Zucchini Banana Flax Muffins

Meet my new addiction: Zucchini Banana Flax Muffins.

Why do I love them? To wit:

1. They use a lot of zucchini, and since I have a zucchini plant in my garden - the rabbits of the vegetable world - I now have a lot of zucchini in my fridge. A LOT. Like, some are the size of small clubs.

2. These muffins use flaxseed meal instead of oil or butter to keep the mixture cohesive. Flaxseed in anything equals 50 grown-up points.

3. Because they contain cinnamon, the whole house smells like fall when you bake them.

4. This recipe also uses bananas. The ones that are too brown and squishy to eat. Using food that would normally go to waste earns you even more grown-up points.

5. Last but certainly not least, they are scrumtious. None of of that other stuff would matter if this tasted like little hockey pucks. The banans and brown sugar lend sweetness, the zucchini adds moisture, the flax makes them tender and keeps them low in fat. Hashtag win-win-win. 

Zucchini Banana Flax Muffins

adapted from Everyday Food

1 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup flaxseed meal

1 cup brown sugar

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1-1/2 cups coarsely grated zucchini (1 small zucchini or 1/10 of one of mine) 

1/3 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 banana)

3/4 cup milk

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly coat 12-18 standard muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: both flours, flaxseed meal, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. 

3. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, egg and vanilla. Add mashed banana and zucchini and stir to combine.

4. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir just until combined; don't overmix or you'll end up with tough muffins. 

5. Divide batter among muffing cups, filling them no more than 3/4 full. Bake until springy on top and golden, about 20-25 minutes.

Tips:

1. My batter always makes more than 12 muffins, but the actual number varies - probably depending on how much extra zucchini I try to sneak in. One tip: spray the muffin tins as you go once you get past a dozen, so you don't have to clean the oil out of empty tins.

2. Best breakfast in the world: two of these muffins, topped with a shmear of all-natural peanut butter, accompanied by a fruit punch smoothie. Veggies + fruit + protein for breakfast. I'm telling you, it's like a shot of virtuosity.

3. Use your grown-up points wisely. I recommend chocolate zucchini cake.

Originally published September 2013.