These delicious Almond Flour Corn Muffins are sweet, buttery, and made from wholesome ingredients. These muffins are naturally gluten-free and can be enjoyed with breakfast, or paired with a savory chili or soup.
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Can we just talk about how cozy cornbread tastes? It is pure nostalgia for me. Sweet, buttery, and so delicious. These healthier almond flour corn muffins are made from wholesome ingredients including almond flour, whole grain corn meal, Greek yogurt, real butter, and no refined sugar. This makes them heartier, more filling, naturally gluten-free, and gives them 8 grams of protein per muffin!
Looking for other great gluten-free muffins? Try these Gluten-Free Blackberry Muffins, these Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins, these Paleo Banana Espresso Muffins, or these Almond Flour Banana Muffins.
What I Love about these Almond Flour Corn Muffins
These muffins are just so comforting and tasty. Here is why I love them:
- Sweet & Buttery - With real butter and sweetened with 100% honey, the flavor of these muffins is everything you want in a cornbread.
- Protein Packed - Because of the Greek yogurt and almond flour, these little muffins contain 8 grams of protein each.
- So Wholesome - This classic comfort food is made with healthier, less-refined ingredients so you can feel better about bringing them to your table.
Ingredient Notes & Possible Substitutions
Almond Flour
I use blanched ultra-fine almond flour for this recipe. Costco has the best deal for this almond flour, so I always pick it up there. I would avoid almond meal (processed almonds with the skin on) as the cornmeal in combination with almond flour is already fairly coarse.
Cornmeal
Cornmeal is what I use in this recipe, but you can substitute corn flour 1:1 for less gritty muffin. Choose yellow cornmeal or corn flour, instead of white. Opt for gluten-free corn flour if needed.
Leavening
Because this recipe has quite a bit of yogurt in it, it requires both baking powder and baking soda to get a good rise because of the extra acid.
Salt
If you are sensitive to salt, you can reduce the salt to ¼ teaspoon or use unsalted butter.
Butter
I like these muffins to be buttery and slightly salty, so I use salted butter. Unsalted butter will absolutely work. For a dairy-free alternative, I used Miyoko's Creamery Plant Milk Butter. Oil would likely work, but you wouldn't get that great buttery flavor.
Yogurt
I recommend using full fat dairy in this recipe. Full fat plain Greek yogurt or full fat sour cream will work. Lower fat options can be used but will produce a slightly drier muffin. Regular plain full fat yogurt is also a good option but will provide less protein. For a dairy-free option, I tested Harmless Harvest plain coconut yogurt and it worked well.
Eggs
The "flours" used in this recipe are quite dense and can be tricky to work with, so I didn't test any egg replacements in this recipe. If you try something that works, let me know in the comments!
Honey
For sweeter muffins, use ½ cup of honey. For more savory muffins, reduce to ⅓ cup. I didn't try any substitutions for honey because it is important for the classic flavor of these muffins. If you need to substitute the honey, try a liquid sweetener like maple syrup or agave.
How to Make Almond Flour Corn Muffins
Mix Wet Ingredients
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine almond flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
Mix Dry Ingredients
- In a large mixing bowl, combine wet ingredients (yogurt, eggs, butter, and honey) and whisk together until smooth.
Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients
- Pour the dry ingredients into the large bowl with the wet ingredients. Stir together until well-incorporated but avoid over-mixing.
Fill Muffins Wells and Bake
- Using a slightly overfilled 2-ounce scoop, divide the cornbread mixture into a muffin pan lined with muffin liners.
- Place in an oven preheated to 350 F and bake for 16-18 minutes (17 minutes was perfect for my oven), or until the tops are golden and the muffins can be pierced in the center with a toothpick that comes out cleanly. Serve warm with honey and butter.
Storage
Store leftover muffins in an airtight container, resealable bag, or on a plate covered with tinfoil at room temperature for up to 5 days.
For longer storage, freeze muffins in a resealable freezer bag for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature for about 2 hours, warm the muffin in the microwave, and enjoy!
Commonly Asked Questions
These muffins have the same flavor as traditional cornbread but are made with heartier, coarser "flours" so the texture is not quite as fluffy. They are made with less refined ingredients, making them a little more dense, and crumbly. The flavor is sweet and buttery!
Yes, corn flour can be used as a replacement to cornmeal in this recipe. It will produce a less gritty texture.
Yes! I would recommend using Harmless Harvest Plain Coconut Yogurt and Miyoko's Plant Butter for dairy-free alternatives.
Serving Suggestions
These corn muffins are delicious with a little honey and warm butter, and can be served at any meal, or even as a snack. Here are some ideas:
- Serve them alongside this Paleo Sweet Potato Chili or your favorite regular chili.
