A Healthy Zucchini Muffins Recipe that is easy to make and yummy! Gluten free, moist and fluffy – these are perfect zucchini bread muffins!
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I love finding ways to sneak extra veggies into my food and these healthy zucchini muffins with chocolate chips are my new favorites and are a great way to enjoy summer zucchini!
Our Healthy Zucchini Bread and Zucchini Banana Bread have been two of my go-to recipes to enjoy zucchini and I’m so excited to enjoy it now in muffin form!
They may look unassuming, but I know these healthy zucchini muffins will be a snack you enjoy all summer.
(Don’t worry though, you can totally make these year-round!)
If you want more delicious zucchini recipes, try one of these Healthy Zucchini Recipes! Or check out these Healthy Muffins!
Why we love this recipe and why it’s healthy:
There are many reasons to love these healthy zucchini muffins with chocolate chips and here are a few:
- Easy to make: These muffins use less than 15 ingredients (mostly pantry staples) and take just over 30 minutes to make!
- Low in sugar: The only added sweetener in these zucchini muffins is honey (and some optional chocolate chips) instead of the refined sugar that many muffins have.
- Low fat: Many muffin recipes use butter or canola oil to get moist muffins, but ours have a little olive oil, milk, and the zucchini to give you the most delicious and moist muffins while still being low fat!
- Veggies: This recipe has a whole cup of zucchini for 12 muffins! If you are trying to get more veggies in your diet, these are a great way!
Zucchini Muffins Healthy Recipe Ingredients
To make these healthy zucchini muffins, you will need:
- zucchini
- oat flour OR whole wheat flour
- milk
- egg
- honey
- olive oil
- vanilla extract
- baking powder, baking soda
- cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger
- mini chocolate chips (optional)
We also love these silicone muffin liners for baking!
You can find substitutions for all of these ingredients below in the green shaded substitutions box.
How To Make Moist Zucchini Muffins
- In a large bowl mix together olive oil, egg, vanilla extract, honey, almond milk, and shredded zucchini.
- Stir flour, spices, baking powder/baking soda into the wet ingredients. Then, fold in mini chocolate chips.
- Fill lined muffin tins in ¼ cup increments.
- Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until the top of the muffins are golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center.
- Allow muffins to cool completely for at least 10 minutes, remove from the pan + enjoy!
Enjoy these healthy muffins with a cup of coffee for breakfast or with peanut butter for an afternoon snack.
How to pick the best Zucchini
The main thing to look for when selecting the perfectly ripe zucchini is firmness. If the zucchini is soft, it could be a sign that it is starting to rot.
We prefer looking for thinner zucchinis for baking and zoodles. Typically the thicker a zucchini, the more seeds it has (which are fine, but can be mushy!)
How to shred a Zucchini
My favorite way to shred zucchini is by using a cheese grater. You can also use a food processor if you prefer.
Do I need to drain the zucchini before adding it to the mixture?
Yes! It’s so important to squeeze the liquid out of zucchini before adding it to baked goods unless a recipe states otherwise.
Make sure you use a paper towel or clean dish towel to squeeze the liquid out of the zucchini before adding to these muffins. I like to have my zucchini sit on top of the towel or paper towel after ringing it out to make sure it absorbs as much liquid as possible.
SUBSTITUTIONS FOR ZUCCHINI BREAD MUFFINS
Can the same recipe be used to make Gluten-Free Zucchini Muffins? Yes, just use gluten-free oat flour.
Olive Oil: You can substitute avocado oil, coconut oil, canola oil, or melted butter.
Egg: I haven’t tried making this with an egg substitute so I’m not sure if it would work.
Vanilla Extract: Vanilla Extract is optional and can be omitted.
Honey: You can substitute honey with maple syrup (1:1 ratio).
Milk: If you don’t want to use dairy milk, almond milk, cashew milk, or oat milk would work.
