Hello Friends! This AIP Cinnamon Swirl Muffins recipe has been a long time coming!
So I hope it was worth the wait and the amount of muffins I threw away (laughs to self but secretly crying on the inside). It’s all worth it when you finally achieve perfection, right? That’s what I am telling myself anyways!
Jump to Recipe
I started working on this AIP Cinnamon Swirl Muffins recipe back in October.
I tried to make them using cassava flour but I just couldn’t get the right balance of flours and they kept coming out gummy.
Then I decided to use tiger nut flour but still couldn’t get the right texture.
Then I added in a little bit of coconut flour yesterday and finally got the texture just right!
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I always get asked about ingredient swaps so I will talk about them here briefly:
–Almond flour (a stage 2 reintroduction on the AIP, not elimination phase compliant) for the tiger nut flour
–Tapioca starch for arrowroot starch
-Coconut oil for palm shortening
-Coconut sugar for maple sugar
-Almond milk (not AIP) for the coconut milk
-1 egg (not AIP) for the gelatin egg
-More arrowroot or tiger nut flour in place of the coconut flour (this will yield a slightly different texture)
-1 Banana for the apple sauce (although the muffins will then have a banana flavor)
-Honey for maple syrup (will make it taste less like a cinnamon roll)
I think that is all of the ingredient swaps that are possible.
I had two of my friends try these AIP Cinnamon Swirl Muffins and they both agreed these are the best muffins I have ever made.
One even said this is the first AIP muffin she has ever seen that has the texture of a real muffin and looks like a real muffin. So I hope you will agree!
If you do make this recipe please come back and rate the recipe and leave a comment letting others know you enjoyed it. If you are on Facebook or Instagram please tag me @itsallaboutaip in your photos so I can see what you made!
Ready to get some more of your AIP bake on!? Check out my Cinnamon Coffee Cake too! Or if you are in the mood for a real decadent treat, bake up my Vanilla Cake for those special occasions.
Happy Baking!
XO Meagen Ashley
Cinnamon Swirl Muffins (AIP, Paleo)
All the flavor of a cinnamon roll in a muffin!
Ingredients
Muffins
- 1/4 cup coconut flour, sifted
- 1/4 cup arrowroot starch
- 2/3 cup tiger nut flour, sifted
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp maple sugar or coconut palm sugar
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract, alcohol free
- 3 Tbsp maple syrup, pure
- 3 Tbsp palm shortening, melted or coconut oil
- 1/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1 Tbsp gelatin for gelatin egg
- 1/4 cup water for gelatin egg
Swirl (topping)
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp palm shortening, melted or coconut oil
Instructions
Muffins
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin pan with parchment paper liners.
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In a large bowl, whisk the dry muffin ingredients together (except for the gelatin).
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In a medium sized bowl, whisk the wet muffin ingredients together (except for the water).
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Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, whisking as you go. Whisk until thoroughly combined and no clumps.
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Prepare the gelatin egg- pour the water in a small pan. Slowly sprinkle the gelatin over the water in a thin layer and allow to bloom for 2 minutes. Turn the heat to medium low to melt the gelatin and then whisk until frothy.
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Pour the gelatin egg into the large bowl with the batter and quickly stir it in. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups filling them 3/4 of the way full.
Swirl (topping)
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Mix the swirl ingredients together in a small cup until combined.
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Spoon 1/2 a tsp of the swirl topping on top of each muffin. Take a toothpick and swirl the topping into the muffin batter.
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Bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops are lightly golden brown or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the muffin.
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Remove from the oven and let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Then carefully move to a cooling rack (leave in liners) and allow to cool completely.
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Store in the fridge for up to 5 days in a glass dish or in the freezer for up to 3 months. You may remove the liners for storage.
Recipe Notes
You will need a toothpick to combine the swirl topping into the muffin batter.
73 Comments
I did make these and they have a great flavor, are light and fluffy, have a good muffin texture and I will be making them again. Thank you for this recipe.
Thanks so much, Louise! I am so happy you liked them! You’re very welcome! xo
I don’t have tigernut flour. Can I sub gf to at flour or cassava?
