I got home yesterday after a long walk in Central Park with Trevi and a girlfriend, and all I could think about was muffins. Well, first I watched an episode (or two) of Nashville and THEN it was muffin-brain.
I'm not sure why, but I had this compulsion bake. I had picked up some zucchini at the market, planning to use if for a spiralized dinner, but for some reason I just had to have zucchini muffins.
So I turned to my trusty quinoa muffin recipe, gave it a few tweaks and here we have it…chocolate chip zucchini quinoa muffins!
What I love about this muffin recipe is that it uses really basic ingredients (except for maybe quinoa flakes…but you know how much I love baking with them!), and it's really healthy. It's basically just like oatmeal, with a little fruit and natural sweeteners, turned into muffins.
There's no eggs, oil, dairy or gluten in sight!
One of my favorite flours to bake with, besides quinoa flour, is oat flour. For starters, I love that you can make oat flour at home in a blender. Second, it's super affordable, especially if you buy oats in bulk (just remember, if you're celiac or have a severe gluten intolerance, you should purchase gluten-free certified oats!). Also, oat flour helps keep baked goods super moist AND it's nutritious!
Why are oats great?
Not only do I adore how versatile oats are — like honestly you can use them in baking, for cereals, granolas, and so much more — but oats they're actually quite good for you too. Oats are really high in dietary fiber, which makes them a great breakfast food because they’ll fill you up and also help to stabilize blood sugar. Oats also contain some protein (definitely not as much as quinoa, but that's okay!) as well as trace minerals like iron, magnesium and phosphorus.
In addition to oats, we've also managed to pack in some other pretty stellar ingredients. Let's take a look:
- Quinoa Flakes: high in protein, fiber and trace minerals
- Almond Flour: high in healthy fats and protein, also helps to give a soft, tender texture to baked goods
- Flaxseed Meal: high in healthy, omega-3 fats, high in fiber, helps improve digestion, and acts as the egg in this recipe
- Banana: great source of potassium, also very naturally sweet so it helps you reduce the other sugars you're using
- Applesauce: packed with fiber and loads of vitamins like A, Bs, and C, and it acts as an oil replacer in this recipe
- Maple Syrup: has is lower on the glycemic index that cane sugar which means it won't spike your blood sugar as much, it's sweeter so you need to use less of it, plus it also has some minerals (it's highest in manganese) as well as antioxidants
- Coconut Sugar: is very low on the glycemic index (lower than maple syrup), but also contains trace minerals and antioxidants like you would see in other coconut products
- Zucchini: is packed with vitamins and minerals, and it's very high in water content making it low in calories
Basically…these muffins are rockstars. They're healthy, filling, a perfect breakfast treat AND they taste freaking awesome.
If you're also feeling the need to get your bake on, then I highly recommend you whip up a batch of these babies. They're so simple and you'll have a healthy breakfast treat (or snack) for the rest of the week!
So excuse me while I go heat up another muffin and slather it in my favorite homemade nut butter (cinnamon maple pecan)!
Your turn…
What's your favorite muffin combo? I'm looking for more flavor ideas! Let me know in the comments below and I'll add them to my recipe brainstorm list 🙂
xo Alyssa
Chocolate Chip Zucchini Quinoa Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 flax egg (1 tablespoon flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons water)
- 1 1/4 cup oat flour (oats ground in a blender)
- 1/2 cup quinoa flakes
- 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean powder (or 1 teaspoon extract)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup mashed banana (1 large, 2 small)
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 3 tablespoons water (or milk)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup packed shredded zucchini (squeeze of the excess water)
- 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips (I like these ones)
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350ºF. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin and set aside.
- Make the flax egg by whisking together the flax and water. Set this aside to gel while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients (minus vanilla extract if using) in a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate bowl, beat together banana, applesauce, milk and syrup. Whisk in flax egg and pour wet ingredients into dry. Stir to thoroughly combine (the batter will be kind of thick, but still stirable and soft). Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips.
- Fill each cup ¾ of the way full. Add water to the ones that are unused. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with additional chocolate chips if desired (it makes them uber chocolatey and pretty!).
- Bake on the center rack for 23 – 25 minutes until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. If desired, reheat in the toaster oven or in the microwave and top with nut butter (optional, but highly encouraged).
by Alyssa
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Serving Size | |
| Amount Per Serving | As Served |
| Calories 174kcal Calories from fat 42 | |
| % Daily Value | |
| Total Fat 5g | 8% |
| Saturated Fat 1g | 5% |
| Cholesterol 0mg | 0% |
| Sodium 138mg | 6% |
| Carbohydrate 30g | 10% |
| Dietary Fiber 3g | 12% |
| Sugars 13g | |
| Protein 5g | |
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs:
| Calories | 2000 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Fat | Less than | 65g |
| Sat Fat | Less than | 25g |
| Cholesterol | Less than | 300mg |
| Sodium | Less than | 2,400mg |
| Total Carbohydrate | 300g | |
| Dietary Fiber | 25g | |
Ingredients I used in this recipe:
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Alyssa is the quinoa-obsessed girl behind Simply Quinoa. She's passionate about helping you find health, happiness and balance with wholesome recipes and lifestyle tips.