Oat Flour: You can substitute oat flour with whole wheat flour (1:1 ratio) and it will work great. You can also substitute with gluten-free oat flour. Here is our favorite Homemade Oat Flour Recipe. DO NOT substitute almond or coconut flour. It will not work.
Chocolate Chips or Nuts: Both are optional, but both are delicious in this recipe.
Turn it into bread: I haven’t tried using this batter in a bread pan, but we have a Healthy Zucchini Bread Recipe that is delicious!
Why do the ingredients qualify these muffins to be healthy?
- Whole grains – Whole wheat flour is a great source of whole grains and much better for you than regular white flour!
- No refined sugar – The only sweetener in these zucchini muffins is honey (and some optional chocolate chips) instead of the sugar that many muffins have.
- Gluten-free options – If you have celiac disease or are simply trying to reduce gluten in your diet, gluten-free oat flour tastes great in this recipe.
- Veggies – This recipe has a whole cup of zucchini for 12 muffins! If you are trying to get more veggies in your diet, these are a great way!
Storing and Serving Zucchini Muffins:
Storing easy zucchini muffins: They will last up to a week in the refrigerator. I don’t recommend storing them on the counter, because they can get moldy very quickly.
How to freeze healthy zucchini muffins: Yes, you can freeze these zucchini muffins. I recommend laying them flat in a reusable Ziploc bag and freezing them so that they don’t stick together. To defrost, microwave, or put them in a toaster oven.
How to serve healthy zucchini muffins: These muffins are great topped with peanut butter, on their own as a snack, or alongside a breakfast dish like sausage egg casserole.
Other healthy muffin recipes:
We absolutely love healthy muffins! Here are some of our favorite muffin recipes:
Healthy Zucchini Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 egg room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup milk almond or dairy
- 1 cup shredded zucchini *squeezed to remove water about 1 medium zucchini
- 2 cups oat flour or whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 + prepare a lined muffin tin.In a large bowl mix together olive oil, egg, vanilla extract, honey, almond milk and zucchini.
- Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients (oat flour, spices, baking powder/baking soda)
- Fold in mini chocolate chips if using.
- Pour batter into lined muffin tin, filling in ¼ cup increments.
- Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until top of muffins are golden and a tooth pick comes out clean when inserted in center.
- Allow muffins to cool completely for at least 10 minutes, remove from pan + enjoy!
Jess says
These are DELICIOUS!! I doubled the chocolate chips because why not?! Excited to give them to my kids, and I’m not telling them there’s a vegetable in it 😉 they’ll never know!
Julie l says
Absolutely delicious muffins! Moist and perfect sweetness and flavor!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So happy you liked them!
Rebecca says
Can you use frozen zucchini noodles?
The Clean Eating Couple says
I wouldn’t do that, I think it will be too soggy
Maggie says
Could this be adapted to bake as a loaf?
The Clean Eating Couple says
check out our Healthy Zucchini Bread if that’s what you’re looking for!
Robin McMeekin says
Awesome recipe! I love the options for oat flour and nut milk. I substituted about half of the flour with organic protein powder. Using honey instead of processed sugar makes these guilt-free. I make mine into mini muffins and then have an easy on-the-go snack.
Sarah says
I’m looking forward to trying these. Would you please share what you drizzled on them with the strawberry in the video?
Sarah says
Also, would you share which ingredients are included in your nutritional calculations? Thank you.
The Clean Eating Couple says
I’m not sure what video you’re referring to, sorry! All of the ingredients are included in the nutritional facts
Krista says
My son who has Autism made these with me, then he ate them all! We made the oat flour from plain instant oatmeal, just add to a blender. These were great, will make again!
Judy LaBelle says
I Love Zucchini muffins and recently went
Gluten free, Had to try this simple recipe!
They are yummy! And I plan on making them
Again!
Rita landa says
Amazing crispy outside moist inside
teresa cabral says
Looks yummy going to make these muffins, I was wondering why the eggs need to be room temperature sorry just curious. Thank u in advance
The Clean Eating Couple says
Eggs whip better at room temperature