Hi Diane,
I haven’t tried either of those substitutions. Your best bet is try almond flour although its not AIP compliant.
Just made these and they are sooo good. Thanks for the great recipe!
Hi Kim,
Thanks so much! It makes my heart happy to hear you loved these. Enjoy! xo
I accidentally forgot to add the coconut milk and they are still delicious!
Oh good to know! Thanks!
Need help! Tried making 2x and both times they sunk in the middle. I dont know why this is occurring. Not baked long enough? Too much liquid? I know they would be amazing if I could get them to stay fluffy!
Hi Lisa,
Sometimes if you open the oven during baking to check if they are done or you remove them before they are done they will sink in the middle. Try baking them a little longer!
I just made these and they are amazing! Thank you!!
I didn’t have gelatin so subbed flax egg. It worked really well. I am SO happy!
You are so welcome, Jody! I am happy the flax egg worked for you. I always appreciate the feedback. Have a lovely day!
Amazing! Two weeks on aip and desperate for a muffin and thus was so good my kids ate them before I could take seconds!
Hi Jenn,
I’m so happy to hear you and your kiddos loved the muffins! (I like to make a double batch and squirrel some away, haha!)
xo,
Meagen
I made these this am. Thank you for the recipe. I have a coconut intolerance, so I used a bit more than 1/4 cup plantain flour to sub for the coconut flour. I used 1/3 cup water plus enough avocado oil to make 1/2 cup to replace the coconut milk. I blended the water and oil to get a thickened emulsified avocado water. Used palm shortening as directed. They turned out great!!!!
Hi Diane,
Thanks so much for the feedback, I am sure the folks who can’t have coconut will appreciate this! Enjoy!!
Incredible!! Seriously, a baking miracle… these are so good. Our family of 4 demolished these in a day. Thank you so much for sharing this brilliant recipe!
Thank you, it took me quite awhile to get the perfect ratio for this texture but it was well worth it!
Would love to make them, actually standing in my kitchen and has turned on the oven.
But… Mesures in “cup”.
I’m from Europe. We bake using kilos (kg) and grams (g) and liters (l) and deciliters (dl) and mililiters (ml)
Don’t dare find a random weight translater on the internet, so no cinnamon swirl muffins are being made here right now. Too bad!
Hi Josia! I am in Canada and we measure in cups. If it helps I use pampered chef measuring tools which would help you figure out the ml. Most of my audience is in North America so that is how I generally measure. I hope you are still able to make them!
Hahaha Meagen, yes I know you are and I know you do. Maybe one day I’ll find some “cup” tools. Until then I’ll pass. Thnx for rapid reply. Cheers.
What is gelatin egg? Do you have a link? I’m looking forward to trying your recipes. Been bummed about not having treats while on aip
Hi, I explain how to make the gelatin egg in the recipe. You need 1 Tbsp of grass fed gelatin and 1/4 cup of water. Let it bloom for a few minutes, then heat it on low in a pan until melted, then whisk quickly til frothy and pour into the batter.
Oops i missed it . I was checking to see if I have the ingredients first. Thanks!
Made the muffins yesterday sooo good! Thanks so much!
Hi Sherry,
Thanks so much for the feedback! I am so glad you enjoyed them! xo
I have reintroduced egg yolks but not whites. Any recommendations? Thanks!
Hi, Unfortunately egg yolks are not the part that will hold the muffin together. The egg white is. So I would recommend still using a gelatin egg.
Made these today and they are awesome! Thank you!
Hi Lori,
Thanks so much! I am so glad you enjoyed them! 🙂
Wonderful recipe! I’ve made them a handful of times for my aip son- first time I didn’t read to add the swirl mix before baking, still came out perfect- second time made exactly as written- still perfect- third time I used the batter minus the cinnamon & converted to chocolate chip muffins- again wonderful. Tonight I made them & doubled the recipe. They turned out. My other non AIP son ate 2 before I stopped him- he was ready to eat them all 😂
Thank you so much for a wonderful recipe!
