Vegan Zucchini Muffins

These wholesome, lightly sweetened Vegan Zucchini Muffins are perfect for breakfast or a snack any time of day! They’re loaded with healthy ingredients like flax, walnuts and, of course, zucchini. All you’ll taste is deliciousness!

I am all about making healthy snacks that can pose as breakfast, a lunchtime treat, an after school snack or quick grab-n-go fuel between activities. Better yet, I love sneaking in veggies where my kids least expect it.

These Vegan Zucchini Muffins are soft and delicious, just sweet enough, and packed with nutritious ingredients. All 3 kids rave about these healthy muffins, including my zucchini-hating son. They can devour a whole batch (12 muffins!) in 2 days!

Ingredients you need

Ingredient notes and substitutions

Zucchini ~ It is low in calories and high in many vitamins and minerals, like vitamin C, magnesium, fiber, folate, B vitamins, potassium, zinc, calcium, iron, and even healthy fats and protein!  Learn all about zucchini and get even more easy zucchini recipes.

Use the small grates on the grating blade if you want the zucchini to basically disappear into the batter. Use the larger grates if you want to see the gorgeous green flecks.

Don’t like zucchini? Don’t worry, I tested these with carrots, too, and they were just as delicious! But, like I said above, even my son who is not a zucchini fan loved these!

Flour ~ I like a combo of whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour.

You could use all all-purpose flour, white whole wheat or a gluten free flour blend meant to replace wheat flour at a 1:1 ratio, like Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking Flour.

Flax ~ Flaxseed is high in fiber, healthy Omega-3 fatty acids, protein, and potassium. [source]. You need to use flaxseed meal, or flaxmeal or ground flaxseed as it may be called, because our bodies don’t digest whole flaxseed well.

If you have whole flaxseed, simply grind it in a small coffee grinder before using.

Arrowroot Powder ~ Arrowroot powder will help soften up the dense whole wheat flour. It also has binding properties which will help hold the muffins together.

Sweetener ~ These vegan zucchini muffins have NO refined sugars! Just pure maple syrup. There is only ½ cup in the entire recipe and they are perfectly sweet. The vanilla and cinnamon lend to the sweetness, as well.

Milk ~ I use almond milk. Oat or soy milk would work great. Whichever you choose, go for an unsweetened, plain variety.

Flavorings ~ I love cinnamon and the flavor complements the zucchini and walnuts so well. This recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon and I think it creates the perfect balance of flavor. If you are sensitive to cinnamon and find it a strong flavor, use just 1 teaspoon instead.

A little vanilla adds extra sweetness and balance of flavor.

Walnuts ~ The nuts are optional, feel free to leave them out for a nut-free version or use raisins instead for extra sweetness. They’d be great with chocolate chips, too!

How to make the recipe

Add the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl (1) and whisk well to combine (2).

In a separate large mixing bowl add the wet ingredients (3) and whisk well until combined (4).

Pour the dry ingredients into the wet (5) and whisk until just combined (6).

Add the shredded zucchini (after squeezing out as much liquid as possible!) and chopped walnuts (7) and stir until evenly distributed throughout (8).

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tin (9). Fill each cavity about ⅔ of the way full.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The batter should be firm and starting to pull away from the sides. The tops should be golden brown (10).

Storage and freezing

Counter: Store the muffins in an air-tight container on the counter for 3 to 4 days. You can line the container with a paper towel if they start to release moisture as they sit (this is common with traditional muffins, but I don’t find it happens with these Vegan Zucchini Muffins).

Freezer: If you want them to last even longer, you can freeze them. Wrap individual muffins in plastic wrap or foil and then transfer them to a freezer-safe plastic zip-top bag. They should keep well for up to 3 months.

Pro tips and tricks

~ Measure the flour using the spoon and level method.

~ For gluten free, use a gluten free flour blend designed to replace wheat flour at a 1:1 ratio. I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking Flour for all of the process shots in this post.

~ If using gluten free flour, let the muffins cool completely for best texture. They’re even better the next day!

~ Be sure to use flaxseed meal. It’s sometimes called flaxmeal or ground flaxseeds. If you don’t find flaxseed meal, you can grind whole flaxseed in a small coffee grinder.

~ If your trying to hide the zucchini from your kids, use the smaller holes of the grater and it will all but disappear into the batter. If you like to see the pretty green flecks, use the larger holes on the grater.

~ Squeeze out as much liquid as possible from the shredded zucchini. Wrap the shreds in a clean kitchen towel or several layers of paper towels and wring it out. Just when you think you got all the liquid out, give it another good squeeze for good measure!

~ If you really don’t like zucchini, you can use shredded carrots instead.

~ Mix just until the batter comes together and no more white flour is visible. Do not over mix.

~ Nuts are optional, feel free to leave them out, use a different kind of nut, or even replace them with raisins, dried cranberries, or chocolate chips!

~ Fill the muffin cavities about ⅔ of the way full. Do not overfill.

~ Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The batter should be firm and pulling away from the sides. They tops should be a lovely golden brown.

~ Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes before removing the muffins.

~ Continue to allow the muffins to cool on a wire rack.

FAQs

More vegan muffin recipes

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