- Plate them up with eggs and bacon for your breakfast carb source.
- Slice them in half and use them to make an open-faced sloppy Joe. This Sloppy Joe recipe is my go-to.
- Serve them with a cozy soup like this Curry Apple Butternut Squash Soup or this Paleo Chicken Noodle Soup.
- Enjoy them alongside one of these great protein entrees: Crispy Gluten-Free Chicken Wings, Almond Crusted Chicken Breast, Wagyu Beef Meatballs.
Dietitian Notes
- These wholesome muffins are made with 100% whole grain cornmeal and almond flour for 3 grams of fiber per muffin.
- Using Greek yogurt and almond flour amps up the protein, giving these muffins 8 grams of protein each!
Recipe Tips
- It is important to divide the muffin batter evenly between the wells for uniform muffins. They do not dome, so if one well has significantly more batter it will spill over the muffin tin slightly and will take longer to cook.
- Using a slightly overfilled 2-ounce ice cream or cookie scoop is helpful to divide the batter evenly between the wells. A regular spoon will also do the trick but try to ensure each well has about the same amount of batter.
- The color of your muffin tin, your oven type and age, and your elevation can all influence the baking time. Check your muffins early to avoid over-baking.
Try These Other Gluten-Free Recipes
Looking for other tasty recipes? Here are a few you might like:
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📖 Recipe
Almond Flour Corn Muffins
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Rubber Spatula
- 2-ounce scoop optional
- 12-count muffin pan
- Muffin liners
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup Cornmeal gluten-free if needed (190 g)
- 1 ¾ cup Blanched almond flour (165 g)
- 2 teaspoon Baking powder gluten-free if needed
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- ½ teaspoon Sea salt reduce to ¼ teaspoon or use unsalted butter if you are sensitive to salt
- 1 cup Full fat plain Greek yogurt or full fat sour cream (240 g) - see post for dairy-free recommendations
- 2 Egg
- ½ cup Honey use ⅓ cup for less sweet muffins
- ½ cup Salted butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tin with muffin liners, and set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine almond flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine wet ingredients (yogurt, eggs, butter, and honey) and whisk together until smooth.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the large bowl with the wet ingredients. Stir together until well-incorporated but avoid over-mixing.
- Using a slightly overfilled 2-ounce scoop, divide the cornbread mixture into the lined muffin wells. Aim to divide the batter as evenly as possible. If some wells are overfilled, they will take longer to bake and may sink when cooling (not a problem if the batter is evenly divided). Alternatively, use a level 2-ounce scoop and make 14 muffins to ensure they are all perfectly even in size (smaller muffins will take about 14-16 minutes to fully bake).
- Bake for 16-18 minutes (17 minutes was perfect for my oven), or until the tops are golden and the muffins can be pierced in the center with a toothpick that comes out cleanly. Serve warm with honey and butter.
Michelle Varrin says
Sorry but these are so dry. I even added blueberries. I personally would have reversed the amounts of cornflour and almond flour.
foodbornewellness.com says
Thanks for the feedback, Michelle! Sorry you didn't love it. This is an older recipe that I need to revisit and retest. The quality control on all my newer recipes and anything updated in 2024 is far better. This one is on my schedule to retest for fall!
Bo says
Do you think I can substitute cornmeal with corn grits? I know the texture will not be as smooth, but just wondering since I have lots of corn grits on hand.
foodbornewellness.com says
Hi Bo, I haven't cooked with grits too often so I am not sure. If you try it circle back and let me know how it worked out!
Michaela says
Yummy! I appreciate that this has almond flour instead of a starchy gf all purpose flour blend. I will reduce the sañt next time I make, probably 1 tsp instead of 1.5 tsp
foodbornewellness.com says
I am so happy you liked it! Thanks for trying the recipe! I have received that feedback about the salt before and have meant to give this recipe another test.
Dawn says
Love this healthier corn muffin! Riffed a little on the recipe by using almond meal and added lemon zest and juice. My muffins came out a bit more rustic but that’s exactly what I love about them. And the touch of lemon zest brighten and lightens up each bite. Thank you for sharing an awesome recipe.
foodbornewellness.com says
Thanks so much, Dawn! I am happy you enjoyed it and the addition of lemon zest sounds amazing!
Elyse says
Followed to a tee but this is way too salty. Needs double to honey or half the salt.
foodbornewellness.com says
Sorry to hear that, Elyse. Thanks for giving the recipe a try. I do tend to like things more on the salty vs. sweet side. I will have to retest and evaluate that. Thanks for the feedback.