Zucchini breakfast muffins are full of cinnamon flavor as well as veggies that are hiding in the recipe that you won't even taste! They not only add nutrients but moisture, keeping these muffins soft and delicious.
Easy Zucchini Muffins
Zucchini breakfast muffins are pretty simple, as a muffin recipe should be! They're a great recipe to make for a meal prep breakfast recipe and is a yummy way to get veggies in at breakfast. Plus they're green! So they're perfect for Saint Patrick's Day 🙂
The zucchini adds moisture to the batter so these muffins are the opposite of dry and crumbly. Then, the crumb topping adds extra flavor.. and who doesn't love a crumb topping?!
How to Make Zucchini Muffins
Like most baking recipes, these zucchini breakfast muffins start by mixing the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another. In this recipe, you blend the wet ingredients in a blender with spinach and zucchini to add nutrients and color to the recipe.
Once the wet batter and dry ingredients are ready, mix together until just combined. This is important! Overmixing muffin batter can result in a tough, dry muffin. There may be a few small clumps in the batter and that's okay! Divide batter into muffin tins and sprinkle with crumb topping, bake, and enjoy! These muffins may not last long and honestly, they taste like a dessert!
Ingredient Highlights
- Zucchini - zucchini holds a ton of water and once you shred it, you'll see how much water comes out! It's important to place between paper towels to soak up as much liquid as you can.
- Spinach - not only does the spinach provide a festive green color, but nutrients like iron, vitamin A, and fiber. And you can't even taste it!
- Applesauce or mashed banana - this is a way to add moisture to muffins without contributing a ton of calories.
- White whole wheat flour - you can use all whole wheat or all-purpose flour, whichever you prefer! White whole wheat flour is a good in-between to get some of the nutrition from whole wheat but without the dense, "wheaty" flavor.
- Plain Greek yogurt - this provides acidity and reacts with the baking soda to allow the batter to rise. Plus Greek yogurt adds some protein and probiotics!
- Cinnamon - since zucchini doesn't have much flavor, using cinnamon in this recipe gives these zucchini muffins a warm, cinnamon flavor!
Recipe FAQ
I recommend using a cheese grater to grate zucchini for this muffin recipe. Line a plate with a few paper towels, place the grater down, and start grating! Place more paper towels on top once down and press the liquid out. You may need to squeeze it out over the sink because zucchini contain a lot of moisture!
These easy zucchini muffins can be stored at room temperature for a day or two but I recommend keeping them in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days because of all the moisture they contain. You can also freeze them for up to 2 months!
My green muffins start out as a zucchini muffin base but I blend fresh spinach into the wet ingredients! You can't taste it at all and it's a natural way to color these muffins. They're the perfect Saint Patrick's Day recipe!
Other Recipes You May Like
- King Cake Baked Oats
- Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Muffins
- Espresso Chocolate Chip Protein Muffins
- Easy Healthier Banana Bread
- Pear Crisp with Oats
Rate & Review
If you made my easy zucchini muffins, please rate and review my recipe below! I would love to hear your feedback. Also snap a photo and tag me on insta @theperfectpearr so I can see your creation!
PrintZucchini Breakfast Muffins
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 14 muffins 1x
- Category: Breakfast, Snacks, Desserts, Festive
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the muffins
- 2 cups (269g) shredded zucchini, drained (~1.5-2 medium zucchini)
- 1 cup (62g) packed fresh spinach
- ½ cup (158g) unsweetened applesauce (or mashed ripe banana)
- ½ cup (128g) plain low-fat Greek yogurt
- ⅓ cup (145g) real maple syrup or honey
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (109g) canola oil (or any neutral oil)
- 2 large eggs, room temp
- 1 ½ cup (234g) white whole wheat flour
- 2 Tbsp + 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- Optional add-ins: dark chocolate chips, chopped walnuts, chopped pecans, white chocolate chips
For the streusel topping
- ¼ cup (39g) white whole wheat flour
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cubed
- 2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
For the streusel
- Stir all ingredients except butter.
- Add butter cubes and mix with fork until clumpy.
- Put in refrigerator while you make the muffin batter.
For the muffins
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin tin with liners. Spray muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.
- Grate zucchini using a box or cheese grater (use whatever thickness you'd like) and drain between paper towels. Squeeze as much moisture out of the zucchini as you can.
- Put zucchini, spinach, applesauce, yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla extract in a blender and blend on high until smooth.
- Add eggs and oil. Blend until just combined.
- In a medium bowl, whisk dry ingredients.
- Pour wet ingredients into bowl with dry ingredients.
- Stir until just combined. Be careful to not overmix!
- Stir in any add-ins.
- Scoop ~⅓ cup of batter into each muffin tin.
- Top each muffin tin with 1-2 Tbsp of streusel topping.
- Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
- Let cool for 15-20 minutes and enjoy!
Notes
- Store in an air-tight container at room temp for up to 2 days.
- I highly suggest keeping these in the refrigerator because of all the moisture in them! They'll last for up to 5 days.
- Freeze for up to 2 months.
- I recommend mixing these by hand instead of using an electric mixer. This will help prevent overmixing!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 muffin
- Calories: 195
- Sugar: 8
- Sodium: 226
- Fat: 11
- Saturated Fat: 2
- Unsaturated Fat: 7
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 20
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 4
- Cholesterol: 32
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Nora says
These muffins are so festive and delicious! You can't even taste the spinach, it's amazing.
Lauren says
Right?! They're so festive for Saint Patrick's day too. Glad you enjoyed them!!