These gluten free lemon muffins taste like a moist lemon cake! You’d never guess they’re low in sugar, dairy-free or have an entire zucchini mixed into the batter. They’re rich and flavourful, so there’s no need to add a glaze or frosting; however, I won’t stop you!
jump to:
- Nutrition Facts
- Healthy Ingredients
- Step-By-Step Instructions
- Zucchini Substitution
- Variations
- Meal Prep & Storage Tips
- Expert Tips
- FAQs
Lemon muffins always remind me of summer! And these gluten-free muffins are one of my favourite ways to use up all the zucchini and summer squash when it’s in season. They’re moist with a coffee cake-like texture and packed with fresh lemon flavour.
Nutrition Facts
These are seriously the best lemon muffins. Not only do they taste delicious, but they pack a nutritional punch!
Each muffin has:
- 11 grams of protein
- 7 grams of fibre
- 10 net grams of carbs
- 6 grams of sugar
They also have over 20 grams of healthy fats that will give you a steady release of energy to keep you feeling fuller for longer.
I love making large batches of these muffins for the freezer because they make breakfast and snack time so easy. I like to serve them with hardboiled eggs and fruit for breakfast or with some fruit, veggies or a small smoothie as a snack. My whole family goes bonkers for them!
Sneaking veggies into baked goods is one of my favourite ways to add extra fibre and minerals to my family’s diet. As a nutritionist, watching my family enjoy their vegetables brings me so much joy. This is why my freezer is always stocked with veggie-packed muffins like these, along with a loaf or two of this gluten-free chocolate pumpkin breakfast bread. Veggies never tasted so good!
If you are looking for other easy ways to upgrade your nutrition, check out these 9 healthy eating hacks!
Healthy Ingredients
This recipe uses simple ingredients that are healthy and easy to find. I source mine from Costco, Amazon and our local health-food discount store.
- Almond Flour: My go-to gluten-free flour that I like to mix with other gluten-free ingredients to make a nutritious gluten-free flour blend.
- Green or Yellow Zucchini: Loaded with fibre, minerals and vitamins, this mild-tasting superfood ingredient adds moisture and goes virtually undetected in this recipe.
- Fresh Lemon Zest: What gives these muffins a bright lemon flavour and hides any zucchini taste.
- Large Eggs: A complete protein that rounds out the incomplete protein in the almond flour. Combining an incomplete protein (like nuts) with a complete protein source (like eggs) fills the gaps of the incomplete source, making it whole and ready for your body to use. If you have any questions about this topic, feel free to ask me in the comments! 😘
- Apple Sauce: Adds extra fibre and a hint of natural sweetness. It also acts as a replacement for added oils like coconut oil, olive oil or melted butter, making them a bit lighter in texture while still maintaining a nice moist crumb.
- Maple Syrup: My go-to healthy sweetener! It contains minerals, antioxidants and the best flavour profile (in my humble Canadian opinion).
- Psyllium Husk: Helps to absorb any extra moisture from the zucchini and gives these muffins an old-fashion bakery cake texture. For more information about psyllium husk and where to find it, you can check out the FAQs.
Plus, a few other standard baking ingredients like salt, baking powder and vanilla. You can find the quantities in the full recipe at the end of this post.
Gluten Free Lemon Muffins Instructions (Step-By-Step)
This recipe comes together quickly and can be doubled or tripled easily! It’s my favourite way to use up any leftover zucchini or summer squash I have lying around during the summer months.
STEP 1: Preheat your oven to 350F and grease or line your muffin pan with muffin liners.
STEP 2: Shred your zucchini and squeeze out any excess liquid. Measure your zucchini after the excess water has been removed. For tips on how to remove water from zucchini, click here.
STEP 3: In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, measure and add your wet ingredients minus the shredded zucchini and mix until fully combined.
STEP 4: Add your zucchini to your wet mixture and mix until combined.
