Light and fluffy, naturally sweetened, and packed with juicy strawberries, these Healthy Strawberry Muffins take just a few minutes of prep to make. They’re freezer-friendly and perfect for busy mornings or school lunches.
Medically reviewed and cowritten by Jamie Johnson, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), and Lauren Braaten, Pediatric Occupational Therapist (OT).
Homemade Strawberry Muffins
Fresh, ripe strawberries have got to be one of my favorite fruits. When they’re in season during the summer months, I love to stock up, as they’re readily available and more affordable.
But I’ll admit, sometimes I get carried away and buy a few too many cartons of strawberries that start to ripen too quickly. Although I love a good strawberry smoothie, I was looking for another way to use this versatile fruit. And that’s what we’ve got today – say hello to strawberry muffins!
These homemade strawberry muffins are the perfect way to use up strawberries that are just slightly past their peak. They’re naturally sweetened, making them a healthy choice for toddlers and kids. And they’re freezer friendly, so you can make up a batch and enjoy them all week long for breakfast, lunch or snacks.
If you are looking for more easy and healthy muffin recipes for kids and toddlers, then be sure to check out our Blueberry Avocado Mini Muffins, these reader-favorite Spinach Muffins, Peach Muffins, or these delicious Applesauce Muffins. You can also find more recipes and information in my best-selling cookbook, Little Foodies: Recipes for Babies and Toddlers with Taste.
Reasons to Love Strawberry Muffins
- toddler, kid and adult-friendly
- easy to make
- great for school or packed lunches
- healthy
- freezer-friendly
- great for breakfasts on the go
- can be made gluten and dairy-free
- naturally nut-free and naturally sweetened
Strawberry Muffins Health Benefits: These muffins hide tons of nutrients inside their fluffy goodness, including vitamin C, fiber, antioxidants, and a whole lot less preservatives than store-bought muffins.
Ingredients
Make sure to read the recipe card below for full ingredients and instructions!
- Flour: you can use all-purpose, white whole wheat flour, a mixture of 50/50 white and whole wheat flour, or gluten-free one-for-one flour.
- Strawberries: chopped – fresh, or frozen and thawed will work.
- Maple Syrup: a good quality maple syrup to bring out the natural sweetness of carrots. You can also use honey (for babies 1 year and up) or agave nectar.
- Oil/Butter: to make the muffins nice and moist. You can use coconut, avocado, vegetable, olive oil, or melted butter.
- Yogurt: adds a little boost of protein and helps make these muffins moist.
- Milk
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Cinnamon
- Baking Soda
- Salt
Allergy Tips: to make these muffins gluten-free, you can use any one-for-one gluten-free flour blend. If you are looking for a dairy-free muffin option, you can use any plant-based milk you prefer such as almond, soy, hemp, oat, etc.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven and prep the muffin tin.
- Whisk: In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Stir: In a large bowl, stir together the wet ingredients.
- Combine: pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Strawberries: add the strawberries into the muffin batter and gently fold them in.
- Fill Muffin Tin: Scoop the batter into the muffin tin 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake: Place the muffin tin into the oven, and bake for 18-20 minutes or until just golden brown.
- Icing (optional): Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, milk, vanilla extract, and crushed freeze-dried strawberries.
- Eat: Let cool to the touch, drizzle on the strawberry icing, and serve.
Tools Needed
How to Store & Freeze
Once the muffins have cooled completely, store them in an airtight container. They will keep on the counter for up to 4 days and in the fridge for up to a week.
To freeze the muffins, place the muffins into a freezer zip-lock baggie or stasher bag and place in the freezer. They will keep for up to 3 months frozen.
Thaw frozen strawberry muffins overnight in the fridge or gently warm them in the microwave.
Muffins for Toddlers & Kids
These quick and easy muffins are great for toddlers and kids. You can serve them as is, or with a smear of cream cheese, butter or peanut butter for breakfast, snack or packed into a school lunch.
