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These simple Spinach Cake Muffins have the perfect amount of sweetness and an appealing bright green color, but no intense spinach flavor. Kids (and adults) love them! They’re versatile and make the perfect quick breakfast, after school snack or post dinner treat!
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Years ago, a mom sent me a recipe for Spinach Cake Muffins—made with applesauce, spinach, and a boxed cake mix. Intrigued but hesitant, I decided to create a healthier, homemade version without the mix. After plenty of trial and error, I was shocked at how delicious they turned out—naturally sweet, vibrantly green, and kid-approved with no overpowering spinach taste. My kids loved them, and to this day, it’s one of my most popular recipes!
Why I Love This Recipe
- Hidden Veggies, Happy Kids: Getting kids to eat greens is tough, but Spinach Cake Muffins sneak in nutrients while tasting like a treat. It’s a win-win for everyone! Want more recipes with “hidden” veggies? Try Spinach Ricotta Bites, Roast Vegetable Pasta Sauce and Veggie Filled Frittata!
- Healthier Sweetness: Made with applesauce and less sugar, these muffins are a better-for-you option packed with fiber and essential nutrients.
- Perfect Anytime Snack: Great for a quick breakfast, school lunch, or on-the-go snack, plus they freeze well for busy days.
- Fun for Kids to Make: Even my little one, Gemma, got so excited making these that she started snacking on raw spinach! It just goes to show—when kids help in the kitchen, they’re more likely to enjoy their greens in fun, delicious ways. Here’s more Easy Recipes to Make with Your Kids!
The Ingredients
- Unsweetened Applesauce: A natural sweetener that keeps the muffins moist while reducing the need for extra sugar. Make your own Homemade Applesauce if you want!
- Large Egg: Helps bind the ingredients together for a fluffy texture.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor with a warm, sweet aroma.
- Fresh Spinach: The star ingredient! Packed with vitamins and antioxidants, it gives the muffins their vibrant green color without overpowering the taste.
- Sugar: Just enough to balance flavors and add a touch of sweetness.
- Oil: Keeps the muffins soft and tender while adding a slight richness. Use olive, avocado, vegetable or any oil you have on hand.
- All-Purpose Flour: Provides structure to the muffins, making them light yet sturdy.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: Work together to give the muffins a perfect rise and fluffy texture.
*See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements*
How to Make Spinach Cake Muffins
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease mini or regular muffin tin. You can also use muffins liners. Place the apple sauce, egg, vanilla extract, spinach, sugar and oil in a food processor and puree. Pour the spinach puree in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2: Place the remaining dry ingredients in a separate bowl and combine.
Step 3: Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet until combined.
Step 4: Scoop batter into a greased mini or regular muffin tin, filling each cup 2/3 of the way.
Step 5: Bake for 18-20 minutes (12 minutes for mini muffins) or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Tips and Tricks
- Don’t Overmix – This goes for all muffins. Stir just until combined to keep the muffins light and fluffy. Overmixing can make them dense.
- Make Them Mini – For bite-sized snacks, use a mini muffin tin and reduce baking time to 12 minutes.
- Boost the Nutrition – Add a tablespoon of ground flaxseed or chia seeds for extra fiber and omega-3s.
- Sweeten Naturally – Swap sugar for honey or maple syrup for a more natural sweetener option. The texture will be slightly different, but still delicious.
More Hidden Veggie Recipes Kids Love
These spinach muffins are a game-changer—packed with hidden veggies but still a delicious treat! Whether for breakfast, a snack, or lunchboxes, they’re an easy way to add extra nutrients without the fuss!
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Spinach Cake Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup fresh spinach, packed
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons olive, avocado, vegetable or canola oil
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Place the first 6 ingredients in a food processor and puree.
- Place the remaining dry ingredients in a separate bowl and combine.
- Pour the spinach puree in a large mixing bowl.
- Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet until combined.
- Scoop batter into a greased mini or regular muffin tin, filling each cup 2/3 of the way.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes for regular-sized muffins or 12 minutes for mini muffins.
Notes
- Don’t Overmix – This goes for all muffins. Stir just until combined to keep the muffins light and fluffy. Overmixing can make them dense.