STEP 5: Measure and whisk your dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
STEP 6: Add your dry mixture to your wet mixture and mix until combined. Your muffin batter should be thick and sticky.
STEP 7: Transfer your muffin batter to your muffin pan using a cookie scoop or spoon, filling the muffin cups 3/4 of the way.
STEP 8: Bake for 25 minutes until the zucchini bits on top of the muffins turn golden brown or an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool and enjoy at room temperature.
Can I substitute zucchini With summer squash?
YES! You can substitute the zucchini with any summer squash one-for-one. Just make sure to measure it after the excess water has been squeezed out. Older, larger squashes work beautifully in this recipe, provided you remove the spongy, seedy centre before shredding.
Other Substitutions
Check out the FAQs!
Variations
Big-batch cooking is my favourite healthy eating hack. I rarely make a single batch of anything unless it’s something completely new. Instead, I’ll double (or triple) this recipe and change up half of the muffin batter slightly so we aren’t eating the same muffins all month long.
ADD IN options
You can easily turn these into healthy gluten-free lemon poppy seed muffins by simply adding poppy seeds.
Or you can change up the flavour profile by swapping out the lemon zest with lime zest, turning these into key-lime muffins.
Another option is to top off these lemon muffins with blueberries or cranberries. For the best results, use fresh berries instead of frozen ones. Frozen berries will give off too much moisture and change the texture of your lemon muffins.
coffee cake & mini muffin options
Another way to vary this recipe with minimal effort is to change the style of baking pan you use. It bakes up beautifully in a cake pan and makes adorable mini muffins! Just adjust the time accordingly.
Mini muffins take around 15 to 18 minutes to bake.
A cake baked in an 8 x 8 baking pan or dish will take between 30 to 40 minutes, depending on the type. Glass bakeware generally takes longer. Check on it after 30 minutes and bake until the edges turn slightly golden.
If making it into a loaf or quick bread, it could take anywhere from 35 to 45 minutes to bake, depending on the size and material of your pan. Just know that it won’t rise as high as a traditional quick loaf or bread that uses one-for-one gluten-free or all purpose flour.
This recipe has more of a cakey consistency than an airy one making it the ultimate healthy comfort food treat!
HEALTH(ISH) dessert options
The easiest dessert option is to drizzle it with a simple lemon glaze consisting of organic icing sugar and lemon juice. Start with 1 cup of icing sugar and add fresh lemon juice, one tablespoon at a time, until you’ve reached your desired consistency and taste. This works wonderfully with either the cake or muffin version.
If you have more time, you can transform these gluten free lemon muffins into delicious lemon cupcakes! Because they aren’t too sweet and have an old-fashion bakery-style moist crumb, they’re the perfect vehicle for your favourite frosting! Just line your muffin tin with your favourite cupcake liners, bake as directed and allow to cool completely before frosting them.
You can also make this recipe into a classic layer cake.
Doubling the recipe will yield three 8-inch cakes that stack easily. This is my favourite layer cake recipe, hands down! Let me know in the comments if you want me to share my irresistible buttercream frosting recipe!
Meal Prep & Storage Tips
These gluten-free lemon muffins freeze beautifully, so I highly recommend doubling this recipe for easy snacks, breakfasts and desserts. Your future self will thank you!
Storage
After baking, allow your muffins to cool completely before storing them in a resealable freezer bag or airtight container. At room temperature, they will stay fresh for up to 24 hours. They last up to 4 days in the fridge and up to 3 months in the freezer.
To serve from frozen, either leave them to thaw on the counter at room temp for 30 to 45 minutes or use a microwave or oven to speed up the thawing process.
ZUCCHINI MEAL PREP HACK
In the summer months, I get a lot of zucchini and different summer squashes from my local CSA (community-supported agriculture). I’ve found the easiest way to preserve them is to shred and freeze them in bags for baking.
