Zucchini Spice Muffins

Zucchini Spice Muffins

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These zucchini spice muffins are magical.

I don’t know who Kathie is, but I started with her recipe, played with it here and there,  and created something exquisite.  Everything came together in perfect balance, in both flavor and texture. I’m going to try to recreate these because I have to find out if it was a fluke or if there really is such a thing as muffin perfection.  To quote Briana, who works with me:

The texture is perfect and melt-in-your-mouth-y. I tried to take small bites to prolong the experience, but my desire for “MORE. NOW.” overrode that idea…I was done in three bites. Wah.

See? It’s not just me.

I should have known that something was on my side when I started. The recipe called for 1 1/3 cups of zucchini and that was exactly what I got out of the 2 medium-sized zucchinis waiting for me in the fridge, long after our local store was closed.

grated zucchini

Dry ingredients were next. I’m always happy for an opportunity to use my scale. Instead of a combination of whole wheat and all purpose flour, I used whole wheat white flour and toasted wheat germ.

flour and wheat germ, weighed

I added the rest of the dry ingredients, using brown sugar instead of white, doubling the cinnamon, and adding some allspice, an idea I got from one of the reviews on the original recipe.  After smelling it to refresh my allspice memory, I decided on just a quarter teaspoon, to keep it subtle.

adding allspice

I whisked.

dry ingredients, whisked

I set that aside, and turned my attention to the zucchini. I moved it to a small mixing bowl, then added half a cup of 1% (not skim) milk.

pouring milk on zucchini

I added the egg, honey, and then threw in a half teaspoon of vanilla, just for fun. And then instead of using canola oil, I took a risk, and swapped it out for some blood orange infused olive oil, courtesy of Olio in Lititz, Pennsylvania.

liquid ingredients with zucchini

Ew. I mixed it all together, which actually made it look even less appetizing.

liquid ingredients, mixed

You know what looks worse than that? This.

pouring liquid into dry

Once I mixed the two sets of ingredients just enough, I followed another whimsical urge and added a quarter cup of mini cinnamon chips.

adding mini cinnamon chips

I scooped the batter into muffin tins. Clumsily.

spilled batter

I sprinkled cinnamon sugar across the top of each muffin.

batter with cinnamon sugar on top

I had heated the oven to 425. I put the tray in, reduced to 400, and baked for 15 minutes. That was all it took. They looked lovely.

muffins baked in tin

I gave them a few short minutes in the tin, but since they were really and truly done, I moved them to a wire rack quickly.

muffins cooling on rack

These muffins are sublime.  I’m not sure I’ve ever made better ones. The texture is fluffy, not too light or too dense, just perfect. The flavors combine beautifully, their sweetness is tempered by a hint of spice, and the mini cinnamon chips just melted right in, adding little pockets of cinnamon joy.  I found myself thinking about these muffins constantly, looking forward to the next one I was going to eat.

Addendum: I have made these twice since and they are always magical and delicious!

zucchini muffins

KATHIE’S ZUCCHINI MUFFINS RECIPE (original)

My version of Kathie’s Zucchini Muffins (adapted from MyRecipes.com)

ingredients:

5.75 ounces whole wheat white flour (about 1 1/3 cup)
2 ounces toasted wheat germ (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 heaping teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 1/3 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup 1% milk
2 tablespoons blood orange-infused olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/4 cup mini cinnamon chips

for the topping:
1 tablespoon cane sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

directions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees, and spray a 12-cup muffin tin or line with paper cups.

Grate the zucchini, and squeeze the excess moisture out of it with paper towels.

Weigh or measure the flour & wheat germ. Add the sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and allspice, and whisk well to combine.

In another bowl, pour the milk into the zucchini. Add the oil, honey, vanilla, and egg. Mix thoroughly.

Pour the zucchini mixture into the flour and stir just until incorporated. Fold in the cinnamon chips.

Scoop batter into muffin cups. Stir together the cane sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on top of each muffins.

Put tray in the oven and reduce temperature to 400. Bake for 15 minutes. Let sit in the pan for a minute or two, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

Eat some, hide the rest. They won’t last.

zucchini muffins

Comments

  1. These came out great! Easy recipe to follow.

    Did not have wheat flour, used all purpose. I added a bit more zucchini than what it called for, to use it up. Also used regular vegetable oil. They sounded a bit sweet, so no cinnamon chips and no sugar on top, just toasted pecans. Bakes 18 minutes instead of 15, could have gone 19 or 20. Absolutely delicious! 😀

  2. These look delicious! Do you think I could substitute extra flour or flax seed for the wheat germ? I am planning to make these gluten free, and wheat germ is (obviously) made of wheat. ha. Thanks!

    • Yes, it’s an easy swap. It should be flour — just use the exact amount. You can also use regular olive oil if you don’t have the one in the recipe. And I’ve recently made them with 1/3 cup of sugar instead of 1/2, and no cinnamon chips, and they’re still delicious!

  3. Looks great!

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