There’s a zucchini in my dessert!
I love zucchini: the taste, the color, even the name. (It’s fun to say, right?) Therefore, it is only natural that I’d enjoy zucchini paired with one of my other great loves: chocolate!
Such as in the above recipe: Chocolate Grasshopper Pie.
In general, zucchini lends moisture and softness to recipes without leaving an offending flavor. So, although it might sound strange, the squash makes a great addition to desserts.
I’m not the only one who likes zucchini in her desserts. My friend, Lindsay, does as well. And if Lindsay likes it, it must be good… because Lindsay is a best-selling cookbook author!
Lindsay and I first became friends through our blogs, and I’ve been so excited to watch my sweet friend flourish into a vegan-cookbook phenom. You might know her super-cute blog, The Happy Herbivore. Today, I am honored to have Lindsay as a guest on my blog, highlighting a recipe from her cookbook—Chocolate-Zucchini Muffins!
In Lindsay’s words: Moist and chocolatey, you won’t believe that these muffins are healthy, almost completely fat-free and have a veggie slipped in! This is also a great way to use up all that leftover summer harvest zucchini!
Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
Servings: 12
- 1¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa
- 1¼ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 whole banana, mashed
- ½ cup raw sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup non-dairy milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup shredded zucchini
- ½ cup raw sugar (optional)
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease muffin pan and set aside. If using paper liners, lightly spray inside of liners with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together. In another bowl, cream mashed banana with applesauce and sugar (use extra 1/2 cup for a very sweet, dessert-like muffin). Add in soymilk, vanilla, zucchini and any other optional add-ins you might like such as vegan chocolate chips or chopped raw walnuts. Stir until evenly combined. Add flour mix to wet mix in 3-4 batches and stir until just combined. Spoon batter into greased muffin pan and bake 18-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Chef’s Note: These muffins store well both in the fridge and freezer & the raw sugar in this recipe may be reduced to 1/2 cup.
EDIT: The cookbook giveaway is now closed.
Congratulations to Jemma!
Please email me, at chocolatecoveredkatie@msn.com, with your mailing address, so I can get your cookbook to you! 🙂
My fav use for zucchini is breaded zucchini sticks! Loved them ever since I saw the recipe on happyherbivore.com, would love a copy of her book!
LOVE the Happy Herbivore!!
My favorite zucchini use is for relish, love making it myself! Here’s the recipe: http://www.examiner.com/vegetarian-in-san-francisco/relish-recipe-with-zucchini-bell-peppers-and-jalape-o
And my favorite muffin flavor has to be either carrot or blueberries!
Wow I love all the ways you use vegetables and chocolate together and these muffins sound delicious. My favorite way to eat zucchini is definitaly grilled or made by my friends mom in her mutant sized zucchini bread because her zucchini comes straght from their garden. soooo goooood. My favorite muffin flavor however is banana. iI absolutly love them. I also love this chance to win a cookbook by a Lindsay because I would love to see all the exciting recipes she has to offer!
I would so love to win this cookbook! The Happy Herbivore would be an incredibly Awesome compliment to my cookbooks!
I love to use zucchini in cookies and bread. But…..mostly I just cut it up in salads. It also tastes fabulous in a sauce for pasta. So, I eat it all kinds of ways. Oh, and it takes ever so delightful in a blender based soy smoothy! Yummo!
Thanks for sharing this Katie!
blessings,
Jeanie
I love zucchini…my mom breaded and fried it in oil. Tasty but not exactly healthy. I love to just spiralize it and use it as pasta. I’m really not a muffin person…except for cranberry orange! Super tasty. I love sweet and tart combinations.
My fave way to “fix” zucchini is by slicing it in 1/3 planks, tossing with EVOO, roasting at 400 for 20 mins, tossing with S&P and red pepper flakes. I think it’s pretty tasty, and my husband loves it! HH is an excellent blog, I’d love to win the cookbook! Thanks for all you do, Katie!
Thanks Katie for having me — and thanks to everyone who entered and left sweet words about me! xo
I have just purchased my first spiral slicer and made raw zucchini spaghetti with raw marinara. Much better than I thought!
I’m a fiber centric kinda guy so my preferred muffin is bran but I’m open to other options.
and I love Lindsay!!
@veganpilotmarty
My favorite muffins are Mocha/Cappuccino Chocolate Muffins!!! 😀
My favorite way too use zucchini is in zucchini bread! My mom’s recipe is the BEST. But my favorite muffins are most definitely blueberry muffins!