Healthy Cottage Cheese Protein Muffins (with protein powder)
If baked cheesecake and muffins had a baby, it'd be these insanely delicious healthy cottage cheese protein muffins! You would never guess these moist, light, and airy muffins contain a whopping 14 grams of protein and only 5 grams net carbs each! They come together with a handful of nutrient-dense ingredients in under 10 minutes and are gluten-free and refined sugar-free!
Ingredients
- 3 eggs, room temp
- 3/4 cup low-fat cottage cheese
- 1/3 cup melted & cooled coconut oil or avocado oil
- 1 1/4 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup pea/plant-based protein powder *Use a flavor you love!
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/4 cup monk fruit sweetener (or other granulated sweetener - coconut sugar, etc).
- 1/2 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- add-ins: fresh berries, chocolate chips, etc. *Use fresh berries as frozen berries become too liquidy!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a muffin tin well.
- In a food processor or blender, combine all of the ingredients, blending until just combined and no chunks remain. Fold in any add-ins (berries, etc). If using frozen berries, chop them into small pieces (even the smaller berries) or it can produce too much moisture and affect baking.
- Divide the batter amongst the muffin tin. This should yield about 8 muffins.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are firm to touch and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. I check mine around 20 minutes, as you don't want to over-bake or they'll dry out. If you add frozen berries, they may need to bake a few minutes longer. And don't worry if you end up opening berry muffins to see they seem a little moist on the inside - they're delicious!
- Enjoy! Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat prior to eating if you like!
- If you want to add a topping, I linked my strawberry marshmallow fluff below. It's delicious on these!
Video
Notes
Marshmallow fluff for "frosting"
Protein powder - I've only tested these using plant-based pea protein (Macro Mike is my favorite! I used their Mixed Berry White Chocolate Cheesecake flavor for these! You can use my code "amb-dani" for a discount), however I think whey or beef protein will work.
Expert tips
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- Don't over-bake! You don't want to over-bake the muffins or they won't have that delicious moist, airy texture! I like to check on mine around 20 minutes. You can insert a toothpick in the center to see if it comes out clean! I will say, if you add frozen berries, they may need to bake a few minutes longer.
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- Blending the muffin batter is a must! The ingredients need to be blended together well to ensure the muffins bake evenly and there aren't any chunks!
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- If using frozen berries, it's crucial you chop them up into tiny pieces. I noticed in the batches i left them whole, they released too much moisture and affected the texture/baking time. Chopping them into tiny pieces ensures the muffins will still bake well!
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- These muffins are formulated to keep your blood sugar balanced and prevent any spikes so they aren't overly sweet. If you want a sweeter muffin, feel free to add in an extra tablespoon or two of granulated sweetener!