Zucchini, chocolate chips, and pecans = a new twist on breakfast muffins.
Summer is in full swing and that means it's zucchini season! I love baking with zucchinis for their nutrition plus their mild neutral flavor, which leaves lots of room for other flavors to shine. Here's a new, kid-approved recipe for Einkorn Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins.
Why Einkorn?
My family switched to Einkorn wheat flour over 10+ years ago. Einkorn is an ancient variety of wheat that has never been hybridized; as such it is naturally lower in gluten and higher in protein than modern wheat. Some people who have sensitivities to gluten in modern wheat can actually consume Einkorn with no problems.
This recipe for Einkorn Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins uses Einkorn all-purpose flour. When consumed in moderation, white flours can be a healthy part of the diet. (Did you know that, in traditional cultures, much of the bran and germ was actually discarded after the whole grains were ground into flour? Somehow, the people seemed to know that consuming too much whole grains can be unhealthy.)
Yummy and Nourishing
We love these Einkorn Chocolate Chip Zucchini muffins for breakfast. This nourishing recipe is loaded with healthy fats and gets a protein boost from extra eggs. These muffins are sweetened with sucanat, which is unrefined sugar that still retains some nutrients (unlike white sugar). These muffins also have a warm flavor pop with from cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
I like to double the recipe so we have plenty of easy breakfasts throughout the week. These muffins freeze well, too, and can be thawed and re-warmed in a toaster oven. That makes these muffins into a very-easy breakfast for busy weekday mornings.
Einkorn Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins
Makes 12 muffins
1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, melted, preferably grassfed
1.5 cups Einkorn all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sucanat
1&1/2 tsp aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 tsp finely ground Celtic sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp dried ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life soy-free chocolate chips)
1/2 cup chopped pecans, preferably crispy nuts
4 eggs, preferably from pastured hens
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1&1/2 cups packed shredded zucchini (from ~1.5 medium zucchinis, or ~third of a large zucchini)
Line a muffin tin with paper cups. (I prefer If You Care Unbleached Baking Cups because the muffins do not stick to the sides of the cups.)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Turn off heat and allow to cool a bit.
Combine the Einkorn flour, sucanat, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Whisk to mix it all together well.
Chop/break up the pecans into smallish pieces.
Stir the chocolate chips and pecans into the flour mixture.
Shred the zucchini using a box grater. There is no need to peel the zucchini.
Combine the eggs, vanilla, zucchini, and melted butter in a medium bowl. Mix together with a fork.
Make a depression in the center of the flour mixture. Pour in the zucchini mixture and stir it all together with a large spoon. Because the Einkorn flour does contain gluten, make sure not to overmix or the muffins will be tough. Stir it all together just enough to combine the wet and dry ingredients, erring on the side of less stirring.
Use a 3-Tb scoop or large spoon to scoop the batter into the muffin cups.
Bake the muffins at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, until they are golden brown on top.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit before serving.
Once cool, leftovers that will be consumed within a couple days can be stored in an airtight container on the counter. The rest can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Or, freeze leftover muffins to be re-warmed in a toaster oven as an easy breakfast in the coming weeks.
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