These Paleo Pineapple Zucchini Muffins are a healthy remake of a family recipe we’ve been making for decades. Instead of several cups of sugar, I’ve subbed in maple syrup, and all real food ingredients to make it a much healthier option. They’re made with almond flour so they’re naturally gluten-free and dairy-free as well. The subtle sweet flavor of pineapple pairs together perfectly with zucchini to make moist but fluffy muffins.
This recipe is inspired by a pineapple zucchini bread my Aunt was always famous for baking. After a little research, it seems the original recipe came from Sunset magazine in the 70’s. But I grew up knowing it as Aunt B’s zucchini bread.
I never knew what was in it growing up. But it’s shocking to look at the recipe and find it has 2 cups of white sugar and a full cup of processed oil! So I set out to create a recipe in the spirit of the original, but with ingredients that didn’t make me cringe a little.
To my surprise, it was super easy to make this recipe much healthier. That’s not always the case. But it seems this recipe was made to be reworked into a paleo-friendly & naturally gluten-free option.
Ingredients for these Paleo Pineapple Zucchini Muffins
- Almond flour – this replaces the processed refined flour in the original recipe with great results. It also helps to reduce the amount of oil needed to make this recipe work.
- Tapioca starch – just a touch of tapioca starch is what works together with the egg to bind the almond flour together and make a perfectly fluffy muffin.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg – these are the original spices from the recipe, and their flavor is spot on in this zucchini muffin.
- Zucchini – as you might expect of a zucchini muffin, zucchini makes this recipe perfectly moist.
- Crushed pineapple – adds a touch of sweetness and some additional liquid to the batter combined with the zucchini to make for the perfect moistness.
- Maple syrup – my natural sweetener of choice for paleo baking and muffins.
- Avocado oil – I love using avocado oil in place of refined oils in my recipes for a healthy fat that doubles as a dairy-free option. Just be sure to look for a quality brand like Chosen Foods or Mariannes.
- Eggs – work together with the tapioca starch to create the best fluffy texture.
Now… let’s make these muffins step by step
Step 1; Mix together the dry ingredients, and then add the zucchini & pineapple.
Step 2: Next add the wet ingredients and mix to form the muffin batter.
Step 3: Portion the batter evenly into a muffin tin lined with paper liners.
Step 4: Bake until puffed up and done in the centers. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean or with moist crumbs.
Cool for 5-10 minutes in the muffin pan, then remove them from the muffin tin to cool on a wire rack.
Ways to serve these
- Serve these muffins warm from the oven with butter and honey!
- Make a full-sized breakfast by serving these with my Air Fryer Sausage Links and Veggie Scrambled Eggs.
- Or with my Turkey Breakfast Sausage and Scrambled Eggs with Spinach and Feta.
Tips & Tricks
- Don’t try to substitute all-purpose flour for the almond flour in this recipe. There’s no easy way to sub these two flours, so I feel the best option is to find another recipe that uses all-purpose flour.
- I don’t squeeze the zucchini before adding it to the batter when I buy zucchini from the store. However, if it’s sopping wet after you grate it, I would recommend lightly squeezing it first. The only time I’ve ever seen really wet grated zucchini is with garden fresh summer zucchini. So I thought I’d mention that in case you’ve grown your own!
More Almond Flour Muffin Recipe Inspiration
I sure hope you enjoy this new take on my Aunt B’s zucchini bread recipe! If you do make these muffins, I hope you’ll leave me a comment/rating below. I always love hearing from you here.
Paleo Pineapple Zucchini Muffins
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups fine almond flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca starch
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp baking powder - see notes
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup crushed pineapple - no sugar added, well drained
- 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup avocado oil
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a muffin tin with paper liners.
- Whisk together the almond flour, tapioca starch, sea salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- For the pineapple, drain it in a fine mesh sieve and use your hand or a spoon to press a bit more liquid out of it. Then add it to the flour mixture with the grated zucchini. Stir to distribute the pineapple and zucchini evenly in the flour mixture.
- Then add the eggs, avocado oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Mix until a batter forms, then portion it out equally into the 12 lined muffin cups.
- Bake until puffed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs, 20-25 minutes.
- Cool for 5-10 minutes, then remove the muffins onto a cooling rack.
- Serve at room temperature for the best taste and texture.
- Any leftovers freeze well in a tightly sealed container. To reheat, defrost then heat in a 300ºF for about 10 minutes. Or you can take them from the freezer to the oven at 200ºF. Let them reheat for 10 minutes, then turn the oven off and let them sit for another 10 minutes to completely defrost.
Kari, do you squeeze out or drain the liquid from the zucchini before adding it in?
Thanks for all the recipe developing and trials you do for our benefit. Very much appreciated.