Foodie Stays Fit
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 20-25 minutes
• Total Time: 1 minute

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Gluten-Free flour (I usually use Cup 4 Cup or Pamela’s)
• 1 cup rolled oats (not quick-cooking or instant)
• 1/2 cup turbinado raw cane sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 very ripe banana, mashed
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup grated carrot (about 2 carrots)
• 1 cup grated apple (about 1/2 large apple)
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger (I use a zester to grate it.)
• 1/3 cup shelled pumpkin seeds
• 1/3 cup dried cherries

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, combine mashed banana, almond milk, egg, and vanilla.
4. Stir carrot, apple, pumpkin seeds, and raisins into the wet mixture.
5. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir until just combined.
6. Line a muffin tray with liners or spray with non-stick spray.
7. Scoop batter into muffin cups until 3/4 full.
8. Place muffin tin in the oven and bake for 20-25 mins (mine took 23 mins).
9. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 mins.
10. Remove from tray and let cool completely on a wire rack. Serve and enjoy!
11. If you have any leftovers, these muffins keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container… if you can exercise more restraint than I did!

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 Muffin
• Calories: 132
• Sugar: 11.6 g
• Fat: 2.2 g
• Carbohydrates: 26 g
• Protein: 2.8 g
• Cholesterol: 13 g