Decadent Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Buttermilk
These delightful chocolatey muffins are a great way to use fresh zucchini from your garden, farmer’s market, or the stash of frozen zucchini in your freezer. Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Buttermilk are moist and fluffy with just-right sweetness and a cakelike texture thanks to the addition of buttermilk. No buttermilk on hand? No problem! You can make your own – see the note below.
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What You’ll Need for Making Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Buttermilk
Brown sugar and granulated sugar (I prefer to use Morena sugar)
Cooking oil (My favorite healthy, all-purpose oil is Avocado oil)
Finely shredded zucchini, fresh or frozen and thawed (see note)
Egg
Buttermilk (see note)
All the regulars: All-purpose flour, baking powder and baking soda, salt)
Cocoa powder and semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
Frequently Asked Questions About Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
Do I need to peel the zucchini before shredding it to use in these muffins?
This is completely up to you. If your zucchini are young and tender, the peels will be perfectly fine to leave on. However, if your zucchini are as big as baseball bats, the skin is likely tough and will need to be peeled. If you do leave the peels on, just be aware that you will still see little flecks of green in the muffins, which may be an issue if you are trying to sneakily disguise veggies for your picky eaters. 😊
Oops! I am a little short on zucchini…what can I do?
If you have an apple or two, you can shred that and mix the shredded apple right in with the zucchini. I have used as much as ½ cup of shredded apple to top up my zucchini with zero noticeable difference.
I never have real buttermilk on hand – what else can I use?
You can easily make your own buttermilk by mixing one tablespoon of vinegar (white, red wine, apple cider) and milk to equal 1 cup total. I have also used the liquid whey left over from yogurt making with delicious results.
This recipe makes a lot of muffins…can I freeze the extra?
These Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 24 hours, refrigerated for up to three days, or frozen for up to 3 months. They make a delicious and nutritious grab-and-go breakfast, lunch, or snack.
Help! I thawed my frozen zucchini and now it is so watery! Is that ok?
Ideally, just-grated zucchini that is going to be frozen should sit for a while and be well-drained before being frozen, but if you find that your thawed zucchini is really watery, you will need to drain the extra liquid if you don’t want your batter to be too wet. Though, if you want to know a secret, I have made these muffins with “watery” thawed zucchini, and though the batter was wetter, like a cake batter instead of muffin batter, the resulting muffins were like cupcakes in texture and very delicious.
How to Make Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (It’s easy!)
Heat oven to 375°. Grease or line with paper liners 2 standard 12 muffin tins and set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the two sugars, the egg and the oil. Stir in the buttermilk (see note) and shredded zucchini.
In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.
Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and gently stir just until the dry and wet ingredients are combined. Be careful not to overmix, as that can result in tough muffins. Gently fold in the semisweet chocolate chips.
Divide the batter evenly between the 24 muffin cups (using an oiled ¼ cup measurer per muffin is just about perfect). Bake for 18-22 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean and the top of the muffin springs back when lightly pressed.
Let the muffins cool in their tins for about 10 minutes, and then take them out and serve immediately or allow them to finish cooling on a rack. These Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Buttermilk can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 24 hours, refrigerated for up to three days, or frozen for up to 3 months.
If the muffins have been frozen, allow them to thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours before serving, or warm them from frozen in the microwave for about 30 seconds, depending on your microwave. Overheated muffins get really tough, so go easy on the reheating time!
Ready to get make some delicious muffins? Grab your apron, and let’s get baking!
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Decadent Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Buttermilk
Equipment
- 2 Regular 12 cup muffin tins
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup cooking oil
- 2 cups finely shredded zucchini fresh or frozen and thawed (see note)
- 1 egg
- 1 cup buttermilk see note
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup semisweet or dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375°. Grease or line with paper liners 2 standard muffin tins and set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the two sugars, the egg, and the oil. Stir in the buttermilk* and shredded zucchini.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and gently stir just until the dry and wet ingredients are combined. Be careful not to overmix, as that can result in tough muffins. Gently fold in the semisweet chocolate chips.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 24 muffin cups (using an oiled ¼ cup measuring cup per muffin is just about perfect). Bake for 18-22 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or the top of the muffin springs back when lightly pressed.
- Let the muffins cool in their tins for about 10 minutes, and then take them out and serve immediately or allow them to finish cooling on a rack.
- Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 24 hours, refrigerated for up to three days, or frozen for up to 3 months. If the muffins have been frozen, allow them to thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours before serving, or warm them from frozen in the microwave for about 20 seconds, depending on the wattage of your microwave. Overheated muffins get really tough, so go easy on the reheating time! Enjoy!
Notes
