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Healthier Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

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I’ve had the recipe for these muffins sitting in my notes app for a few months now. I have no idea why it has taken me so long to share this recipe with you guys! I know. I know. Another zucchini muffin? Yes. Because these are one of my favorite muffins. Ever. They’re fluffy, tender, moist, not too sweet, and give me a bit of green veggie on top of the chocolate chips. What’s not to like? I added a touch of ground cardamom, along with some cinnamon, and OMG I love these muffins!!

This recipe is super easy to follow. There are a few steps involved, but it’s all worth it in the end! The amount of chocolate chips and the kind of spice you add is totally up to you. I didn’t want these to be overly sweet, so don’t expect the 1/2 cup I have listed to give you a chocolate loaded muffin. But, by all means, load those babies up with a whole cup of chocolate if that’s what you’re in to! I really like ground cardamom, but if you don’t have it on hand, or you’re not a big fan, no worries. You can leave it out, add more cinnamon, or add nutmeg in its place. Have fun with these, and happy baking!

Healthier Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins
Makes ~8 muffins

1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk, room temp*
2 large eggs, room temp*
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white whole wheat flour**
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom***
1 1/2 cups finely grated zucchini
1/2 cup chocolate chips + more for topping

1.) Preheat your oven to 350°F and prepare your muffin pan with liners or by spraying it with olive oil/non-stick spray. Bring your eggs to room temperature by placing them in a glass of warm water for around 10 minutes.

2.) In a large bowl, combine the coconut sugar and melted coconut oil. Add the almond milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk until totally combined. Place your shredded zucchini on a paper towel and squeeze out and discard the excess juice. Add the zucchini to your mixture and stir until combined.

3.) Sift the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and cardamom into the wet ingredients. Gently fold everything together until no flour pockets remain. Fold in the chocolate chips.

4.) Fill your muffin pan almost to the top – you will get between 7 and 9 muffins, depending on how full you fill them. Top with chocolate chips, slightly pressing each chip into the batter. Bake muffins at 350°F for 15-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out clean – try to find a spot with no chocolate! 

5.) Let your muffins cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. If you didn’t use liners, slide a butter knife around each muffin before gently removing. Enjoy warm and store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

*it takes a bit of extra work, but if your milk and eggs are too cold, the coconut oil will solidify while you’re mixing
**whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour will work just fine
***if you don’t like cardamom, feel free to leave it out or replace it with nutmeg

Zucchini Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Have you ever had zucchini in a cookie? I seriously considered eating these for breakfast, because, ya now, oatmeal + zucchini = breakfast, right? Consider these the better-for-you, not-so-traditional version of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! I wanted to use tahini in these because I love the nutty taste, and I really liked the idea of creating a cookie that’s free of both dairy and oil.

These cookies are so easy (and quick!) to get together – shredding your zucchini will be the “hardest” part! I like to use coconut sugar when I can since it’s a low GI sweetener (maple syrup and honey are not). You can really play with this recipe, adding and subtracting whatever add-ins you like: add nuts or seeds, leave out some of the chocolate chips, add dried fruit, etc. Happy baking!

Zucchini Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies with Tahini (dairy-free + oil-free!)
Makes 19 cookies

1/2 cup tahini
3/4 cup coconut sugar
1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup oat flour
1 1/2 cup oats
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
3/4 cup finely grated zucchini
1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips

1.) Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, mix together the tahini, coconut sugar, egg + egg yolk, and vanilla extract until totally combined; set aside.

2.) In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet and fold until combined. 

3.) Squeeze the excess juice from your zucchini shreds – I like to place mine on a paper towel and squeeze over the sink – before folding them into your dough. Finally, fold in the chocolate chips.

4.) Scoop 2 Tbsp dough balls onto your prepared baking sheet. Bake 6 at a time at 350°F for 9 minutes. Let cool for 2 minutes on your baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Sprinkle Cookies

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There’s something about the holidays that makes me want to throw sprinkles on everything. I’m usually pretty reserved with dessert decorations, but all the colorful, shiny little bits and bobs of sprinkles found at the store during this time just make me so happy! In recent years, I’ve become more conscious of consuming artificial dyes, and I’ve been super disappointed in the lack of affordable, readily available naturally dyed sprinkle options (anyone else?). The sprinkles I used for these cookies are regular ‘ole sprinkles that have been sitting in my cabinet for the last three years, and I figured it was time to put them to use! Ya know, just being resourceful.

So I decided to take a chocolate chip cookie, add a ton of sprinkles and a bit of almond extract. These cookies are sweet, chocolatey, and just the right amount of festive! Of course, you can make them at any time of the year with any kind of sprinkles! I don’t recommend baking sugar sprinkles into the dough since the color may seep off into the dough (I sprinkled mine on post-bake).

Since I used melted coconut oil in these cookies, refrigerating the dough is key and cannot be skipped. To ensure maximum cookie thickness, you’ll want to roll your dough balls a little tall, a trick I learned from Sally’s Baking Addiction before I went dairy-free! Once your cookies come out of the oven, you can immediately press a few extra chocolate chips into the tops for prettier cookies. Happy baking!

Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Sprinkle Cookies
Makes 17 cookies

1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted/liquid (if measured as a solid it will be 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar (can be replaced with coconut sugar)
1 large egg, room temp
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract (optional)
1 + 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp corn starch
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 cup sprinkles
1/2 cup + 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips (1/4 cup is for topping the dough balls)

1.) Bring your egg to room temperature by placing it in a glass of warm water for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix together the melted coconut oil, coconut sugar, and granulated sugar. Add the vanilla and almond extract. Then add the egg and mix until totally combined; set aside.