Expert Tips
HIDING THE ZUCCHINI
If you have members of your family that won’t eat anything with zucchini in it or don’t like baked goods with added veggies, try swapping out traditional green zucchini with yellow zucchini or squash. Once baked, the yellow zucchini resembles bits of lemon peel, and the lemony flavour will completely mask its taste!
USING FROZEN ZUCCHINI
If you are using frozen shredded zucchini, you’ll want to let it thaw and remove the water using this method before measuring it. Even if you measure your zucchini before freezing it, there will still be excess water which will affect its overall volume.
FAQs
The easiest way to remove excess water from your shredded zucchini or summer squash is to squeeze it out. Start by placing it in a nut-milk bag or wrapping it in a clean tea towel or a few sheets of paper towel. Squeeze it over a sink or bowl, and keep squeezing until little-to-no liquid drips out. (See image below.) Paper towels work in a pinch and can be easily discarded after. However, I personally prefer using a nut milk bag (turned inside out) because the zucchini stays totally contained and doesn’t stick to the fabric.
Psyllium husk (aka psyllium fibre) is the water-loving outer layer of psyllium plant seeds. It’s often used as a binding agent in gluten-free, low-carb and keto baking, and as a replacement for xanthan gum and eggs. Fun fact, psyllium husk is the main ingredient in the well-known fibre supplement Metamucil. It helps to promote good digestion and heart health. You can buy it in small quantities at most bulk-food stores, in larger bags at most health-food stores and on Amazon.
For the best results, no. The psyllium husk is used to help hold the muffin together and absorb any excess moisture from the zucchini while it bakes. It also helps to prevent your muffin from developing a gummy texture.
Psyllium powder is ground-up psyllium husk. While they’re technically the same ingredient, psyllium powder is much more concentrated and will give your baked goods a different texture than the husks. If you are wanting to substitute powder for husks, the rule of thumb is to use only 85% of the weighed amount of the husks.
This recipe hasn’t been tested using lemon extract or oil. However, if you’ve worked with these ingredients and enjoy their flavour, either should work in small amounts.
MOIST Gluten Free Lemon Muffins With Hidden Zucchini
Ingredients
DRY INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups almond flour
- 3 tbsp whole psyllium husk not psyllium husk powder – see notes
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp salt
WET INGREDIENTS
- 1 1/2 cups grated summer squash or zucchini measured after excess moisture has been squeezed out
- 1/2 cup apple sauce
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 3 large eggs
- zest of 2 lemons
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F and grease or line your muffin pan with muffin liners.
- Shred your zucchini and squeeze out any excess liquid. Measure your zucchini after the excess water has been removed. For tips on how to remove water from zucchini, click here.
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, measure and add your wet ingredients minus the shredded zucchini and mix until fully combined.
- Add your zucchini to your wet mixture and mix until combined.
- Measure and whisk your dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
- Add your dry mixture to your wet mixture and mix until combined. Your muffin batter should be thick and sticky.
- Transfer your muffin batter to your muffin pan using a cookie scoop or spoon, filling the muffin cups 3/4 of the way.
- Bake for 25 minutes until the zucchini bits on top of the muffins turn golden brown or an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool and enjoy at room temperature.
Notes
- Whole psyllium husk differs from psyllium husk powder and cannot be substituted one-for-one. See the FAQ section for further info.
- You can substitute zucchini with any summer squash one-for-one. Ensure you measure your summer squash after removing excess liquid.
Nutrition
Questions About This Recipe?
If you have any questions about this gluten free lemon muffin recipe or the information you’ve learned today, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or send me an Instagram direct message! ✨
I can’t wait to hear all about your healthy eating journey and what you’ve been cooking! Please comment below or share your successes with me on Instagram @nourashnutrition so that I can celebrate you and your healthy eating milestones!
Sending you strength and confidence today to fuel your healthiest tomorrow!
Who knew lemon & zucchini could go so well together!🍋
P.S Best recipe yet 😋
Thank you Sia! And I totally agree … lemon and zucchini are a match made in gluten-free baking heaven!