This post is sponsored by Spectrum Naturals®, but as always, all opinions are 100% my own.
In my quest to make a different zucchini recipe with each few that we pick from our garden, I recently decided that I wanted to add muffins to the list. I’ve already made bread, but not yet muffins. In my search for a healthy recipe I stumbled upon one that was almost made for me. With a little bit of tweaking this recipe WAS made for me. Or made by me? Or both. Anyway. The incorporation of a jumbo muffin pan immediately sent my mind to the delicious bakery store muffins. You know? Like the Costco chocolate muffins. Have you seen the ingredient list on those bad boys?? Not to mention, I’m pretty sure they are 2000+ calories PER muffin. YIKES!! So, with this recipe you can have a guilt free muffin with nearly 1/8th (I’m guessing) of the calories that tastes just as delicious IF not better! I’m telling you. They are amazing. They are great right out of the oven, but I personally think they are better the next day. Try them and tell me what you think!
One thing I’m loving cooking with is coconut oil. Specifically, Spectrum Naturals® Organic Coconut Oil (as well as the Spectrum® Coconut Spray Oil). What I love about them is that all of Spectrum Naturals® Oils are expeller pressed which “is any sort of oil that has been extracted from nuts, seeds, or other sources through a mechanical process that relies on sheer force rather than chemicals.” Yay for no yucky chemicals! Another bonus is that most of their oils are non GMO project verified. Yay for non GMO!
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Spectrum Naturals®.
Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
These Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins are an absolute favorite of mine! Try this recipe and you'll soon discover why!
Ingredients
- Slightly less than 1/3 c. honey
- Slightly less than 1/4 c. molasses
- 1/4 c. coconut oil softened or melted
- 1 egg plus 2 egg whites
- 1 banana well mashed
- 3/4 c. plain yogurt
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 c. grated zucchini approx. 2 medium
- 2 c. whole wheat flour*
- 1/4 c. ground flax seed
- 1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 c. mini chocolate chips
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375.
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Once you've shredded your zucchini, squeeze out any excess moisture. In a stand mixer, mix together the wet ingredients (including the zucchini).
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In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, ground flaxseed, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Slowly add the flour mixture into the wet batter and mix well.
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Lastly, add your mini chocolate chips and stir just until incorporated. Lightly coat your jumbo muffin tin with cooking spray; fill each cup about half way (I used my large cookie scoop and filled each cup with two scoops).
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Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
[My 2 Cents]
I used the soft white winter wheat berries for this recipe and it turned out wonderful. I freshly grind the berries in my Blendtec right before adding it in the recipe. The fresher the flour, the higher the nutritional value. Of course, if you don't have the resources to grind your own wheat berries, you can buy store bought whole wheat flour as well.
Also, if these aren't going to be eaten within a couple of days, I would suggest storing them in the fridge. Because of how moist they are, they won't last long on the counter top.
Adapted from Marcus Samulesson
Great recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Mit
What is the nutritional info and calorie count per serving?
Yvonne
It will depend on the size muffins you end up making, but for the jumbo muffins they are approx. 250 calories.
Shona
Is there any non dairy substitute for the yoghurt? I usually use rice milk to replace milk in recipes, but not so sure of the yoghurt…mashed banana? Apple sauce? Your feedback would be great. I would love to make these for my son but he is allergic to dairy!
Yvonne
You know, that’s a tough one. I’ve subbed out everything that I could from the original recipe to come up with this, I haven’t however explored the arena of dairy free. Best of luck in your experiments. If you find something that works, I’d love to know!
Lindsay
Can these be frozen? Thanks!
Yvonne
I’ve never frozen them, so I’m not sure. If you give it a try you’ll have to let me know if it works!
Amy
I have had them fresh and frozen, just pull out to thaw and maybe nuke for 10 seconds
Heather
My ten and thirteen year olds and I just had these for the first time. I had coffee with mine, and they had milk. Yum! I think tomorrow morning I’ll slice mine into halves and put strawberries on each half…or maybe peanut butter! We’ll see how my macros are looking. ;) Thanks for sharing!
Yvonne
I love both of your ideas. These muffins would be AWESOME with strawberries. Or peanut butter even. I love both of those things – what a great suggestion!
Leyla
I just wanted to let you know that I tried these and they were a hit with both my kids. My son is a really picky eater and he loved them. I made them in mini muffin pans do he has already had 4 and keeps asking for more. Thank you!!!!!
Yvonne
Oh that makes me so happy, SO many people love these – and I’m the first in line!! Glad the little loved them too!
KT
I had to make some substitutions, applesauce for coconut oil & omit molasses, and I love healthy recipes, so I’m used to subbing out sugar & oil. But I am SO disappointed that these have no flavor at all. Really bummed. I stayed up until midnight making them & they’re very bland, can’t taste the zucchini at all or barely the chocolate for that matter. I think they need more sweetener or something is missing.
