Mini Zucchini Muffins

EASY, very freezable and toddler approved. Which means we all will love them.

When it comes to something like a muffin or baked good, I know I’ve done good when my two year old keeps sneaking back into the kitchen for more. I’m always on the quest to make him “healthier” (whatever that means) treats, because the kid has a sweet tooth. But sometimes in my attempts to pull back the sugar, or hide vegetables in something, etc, it tips the scales into the “no thank you, Mama” (we’re working on that phrase a lot right now) territory. My toddler is not like my husband who politely says nothing and eats it anyway. My 11 month old also loves these, but that kid is so hungry he’s been known to eat dog food off the floor- he’s not exactly a reliable food critic. All to say, these muffins are quite tasty. They are inspired by Alexandra Cooks recipe for zucchini bread. A mom from school brought this recipe, as Alexandra wrote it, in muffin form to a playdate and both Dean and I loved them. They are insanely delicious. So, naturally I have to be the fun police and cut down on the sugar and flour. BUT I made them mini! Who doesn’t love something mini?!

Mini Zucchini Muffins

My new version is still really tasty and sitting next to some fruit, can pass as breakfast. They last for a few days in an air-tight container, but if you’re not feeding a crowd I recommend freezing them and defrosting as you need them. That way you can extend the period of time you get to be “that mom”, with homemade muffins as an after school snack. Or “that friend” who’s just awesome. They are made in one bowl, which I love. I threw out all the rules about whisking the dry ingredients separately, blah blah. Right, I get why we need to do that for baking, but these are muffins. They are meant to be easy. I mention in the recipe to “sprinkle” the baking powder and soda. This is so they get more evenly distributed and you don’t have to dirty an additional bowl. If you don’t have a mini muffin pan, that’s fine too. Use a regular muffin pan, you’ll just end up with less muffins and you may need a few more minutes in the oven.

You can find the recipe for these moist, perfectly sweet, very “pop-able” muffins at the bottom of this email.

What I’m Loving This Week:

1. Liquid IV Hydration Hydration Multiplier: I’m sure I’ve talked about these before. They are essentially powdered gatorade that you put in water. They still have sugar and are sweet, but they have far less ingredients than gatorade and no weird artificial colors or chemicals. We had a bought of the daycare stomach flu this week and I was thrilled I had these in the pantry. My personal favorite flavor is “passion fruit”.

2. Meadow Creek Grayson Cheese: Found my new favorite cheese. Over the holidays we were gifted a box of cheese form Murray’s Cheese in NYC. This cheese was in there and it was made for me. It’s a semi soft cheese thats funkyyyyy in the way that I love. Made from raw Jersey cow’s milk (breed of cow not from NJ hah) on a farm down in Virginia, it’s got a rind on the outside and the inside is golden, soft, gooey and funky. I just love it. You can only buy it 9 months out of the year and the cheese is slightly different as the seasons change because of what the cows are eating and the age of the cheese. I mean THATS REAL FOOD. I love eating things that have very few steps from the source to me. If you can manage to get your hands on this cheese, do it.

Oil: I have made these now with a few different oils. And I’ve combined the oils because I had only a little bit of this one and more of another. Avocado oil, olive oil, and coconut oil (melted) are my top choices.

Makes 36 mini muffins