Healthy Oatmeal Muffins — 😍❤️🎉 These healthy oatmeal muffins won’t jeopardize your New Year’s resolutions and are skinny jeans-friendly. No oil, no dairy, and just 1/4 cup of brown sugar!
Table of Contents
Healthy Oatmeal Muffins Recipe
These brown sugar muffins are a dump-everything-all-at-once-into-one-bowl-and-stir recipe — my favorite kind.
The muffins are very soft, moist, and super springy. Plus, they have wonderful chewiness, and great texture thanks in part to the oats. But there’s no oil or butter, no dairy, and just 1/4 cup of dark brown sugar in the entire batch. Really.
I used Silk Unsweetened Vanilla Almondmilk, and it’s tied with Silk’s newer Unsweetened Cashewmilk as my two favorite milks for baking. Very low in calories, high in calcium and protein, very smooth, and irresistibly creamy. I get great results every time.
I honestly couldn’t believe how much flavor these skinny muffins packed given the very small amount of sugar. They’re a perfect grab-and-go breakfast or snack, and they freeze well so you can make a double batch and pull them out as needed!
What’s in Healthy Oatmeal Muffins?
To make these healthy breakfast muffins, you’ll need:
- Egg – I haven’t tested this recipe with flax eggs or chia seed eggs and can’t guarantee your results if you do
- All-purpose flour
- Rolled oats
- Silk Unsweetened Vanilla Almondmilk – You’re also welcome to use another milk (dairy or non-dairy), if desired. Just be sure to use an unsweetened milk, otherwise your healthy oatmeal muffins will taste far too sweet
- Sugar-free pancake syrup
- Dark brown sugar
- Silk Vanilla Dairy-Free Yogurt – You can substitute with your favorite Greek yogurt or lite sour cream if that’s what you keep on hand. If using plain yogurt, I recommend adding a splash of vanilla extract
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Healthy Oatmeal Muffins
To make these healthy oatmeal muffins, simply add all the ingredients to a large mixing bowl and stir until just combined. Here’s an overview of the process:
- Add the dry ingredients and wet ingredients to a large bowl, and blend just until smooth. Be careful not to overmix!
- Use a large cookie scoop or 1/4 cup measuring cup to portion the muffin batter, spooning the mixture into a muffin tin greased with cooking spray or lined with paper liners.
- Bake until the tops of the muffins are set and springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs.
- Allow the muffins to cool in the muffin pan.
- Transfer the oat muffins to a write rack to cool completely at room temperature.
What to Serve with Oatmeal Brown Sugar Muffins
Recipe FAQs
Most of the sweetness in these healthy oatmeal muffins comes from the sugar-free pancake syrup. If you want to use real maple syrup, feel free, but the oatmeal muffins won’t be as skinny since real syrup is packed with calories. You can also try using honey or maple syrup for natural sweetness.
No, rolled oats (aka old-fashioned oats) are a must. Instant or quick oats are more finely ground and act more like flour. Using instant oats would result in super dry muffins.
I love the simplicity of these muffins, but you can experiment with any mix-ins you like best! Ground cinnamon is a great way to add extra warmth and enhance the sweetness of the muffins. Or, you could fold pecans, walnuts, or even chocolate chips into the batter for extra flavor and texture.
I haven’t tested this recipe with gluten-free flours but believe it would work just fine with a 1:1 all-purpose gluten-free flour.
Stored in an airtight container, leftover muffins will keep fresh at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Yes! I love to freeze extra muffins for later. They will stay fresh in a sealable bag or airtight container in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw them in the fridge overnight, or quickly defrost them in the microwave.
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Skinny Oatmeal Brown Sugar Muffins
Equipment
- 1 (12 Cup) Muffin Pan
- 1 Large Bowl
- 1 Large Cookie Scoop or 1/4 Cup Measuring Cup
- 1 Wire Rack
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup old-fashioned whole-rolled oats, don’t use quick cook or instant; they’re finer and act more like flour and batter will be too dry
- ½ cup Silk Unsweetened Vanilla Almondmilk, Silk Unsweetened Cashewmilk or another milk may be substituted
- ½ cup sugar-free pancake syrup, lite syrup or real maple syrup may be substituted
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed (strongly recommend dark, although light brown may be substituted)
- ¼ cup Silk Vanilla Dairy-Free Yogurt, Greek yogurt, sour cream, or lite sour cream may be substituted
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spray 10 of the 12 cavities of a Non-Stick 12-Cup Regular Muffin Pan (note you will not use all 12) very well with cooking spray or grease and flour the pan; set aside. (I don’t prefer the cosmetic look of muffin liners.)
- To a large bowl, add all the ingredients and whisk until smooth and combined, without needlessly over-mixing.
