Aug 9, 2012

GF/DF Chocolate Zucchini Muffins


I forgot to take a picture until I'd already "flash-froze" some of the muffins - these are ready to go into freezer bags for later! I'm filling my freezer with yummy goodies like these muffins to help out during busy days this fall!


I found this recipe when I was searching for muffin recipes to help me out of my muffin-making rut. I was in a rut because I always make the same muffin recipe. Over and over. Now, don't get me wrong, my go-to recipe for pumpkin muffins is awesome - and I am known to experiment with switching up ingredients each time I make them. However, even I wanted to try something new - and I wanted to use less canned-goods until I could hopefully-soon begin canning pumpkin myself. What I found was a huge hit so I couldn't help but want to share it with you!

GF/DF Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

Recipe adapted from Once a Month Mom, who got it from Mommy I'm Hungry, who got it from the original recipe creator Fiona Haynes. (Check out the links for each website's version of the recipe.)

1 1/2 cups brown rice flour
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
1 1/2 t. xanthan gum
1 1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. Real salt
2 large organic eggs
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
3/4 cup organic granule sugar
1 t. gluten free vanilla extract
3 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 c. unsweetened almond milk mixed with 1 t. apple cider vinegar (This will "curdle" up the milk a bit but will mix into the batter just fine and you'll never know there is vinegar in the finished baked muffin!)
1 1/3 c. GF/DF chocolate chips

  1. Roughly chop zucchini into chunks and shred in a food processor. Measure out your dairy free milk and stir in the apple cider vinegar.
  2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt.
  3. In a another bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, sugar, and vanilla until a bit frothy; add in the shredded zucchini and "soured" almond milk and mix to combine. Stir in flour mixture a little at a time making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl; mix just until combined. If using chocolate chips, fold them into the batter now.
  4. Using a pastry brush and some more grapeseed oil, oil a 24-cup mini muffin pan. Using a mini-muffin scoop (approximately 2 T. full), fill muffin tins evenly. Bake in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for 13 minutes. Allow muffins to cool for a few minutes before removing to a wire cooling rack.

Notes/tips:
  • My wire cooling rack fits perfectly into my microwave (which is installed above my oven). I can allow my muffins to cool there (with the door open) to prevent sticky fingers from helping themselves before I'm ready to serve them - and so they don't all disappear because I want to freeze some! ☺
  • You will probably need to re-oil your pan for each subsequent batch. I think I got about 55 mini-muffins total.
  • Once you come to your last batch, you will probably have a few empty muffin cups. Fill them with water (be careful not to get any water in with the muffin batter - I just use a drinking glass to slowly fill the empty muffin cups with water) so the muffins bake evenly and it helps the batter dried on from the previous batches to not burn.
  • If you want to freeze these muffins, as I did, you can place the fully-cooled muffins on a tray or plate to flash freeze them in the freezer and then divide them into freezer bags in the quantities appropriate for your family.
  • Since we were out of chocolate chips, we didn't use them and we didn't miss them. And, DF/GF chocolate chips are a great treat but are expensive and my being out just happened to help make this an even cheaper - but still great tasting - treat! I think these came out perfectly for breakfast or snack muffins as they were tender, whole-grain muffins and not too sweet. Fantastic!

The most obvious changes that I made to this recipe are that I used mostly brown rice flour (it's cheaper than sorghum flour - which is what the original recipe called for) and I substituted "sour" almond milk for the DF yogurt originally called for (because DF yogurt is expensive and keeping unsweetened dairy free milk around for cooking is cheaper and stretches further). Overall, this is a great recipe - a definite keeper! - and I'm very grateful to the original recipe creator and to OAMM for sharing this! Also, I would like to note that the original recipe creator suggested apple sauce as a possible DF substitute for the originally-called for sour cream (or yogurt in subsequent variations). I think this sounds like another great idea!

If you haven't yet, go on over and check out Once A Month Mom. She shares a variety of monthly menu plans that include awesome recipes for "once a month cooking" including a whole foods menu and a GF/DF menu. I don't see myself ever getting into the "once a month cooking" completely but I like the concept and have been stocking my freezer with homemade stock, browned ground beef, cooked and shredded chicken, and baked goods for easy and healthy breakfasts and snacks (like pancakes, waffles, and muffins). Even these small ahead-of-time efforts make a big difference in how quick a meal or snack can be served on a busy day!

♥Shari

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1 comment:

  1. Thanks for linking up at the Clever Chicks Blog Hop this week, these look really delicious!

    Cheers,
    Kathy Shea Mormino
    The Chicken Chick

    ReplyDelete

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