How to make Zucchini Muffins? (Healthier Option)

• Food: Zucchini Muffins
• Writer: Nicolas Wilson
• Content-Type: Food Blog

I was sure I had this zucchini muffins recipe memorized. No, I’m not going to make my favorite zucchini bread batter, divide it into muffin cups, and bake it for a shorter time.

Because of the increased surface area, the muffins were slightly dense and dry, which was great for “healthy” muffins. However, I desired fluffy, moist, and delicious muffins that also occurred to be healthier.

So, in my cookbook, I compared the zucchini bread recipe to my all-time favorite blueberry muffins.

For a more soft crumb, I tweaked the leavener, increased the milk, and swapped it to buttermilk. Success! Everyone will be pleased with these zucchini beauties.

What is it about these zucchini muffins that make them healthy?

Granted, “healthy” is a relative concept, but here are a few reasons why I think these muffins are better for you than most:

• Rather than using refined all-purpose flour, white whole wheat flour is used in these zucchini muffins. That implies they’re made entirely of whole grains, but because white whole wheat flour has such a subtle flavor, you won’t notice.
• Butter can be replaced with coconut or olive oil (olive oil is composed of more monounsaturated fat, and is considered to be more heart-healthy)
• These muffins are naturally sweetened because real maple syrup replaces refined sugar.
• When all of these ingredients are combined, you get hearty and tasty zucchini-flecked muffins.

These muffins are very simply adaptable to a vegan or gluten-free diet. For more information, see my recipe notes.

Zucchini Muffins

These nutritious zucchini muffins are created with whole wheat flour and are naturally sweetened. They’re fluffy, moist, and delicious to boot. This recipe makes 12 muffins.

INGREDIENTS

• ¾ cup roughly chopped raw walnuts or pecans (optional)
• ⅓ cup melted coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil*
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ cup honey or maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ⅔ cup buttermilk (or ⅔ cup milk of choice mixed with 2 teaspoons vinegar, allow to rest for 5 minutes before
• using)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ¾ cups white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 ½ cups grated zucchini (you’ll need 1 small-to-medium zucchini, about 7 ounces—working in handfuls, gently squeeze out excess moisture from the grated zucchini over the sink)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease your muffin tin with butter or cooking spray if necessary (mine pan is non-stick and doesn’t require any grease).
2. If used, toast the nuts: Pour the chopped nuts onto a small, rimmed baking sheet after the oven has completed preheating. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring halfway through, until the nuts are aromatic and toasted.
3. Combine the coconut oil and honey in a medium mixing basin. Whisk them together until they’re well mixed. Mix in the eggs thoroughly. Combine the buttermilk and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Set the bowl aside after whisking everything together. (If your coconut oil hardens when it comes into touch with cold ingredients, simply place the bowl in a warm spot for a few minutes, such as on top of the stove, or warm it in the microwave for approximately 30 seconds.)
4. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg in a large mixing basin. Stir everything together with a large spoon.
5. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and whisk just until incorporated (a few lumps are fine!). Add the zucchini and roasted nuts, if using (make sure to press out any extra moisture beforehand). Carefully fold the zucchini and nuts into the batter without over-stirring.
6. Evenly distribute the batter among the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 16 to 19 minutes, or until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. To cool, place the muffin tray on a cooling rack. If you have any leftover muffins, store them at room temperature for up to two days or in the refrigerator for up to four days, covered. Leftover muffins can be frozen for up to 3 months.

NOTES

• OPTIONS FOR OIL: Here, coconut oil is my favorite. I used unrefined coconut oil and the flavor is barely detectable in the finished product. If you’re into that, olive oil might give the muffins a herbal note. Although vegetable oil has a neutral flavor, most vegetable/canola oils are heavily processed, therefore if possible, choose cold-pressed sunflower or grapeseed oil.
• CHANGE IT UP: Instead of nuts, use chocolate chips or small/chopped dried fruit.
• MAKE IT VEGAN: Swap honey for maple syrup, use flax eggs instead of eggs, and use non-dairy milk like almond milk.
• MAKE IT DAIRY-FREE: Use non-dairy milk instead of regular milk (I used almond milk).
• MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE: The all-purpose gluten-free mix from Bob’s Red Mill works great.
• REPLACE THE EGGS WITH FLAX EGGS TO MAKE THEM EGG-FREE.
• MAKE IT NUT-FREE: Simply leave out the nuts and eliminate the nut milk.
• MAKE IT LESS FATTENING: While I believe this bread has a good level of fat, if you’re on a low-fat diet, you may replace the oil with applesauce.