Zucchini Apple Muffins (Vegan)

Oh hey, I’m back!

What better way to spend a rainy Veteran’s Day holiday than to fill the kitchen with the smell of apples baking, stock up for breakfast/snacks for the week and snuggle away from the cold?

I wasn’t intending on blogging this, mainly because I was planning on following Dana’s muffin recipe and only playing around with the flavours (zucchini instead of carrots). I was also tempted with Ella’s version that included a delicious oat crumble on top.

But of course, as per usual, I didn’t have all of the ingredients for either of these recipes! I usually shy away from improvising with baked goods (much more of a novice with baking than with cooking), but my vision of a warm morning with coffee and muffins was too hard to resist.

So I stuck mostly with Dana’s recipe but upped the fruit proportions and played around with the sweeteners, liquids, and spices to make sure that I’d get the right tastes and consistency. The result was spectacular:

These muffins are moist inside, crisper on top, and communicate subtle tones that hint at zuccchini, apple, maple syrup and cinnamon. It was hard not to eat them all right away- they misted up my camera when I tried to get a close up and so how I could I resist…?

INGREDIENTS:
Makes 12 muffins.

• Flax egg (1.5 tbsp ground flax seed, 3 tbsp water)
• 3/8 cup maple syrup (Or 1/4 cup plus another splash!)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• Pinch of salt
• 1.5 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 cup zucchini, grated (~3 mini zuchs)
• 1 cup apples, grated (~ 2 small ones)
• 2/3 cup oats
• 1.5 cup all purpose flour

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Mix ground flax seed with water and set aside for a few minutes. After 5-10 minutes, mixture should have egg-yolk type consistency.
2. Preheat oven to 375 F.
3. Add flax egg into mixing bowl and stir in wet ingredients in above order, from the maple syrup to almond milk.
4. Add in spices and grated apple and zucchini.
5. Mix in oats and flour slowly, adding in 1/3 of a cup at a time and folding it into batter.
6. Dole out batter into a greased muffin pan and bake for 25 minutes until edges are brown and pulling away from the pan.
7. Remove and allow to cool (or not, and devour them immediately).

They store well too- reheat batches in subsequent days and top them off with a little sliver of butter!

Blueberry Lemon Breakfast Muffins (vegetarian)

There’s a saying French that starts off with “déjeuner comme un roi” and another in Mandarin that goes “早饭吃得好”. They essentially say the same thing – dine like a king in the morn, so that you’re booted up for the rest of the day. When I lived on my own, breakfast always consisted of a bowl of oatmeal with a sliced banana, another fruit (usually apple, kiwi, or berries) and a sprinkling of nuts and raisins. Excellent for the clearing the digestive tract ;). Now that I’ve moved back to a household of 5, meals are all about economy of scale. Without sacrificing the nutrition and taste, of course. Breakfast at home typically consists of healthy pastries with a cup of warm soy or almond milk (the warmth may be an Asian thing… supposedly it aids digestion). So you’ve got your starchy energy and liquid protein. Mid-morning, after my bike ride to work and answering emails, I like to top it off with a nice ripe banana – can’t do without that potassium and fibre! The family recently went down to Cali for spring break, and we visited some old friends in their gigantic LA mansion. The pool, built-in slide, and basketball court were alright, but my favourite part was their citrus trees! They had oranges, grapefruit, and lemons growing right in their backyard. Organic, of course. And they were amazing.

We brought a couple fruits for the road, and I just so happened to find one of these giant lemons sitting in our fridge the other day – literally the size of my hand. Naturally, I thought – lemon muffins! This was a fun recipe to make. The best – or worst, depending on how clean you like your kitchen – is getting the batter into the tins! If you have an ice scream scoop, make use of it! Either way, get ready for some zesty splatter.

INGREDIENTS: For 12 large or 24 medium-size muffins  

Wet ingredients:

• 1 cup plain soymilk / almond milk
• juice + zest of 1 large lemon (or 2 small lemons)
• ¾ cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup applesauce
• 3 eggs

Dry ingredients:

• 2 1/3 cup all-purpose or whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• ¾ tsp salt

Mix-in’s:

• 2 cups blueberries
• 1 cup nuts for extra crunch (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Grate your lemon for zest, then squeeze out all the juice.
3. Beat the eggs, then combine all the wet ingredients in a bowl. Mix until smooth.
4. In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.
5. Mix your dry ingredients into the wet bowl. Mix until smooth.
6. Stir in the blueberries.
7. Line the muffin tins with compostable liners or vegetable oil. Spoon in your batter with an ice cream scoop or a large spoon.
8. Bake for 15 minutes. The top should be slightly browned and a toothpick should come out clean.
9. Cool, share, and enjoy!