You are going to love this easy zucchini muffins recipe. All you need are simple ingredients found in most pantries, some zucchini, and walnuts. These muffins are freezer friendly so go ahead and make a double batch to use up the abundance of zucchini you may have from your garden. Plus, they make a great grab-and-go breakfast on busy mornings.
I ran into a childhood friend online the other day and was reminded of the delicious zucchini muffins that her mother used to make. I was not a big fan of zucchini as a kid, but those muffins were awesome. So I thought maybe I could get my kids to eat zucchini if I put some in muffins. It never hurts to get the kiddos to eat zucchini, right? One of my kids even said these muffins “tasted better than I thought a muffin with zucchini in it would taste”.
This recipe comes from my Better Homes & Gardens cookbook. The original recipe is for zucchini bread, but I wanted them in muffin form so that’s how I made them. These muffins are made the traditional way most muffin and quick bread recipes are made. The dry ingredients and wet ingredients are mixed separately and then combined until they are just mixed. We avoid over-mixing so our muffins don’t come out tough.
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Ingredients
See recipe card for exact amounts.
Ingredient Notes
See recipe card for exact amounts.
zucchini – I use the small holes of a box grater to shred my zucchini. You can use a food processor if you have one. I don’t squeeze the excess moisture out of the zucchini.
lemon zest – this gives our muffins a bright fresh taste with just a hint of lemon flavor.
flour – we use regular all purpose flour.
sugar – regular white granulated sugar. You can use some brown sugar for extra flavor and moisture. Because all brown sugar would make the muffins heavier it is recommended to use part of each brown and white sugars.
oil – we keep canola oil on-hand so I use it. Vegetable oil will work.
egg – I use one large egg and I take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes to an hour before I make these muffins so it is room temperature. I have made these on a whim and used a cold egg. It’s not the end of the world.
leavening agents – we use a combination of baking soda and baking powder for nice and fluffy muffins.
spices – ground cinnamon and a little nutmeg give our muffins warmth and flavor.
nuts – I use either walnuts or pecans. You can leave the nuts out of some, or all, if necessary. Just put some of the muffin batter in the muffin tin and then mix nuts in the remaining batter. I used to do this all the time because one of my kids isn’t a fan of nuts.
How to make easy homemade zucchini muffins recipe
- Spray a 12-cup muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray, or line with paper liners. I almost never use paper liners for muffins and almost always when making cupcakes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- In a medium bowl combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg and set aside.
- Combine sugar, zucchini, canola oil, egg, and lemon zest in a large mixing bowl and mix well.
- Add dry mixture to zucchini mixture and stir just until moistened. Batter will be kinda lumpy.
- Fold in walnuts.
- Divide batter between muffin cups and bake for 15-20 minutes.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes then run a knife between the pan and the muffin, cool on wire rack.
Substitutions and additions
- Substitute some or all of the white flour with whole wheat or even white whole wheat flour.
- Add in about a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- About a cup of chocolate chips or raisins would be a nice addition.
Storage
Store muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. As with all freshly baked goods, they start to dry out after a couple of days. See how to freeze them below.
How to freeze muffins
Make sure muffins are completely cool. Wrap individual muffins in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container, we use a zip top freezer bag.
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Classic Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup finely shredded zucchini
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp lemon zest
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- nonstick cooking spray
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° and spray muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with paper liners.nonstick cooking spray
- Combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a medium bowl and set aside.1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- Combine sugar, zucchini, canola oil, egg, and lemon zest in a large bowl and mix well.1 cup sugar, 1 cup finely shredded zucchini, 1/4 cup canola oil, 1 egg, 1/4 tsp lemon zest
- Add dry mixture to zucchini mixture and stir just until moistened. Batter will be lumpy. Fold in walnuts.1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- Divide batter between muffin cups and bake for 15-20 minutes.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, run a knife between the edge of the pan and the muffin, then cool on wire rack.
Notes
Nutrition Facts
Recipe minimally adapted from BH&G.
I cannot find anywhere on this page at what temperature to bake these muffins?
I have edited the post, I believe it was 350°. This was my very first recipe on this blog and boy does it need updated. Thanks for asking!