These grain-free muffins are so moist and delicious, I’ve often added a dollop of whipped cream to the top and called them dessert! For a special way to say “I Love U!” check out the picture below.
These adorable Strawberry Heart Muffins are a sweet way to show you care. Simply dice some fresh strawberries for placing in the center of the muffin, then top each muffin (prior to baking) with a fresh slice of strawberry cut in the shape of a heart as shown.
Looking for a delicious dairy-free GF muffin? Then, check out the DF-GF version below.
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup plain whole milk yogurt (or plain whole milk kefir)
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (see *note below)
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- **Fresh strawberries and blueberries (fresh raspberries are also a delicious option!)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 315 degrees. Place 10 paper liners in a 12-cup muffin tin; set aside. In a small bowl, add about 4-5 diced fresh strawberries and about a handful of whole fresh blueberries; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, maple syrup and vanilla until well blended. Using a spoon, stir in the almond flour, salt and baking soda until well incorporated.
- Add a spoonful of the muffin batter to each of the lined muffin cups making sure to fill no more than 1/3 of the muffin liner. Using both hands, lift the muffin tin evenly tap the bottom on the counter to evenly distribute the batter in the bottom of the muffin cups.
- Then, add a small amount of berries to each muffin cup. Next, place another spoonful of batter on top of the berries, making sure to evenly distribute the remaining batter among all the muffin cups. Finally, add a bit more fruit to the top of each muffin.
- Bake for approximately 26-30 minutes, until edges begin to turn a golden brown and a toothpick placed in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for at least 5-10 minutes, then serve. Enjoy!
Notes
*Do not substitute the maple syrup with honey or your muffins will be dry and have over-browned bottoms. **Fresh fruit works best with this recipe, as frozen fruit tends to create an excess of moisture which can make for soggy muffins.
These delicious dairy-free, grain-free muffins are so easy to make – simply whip up the batter and add your favorite fresh fruit, such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, banana, peaches, apples – the ideas are endless!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1/4 cup pure honey (we prefer clover honey, as it's mild flavor makes it a perfect choice for baking)
- 3 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a muffin tin with 10 baking cups. In a small bowl, mix almond flour, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, whisk melted coconut oil and honey until well combined. Then, whisk the eggs and vanilla into the coconut oil and honey mixture until well blended. Add dry ingredients to wet and whisk until well combined.
- Add one large spoonful of batter to prepared muffins cups. Lift muffin pan with both hands and evenly tap bottom of the pan on the counter to flatten batter. Then add a sprinkling of your favorite fresh fruit. Top with another large spoonful of batter, tap pan to flatten batter. Top with more fresh fruit. Bake 25-28 minutes, until muffins are slightly golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool five minutes in muffin pan before serving.
I tried this recipe today and it was truly awesome. My 3 daughter is enjoying her muffin. Thank you so much for such easy recipe. I substituted Raw honey instead of maple and kept the temperature slightly low as advised by you. Best regards, Rachita
Terrific, Rachita! So glad you and your family enjoyed them! It’s always good to keep the temperature lower (under 350) when baking for an extended period of time with honey and nut flour – it can burn easily. Blessings, Kelly
I love the strawberry heart muffin toppers! What a great idea! I found your post today via the On Your Heart Tuesday hop 🙂
Welcome to The Nourishing Home, Jessica! So nice to meet you! Glad you like this idea – appreciate you taking time to leave a sweet note! 🙂 Blessings, Kelly
I had to see what the heart on the muffins was when I saw the image on TIme-Warp Wife blog hop. Oh! A Strawberry! How clever…and the recipe looks great too. But I love hearts, so that’s what convinced me I should try this. : ) Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Great to meet you, Gail! So glad you popped over to check out the heart! 🙂 Blessings, Kelly
Both of these recipes look amazing! ! love the strawberry hearts, such a sweet and lovely touch.
I am so glad you like these! Thanks for your other note too! (Look I fixed the typo – LOL!) So glad to meet you! Appreciate your kind words! Blessings, Kelly
What a lovely presentation! Thanks for sharing this good idea. I’m posting a link on my Facebook page. 🙂
Thanks so much, Beth! I appreciate you spreading the word! My younger son is the inspiration with this – he pointed out to me how strawberry slices look like little hearts! So true! Kids are so creative! 🙂
(sorry if this is a second comment – I didn’t see the addition first time…LOL school is out for us and so I kinda “skipped” the addition problem…teee-heee)
We love using yogurt or kefir…makes things so moist – oh, yum!
Your strawberry “hearts” are such a nice touch! I can’t wait to try these beauties…thanks for posting!
Have a blessed day.
