Recipe Review: Zucchini Muffins

Source: Cooking Light June, 2009

I do not have a zucchini bread recipe in my arsenal so I decided to review a few different recipes. This first recipe came from an old issue of Cooking Light. What drew me in was the cheapness. When I determine how cheap a recipe is on the Cheap not Frugal Eats scale, I look at a few specific ingredients. I know I have discussed this before but I will lay out my thoughts more clearly this time:

Common Ingredients Found in Baked Goods that Do Not Pass the Cheap Not Frugal Eats Test:

• butter
• milk
• eggs
• oil
• honey
• dried fruit
• nuts

Common Ingredients Found in Baked Goods that Do Pass the Cheap Not Frugal Eats Test:

• flour
• spices (due to the amount of spice needed to get a lot of flavor is so small I put spices on this list)
• fresh vegetables and fruit (on sale!)
• and Ingredients that Do Not Pass the Cheap not Frugal Eats Test in moderation 

Do not get me wrong, I will more than happily consume anything with any of these ingredients. In my own cooking and baking, I try to limit the amount of ingredients I use that do not pass my cheap-ness test.

Back to the recipe. If you have not yet noticed, I am really dense and do not notice similarities until after I have made the recipe. I realized after making the dish that I have used this recipe before, just under a different name. This happened with these zucchini muffins and with my Honey-Sesame Dressing. I have baked Garam Masala Carrot Muffins using an almost identical recipe, which I thought was clever and had adapted all on my own. I admit, I will be trying the ratio of leavening in the zucchini muffin recipe next time I make my carrot muffins.

Well, if you are looking for an easy, plain (in a good way) zucchini bread or muffin, I would suggest this recipe. I had plenty of freshly grated nutmeg. After many batches of granola and this recipe, I am finding the key to yumminess in this household is nutmeg. The recipe had you sprinkle a little cinnamon-sugar with nutmeg in my case, over the top of the muffins. I would not have thought of this small touch, which turned out very nice. Enjoy!

Zucchini Muffins

1 cup whole-wheat flour
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups shredded zucchini (about 2 small zucchini or 1 large Italian zucchini)
1/2 cup fat-free milk
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 large egg
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray muffin tins with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Combine the first seven ingredients (the dry ingredients) in a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients, or zucchini, milk, oil, honey and egg. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and combine until just mixed. Spoon batter into muffin tins.
3. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar and remaining cinnamon; sprinkle over the tops of muffins. 
4. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Remove from pan and cool on rack.

Tips:

• Add nutmeg!
• I left out the honey but I am sure it is a nice addition.
• I substituted water for the milk. I was worried because I know the milk helps make for a more tender muffin. The substitution was no problem. If you do not drink milk, you could use fruit juice, water, or a milk substitute.