- Using a large cookie scoop or 1/4-cup measure, evenly distribute the batter into 10 of the cavities of the prepared pan, filling each cavity no more than 3/4-full or muffins will overflow while baking.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until tops are set, springy to the touch, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. Use your judgment when evaluating doneness because muffin pans, ovens, ingredients, and climates vary. Start watching closely at about 16 minutes.
- Allow muffins to cool in pan on top of a wire rack for about 10 before removing and placing on rack to cool completely. Gently rim each cavity with a knife if necessary for easier removal.
Notes
- Muffins will keep airtight at room temp for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Healthy Muffin Recipes:
Oatmeal and Chocolate Chip Trail Mix Vegan Muffins – Fast, easy, healthy, and made with your favorite trail mix ingredients!
Oatmeal To-Go Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins — Like having a bowl of warm pumpkin oatmeal in portable muffin form! Fast and easy!
Vegan Mini-Chocolate Chip Mini-Muffins – Fast, easy, no-mixer recipe for healthy muffins!
Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Mini Blender Muffins — Gluten-free, grain-free, soy-free, dairy-free, oil-free, refined sugar-free! Under 100 calories each, easy, and taste amazing!
Skinny Blueberry Muffins — These easy blueberry muffins are made with Greek yogurt instead of butter, and there’s only a little vegetable oil and sugar in these. Don’t worry, these don’t taste healthy at all!
Skinny Mini Sweet Potato Muffins — A cute title for cute little muffins that are only 64 calories each. The muffins are super soft and tender in the interior with slight chewiness around the edges.
Flourless Blueberry Banana Blender Muffins — No flour or oats, no butter, and no added white or brown sugar yet they’re incredibly moist, super soft, perfectly sweet, and are bursting with blueberries!
This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.
I like oatmeal in many different forms, including muffins. My baked goods seem more moist when I use it. How can you go wrong with brown sugar AND oatmeal?
It totally makes everything more moist!
This looks super yummy. I love muffin recipes that aren’t overloaded with calories.
A perfect skinny jeans-friendly recipe! I also feel better giving these to my kids than those loaded with sugar and chocolate chips!
Lower sugar recipes are always nice for breakfast or snacks–there are plenty of other options for sugar filled treats! Oats are my go-to ingredient when I want to bake something on the healthier end of the spectrum. Maple and a little brown sugar is probably my favorite way to flavor oatmeal!
They’re my go-to for that reason, too!
Yes for skinny muffins! And I really love this flavor combo, Averie! I just made a cookie recipe with oatmeal and brown sugar, but in muffins? So creative! Pinning :)
Thanks for pinning and your cookies sound perfect!
These are fantastic, as always. My sweet tooth definitely didn’t get the memo and I still want muffins every day. Now I can have them!
As dessert bloggers, I don’t think our sweet teeth ever get the memos :)
These look so moist and the fact that they’re lighter is a huge bonus! I would snack on these not just in the a.m. – You inspired me to up my running mileage, but, man, I’m SO HUNGRY. I’m having to watch my snack calories closely.
It can be a double-edge sword; run more, snack more, then run more to burn off all those snacks! LOL
Mmmmm. We both have skinny muffins today. Love these! Pinned to a few boards :)
Thanks for all your pin love and yes just saw your post about your skinny muffins and another friend has skinny muffins up today, too! Great minds :)
That almond milk is all I drink, so I have a carton in my fridge now! Must make these muffins, swoooooonnnn!!!
It’s my #1 baking go-to milk and smoothie-making milk for sure!
Skinny muffins in January is definitely the way to go. I’ve never tried oats in a muffin before, but I’m loving this, Averie! And brown sugar seems like the perfect touch. Pinned!
Thanks for pinning!
These look like the perfect way to satisfy my sweet tooth while still – ahem – allowing me to zip up my skinny jeans. Yeah, I’ve got a bit of work to do!
The holidays can be so wonderful but so….cruel. LOL
I have tried your muffin recipes in the past, and they were show-stoppingly fantastic, so I know that these will be every bit as delicious! And it’s a bonus that they’re skinny!
Thanks for LMK you’ve tried other muffin recipes of mine and that they were hits! Love to hear that, thank you!
Brown sugar, maple syrup and oats sounds like the greatest muffin combo EVER! And they’re skinny? You’re a muffin magician!
Pinned!
Thanks for pinning and thanks for the muffin magician compliments :)
I’m all about skinny in January. These muffins look tender and tasty. I love using Silk in recipes. It’s so good!
Happy Wednesday Averie!
Hmmm…never been such an oatmeal fan, but you make me think about it… :)
They sound lovely! I really like the idea of using dairy free milk and yoghurt as a substitute and the oatmeal in them make the muffins a healthier treat!