Moist Zucchini Carrot Muffins

My mom loves carrot cake so today, I decided to bake some zucchini carrot muffins with shredded coconut on top. My brother is allergic to nuts and coconut so I made a few without the added coconut topping and they tasted just as delicious. If you don’t have any allergies, you can sprinkle some pecans on top of the muffins since they taste really good with this recipe. The muffins came out so moist and the perfect texture – sweet and savory! I really liked the blend of zucchini and carrot too. We used this muffins for dessert, but my mom ate them for breakfast as well so feel free to enjoy anytime throughout the day! It’s a perfect snack to give to kids too since the whole wheat flour adds whole grains to the muffin and they’re even packed with hearty veggies! You may even noticed that I used less sugar and oil than most recipes that you find because I wanted these muffins to bring out the zucchini and carrot more. I was definitely cautious about this since you don’t want the muffins to taste like you’re eating flour and veggies only, but it turned out to be just the perfect amount, which is great because then these muffins are more guilty-free! It’s the perfect recipe for a family gathering or a simple, but delicious holiday dessert. I hope you and your family enjoy!!

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The Recipe

Yields 12 muffins

Serving Size: 1 muffin

DRY:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon powder

1 3/4 cups shredded zucchini, with peel (1 medium zucchini)

1/2 cup shredded carrot, with peel (1 medium or large carrot)

WET:

3/4 cup packed brown sugar, granulated or crystals

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup canola oil

2 large eggs

ADD-ONS (optional):

1/2 cup of shredded coconut flakes

1/2 cup crushed pecans

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Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Line twelve muffin tins on a oven-safe pan or a muffin pan. Spray with PAM or line with a little oil (if you have tin muffin pans, they are already nonstick).

2. In a mixing bowl, mix together the wet ingredients (vanilla extract, sugar, eggs, and oil). Beat the eggs properly. Since I used brown sugar crystals, I had to make sure the sugar is completely mixed in (dissolved basically) so be sure to stir properly.

wet ingredients

shredded zucchini and carrot

dry ingredients

4. Mix together the wet and the dry ingredients. Stir thoroughly till the mix becomes a batter-like consistency.

finished batter

5. Fill the 12 muffin tins evenly with about 1 scoop full of batter (they’ll become about 3/4ths full depending on the size of your muffin tin). If you want to add some more flavor, sprinkle your muffins with either shredded coconut or crushed pecans.

6. Bake for about 20 – 25 minutes and check if your muffins are cooked using a toothpick. Enjoy! If you want to eat these muffins with your morning breakfast or afternoon snack, I recommend warming them up a little since they taste better that way.