Thanks, Dory! I am glad you like the strawberry heart muffin idea. My younger son came up with it! I hope you enjoy these! Thanks for leaving a sweet note! 🙂 Blessings, Kelly
Just made the Mixed Berry Muffins and they are awesome. Kids agree!!! I had some berry kefir so I decided to use it instead of plain and it worked well, I did 3 Tbsp of Maple Syrup since the Berry Kefir has sweetness to it. Used Strawberries. These are a keeper! Thank you for sharing them!
Hooray, so glad you all enjoyed these! Thanks for taking the time to leave a kind note! Blessings, Kelly 🙂
Your muffins sound delicious, and I agree they would be gorgeous for dessert as well. I love how you made the strawberry hearts – what a sweet idea! It’s lovely how you have adapted the recipe for DF and GF diets as well. Thank you for sharing this wonderful post with the Hearth and Soul hop!
Thanks for your kind note, April! I hope you enjoy these! I appreciate you popping over to say “hi!” Thanks for hosting the hearth and soul blog hop! It’s always fun to link up there and see what’s new each week. Blessings, Kelly
Hi Kelly! I was just wondering if there is a flour that I could substitute for the almond flour because my son is allergic to almonds and tree nuts. Is Tapioca Flour a good alternative that is grain free?? I have actually been trying to figure this out for all of the recipes that I use flour in….I am just wondering what alternative I can use without using almond flour…
Thank you friend!
Hi. Ruth! I wish there was a simply substitution that could be made, but when it comes to baking, it’s such a science. How almond flour bakes and the specific ingredients required to create a nice fluffy muffin using almond flour is very different that you would use for any other GF flours or gluten-based flours. I would recommend giving one of my coconut flour muffins a try instead. Coconut flour is made from grinding the dried meat of a coconut (which is a fruit technically, not a nut). Coconut flour does have a nice subtle coconut flavor to it, so if your son isn’t a fan of coconut, this may be a deal breaker 🙂 The reason I use just almond flour and coconut flour for my GF baking is because they are both so nutritious. Other GF flours and flour blends with tapioca, potato and white rice flours are starches without protein, fiber and nutrients, so I avoid these. However, when it comes to cooking for allergies, I can understand there has to be some balance. So if your son is not allergic to wheat or gluten, I’d recommend a whole grain muffin over starch-based GF flours. Here are two options your family may enjoy. I hope this helps! Blessings, sweet friend, 🙂 Kelly
• Whole Grain Mixed Berry Muffins: http://thenourishinghome.com/2012/03/24-hour-power-muffins/
• Lemon Berry Coconut Flour Muffins: http://thenourishinghome.com/2012/03/lemonberry-muffins-gf/
Hi Kelly. I was going to make the famous fruit muffins but was confused where the coconut oil goes. I also don’t see butter in the ingredients list. Help thanks;)
That’s what you’d call a big OOPSIE, Tami! So sorry! I must have had too much butter that day when I typed it. The second recipe for the dairy-free version uses coconut oil, not butter. I fixed the instructions accordingly. Thank you so much for letting me know about this error. (The first recipe uses whole milk yogurt, so no oil or butter is needed. It’s actually my preferred recipe, because the yogurt creates a lighter texture. But if you’re DF, the second one is a definitely a tasty option.) Lots of blessings, Kelly 🙂
Thanks Kelly!!! I will make both;) Your site is so great!!! Thanks for all of the yummy recipes;)
My pleasure, Tami! So happy to know you’re finding my site helpful. Praise God! 🙂
Hi Kelly! I just wanted to say thank you for another wonderful recipe! These were so great. Both of my boys loved them and so did I. Thanks again for your hard work!
Thank you for your kind, encouraging words, Mindy! So glad you and your boys enjoyed these too! Lots of blessings, Kelly 🙂
You are very welcome! I shoukd’ve added that I actually used some frozen fruit also. I was worried about doing so after your warning, but they turned out great. In Ohio, it’s slim pickings with organic fruit this time of year.
I use frozen berries often in the winter, because even if fresh berries are available here in Southern CA, they can actually be more expensive in the winter than frozen ones. Plus, I love to do the U-picks in the summer and stock up and freeze them myself. Berries are SO delicious and good for you! 🙂
Hi Kelly,
Thank you so much for the time you put into sharing all of these awesome nutritious recipes for others! My 9 yr. old son had an IGg test which revealed he should not have wheat, gluten, cows milk, egg yolk or bakers yeast! I feel a bit overwhelmed (even though we’ve tried to always eat a clean whole foods diet) because these were regualar items in his diet. My question is: what can I do instead of using whole eggs in these recipes? Should I use more egg whites or will it ruin the whole thing? Thanks again for your help!
