Recipe for sugar-free applesauce muffins with raisins and pecans

Lucky for me, I like my sweets on the not-too-sweet side, and that's a perfect description of these sugar-free applesauce muffins made with ingredients you probably already have in your pantry. The muffins had to have raisins, because I love raisins. And they had to be sugar-free. And they had to be sturdy enough to hold a birthday candle for my friend Charlotte, because I made these muffins for her. Considering all of those "had to" items, they tasted pretty terrific, especially just out of the oven slathered with unsalted butter. No-sugar-added applesauce makes a great substitute for sugar, and it helps keep baked goods moist, too. I used a muffin top pan, because I only like tops, but you can make regular muffins if you like the bottoms. Muffins usually don't keep very well, so make these for a party or a brunch, and eat them the day you make them.

Sugar-free applesauce muffins with raisins and pecans

From the pantry, you'll need: eggs, all-purpose unbleached white flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, raisins, pecans.

Recipe slightly adapted from this Food.com recipe. Makes 10 muffin tops or regular muffins.

Ingredients

1 egg
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1-1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce
2 cups all-purpose unbleached white flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a muffin-top pan or regular muffin tin with paper liners, and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat together the egg, oil and applesauce. Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg and cinnamon; beat well to form a batter. Stir in the raisins and pecans, and mix well to combine.

Use an ice cream scoop with a release (called a disher) or a tablespoon to evenly fill the muffin top pan.

Bake at 375F for 17-18 minutes (for muffin tops), or 20-22 minutes (for regular muffins), until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack. Best eaten the day you make them.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

More recipes in The Perfect Pantry:
Granola muffins
Pumpkin-pecan mini muffins
Costa Rican banana nut muffins
Peach vanilla muffins
Pear spice cupcakes

Other recipes that use these pantry ingredients:
Pumpkin cinnamon streusel pancakes, from Two Peas & Their Pod
Hurricane Sandy pumpkin sweet potato muffins, from Savor the Thyme
Whole wheat applesauce loaf cake, from Eat, Live, Run
Applesauce oatmeal Bundt cake, from Baking Bites
Chocolate chip cookies baked with applesauce, from Soupbelly

Comments

I'd love to have these for breakfast!

Kalyn, it's always a challenge (for me, anyway) to bake something without sugar, but I loved these little muffins. Just sweet enough from the fruit, but not too sweet.

I've recently been diagnosed with Type II diabetes, so recipes like this are so appreciated. Thank you. I will definitely be making these.

Colleen, I'm so glad to share recipes like this one. We have diabetics (mostly Type 1) in our family.

I have only baked with applesauce a couple of times but I love it. I have to try these (with the raisins, of course). Perfect breakfast!