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Healthy chocolate zucchini muffins are so yummy and make a perfect snack or lunchtime dessert, made with whole wheat flour, maple syrup, applesauce, grated zucchini, and mini chocolate chips!
I love a sneaky, healthy recipe! These muffins look indulgent, smell indulgent, and taste indulgent! But they’re made with whole wheat flour, no sugar, and zucchini for a little bonus health punch. The recipe is sweetened with maple syrup, and applesauce adds a little kick of sweet flavor and a lot of moisture.
I know it sounds like zucchini and chocolate should be the LAST ingredients paired together, especially in a baked goodie, but you can’t even taste the green veggie in these tasty muffins. You will love these muffins for snacks, lunch boxes, and everything in between!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthy chocolate zucchini muffins are a hearty and delicious snack that the whole family will love, and they’re packed with nourishing ingredients!
- These muffins keep well, so make them on the weekend to use in lunches or as snacks throughout the week.
- Sneaking healthier ingredients, such as vegetables and fruits, into baked goods will give your family’s meals a little extra nutrition boost.
Recipe Ingredients
- Whole wheat flour
- Cocoa powder
- Baking powder & baking soda – to help keep the muffins lighter
- Egg
- Maple syrup – for the sweetener instead of using sugar
- Applesauce – use unsweetened to keep sugar lower
- Vanilla extract
- Zucchini – grate a fresh zucchini or thaw zucchini from the freezer you saved from last year’s garden!
- Chocolate chips – I like to use the mini-sized chocolate chips
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry, mixing until combined.
- Stir in the zucchini and chocolate chips just until mixed in.
- Bake until done in the center and cool on a wire rack.
Recipe FAQs
These last for up to a week if kept in the fridge! If you want to prep a double batch or more, you can also store them in the freezer for up to 3 to 4 months.
In general, a medium-sized zucchini is about 8 inches long and 2 inches in diameter. Sliced, it accounts for about 1 cup to 1 1/4 cup. This recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups, so I’d recommend using 2 small, 1 1/2 medium, or 1 large zucchini.
You can use a cheese grater to shred zucchini. A food processor will also work—just make sure you don’t blend it into a liquid or have too large of chunks remaining. (Nobody likes a huge bite of zucchini in their chocolate muffin!)
Expert Tips
- This chocolate zucchini muffin recipe can be made in larger batches, and they will keep well in the fridge for a week or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
- For more nutritious muffin recipes that still taste scrumptious, be sure to try these Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins, Easy & Healthy Banana Muffins, and Healthy Apple Cinnamon Muffins!
- A fresh zucchini can be shredded or if you have shredded zucchini saved in the freezer from the last gardening season, it can be thawed out and drained for using in this recipe.
How to Store Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
After baking, let your muffins cool for 5 minutes in the tin before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store extras in an airtight container in the fridge.
Muffins will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week and in the freezer for 2-3 months.
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Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups finely grated zucchini
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin and set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine, and make a well in the center.
- Add the egg, maple syrup, applesauce, and vanilla to the center. Stir to combine well, but don’t over-mix.
- Stir in the zucchini and mini chocolate chips until they are incorporated.
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin tin.
- Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until the muffins spring back lightly when touched and are no longer gooey in the middle.
- Remove from the oven, and allow the muffins to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before removing them to finish cooling on a wire rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for much longer.
Video
Notes
- I LOVE these hearty muffins for lunch boxes. You can make them ahead of time, and they store well all week long.
- These make easy snacks, breakfasts, and everything in the middle.
- I love to make a double batch and keep half in the freezer for later.
- Store extra zucchini from garden season by shredding and freezing. You’ll be able to make these delicious muffins all year!
Can I swap the whole wheat flour for all-purpose white flour? Will I need to adjust the measurements?
It’ll convert great!
Hi….I want to try this but I live India and i don’t get applesauce here.. can i replace it with plain yogurt or milk?
Yes, it’ll work great with yogurt!
Hey! Love your recipes. We don’t have maple syrup where i live, can you please let me know how much brown sugar i have to use instead?
You just just replace the maple with equal parts honey or sugar.