When it comes to lunchbox fillers, I always say—keep it simple, tasty, and freezer-friendly. One of my most popular recipes ever is my Apple, Banana, Carrot or ABC Muffins for short . These muffins went viral earlier this year- and they’re a firm family favourite in our house!
I’ve been making these muffins for years, and they’re still one of my go-to bakes when I need to fill lunchboxes, use up overripe bananas, or just want to make sure there’s a stash of wholesome snacks ready to go in the freezer. They’re also brilliant for cutting food waste—those spotty bananas, soft apples, and that lone carrot in the bottom of the veggie drawer? They all find a home here.
Get the Kids Involved in baking!
Getting kids involved not only makes baking more fun, but it also helps them build confidence, learn life skills, and take pride in what they’ve made.
Here are some fun and meaningful ways kids can help out:
- Mash the bananas
Let them squish the bananas with a fork or potato masher in a bowl, it doesn’t have to be perfect—lumps are totally fine in this recipe! - Stir the ingredients together
Give them a big mixing spoon and let them combine the dry ingredients first, then the wet. - Spoon the batter into muffin cases
Using two spoons (or an ice cream scoop), kids can help fill the muffin cases. - Grate the apples and carrots
Older children can help grate fruits and veggies with supervision. - Measure out ingredients
Measuring flour, oats, sugar, and cinnamon is a great way to get used of reading the weighing scales.
How We Eat Our ABC Muffins
In our house, ABC Muffins don’t last long—they’re a firm favourite with everyone! Here are some of our favourite ways to enjoy them:
Straight from the freezer
If we forget to defrost the night before (which definitely happens!), I just microwave one for about 30 seconds in the morning. Soft, warm, and ready to go.
Lunchbox filler
These muffins are one of my go-to lunchbox staples. I pop one into each kid’s lunchbox straight from the freezer in the morning—they’re perfectly defrosted by morning tea or lunchtime. Super convenient and one less thing to think about!
With a cuppa
I’ll often grab one with my mid-morning cup of tea or coffee. They’re just sweet enough to feel like a treat but filled with goodness to keep me going.
After-school snack
When the kids come bursting through the door after school, hungry and tired, a warm muffin hits the spot. Sometimes we pair them with fruit or a bit of yogurt on the side.
Picnic snack
They’re easy to pack and don’t crumble too much—ideal for picnics, playground trips, or days out. A healthier alternative to store bought snacks.
Ingredient Breakdown!
Let’s take a closer look at what goes into these muffins—and why they work so well!
- Self-raising flour
This is the base of the muffins, giving them structure and a light, fluffy texture. It already contains baking powder, which helps the muffins rise. - Oats
Adds fibre, texture, and a bit of extra heartiness. They also help the muffins feel more filling—perfect for growing kids and busy days. - Sugar or sugar alternative
Adds sweetness and helps create a golden crust. You can swap for coconut sugar, brown sugar, or a sugar substitute depending on your preference. - Baking powder
A little extra lift, especially helpful with the weight of all the fruit and veg in the mix. - Cinnamon
Warm, comforting, and kid-friendly. It pairs perfectly with apple and banana for that classic muffin flavour. - Butter
Gives richness, moisture, and flavour. Make sure it’s cooled before mixing it in so it doesn’t cook the eggs! - Milk
Keeps the muffins tender and smooths out the batter. You can use dairy or your favourite milk alternative. - Eggs
Help bind the mixture together and give the muffins structure. Eggs also add a bit of protein. - Bananas
Naturally sweet, moist, and great for using up overripe bananas. They also help reduce the need for extra sugar. - Apples
Add moisture and a touch of sweetness without standing out too much—great for picky eaters! - Carrot
Adds subtle sweetness, fibre, and a nutritional boost. Like the apples, they blend right in with the texture of the muffin.