Hi Jen! Thank you so much for leaving feedback, I love reading how the recipe worked for others. Also good to know that it works when you double it, as we all know that is not always the case with AIP recipes. Thanks for incorporating my recipe into your home!
These are light and so tasty! Feels like a decadent treat. Will be eager to get up for breakfast tomorrow with these waiting for me. Probably should have doubled the recipe to account for the rest of the family… next time!
Hi Sarah,
I am so glad you loved these muffins! They were a lot of work to create but I think they turned out close to the real deal! I hope your family enjoys! XO
Have you tried making these in a donut pan and calling them “donuts”? Would the consistency work?
Hi Sarah! I haven’t but I believe it would work! Let me know how it goes!
I made these twice today because they turned out so well, plus I doubled the batch each time. We took them to a friends Thanksgiving gathering and everyone loved them, even those who don’t eat AIP. I made some substitutions. I used arrowroot in place of the coconut flour as we don’t tolerate coconut. I subbed date sugar for the maple sugar and water for the coconut milk. I used extra applesauce instead of the maple syrup in the actual muffin and then I used olive oil throughout as we are struggling with other oils. Also, we can’t do gelatin because of glutamine issues so I did an agar egg with one teaspoon agar powder to one tablespoon water. As a special touch, I topped each muffin with some apple juice sweetened dried cranberries to fit the Thanksgiving theme. They turned out so good! Since I doubled the recipe, I filled the muffin pan and had extra left over so I baked the extra on a small cast iron pan and it made a lovely cake. Thanks for the recipe!
Wow! They sound amazing! I am so glad you were able to make them work for you guys. Thanks for sharing!
Made these and was in heaven. So delicious!
Thanks so much, Cheryl! So glad you enjoyed them!
These are AMAZING! My kids think I have to eat weird so none of the baked goods I make will taste “normal” or as good as regular flour baked goods. I selfishly let them think that with these so I can keep them for myself because I know they would love them too, ha! 😉
Hi Kim! I love this comment. Thanks so much for making these..I will keep your secret.
[…] Cinnamon Swirl Muffins […]
These are delicious! I am eating one right now, still warm from the oven! 🙂
Thank you, Sarah! I am so happy you loved them!
Delicious! I am so grateful for this great recipe, what a treat when on AIP! Moist and yummy, highly recommend even to someone who messes up every recipe like I do! I almost missed the cinnamon swirl before you back but luckily caught it last minute! Will definitely make more next time!
Thank you Sharolyn! I am so happy you enjoyed this recipe!!
I just made these and was so impressed! I was craving a bit of fall, so I added 1/3 cup pumpkin and lowered the amount of applesauce. Then I added some cloves and ginger. WOW. I will be making these all fall!!
Yay! Thanks so much for sharing, Rebecca! I love that you love pumpkin too!
I made these this morning. Wow!!! That was a delicious treat! The texture is amazing! Moist, flavorful everything you’d love in any baking – but, truly astounding from an AIP recipe!
I am heading to make batch #2. I should have taken heed to those who knew to double the recipe to begin with. LOL
These were fabulous! I look forward to making these as a standard for our home. It appears that not only have you found a delicious way to make a cinnamon swirl muffin, but, it successfully can be modified for different flavors.
Win- Win -Win
Thank you so very much for all of the effort you put in to this, so our experience is perfect! Bless you!
Hi CJ, Thank you for your lovely review, I am so glad you love these muffins as much as I do! Enjoy your second batch!
We can’t do gelatin. Would agar agar work instead?
Hi Marisa. 🙂 Though I have not tried agar with this recipe, it could quite possibly work since it has been known to be a good substitute for gelatin. If you make it with agar I’d love to hear your results!
Hello! I usually never comment, but this is recipe is definitely worth it. I made them today (I substituted arrowroot starch with tapioca starch). I’m currently on my second month on aip and I’ve been making banana bread for pretty much 4 weeks straight. So this is finally something new and even better. Thank you for sharing this great recipe. Have a great day, God bless you!
Hey there Julia,
Thank you for stopping by to leave your nice comment. I love how arrowroot and tapioca can be used interchangeably – good call! I’m so glad you started the AIP and you have found some recipes to treat yourself with. You deserve it!