Hi, Myra. I just prayed for you and your son. I hope the information on my site here and recipes can help you feel less overwhelmed. 🙂 The good news is, if your son isn’t allergic to egg whites and you simply need to cook without yolks, this is an easy fix. All you need to do is use two whites for each whole egg called for in a recipe. Also, the majority of my recipes here are either DF or I give an option for DF. Most of the time, coconut milk makes an easy DF substitution. Feel free to ask questions anytime. I started this site to help others and am thankful to God for the opportunity to be an encouragement. Blessings, Kelly 🙂
Oh thank you so much for the prayers, Kelly! How sweet and thoughtful! God is definitely using you to bless and encourage others! My son’s test results scored his food sensitivities on a scale of 0-3, 3 being the worst. His Naturopath said to take him off the foods scored 2 & 3 and she said it’s up to me about the foods he scored a 1. She said to do this for 30 days while taking probiotics, and then slowly reintroduce foods. He did score a 1 on the egg whites, but a 2 on the egg yolk. Do you think I should try to eliminate the “1” scored foods now also or just start with the 2 & 3’s? I know you’re not a Dr., but I do value your insight and experience. I’m also wondering about reintroducing the highly sensitive foods. That seems weird to me. I definitely need to do some more research! What do you recommend? Thank you again! I really appreciate your willingness to help! 🙂
Hi, Myra. I would stick with what your naturopath recommends. Start with removing the 2&3 rated foods as she said for the time period she specified. If you see great improvement after 30 days, then you know that removing these foods is helping your son. If the progress is what you had hoped at the 30 day mark, then you could try something as simple as switching him back to whole eggs (reintroducing the yolk). Do not introduce any of the other foods you’ve removed for a least a week (some elimination diets recommend going as slow as only reintroducing a new food every three weeks). You’ll have to make that decision with your naturopath about how slowly she wants you to reintroduce the offending foods.
The key is to only reintroduce one food at a time with an extended period of time between each food reintroduced so you will know if your son starts having trouble again that it is related to this particular food. That’s why personally, I always err on the side of the slower the reintroduction process the better, that way you give the body enough time to see if it’s going to react or not.
Also, I highly recommend if you reach the 30-day mark after having removed all of the high sensitivity foods (as per your naturopath) and yet you are still not seeing the results you had hoped – in other words your son still isn’t feeling better. Then that would indicate more exploration is needed on what other issues may be a play. Perhaps this would require removal of the 1-score foods with another 30-day period. Or perhaps a deeper dig on what else may be an issue. So in other words, I would not start reintroducing any suspected problematic foods until your son is feeling better at a level you and he are comfortable with.
And yes, definitely do your own research as well. That is always a good thing and gives you information you can discuss with your doctor to get his/her feedback as well. Many blessings to you and your son, Kelly
These were super easy to put together and they are really tasty! Not too sweet – just enough from the berries. I actually forgot to add more berries to the top! I used frozen blueberries and blackberries that were thawed and drained, worked great. I’ll make these again for sure, even experimenting with other fruit.
Thanks for taking the time to leave a kind note, Renee! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe! Keep us posted on what you come up with in future baking adventures! Blessings, Kelly 🙂
My 5 year old daughter and I made the mixed berry muffins yesterday and they are AMAZING!!!! Best grain free muffins I have made hands down. My daughter said they tasted like “real” muffins and would like to eat one every day! My 8 year old son also loved them and requested one for his snack today. Your website has been a breath of fresh air for me, thank you for making my grain free life tasty!
OK, I don’t know what I’m doing wrong with these muffins but the batter is super dry. Is that the way its supposed to be??
Hi, Tara. Are you using pure blanched almond flour (not an almond mix or almond meal – almonds with the skins left on)? Not sure why they would be dry. 🙂
Hi Kelly,
I love your recipes. The biscuits and the double chocolate chip cookie are family favorites. Your blog has helped me get over my fear of baking with almond flour. My question is about the muffins. I’ve made these several times but recently thought about making a double batch for the freezer. Have you tried this before? I would be interested to know! Thank you
Thanks for your kind words, Marisa. That is so wonderful to hear that you’re finding the recipes and info here to be of help to you. As far as your question, since almond flour becomes overly moist easily, freezing almond flour baked goods often results in an overly moist baked good once they’re thawed. This is especially true for muffins, which is why I prefer to store them in the fridge. That way, I can just pop them in the toaster oven to warm them a bit. They will keep quite nicely in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5-6 days. So it would be better in this case to make a week’s worth and place in fridge. The cookies do well in the freezer as long as you eat them semi-frozen. But if you let them sit out until completely thawed, they too are overly moist. Unfortunately, it is the one drawback of almond flour. 🙂 Hope this helps! 🙂