2.) In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, corn starch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add this to the liquid ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until nearly combined. Add the sprinkles and chocolate chips and mix until well incorporated. Cover and chill the dough for 45 minutes.

3.) Remove dough from the refrigerator and begin shaping dough balls 2 Tbsp in size. You want them to be more tall then they are wide – think the shape of a tater tot. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate again for 30 minutes.

4.) Preheat your oven to 325°F and line a second baking sheet with parchment paper. Let the dough balls sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before baking at 325°F for 10 minutes, turning your pan around at the halfway point for even baking. Immediately press extra chocolate chips into the tops of your baked cookies, let sit on the baking sheet for one minute, and then move cookies to a cooling rack. Sprinkle with extra sprinkles if desired. Enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.  

Dairy-Free Salted Chocolate Rye Cookies

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Okay, friends, we’re a few days into my 12 Days of Dairy-Free Cookies, and I could not be more excited to share these cookies with you!! The whole reason I started posting food to Instagram is because I was in search of good dairy-free recipes that were lower in sugar or utilized a low GI sugar like coconut sugar. These cookies are delicious. I brought my leftovers (after testing and shooting) to Thanksgiving, and they flew off the counter! I’d wished I’d baked more!

These cookies are full of chocolate. No cocoa powder needed here, because you’re going to use a whole 1/2 pound of chocolate for these. These cookies are rich, fudgy, and so satisfying, especially when they’re warmed up or fresh from the oven. I added a little bit of instant coffee to amp up the chocolate flavor – you won’t taste coffee at all. Espresso powder will work, too.

I used three whole tablespoons of dough per cookie, because I really wanted a thick cookie. If you follow the chilling instructions below, I believe you’ll have no problem with too much spread. I like my cookies fudgy, so I only baked them until the outside was set. You want the middle to look under-baked when you pull them out of the oven. Your cookies should come out thick, ultra fudgy, and seriously irresistible. Happy baking!

 

Dairy-Free Salted Chocolate Rye Cookies
Makes ~11 cookies

1/2 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 Tbsp coconut oil, solid
2 large eggs, room temp
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp fine sea salt
1/3 cup dark rye flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 + 1/4 cup chocolate chips (1/4 cup is for topping)
1/2 tsp instant coffee granules
Maldon Sea Salt Flakes to sprinkle

1.) Add an inch of water to a saucepan on medium heat. Set a heatproof bowl on the saucepan, making sure it doesn’t touch the water, and add the chopped chocolate, coconut oil, and instant coffee. Stir frequently until chocolate and oil are totally melted. Remove bowl from pan and set aside to cool down.

2.) Meanwhile, in a bowl attached to a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, add the eggs and coconut sugar. Whisk on medium speed until mixture becomes thick and light brown in color, about 8 minutes. Whisk in the vanilla and salt.

3.) Gently fold the chocolate into the egg mixture. Add the flour and baking powder and fold until nearly combined, leaving some flour streaks. Mix in 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips. Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least an hour, or overnight for best flavor.

4.) Allow dough to set at room temp for 30 minutes to 1 hour before you begin to roll your dough balls. The dough will be sticky, but for proper spreading, you don’t want it to be too cold. Once your dough is soft enough to roll, preheat your oven to 325°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

5.) Roll dough balls 3 Tbsp in size and place on your parchment-lined baking sheet (6 at a time). Press extra chocolate chips into the tops of each dough ball. Bake at 325°F for 12-15 minutes or until cookies look nearly set in the middle – you want them to look a little under-baked when you take them out. Immediately sprinkle your cookies with salt, and allow them to rest on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before moving to a cooling rack. Enjoy warm! Store leftovers in an airtight container*

*cookies can be refrigerated or frozen ahead of time. If frozen, allow them to thaw in their container. Then, before serving, pop them in the oven for a few minutes to warm them up again!

Recipe adapted from Food & Wine

Pumpkin Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins

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So I’ve been meaning to make a pumpkin quick bread for quite a while now, but then Halloween came and went and I was afraid everybody would be over pumpkin. Well, turns out, people are still totally into pumpkin leading up to Thanksgiving, too! Unlike gingerbread or peppermint, pumpkin basically has two holidays. Good news for me!

When Nathan started talking about a coffee pumpkin bread that he used to bake (complete with tons of sugar + milk-filled butterscotch chips) I knew I wanted to tackle a recipe for dairy-free, healthier Pumpkin Coffee Muffins. I decided to add chocolate chips – no one is surprised – because there’s nothing better than biting into a warm, freshly baked muffin loaded with melted chocolate! I’ve been craving that exact bite for over a week, and these muffins did not disappoint. We all love them, including my toddler who couldn’t get enough. I just might be adding these to the Thanksgiving playlist.

Pumpkin Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins
Makes 9 regular muffins

1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk, room temp
2 Tbsp instant coffee granules
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs, room temp
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup chocolate chips + 1/4 cup for topping
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves

1.) Preheat your oven to 350°F and prepare your muffin pan – spray with olive oil or line with paper liners. Bring your eggs to room temperature by placing them in a glass of warm water for ~10 minutes.

2.) In a medium bowl, mix the almond milk and instant coffee until granules have dissolved. Whisk in the coconut sugar, coconut oil, vanilla, and eggs until totally combined. Whisk in the pumpkin until smooth.

3.) In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices. Whisk in 1/2 cup of chocolate chips. Add the pumpkin coffee mixture and gently mix until no flour pockets remain.

4.) Divide your batter into nine regular muffins, filling the muffin pan nearly to the top. Top with chocolate chips, pressing them slightly into the batter. Bake at 350°F for 18-24 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean – you’ll have to prick around the melty chocolate chips.

5.) Allow your muffins to cool for 10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. Enjoy warm!