Serve up veggies in a kid-friendly form with these SO good Veggie Muffins. They have broccoli, carrots, protein, and picky eater approved flavor!
Veggie Muffins
With broccoli, carrots, and cheese, these savory muffins are like a corn muffin with a load of extra flavor. They’re a fun way to change up the usual muffins you make for the kids and have a nicely balanced mix of nutrients too—with protein, fiber, calcium, and Vitamin C. We love to have these for simple lunches and breakfasts, with sides like fruit and hard-cooked eggs, or to pair them with soup.
TIP: These are a great baby muffin since they’re made without added sugar. Omit the salt if making for a baby since they won’t need the extra flavor.
Ingredients in Veggie Muffins
To make this recipe you’ll need:
- grated carrot
- finely chopped broccoli
- shredded cheese
- egg
- butter
- milk
- cornmeal
- whole wheat flour
- baking soda and powder
TIP: You’ll want to use just the top parts of each broccoli floret so you avoid using any of the harder stems. This will help ensure a fluffy overall texture to the muffins. You can chop the tops of the broccoli florets or cut that part off with a pair of kitchen shears.
How to Make Veggie Muffins Step by Step
These muffins are so easy to make once you have the veggies prepped. Here’s a look at what to expect.
- Stir the ingredients together.
- Divide among 12 muffin cups.
- Bake!
- Let cool slightly on a wire rack.
TIP: These are a great make-ahead meal. To store, place cooled muffins into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat for 15-30 seconds and serve warm. You can also freeze them.
Can I make these Veggie Muffins vegan?
I don’t have a dairy and egg-free option for this recipe, but check out some of my other veggie muffins: Carrot Cake Muffins, Flourless Chocolate Protein Muffins (with Hidden Veggies), Corn Muffins with Squash and Butternut Squash Muffins.
Tips for Making the Best Veggie Muffins
- Use just the top parts of each broccoli floret so you avoid using any of the harder stems. This will help ensure a fluffy overall texture to the muffins. You can chop the tops of the broccoli florets or cut that part off with a pair of kitchen shears.
- Use gluten-free cup for cup flour blend in place of the whole wheat flour to make these gluten-free.
- To store, place cooled muffins into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat for 15-30 seconds and serve warm. Or freeze for up 3 months in the freezer in a zip top storage bag with a much air removed as possible. Thaw in the fridge or at room temperature and warm to serve.
- These pair nicely with soup and salad, or are a nice lunch or breakfast main dish with simple sides such as fruit, eggs, or additional veggies.
Watch me make these easy muffins below!
I’d love to hear your feedback on these muffins if you try them—comments are SUPER important to the success of my website. Please comment below to share and thank you!
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I like to grate the carrot on a box grater and cut the top of each broccoli floret off and finely dice with a knife. Avoid the stems since they won’t blend into the batter as well.
Ingredients
- 1 cup grated carrot
- 1 cup grated broccoli (top parts of the florets only, no stems)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup melted butter or neutral oil like canola
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and grease a standard muffin tin with nonstick spray.
- Place all ingredients into a medium bowl and stir together gently to combine. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin tin, filling each about 3/4 full.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out cleanly. Remove from oven, let cool in the pan for a minute or two, then transfer to a wire rack to cool at least slightly.
- Serve warm or store.
Notes
Use just the top parts of each broccoli floret so you avoid using any of the harder stems. This will help ensure a fluffy overall texture to the muffins. You can chop the tops of the broccoli florets or cut that part off with a pair of kitchen shears.
Use a box grater to grate the carrot. You’ll need about 1-2 medium or large carrots depending on the size.
Use gluten-free cup for cup flour blend in place of the whole wheat flour to make these gluten-free.
To store, place cooled muffins into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat for 15-30 seconds and serve warm. Or freeze for up 3 months in the freezer in a zip top storage bag with a much air removed as possible. Thaw in the fridge or at room temperature and warm to serve.
These pair nicely with soup and salad, or are a nice lunch or breakfast main dish with simple sides such as fruit, eggs, or additional veggies.
This recipe is so good, the addition of cornmeal is a game-changer. My 13 months old and I really enjoyed it. My husband who was very skeptical ate 3 in 1 sitting.
★★★★★
Yes! I love passing the husband test!
Hi Amy,
I am loving all the recipes, but my 3yr old is very has a thing with texture where if she can see chunks, she won’t even try. Would I be able to use a food processor for the veggies in this muffin or most of your recipes? Thank you!
Hi. I think for this if you blend up the wet ingredients, then stir in the flour it should work okay. (I haven’t tried it but my best guess is that it will be fine.)
Can I use frozen broccoli?
Yes, though I would still recommend using as much of the top of the florets and less of the stems as possible to avoid tough stems in the muffins.
HI Amy, This looks so yummy!!! I have a question though, would it be okay to use just the whole wheate flour?
I think that should work just fine!
My 1-year old loves these! They are super easy to make and freeze well. Thanks so much!
★★★★★
These came out awesome! Perfect for my picky 2 year old. I used all purpose flour in place of whole wheat flour and almond flour in place of corn meal because that’s what I had on hand. It worked out perfectly. I may have used more than a cup of carrots as well. My recipe made 17 muffins, no complains about extras! Have you frozen them and then reheated in the microwave? That’s what I plan to do but I was wondering if it works out well.
★★★★★
I’m so glad! Yes, they do freeze and reheat well. I’d heat for 1 minute from frozen, then in 15-30 second increments so they don’t get too hot. It may vary based on your microwave.
Hi Amy…looking forward to making these today! Though I don’t have cornmeal on hand…I’ve read that ground flax can work as a substitute – do you think 1:1?
Would also like to do as minis as well – can you recommend baking time?
Thank you!
Another win! I used the pre-shredded broccoli carrot mix from Trader Joes which was super helpful. I also crumbled some aged cheddar cheese that wasn’t grater friendly and it worked quite well! The only thing I would say is to add some seasonings (maybe a herb mix with oregano and sage) to the veggies to flavor them and complement the cheese. Otherwise, I love!
★★★★★
Would this recipe be ok for a 10 month old, even with the cow’s milk used in the recipe?
You could use unsweetened nondairy milk if you prefer.
These are delicious – I made them into mini muffins and my daughter ate 4 ‘for dessert’ after her dinner.
★★★★★
I’m so glad to hear that!
I made these today, followed the recipe as is with the addition of adding “Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute” and they were delicious. Oh and I made them into mini muffins. Thank you so much for the recipe!
I bet that seasoning is great!
This recipe was easy and a great way to incorporate veggies into our lunch/dinner routine! My family found them a little bland as prepared (Cajun influence 😂), but I think a simple addition of extra spices would, to steal a phrase, kick it up a notch! I also ended up finely dicing baby carrots instead of grating and it turned out well.
★★★★
I bet they would be good with extra spice!