Yvonne
That’s really too bad as I absolutely LOVE these muffins and many others have found great success. The molasses adds the sweetener, so by omitting it I can see how they could be bland.
jacqueline
This recipe is A M A Z I N G!!!!! You have done amazing. Thank you so much for sharing! <3
Yvonne
Thank you so much Jacqueline!!!! So happy you like them!
Nina
They turned out great! I’ve had about 3 today! Lol. Thank you for the reply with the suggested bake time. I ended up having to do about 17 minutes and they are really good! :)
Yvonne
Fantastic! That makes me so happy!!! Everyone making these in the last week has got me needing to make them again!!
Delicious!
Yvonne
Thank you!
Sarah
Any recommendations on a substitute for the honey? Also wondering about making as a loaf instead of muffins..at what temp and how long would I bake in loaf pan?
Yvonne
You know, I’m not sure what you would sub the honey for – I used the honey as a sub for white sugar, so I don’t know what I’d suggest swapping it out for. Maybe brown rice syrup? I’ve never made it as a loaf, but that’s a great idea!
Courtney
I made these as mini muffins for my son’s preschool and regular sized for my husband and I to eat as a quick breakfast. Praise from all! The kids at school loved them as did my husband! For the mini’s I baked 10mins, and the regular I baked around 15min. Delicious! The teachers are asking for the recipe, too. :)
Yvonne
Fantastic!! Thank you so much for letting me know, I am so happy everyone loved them – this is truly an award winning recipe {in my book} and I love that everyone else loves them as much as I do!
Nina
Has anyone made them as regular sized muffins? I’m not sure how I should adjust the oven temp and bake time…? I can’t wait to try them. :)
Yvonne
I have made them in regular and actually mini too – keep the temp time the same, for the mini you will want to about 10 minutes and for the regular you will want to do about 15 minutes give or take, just make sure a toothpick inserted comes out clean! Let me know if you give them a try, they are a favorite!
Michelle
Lindsay! A great egg substitute that I often use in baking is chia seeds. You use 1tbs chia seeds and combine with 3 tbs water and let it gel. That is equivalent to 1 egg. I have never had an issue substituting with that. I am going to make these muffins this morning and use chia for the health benefits. I also will use applesauce in place of the yogurt. (I just don’t have any!).
Yvonne
Thank you so much Michelle! I would have never known that about chia seeds, yet another reason to love them – I can’t wait to give that a try!
Lindsey
Awesome suggestion- Thank you!!
Lindsey
This looks delish! Do you know of how I could make them dairy free and egg free? (My son is allergic to both and I hate making treats he can’t enjoy with us). I’m guessing for the yogurt we could do a soy or coconut yogurt…but what about the egg?
Yvonne
I’ve never explored making them dairy or egg free – but I LOVE Michelle’s suggestion!
ons
Thank you for the recipe Yvonne. Would it be possible to make this recipe with gluten free flour. Any suggestion?
Yvonne
You are very welcome! I haven’t tried making them gluten free, however my FAVORITE gluten free option as of late is oat flour, it’s SUCH a great alternative, and you can hardly tell a difference (unlike some gluten free options.. that taste sub-par!). Almond flour would work too, I’ve cooked with both and love both!
Daisy
Hi Yvonne may I ask what is Molasses? ??
Yvonne
You certainly may! Here’s the definition: “thick, dark brown syrup obtained from raw sugar during the refining process, a version of which is used in baking.” Let me know if you need anything else! Here’s the link to what I use: Plantation Blackstrap Molasses, Organic
mel
Is there something i can use instead of molasses? Would like to make them but I don’t have that:-) they sound yum!
Yvonne
Hmm… instead of molasses, I’m actually not sure of a great substitute – as I haven’t used a substitute for it. Maybe try googling subs and see what you can find – if nothing else… Amazon Prime can get it to your door in two days ;) Hope you give these a try, they are delicious!
Terese
Hello Do you have a good sub for gluten free flour? Would almond flour work?
Yvonne
My FAVORITE as of late is oat flour, it’s SUCH a great alternative, and you can hardly tell a difference (unlike some gluten free options.. that taste sub-par!). Almond flour would work too, I’ve cooked with both and love both!
Steve
I LOVE these muffins and almost always have to double the recipe to keep up with demand!
Rachel Wattson
the bomb.com!!! Love the blog design by the way! Who made it?
Yvonne
Fantastic! Thank you so much!! My husband actually designed my blog for me, he’s a web designer – if you are in need of something, shoot me an email @ [email protected] and I can connect you to him!
great muffins endeeed
Yvonne
Thank you!
Great muffins, Yvonne! Since they’re healthy, I can have more than one without the guilty feeling afterwards!
Yvonne
Thanks Julie! They are SO tasty!
