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Morning Glory Muffins are loaded with carrots, apples, coconut, raisins and nuts. Sweet and delicious – they are sure to become your new favorite muffin!
Years ago, I lived near a great little coffee shop in Danvers, Massachusetts called the Custom Cup Caffe. Every Friday on my way into work, one of my weekly rituals was to stop and treat myself to a cup of their terrific coffee, and one of their even-more-terrific Morning Glory Muffins.
A few years ago (long after I had moved away from Danvers), I found myself craving one of those moist, sweet, cinnamon Morning Glory Muffins – filled with carrots, raisins, nuts, and other yummy ingredients.
While searching around online for a recipe to try making at home, I learned that Morning Glory Muffins were originally created at the Morning Glory Café on Nantucket Island by chef and café owner Pam McKinstry. Her now-famous original recipe found here, was published in Gourmet magazine in 1981. Later, in 1991, it was chosen as one of the magazine’s twenty-five favorite recipes from the past fifty years. (I can totally see why!)
The version we’re sharing today was gently adapted from a different, highly-rated Morning Glory Muffin recipe found here. These hearty muffins are sweet and moist, with so many textures and flavors you’ll be licking your fingers to get every last crumb.
Why You’ll Love Morning Glory Muffins!
- All those flavors and textures. These moist, scrumptious muffins are loaded with shredded fruit, vegetables and nuts.
- They are hearty and filling. Enjoy these muffins for breakfast or as an afternoon snack after school.
- Sure to please even the pickiest eaters. We used to send one of these muffins with our daughter to daycare when she was little. She was the pickiest eater around and loved her Morning Glory Muffins!
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
- Fruit and Veggies – We use freshly grated and peeled apples and carrots along with raisins for this recipe. Some Morning Glory Muffin recipes include pineapple too – so feel free to add different fruits if you’d like.
- Nuts and Coconut – These add some texture and crunch to the muffins. We like to use walnuts, but just about any kind of nut would be delicious. We used sweetened flaked coconut, but unsweetened is fine too if you prefer a little less sweetness.
- Flaxseed – Packed with plant omega-3, antioxidants, and fiber, flaxseed adds more health benefits and a nutty flavor to these muffins. Feel free to leave it out.
Special supplies needed
- Muffin tin – This recipe yields a dozen standard-sized muffins, or 24 mini muffins.
- Muffin liners – We like using tulip paper liners like this to give our muffins a bakery-style look, but you can also put the batter right into the muffin tin. Just give your muffin pan a quick spray with non-stick cooking spray before filling with batter.
How Do I Make Morning Glory Muffins?
- Prep – You’ll peel and grate your carrots and apples, chop the nuts, measure out the other wet and dry ingredients, and line or grease your muffin tin. It’s always a good idea do to all this prep before you start to combine ingredients.
- Combine – Once everything is prepped, mix together all your dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, whisking to be sure everything is combined. Add the carrots, raisins, nuts, coconut, apples, and flaxseed – stirring to evenly combine. Then whisk eggs, oil, and vanilla together and pour that mixture into the flour and fruit mixture. Stir just enough to combine all of the ingredients, but don’t over mix the batter.
- Fill Your Tins – Now scoop the batter into each prepared tin – dividing the batter evenly among each muffin cavity. You can use a spoon or an ice cream scoop for this. We fill ours nearly to the brim because these muffins rise only a little during baking.
- Bake – These muffins bake for about 20 minutes and will fill your kitchen with amazing aromas! You’ll know they’re done when the centers are slightly soft, but a toothpick comes out clean.
Watch our video in the recipe card below to see exactly how we make Morning Glory Muffins!
These muffins are hearty enough to make a filling breakfast on their own, and sweet enough to complement a savory omelet. Pair with your favorite cup of coffee or morning tea, or a tall glass of milk.