Melanie says
peanut butter and chocolate chip
cinnamon roll
cheesecake flavor–either plain or with a fruit
Emilie @ Emilie Eats says
I was so happy to see that you made these vegan!! I also loved that you used oat flour – my favorite! Can’t wait to bake up a storm with all the fresh zucchini popping up. <3
As for recommendations, everything you post is SO yummy, so I trust you completely! Haha. Have you ever tried lemon blueberry? That's one of my favorite combos right now!
TJ says
These are SO amazing! Moist, delicious – just incredible! I had to bake mine about 31 minutes but probably just explained by different ovens, etc. I LOVE great gluten-free vegan baked goods. Thank.you for this recipe!
Alyssa says
SOOO glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for sharing 🙂 xo
Jenn says
love that this is gf df and ef however I am intolerant to banana. What would you recommend as a substitute if anything? Thanks
Alyssa says
You could try another fruit puree like applesauce!
Amanda says
can I just grind up quinoa for this recipe? I have no idea where to get quinoa flakes…also, is there a substitute for all sauce? we never have any
Alyssa says
You can just substitute quick cooking oats and maybe stir in a bit of cooked quinoa. As for applesauce (that’s what you meant, right??), you can substitute another fruit puree like pear, banana, squash, etc. Let me know how they turn out for you!
Abbie says
Do you think there’s a way to do this without oat or almond? I am having to avoid those as well. Maybe brown rice or tapioca flour?
Alyssa says
I’m honestly not sure…I haven’t tested them without those two, but I’d love to hear if you give them a try!
sharon says
hi,made a double batch on sunday and there almost gone…. do u happen to have the nutrition facts for these ?
Alyssa says
I don’t, but you can use this tool to find it out: https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php 🙂
Vivian says
Hi, can’t wait to make these. I have several friends who have gone gluten-free and I’ve been looking for gluten free recipes. Did you use rolled oats or another kind like quick?
Thank you so much; so happy I found your site on Pinterest.
Vivian
Alyssa says
I used rolled oats in this recipe, but since you’re grinding them, it shouldn’t matter too much. Can’t wait to hear what you (and your friends!) think of the recipe 🙂 xo
Karla says
Hi Alyssa just wondering if quinoa flakes are the same as quinoa glow flour . Looking forward to making these.They look great!
Alyssa says
Nope! Actually flakes are like rolled oats and the flour is like a traditional flour. If you can’t have flakes, you could substitute them for quick cooking oats!
Jen @ sweetgreenkitchen.com says
These muffins look delicious and perfect for summer when zucchinis are everywhere! I love making mini muffins for my kid’s lunch boxes (and my mouth!). My kids favorite combo is banana with chocolate chips and I love apricots and almonds in scones but would probably be great in muffins too.
Alyssa says
Mini muffins is such a good idea! Definitely going to try that next time around with these babies 🙂
Suca says
Could I use coconut flour instead of almond flour? my husband can’t eat almonds.
Alyssa says
Unfortunately coconut flour can’t be substituted for most flours. You could try adding in more oat flour!
Leona says
Your instructions number 4 list pumpkin which is not listed in the ingredients. Guessing that is just a mistake.
Just discovered your website and and wait to get started baking cookies etc. I only have one recipe for quinoa chocolate chip cookies. I usually add cooked quinoa to my cooked steel oats in the morning. Your have so many great recipes I having a hard time deciding which one to make first.
Alyssa says
Yep! It should have said applesauce 🙂 And yum, that breakfast sounds so great!
Denise says
Have you ever substituted the zucchini with carrots?
Alyssa says
I haven’t personally, but I think it would be delicious!
Kate says
What would you recommend I use in place of the quinoa flakes? I don’t have any on hand
Alyssa says
You could also use quick cooking oats I think 🙂
Debby says
I’ve heard quinoa flakes can taste bitter. (Just like standard quinoa, which I always rinse and/or soak before cooking). So can I rinse the quinoa flakes before using in this recipe? Or would that affect the texture (since the flakes would be wet)? Thanks!
Alyssa says
If you find them bitter, I’d recommend toasting them quickly in a dry skillet 🙂
Debby says
Can this recipe be doubled?
Between being a university student and part time work, I need to get thw most bang for my baking time 🙂