Larissa
Really wonderful recipe, just finished making them today. Turned out fabulous and most importantly delicious !! Thanks :)
Yvonne
Oh awesome, I’m so glad you like them! They are a favorite of mine for sure!
Belinda
These are the best chocolate zucchini muffins I have made to date! I have tried several recipes and they all have lacked the moistness and height that this recipe offers. A definite keeper! Thank you:)
Yvonne
I am so happy! I have loved them every time I make them, in fact… I want to make some more SOON! So glad you enjoyed them – it’s true, they are moist!!! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment :) Happy baking!
Renee
I have all of these wonderful ingredients except the banana….go figure! I’m thinking I could add just a bit more zucchini to balance out the lack of banana? Thank you for providing this awesome recipe. It’s perfect for my daughter’s 1st grade afternoon snack. :)
Yvonne
Oh these are so wonderful! I hope you love them!!! I’m not sure how omitting the banana will affect them, you’ll have to let me know!
C
I made these today with pureed summer squash and zucchini instead of grated. Perfect! Thanks.
Yvonne
Oh wow – that sounds awesome! Thanks for stopping by to let me know!
Robyn
I just made these today to throw in the freezer so the kids have a quick breakfast when school starts. I was a bit skeptical when I tasted the batter, but once baked, they are delicious! I used maple syrup instead of honey & barley flour instead of flax meal (didn’t have those on hand) & baked them in mini muffin tins. I will be making these again for sure! Thanks!
Yvonne
Oh yay! I’m so glad! This is one of my favorite recipes!!! Love your substitutions!
Susie
Whoo Hoo! These are perfect!!! healthy for real : ) I didn’t have two zucchinis so I used a little shredded carrot and 1/4 of baked sweet potato as well! Worked wonderfully. Rich chocolate goodness.
Yvonne
Healthy for real! There’s nothing worse that searching for a ‘healthy’ recipe only to find it’s got gobs and bogs of sugar.. and a vegetable (or two if you’re lucky). One of my biggest pet peeves! Love your variations!
Stephany Brisco
Hi Yvonne, I just made these today. I am so happy I found you! I made them exactly like your recipe says to, even with the flax seed:) I was a little worried when I was putting them in the oven because I tasted a little of the raw mix and thought it was so unsweet. Too unsweet. Baked though it was different! Still not as sweet as your typical banana or zucchini breads, but that’s a good thing! The test was my three year old. She is a sweetsaholic and didn’t pause for a second when eating them. I was so happy! These are a perfect healthy muffin:)
Yvonne
I’m so happy you found me too Stephanie!! This is one of my absolute favorite muffin recipes. They are SO delicious (as you found out!) Glad you hung in there and trusted me ;) Fantastic that you’re little girl likes them too – woohoo! Come back soon!
Marice
These were AMAZEBALLS! However, mine stuck to the muffin liners – anyone else have this problem?
Mine stuck too but it wasn’t too bad.
Yvonne
Try spraying your muffin liners lightly with some pam and see if that helps :)
Yvonne
EEK! YAYA!!! I’m so happy you liked them – I think they are pretty grand myself! I didn’t use muffin liners, I just sprayed my muffin pan. If you want to still use liners, try spraying them as well!
Omg! I was so doubtful about these because I’ve never made any sugar free muffins or zucchini breads or anything like that, but they are wonderful! I’ve had to change my diet recently to whole grains and sugar free; this is the first “sweet” recipe I’ve tried and I love them. Thank you so much for these glorious muffins!
Yvonne
YAYAYYA!!! I am sooo happy you tried them and loved them!!! They are seriously SO great! I love, love, LOVE them! You are most certainly welcome!
jess m
can this be made without the flax? hubby is allergic
Yvonne
Of course! I just add it because of the extra health benefits. If you omit it, I would just add 1/4 c. more whole wheat flour and you will be good to go!
Terri
I tried these, they were delicious! I didn’t like how lumpy they were so I put them in my Vita-mix for a few seconds- turned out great!!
Yvonne
Woohoo – glad you liked them!!
Dawn
What a wonderful recipe!!! I just made these as mini-muffins (baked for 10 min) for my son’s birthday celebration in Kindergarten. The kids LOVED them!!! I used the zucchini I shredded this summer and froze from our garden. I just squished out the water before I added it in. It was perfect!
Yvonne
Yay!! I think it’s pretty great, but I may be a little partial! Mini muffins would be fabulous! What a great healthy treat for kids – lots better than other popular choices. I’m so happy you loved this so much!
Kathryn Wood
Thank you for the great recipe. I’m not used to baking with a few of these ingredients, but I will definitely be keeping them around now. It’s nice to have something sweeter without all the garbage! I’ve pinned a few of your recipes and look forward to making more of them.