These muffins are a real win in our household—easy, tasty, nourishing, and made with ingredients I usually have lying around. I always make a big batch, freeze most of them, and feel great knowing I’ve got lunchbox snacks sorted for weeks ahead.
ABC Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
- 200 g self raising flour
- 50 g oats
- 80 g sugar or sugar alternative
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 100 g butter melted and cooled
- 100 ml milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 banana mashed
- 1 medium apple grated
- 1 small carrot grated
Instructions
- Preheat the oven 180c fan. Prepare your muffin tins.
- For dry ingredients:Begin by adding the self rising flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon and baking powder to a large bowl, mix well.
- For the wet ingredients: add the melted butter, milk and eggs to a jug, whisk well.
- Add the grated apple, mashed banana and grated carrot to the bowl with the flour, mix with a fork.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to combine.
- Scoop into the muffin tins.
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden on top and cooked through.
- Test with a cocktail stick- when it comes out clean they’re done.
- Storage tips:Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.To freeze: cool completely, label a zip lock bag, put them in the bag, freeze for 3 months.To defrost:take a muffin or 2 from the freezer, put them in a container with a lid, leave to defrost overnight on the counter top. Put them in the lunchbox in the morning.If you forget to defrost the night before-microwave for 30 seconds in the morning.
23 thoughts on “ABC Muffins”
Made these as a holiday snack and they’ve been a huge hit, even with my daughter who doesn’t like oats or other foods in cakes. Will definitely be making again with extra to freeze.
Thats so good to hear Emma. Thanks for the review. Lou x
Im delighted to hear that Emma! We love this recipe so much here too. Lou x
Hi Lou,
Could I replace the apple with stewed apple. Have alot of jars from our tree.
Absolutely loving your recipes. Thanks so much!
Michelle
Yes you can thats absolutely perfect, I’d say 1/4 cup of apple sauce per apple. Lou x
I do not have self raising flour. How do i replace with regular flour and baking powder?
Hi, sorry for the delay reply. Yes you can – sieve together 150g regular flour plus 1 teaspoon of baking powder – and increase the amount as you need it to replace SF flour . Lou x
I had been looking for a healthy alternative and glad I found one. These muffins are super quick to make & bake, delicious with a soft crumb and a touch of crunch from the oats. Great recipe, thanks for sharing Lou.
So happy to hear that thanks Sarah. Lou x
The first time I made these I didn’t have self-raising flour and they were delicious.
The second time I made these I used coconut oil and almond milk. Both times I added in raisins.
We LOVE these muffins – they are now a staple in our house.
Delicious recipe, Lou. Many thanks.
Hi Gillian, Im so happy to hear that, thanks so much. Lou x
These are delicious, although did think a lot of sugar for a healthy recipe so we swapped out sugar for honey and they were a hit.
Hi Simone, Im so glad you adapted them to your own tastes. Thanks for your comment. Lou :)
According to a fussy 6 year old : ‘ I don’t like it, I LOVE it!’. An absolute hit – and definitely none left to freeze, will have to double up next week.
Amazing – the best to hear x
Which type of apple to you use?
I use eating apples – what ever I have, royal gala or pink lady x
I have been making your immune boosting juice. You mentioned in there that I could use the pulp to make these abc muffins. Could you please share how to do that? Thanks.
Hi Julie, You can use the pulp and add it to the abc muffin mix. Just to note the pith from the lemon and orange can be bitter so you might want to leave this out depending on you tastes. The pulp can account for the carrot in the muffins to no need to add any more carrot. I hope this helps. Lou x
Hi Lou, I’ve made 5 batches and modified a little to suit various preferences in our house. These are delicious and often requested. Thank you for the recipe! Lucy 😀
Amazing to hear Lucy x
How much maple syrup would you use as a sugar alternative? Really want to try them, but wanted an alternative to sugar for a baby.
Hi Laura, if the bananas are nice and ripe – leave out the sugar altogether. If you want them sweeter 80ml of maple syrup would work.