Chef’s Tip
Use an ice cream or cookie scoop to portion the batter into your muffin tin. It’s easier than using a spoon.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I substitute gluten-free flour in this recipe? We haven’t tried making this recipe with gluten-free flour ourselves, but a one-for-one flour will likely work. (If you try it, let us know how it works out!)
- How should I store Morning Glory Muffins? Store in an airtight container unrefrigerated for a day or two. You can refrigerate them, but bring back to room temperature before eating, or zap them in the microwave for a few seconds to warm back up.
- Can I freeze these muffins? Yes! In fact, we used to bake up a batch of muffins and freeze them in a zipper seal bag, then we’d take one out of the bag each day to send with her lunch.
- Can I reduce the sugar in these muffins? As written, this muffin recipe turns out fairly sweet, so you can definitely reduce the sugar that is called for by ¼ cup (or more) and still achieve tasty results. We haven’t tried swapping in sugar substitutes ourselves, but if you try any, please let us know the results. (We’d love to know!)
This post was originally published in October, 2012. We’ve updated the post with new images and text.
You may enjoy these other muffin recipes:
- The Real Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins Recipe
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins
- Maple Streusel Muffins
- Spiced Apple Coconut Muffins
- Lemon Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
We love seeing what you made! Tag us on Instagram at @afamilyfeast or hashtag #afamilyfeast so we can see your creations!
Morning Glory Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded carrots (3-4 medium carrots, peeled before shredding)
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/2 cup flaked coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
- 1/2 cup shredded apple (about 1 medium apple, cored and peeled before shredding)
- 1/4 cup flaxseed (optional)
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups with paper muffin liners (or grease a non-stick muffin pan).
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the carrots, raisins, chopped walnuts, coconut, shredded apple and flaxseed. Mix until well blended.
- In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil and vanilla. Pour the egg mixture into the carrot/flour mixture and stir just until moistened.
- Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups. (Note that the muffin cups will be very full which is OK as these muffins rise only slightly during the baking process.)
- Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. They will be done when the centers are still slightly soft but a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.
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Everestgirl says
Great recipe!
Martha says
Thanks!
Milo says
Delicious
Martha says
Thanks!
Lori says
Love these for Brkfst.
Martha says
Thanks Lori!
Barbara Lavaty says
The Morning Glory Muffins are the absolute best. I substitute the sugar with honey, use craisins (dried cranberries) instead of raisins and substitute vegetable oil with 1/2 C butter and 1/2 C yogurt.
They freeze beautifully. I wrap individually in parchment paper and then put in plastic freezer bag.
Martha says
Thanks Barbara – great suggestions!
Karlin says
Have u tried replacing half the flour with Bran? Would it work?
Martha says
We haven’t tried doing so Karlin. I believe bran would absorb more of the moisture in the batter than the flour so you’ll likely need to make other adjustments to the recipe.
Linda Cernosek says
Can the Morning Glory Muffins be frozen once they’re baked?
Thanks
Martha says
Yes they can!
Jonie Delia says
Martha, can you swap the refuu uti lar flour for almond flour or some other flour in the Morning Glory muffins? My son is a type 1 diabetic and I try to find recipes I can make for him. Thanks
Martha says
Hi Jonie – Without some recipe testing, I can’t say for sure. You might need to make some other adjustments to the recipe as almond flour has more moisture than all-purpose flour. Sorry we can’t be of more specific help – it isn’t always as easy as a one to one swap in baking recipes.
Penny says
Would love to see the nutrition information.
Thank you.
Martha says
Hi Penny – I’ve just added the information to the bottom of the recipe card.
Dawn Elder says
So good… Even my picky 22 month-old loves these!
Martha says
Great news Dawn! As the mom of picky eater (who is now 13) she used to enjoy these muffins as a toddler too! Another win for these muffins! 🙂
Sasha says
Just made these and omg seriously SO YUMMY!!! i actually made a double batch and so happy i did. Going to share with some friends! Thankyou for a great recipe!!!
Martha says
You are very welcome Sasha – So glad the recipe was a hit!