Yvonne
You are so very welcome! I completely agree about some of the ingredients, but once I started stocking my pantry with them – it was a lot easier to use in recipes in place of the unhealthy items. Thanks for the Pinterest love!
Lauren
Can you omit the bananas? Not my fav.
These are delicious! I had pinned the original recipe a while back but when I saw your modifications, I decided to try your version instead. I made a few other changes — and blogged them — but nothing major. Great recipe, love your changes. These are dark and delicious!
Yvonne
Hi Laurie! That is awesome that you tried my version – isn’t this such a great recipe??!! So happy you stopped by!
I made these tonight and they are great! I used gluten-free flour (Bob’s Red Mill) and they came out perfectly. Thanks for the great recipe!
Yvonne
Yay!! I’m so glad they were so yummy for you. That is AWESOME that they worked with gluten free flour – I will have to tell one of my girlfriends, she would love to know that!
Diana Meredith
Thank you for actually providing a healthy recipe! Sometimes I see a title with “Healthy…” and it’s not really healthy. Can’t wait to try these! They are in the oven now.
Diana Meredith
I know I’m lame, but I just started looking over your site and I feel like we would be good friends in real life! Haha, just added your blog to my feedly! Thanks for all the yummy goodness. Can’t wait to try more of these recipes out!
Yvonne
YOU ARE NOT LAME AT ALL!!!! In fact, I read this comment to my husband because I cannot tell you how many times I’ve said “I want to be their friend in real life!”. Seriously!!! I’m so excited you “found” me. Stay a while, relax, let’s get to know each other :) I’m headed over to your blog RIGHT NOW!
Yvonne
Diana!!! I could not agree with you more. Seriously – I have the hardest time when I stumble upon a “healthy” recipe and there are boatloads of sugar or other crappy ingredients! Seriously.. you think that 1/4 c. zucchini is a qualifier of a healthy recipe?? Ha!! Please come back and tell me how they turned out!
Diana
They are awesome! I love that you used molasses and honey instead of white sugar. I am trying so hard to stay away from that stuff! These were so yummy without being overly sweet. My husband liked them too!
Yvonne
Thanks for coming back to let me know!!! So glad you liked them!
Michelle
I made these this afternoon… Oh my goodness they are delicious! Thank for sharing!!!
Yvonne
Ohmygosh! Thank you for letting me know that you liked them! I love hearing feedback. Aren’t they wonderful???
Chocolate and veggies, everyone wins, LOL. These look really great pinned them thanks for sharing!
Yvonne
Everyone wins!! The perfect catch phrase for this recipe :)
These look absolutely delicious! I love zucchini and am always looking for new recipes!
Yvonne
You should check out some of my other recent zucchini recipes and see if there are any others you like too! I’ve posted a handful this summer using up all of the zucchini we’ve been growing – I was determined not to just make bread with all of it ;)
These look so yummy! I have to put them on my “to-make” list for this coming week. Thanks for sharing!
http://chaoticcantrells.com/kitchenmakeover/
Allyson Bossie
Those look really tasty, and I like that you used wheat berries instead of store bought flour!
Yvonne
Grinding your own wheat berries is definitely the way to go! Seriously. If you have the resources, it’s sooo much better! I’ve used two different kinds of wheat so far, excited to experiment with more in the future!
Great pics! These look so good! Way to make them healthy ;)
Yvonne
Thanks so much! They are SOOOOOO good. I’ve loved making unhealthy things healthier this year!
I’m a fan of chocolate but not zucchini. Sneaking that not-fun-to-me veggie into something that looks and tastes yummy is a great way to add nutrition. Thanks!
Yvonne
Ya! Great way to get those veggies in. I personally can’t pick out the taste.. but some can. If you make it you will have to let me know what you think of it!
These look so good! For some reason my zucchini isn’t doing so well this year. I think it’s getting overshadowed by my ginormous crook neck squash plant. So I’m going to try this recipe with shredded crook neck squash instead and see how it turns out. I have my last ladies night tonight before school starts (and before baby #4 comes in about 2 weeks) and needed a yummy treat idea. Thanks!
Yvonne
Bummer – I wonder what’s up? Possibly the heat since we’ve had record breaking heat this summer?? Or.. yes that squash could be hogging the lime light. I will be very interest to hear how this turns out with the squash, let me know will ya?? Congrats on the soon-to-be new arrival!
I love chocolate zucchini baked goods
Yvonne
In all honesty, before this recipe I don’t know that I’ve ever HAD zucchini baked goods…now that I think about it.. Interesting!
MMMM! I have been wanting to try treats made from zucchini for a while now and since I have a garden this year, I am going to try these! Looks delish! Thanks for sharing!
Yvonne
You will love them! Or… at least I hope you will :) Gardening is one of my favorite most rewarding hobbies! So grateful for all of the zucchini that we’ve gotten this year!