- Make Them Mini – For bite-sized snacks, use a mini muffin tin and reduce baking time to 12 minutes.
- Boost the Nutrition – Add a tablespoon of ground flaxseed or chia seeds for extra fiber and omega-3s.
- Sweeten Naturally – Swap sugar for honey or maple syrup for a more natural sweetener option. The texture will be slightly different, but still delicious.
I plan on making these tomorrow. My son loves muffins and I am going to try these to get more veggies into him. But what he loves most about muffins is finding fruit in them such as raisins, blueberries, cranberries etc. What fruit would taste good in these muffins? Thanks!
These are so cute, little green puffs… I think they are delicious and i know my little girl will love them. I made your cottage cheese pancakes for her for breakfast today and they were so moist and sweet. She also loves the baby quiche… Great recipes!! Love them!!!
That sounds so cute and fun!
We made these “Yoda” muffins too but made them brown & green swirl. Double recipe in food processor then make 2 bowls of dry mix (1 whole recipe of dry, then 1 recipe of dry but substitute 1/2 c cocoa for a 1/2 c flour). Split blended mixture between dry bowls and add a bit more applesauce or milk to choc mixture to loosen it up. Scoop green mix into bottom of muffin tins, top each with brown mix. Then use a toothpick or butter knife to make swirls. Bake as directed. Brown and green swirlies!
I don’t like the taste of Xylitol so I never have it on hand. I often use honey as a sugar substitute, but for this recipe you would have to increase the amount of dry ingredients. I would say start with 1/3 Cup Honey and add 1/3-1/2 Cup Flour and see how that works!
What do you think of Xylitol??? I don’t have any sugar in the house. Just xylitol, stevia, and honey.
I just made these and they turned out great. Though mine made 30 mini muffins. I did use muffin liners.
I put it in the recipe builder on Weight Watchers and it only came out to 1 point/muffin (remember, I was able to make 30 instead of 24). Of course, I made these for my baby … luckily I have more spinach. They are so tasty warm.
Thank you for the recipe. I can’t wait to have my child try a muffin for the first time!
ETA: My little guy really gobbles these up for snack now so I’ll make them again for him.
I made these and they are very spinach-y so not sure how I feel about them. LO seemed to like them all right (he is 15 mo). I substituted half the applesauce for some leftover avocado-banana puree, sucanat for regular sugar, and whole grain flour for regular flour. I’m trying to keep my cooking “clean” as much as possible and the substitutions didn’t really affect the texture or taste. I think spices are a good idea – I’ll try that next time.
OK here’s what i did and they were fantastic. We called them “alien” muffins.
I changed it up a bit:
2 cups of Spinach
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 apple sause
3/4 cup sugar
and dried cranberries and walnuts.
and the same dry ingredients
They were super green and moist and YUMMY!
Made this recipe today, did not have applesauce so i made a pumpkin puree and used that instead, and added some spice and lemon essence and it came out beautifully also used whole wheat instead of all purpose flour thanks for the recipes. 🙂
I am also looking for ways to incorporate veg’s (espec the green ones!) into my daughter’s diet. I have found many recipes that incorporate spinach in some sneaky way, but it seems like the actual amount of vegetable per serving winds up being so miniscule! So here, one cup of packed spinach is split up among 24 mini muffins. How much fiber and iron does this impart to each muffin?
On the upside, it might make “green food” less taboo and as such, serve as a gateway food for the real stuff?
eating mine right now! If you expect something really sweet like boxed cake.. you might be disappointed. I just got mine out of the oven. I think my kids will love the color of them =) I think they do have a great flavor. I will be making these again!
Made these last night! They were amazing! I mixed some powdered sugar and water to make a light glaze to drizzle over them. Yum!
I agree with the people that say these need some extra spices. I made them as written here. They’re good, but they are missing something. My daughter will love them. Maybe I’ll try with orange zest..
PS-bacon would be AMAZING in these, but then they wouldn’t be as healthy.
I made these last night with the Red Mill GF AP flour, they turned out a bit dry (like dry corn muffins). Will keep experimenting, as I haven’t had much GF baking experience yet.
My little one is not a fan of sweet baked goods yet, am going to experience how to make this savory.