Kids in the Kitchen
Muffins are a great recipe for kids to build their skills in the kitchen. There are many different ways both toddlers and older kids can help out.
TODDLERS
- Toddlers can help count out the muffin liners and place into the muffin tins.
- They can help measure and place ingredients into the bowl.
- Toddlers can help mix the ingredients together.
- They can help scoop the batter into the muffin tins. (I find it’s easiest to give them their own smaller bowl and spoon to use.)
- If using the drizzle, toddlers will love to drizzle on the glaze with a fork.
KIDS
- Older kids can pick out and measure all of the ingredients.
- They can help chop the strawberries using a butter knife, as strawberries will be soft enough to use a dull knife to cut (but continue to use adult supervision).
- Kids can help mix the ingredients together.
- They can help pour the batter into the muffin tins.
- Depending on your child’s age and skill level, they can carefully put the muffin tin into the oven (with adult supervision) and remove once baked.
Expert Tips
- Do No Overmix: I can’t stress this point enough – do not over mix the muffin batter, if you do they won’t rise in the oven and will become dense and hard. The dry ingredients should be just combined with the wet ingredients.
- Preheat Oven: Ensure the oven is fully preheated so the muffins cook through evenly.
- Let Cool: let the muffins cool for about 10 minutes before enjoying them and let them cool completely before storing.
- No Sticking: make sure you generously grease the mini muffin molds or use mini muffin liners so that the muffins don’t stick to the pan.
- Dice, don’t slice: Chopping up the strawberries into smaller pieces helps distribute them evenly throughout the batter. This ensures a more consistent texture in the muffin and can help with any kiddos who might be a little pickier about what’s in their muffins.
- Use room temperature ingredients (if possible). Eggs, milk (and butter, if you are using instead of oil) at room temp will create lighter, fluffier baked goods.
Strawberry Muffins
- 1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour, (see notes)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup, honey (babies over 1) or agave nectar
- 1/3 cup melted butter or oil such as olive oil, avocado oil, vegetable oil or coconut oil
- 1/3 cup milk, regular or plain plant-based
- 1/3 cup plain whole milk yogurt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup strawberries, chopped
Strawberry Cream Cheese Drizzle
- 1/4 cup full-fat cream cheese
- 3 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 3 tbsp milk, regular or plant-based
- 3 tbsp freeze-dried strawberries, crushed
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Prep: Preheat the oven to 375° F. Spray or line a muffin tin.
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Whisk: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
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Stir: In a large mixing bowl, add in the maple syrup, butter/oil, eggs, milk, yogurt ,and vanilla extract and mix until smooth.
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Combine: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
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Add Strawberries: Gently add the strawberries to the muffin batter and then fold them into the batter.
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Fill Muffin Tin: Scoop the batter into the muffin tin 3/4 of the way full.
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Bake: Place the muffin tin into the oven, and bake for 18-20 minutes or until just golden brown.
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Make Drizzle: Meanwhile, if using the cream cheese drizzle, place the cream cheese in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in the microwave for 20-30 seconds until just warm. Add in the maple syrup and milk and whisk until creamy and smooth. Add in the crushed freeze-fried strawberries, and stir. Set aside.
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Eat: Let cool to the touch, then drizzle with the cream cheese drizzle (optional). If the cream cheese drizzle is too thick, you can heat it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Serve and enjoy!
Mini or Regular Size: you can make these muffins into mini or regular-size muffins, the only difference is the baking time. For mini muffins, bake for 10-12 minutes, for regular muffins, bake for 18-20 minutes.
Storage: store in an air-tight container on the counter or fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Note on Flours: you can use all-purpose, white whole wheat flour, a mixture of 50/50 white and whole wheat flour, or gluten-free one-for-one flour.
Oil/Butter: to make the muffins nice and moist. You can use coconut, avocado, vegetable, olive, or melted butter.