These Meatloaf Muffins are packed with hidden veggies, AIP, paleo and Whole30 compliant and the perfect choice for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
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If you’re looking for a filling, nutrient-dense and veggie packed main then look no further. These fun meatloaf muffins are AIP, paleo and Whole30 compliant and the (optional) “cheese” sauce really makes these babes a winner! These are absolutely perfect when you’re in need of a quick weeknight dinner because they cook so quickly and are also one of my favorite Sunday meal prep recipes to grab for a weekday breakfast.
Here are the main ingredients in these Meatloaf Muffins:
- ground turkey or chicken
- yellow onion and garlic
- celery
- carrots
- spinach or kale
- thyme
- tapioca starch
- full fat coconut milk
- apple cider vinegar
Meatloaf Muffins FAQs
Can I make these using a different protein?
Yes, you can use beef or pork or a combination thereof in this recipe. I’d suggesting cooking a small patty on the stovetop before baking the muffins to adjust for seasoning as necessary.
How do you store these?
These muffins keep well in the fridge in a sealed container for 5 days and should be reheated before serving. I have not tried freezing these but my guess is that they’d hold up quite well.
Can you make these coconut free?
You can swap out the coconut aminos for nomato sauce (though this isn’t Whole30 compliant) and omit the “cheese” sauce to make these coconut free.
If you tried these AIP Meatloaf Muffins I would appreciate it if you would give them a star rating and review. Be sure to snap a picture of the finished product and share it with me on Instagram by tagging @healmedelicious and using the hashtag #healmedelicious.
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Meatloaf Muffins (AIP, paleo, Whole30)
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 12 muffins 1x
Description
These Meatloaf Muffins are packed with hidden veggies, AIP, paleo and Whole30 compliant and the perfect choice for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
Muffins
- 1 lb ground turkey or chicken
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup celery, finely diced
- 1 cup carrot, grated
- 2 cups spinach or kale, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon thyme, fresh or dried
- 1.5 tsp sea salt
- 2 TBSP coconut aminos
- 1 TBSP olive oil
“Cheese” Sauce (optional)
- 1 cup full fat, additive free coconut milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- pinch of turmeric (optional – for yellow colour)
- 2 TBSP tapioca or arrowroot starch + 1 TBSP water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Line a muffin pan with parchment liners or olive oil.
- In a large bowl combine ground turkey, onion, garlic, celery, carrots, spinach, thyme, sea salt, coconut aminos and olive oil.
- Distribute mixture evenly across 12 muffin holes and bake in the middle rack of oven for 25 minutes.
- To prepare the optional “cheese” sauce, combine coconut milk, apple cider vinegar, dried thyme, garlic powder, sea salt and optional turmeric in a small saucepan over medium heat. In a small bowl, mix together tapioca starch and water to make a slurry. Once coconut milk mixture has reached a rolling boil, add in slurry and whisk continuously until mixture begins to thicken.
- If using cheese sauce, spoon over each muffin and return to oven to broil on high for 1-2 minutes.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Mains
How about using ground beef? I have 2 pounds I need to find something to do with.
I say go for it!
So the veggies give the muffins a crunchy texture?
Nope, they soften while being cooked. no crunch at all!
Love! I made this and just put whole thing in a pie plate. I did sauté my veggies and blend because I’m not big on chunks in my meatloaf ( I didn’t have spinach so left out) it had tons of flavor! The cheese sauce is a wow factor and I can see myself making it for dips, etc…. This will def be put in my rotation!
Thank you!
Am I missing something? where is the directions on how to cook this?
Hi Sandra, there was a temp tech glitch that was hiding the recipe card but that’s been fixed!
These were delicious and quick to put together! Your recipes have been a go-to for me on my AIP journey and my non AIP husband enjoys them as well! Next time I will triple recipe for freezing as other have suggested.
I like these with bbq sauce too. Makes great emergency meal.
Delicious! I am new to AIP and this is SO tasty! The cheese sauce is amazing and I can’t wait to make it in other recipes as well!
I LOVE this recipe… but after prepping all the vegetables I wondered if there would be too many. So I left about 1/3 out and froze them for veggie stock later on. Also… I make meatballs A LOT so I approached this the same way and sautéed the onion for a couple of minutes on medium heat; added the celery and sautéed with the onion until soft; then added the garlic and sautéed until aromatic. I set the pan aside to cool down. Once cooled… I added all the veggies to the meat. This takes the bite out and ensures no raw/crunchy pieces of allium. I used the oil to sauté and did not add any additional to the meatloaf mixture. I made a triple batch (I had 3 lbs of 85% fat ground turkey) and spread the meatloaf mixture over two standard muffin tins (24 total) and froze a bunch of them! Also… I placed about 95 grams of meatloaf mix per muffin and they were fully cooked to 165F in about 23 minutes in an electric non-convection oven. They are sooooo incredibly juicy! I will make these over and over and over again!!!
I love this recipe. I am trying to figure out what the nutritional breakdown would be. Any ideas?
These are amazing!! I was expecting another dry, crumbly, meh meatloaf recipe. I was wrong!! These are AMAZING!!!! So juicy and flavorful! The only meat I had on hand was ground chuck. I used the seasonings as listed and they were perfect! The sauce did have a very cheese-like taste and consistency to it. These are superb!! Thanks for giving me another staple in my meal lineup!
? So happy to hear this, Mandy!
Awesome recipe, thanks!
It has become one of our staples at home. It’s actually one of the few AIP-recipes my non-AIP partner really enjoys 🙂
Here in France ground poultry is impossible to find, but I just get some breasts through the food processor at the start, works very well.
I really enjoyed the flavors here. Thank you so very much for sharing your creativity.
These were delicious!! Made for my daughter but I had to try too! Double yum!!
D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S. I was nervous the muffins were going to be dry with how many vegetables they have but they were wonderfully moist and packed with flavor! These will definitely be added to our go-to meals. Thank you!!!!
Yes! The hidden veggies actually contribute to the moisture ?
I love these!! Every recipe from Nicole is YUMMY! She is my favorite now!
These are my new go to! So delicious for breakfast, lunch, dinner. Whenever!! The “cheese” sauce is so good. I’m going to try it on other things that have cheese sauce. So exciting! Thanks Nicole!
These are amazing! Thank you for creating so many game-changing recipes, you’re by far my favorite AIP blogger.
Would these also be good with broccoli, do you think?
I made these muffins (without the cheese sauce) for my lunches this week and they were perfect! So easy to whip together on Sunday evening and I had 4 days of lunch prepped! Ate them with a side salad and it was perfect! Tasty, easy….what more could I ask!
Awesome, thanks for your review Sam!
I was so excited to try this recipe and it did not disappoint! It’s a great option for a quick, filling and yummy meal to enjoy at any time.
Yay! Thanks so much for leaving a review Yan xx