Hands down my fave summer muffins are these crazy moist Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins made with ripe bananas, a magical combo of whole grain flour and almond flour, and fresh grated zucchini (no squeezing!). No eggs, dairy, or oil needed. Unbelievably decadent and rich tasting but no one believes they're healthy! My kids are obsessed with these for breakfast (the only way they'll eat zucchini, ha). Make a batch in 30 minutes!
It's zucchini season, yo! That means I'm stuffing every baked good known to man with zucchini goodness. It's a dream the moisture it provides and hello, extra nutrition so easily!
This recipe is like my mind-blowing healthy chocolate zucchini cake and healthy zucchini muffins had a bebé. How are they so delish AND so nourishing? After dinner (or at 3pm) when I have a hankering for something chocolatey, these are simplybeyond.
Or for breakfast when, ya know. Chocolate. But don't take my word for it!
5-Star Reader Reviews ★★★★★
"These are my new favorite muffins! It's astonishing how moist and tender they are with no oil. I fully expected these to taste 'healthy,' but they taste quite decadent. I am currently trying to be oil-free and these are making it easy." --Shannon:
"Excellent recipe. I brought these to a function and they disappeared instantly, with requests for recipe! So moist and not too sweet. One muffin takes craving for sweets away!!" --Deb
"My son leaves for camp today and I made these for a quick breakfast. After devouring 3 muffins, he asked me if he’s allowed to take food with him to camp. The leftovers are packed with him for snacks!" --Kara
"These are BEYOND delicious!! So moist and chocolatey, and the perfect amount of sweet. I gave them to a friend who couldn't believe they're vegan and oil free." --Claire
Let's make 'em!
What I learned from recipe testing
- Don't squeeze water out of zucchini: Most zucchini muffin recipes call for a bunch of added oil, milk and eggs eggs for moisture but I took a different approach! We're relying solely on the natural liquid from zucchini and tons of banana. The batter seems thick but the muffins come out insanely moist and tender! (Yay for saving the lives of 87 paper towels.)
- The almond flour is key for texture: Here's where my big aha moment came in recipe testing. I first tried all white whole wheat flour and they were too dry. Adding almond flour introduced much-needed healthy fats (and I swear it makes everything taste like cake). A small amount goes a long way! P.S. You can do half all purpose and half whole wheat if you can't find white whole wheat flour.
- The riper the banana, the better (duh): This actually isn't only for the sweetness though; it's also for texture since riper bananas are wetter and that helps form the right batter. It took a bit a of trial and error but I found in recipe testing that a heaping cup of very overripe (brown!) bananas was perfect. I'll take more banana for flavor over milk any day!
- Don't skip the chocolate chips: The melty sweet chocolate takes these over the top. When I tested thee without them the texture wasn't as fun. If they're cold, they add an amazing bite, too!
Storage and freezing
Store muffins in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to five days. Freeze muffins for up to 3 months.
I recommend freezing them on a lined baking sheet or plate and then once frozen, pop them into a freezer baggie. To reheat, microwave straight from the freezer until warm and enjoy!
Go live your best muffin life!!
Print
Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (egg free!)
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 12 muffins
- Category: Snack, Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Hands down my fave summer muffins are these crazy moist Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins made with ripe bananas, a magical combo of whole grain flour and almond flour, and fresh grated zucchini (no squeezing!). No eggs, dairy, or oil needed. Unbelievably decadent and rich tasting but no one believes they're healthy! My kids are obsessed with these for breakfast (the only way they'll eat zucchini, ha). Make a batch in 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour, spooned and leveled
- ¼ cup almond flour
- ¼ cup cacao powder
- ⅓ cup organic cane sugar (or ⅓ cup coconut sugar)
- 1 ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1 heaping cup mashed very overripe bananas (3 small-medium)
- 1 heaping cup grated zucchini (don't squeeze water out)
- 1 tbsp milk of choice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup chocolate chips, + more for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease muffin tin/line with paper liners or silicone baking cups and set aside.
- Place bananas in a large mixing bowl and mash with a fork. Add zucchini, almond milk and vanilla.
- Place flour, almond meal, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl, whisking until combined.
- Pour the dry mixture into wet mixture, stirring just until combined. The batter will be very thick--that's normal! Fold in chocolate chips without over-mixing.
- Fill sprayed muffin tin evenly with batter, filling about ⅔ full (I use a muffin scoop). Top each muffin with 2-3 additional chocolate chips. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Devour sprinkled with flaky sea salt!
Notes
STORAGE: Store muffins in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Freeze muffins for up to 3 months.
Meredith says
Has anyone made this with applesauce instead of banana? Hate to waste my almond flour and cacao powder if it doesn’t work well as a sub in this!
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
I don’t recommend it—I haven’t tested this and they don’t always work the same! You would also need to increase the sweetener since banana is so much sweeter.
Laura Neuffer says
This recipe has been a staple in my family for a while now! Easiest way to get my kids to eat zucchini haha.
Alexis Joseph says
Mmmm my favorite!!
Whitney Long says
Oh my gosh! These are so good! Will definitely be a go to recipe. Husband won't stop eating them lol but I have been able to snag a few as snacks!:)
Alexis Joseph says
Hahaha amazing!! Thank you so much Whitney and I'm thrilled your husband loved them.
Megan says
Had a Zucchini in the fridge just begging to be made into these muffins. SO glad I gave in! They are incredible and so fast and easy! No oil! Whole wheat! Chocolate chips! Heck yes! Thanks for another knock-out =)
Alexis says
Yessss isn't it crazy? These muffs are my fave!!
Claire says
These muffins are BEYOND delicious !!! I made them following the recipe exactly (except no cinnamon bc I was out) and baked for 22 min, and they were so moist and chocolatey, and the perfect amount of sweet. I gave them to a friend who couldn't believe they were vegan and oil free. Definitely making these again!!
Alexis says
Yayyyy I love that! Thanks a ton, Claire!
Karen says
These are great lil snack muffins/treats!
I used almond flour as per ingredients ( in method she says almond meal, which is different. I also had to add a splash more almond milk as it was very dry, then it got the perfect texture.
Baked for 22 mins.
Alexis says
Thanks for that catch! When I originally published the recipe years back, I used almond meal. I started using all almond flour more recently so I updated the ingredients but either actually works here!
mimi says
hi :), i'm planning on making these and was wondering if i could replace the almond meal with ground hazelnuts :)? cheers, xxx
Alexis Joseph says
Hi! I’ve never tried that so I can’t say for sure. I’d say as long as it’s super finely ground like almond flour, it should work!
Shannon says
These are my new favorite muffins! It is astonishing how moist and tender they are with no oil. I fully expected these to taste “healthy “ but they taste quite decadent. I am currently trying to be oil-free and these are making it easy. Thank you!
Alexis Joseph says
Isn't it crazy? Thanks, Shannon!
Ty says
Hello! Can I sub Cacao Powder for the Cocoa Powder? The link I clicked on your site said 12 Cacao recipes but the actual recipe says cocoa powder. Thanks!
Alexis Joseph says
Sure! That works!
Hailey says
These muffins are amazing and so moist even without oil! I added an extra banana since I only had a half cup of zucchini and they still turned out great!
Alexis Joseph says
Wonderful! How awesome that the extra banana worked. Enjoy!