Blessings back and have a lovely day,
Meagen
This is the first aip baking I’ve tried and I’m so happy to have found them! I dirtied a few more bowls than a regular muffin, but so worth it! My non-aip husband wanted me to share. Oh heck no! Thanks for this awesome recipe!
Hey Jana,
Ha ha! I am not a fan of sharing these with my husband either!
I am so glad you enjoyed your first AIP baking session, and I wish you well on your journey in both the kitchen and in health. 🙂
xo,
Meagen
Tried these today and loved them! I’m living overseas and my arrowroot starch is running low, so I used sweet potato starch instead. It worked great! I found that the center was a little mushy when they first came out of the oven, but the texture improved as they cooled and the gelatin set. Thank you for the great recipe and for all the hard work you do for the AIP fam!
Hi Allison,
Aww thank you so much for leaving a lovely comment! I’m glad you enjoyed these, and I love how you got creative with the flour substitute. Sweet potato flour is so delicious…good call!
xo,
Meagen
I doubled the recipe based on other’s reviews and I’m so glad I did. These muffins are moist and flavorful, not to sweet, and were easy to make. Thank you so much!
Hi Erica,
Thank you for stopping by to leave your sweet comment! I’m so happy you enjoyed them and that doubling them paid off. 🙂
xo,
Meagen
Just made these, and they have amazing texture and flavor! These are not going to last long, so next time I’ll need to make a double batch. 🙂 Thanks for a great recipe!
Hi Kelley,
I love hearing this! Thank you for your kind comment. 🙂
Happy batch cooking,
Meagen
Hi there!
I made these and didn’t have gelatin so made a chia seed egg instead. The flavour is delicious but the texture is super crumbly so I’m thinking that must be it? They look nothing like your muffin photos. Only other thing I could think was I did use the coconut oil as I don’t have the palm shortening either. All that said I would make them again bc they really are delicious just not sure why they have such a crumbly texture and different appearance….
Hi Heidi,
Yes, sadly with AIP baking recipes, it is difficult for even the smallest of substitutions to work. 🙁
In this recipe, the gelatin both acts as a binder and softener of sorts.
If you remake it with the gelatin instead of chia please let me know how they turn out for you!
xo,
Meagen
Thank you so much. That’s really all I should say. I am so thankful that you have taken the time and energy and resources to figure out how to make a delicious baked good for AIP peeps!! these muffins brought me way more joy than any food should ever bring a person! I do not claim to be much of a baker myself, but I can follow a recipe! I used a donut pan because my muffin tins were dirty 😜. They turned out great. I followed the recipe to a T, and I will be making these again. These muffins were incredible and you’re amazing. Thank you!
Hi Elyse,
This makes me so happy to hear! Your cinnamon swirl donut version sounds divine. 🙂
You’re amazing, too. <3
xo,
Meagen
Hey Meagen! I’m back to rave some more! These are literally my favorite go to muffin! Love them. My kids love them and gobble them up. I wanted to let you know that recently I went to make them not realizing I didn’t have applesauce anymore, so in a pinch I prayed they would still turn out and substituted it for pumpkin. Oh. My. Goodness. How these could possibly taste better I don’t know, but they are so yummy with pumpkin. I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but just thought I’d let you know that with a little twist you’ve got another amazing variation of your muffin. Thanks so much!
Hey again Elyse,
Thanks for coming back to leave another lovely comment! It makes me smile knowing that even the kids enjoy the muffins.
I appreciate you sharing your helpful pumpkin tips!
xo,
Meagen
By far one of the best AIP muffins I have had; excellent texture! Will definitely make again! Thank you for this recipe 🙂
Hi Brittany,
Thank you for stopping by to leave such a nice comment! It makes me very happy to hear that you enjoyed the recipe. 🙂
xo,
Meagen
I made them twice and they keep coming out gummy inside. What am I doing wrong?
Hi M,
They may need to be cooked just a little longer, or you may need to use slightly less liquid in the batter. This can happen due to inconsistencies in different brands of ingredients.
xo,
Meagen