Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins {made with Freshly Milled Whole Wheat Flour}

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Healthy Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins are a healthy muffin recipe that uses freshly milled whole wheat flour and tastes just like brownies. This is a snack to keep at the front of your recipe box…and in your cupboard!

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I cannot keep enough of these whole wheat chocolate muffins in my kitchen. While my children are typically leery of zucchini (mostly because it gets a little mushy when I sauté it in butter), they absolutely adore these chocolate zucchini muffins.

But who wouldn’t love chocolate upon chocolate?

Especially when it’s extra-moist and tastes just like a brownie…

A Little Backstory to This Recipe

Ever since a friend introduced me to Hidden Veggies Tomato Sauce, I have loved the idea of maxing the healthy ingredients in already-healthy recipes.

But I had not tried using zucchini much, even though it seems like the obvious veggie (at least now).

When we were on a visit with my parents, my mom’s garden was overflowing with zucchini. As usually happens during the summer, this meant that her dinner menu included things like zucchini parmesan.

But zucchini in main dishes only goes so far with little children. So wanting to give the grandkids a treat, my mom whipped out this recipe for chocolate zucchini muffins..and my kids wolfed them down.

When we returned home after our visit, I vowed I would make this delicious recipe healthier.

So I spent awhile poring over the ingredients and swapped this…took out that…and voila! a healthy chocolate zucchini muffins recipe that I could feel terrific about serving to my children.

(If I’m being totally frank, the main reason I am rushing to write this blog post is so that I can share it with myself….because heaven knows how many times I’ve developed a recipe that I love and then, the next time I’ve gone to make it, haven’t remembered where I wrote it down. haha)

Making Healthier Chocolate Muffins without Sugar

Ok, so my mom is a wonderful cook…and baker. She makes healthy choices when she builds her family meals.

However, some recipes just come with a bit more sugar than I am comfortable with.

One of the first ingredients that I wanted to experiment with in my mom’s chocolate zucchini muffins recipe was white sugar.

I tried reducing the sugar. Check: it worked.

For the next round of baking ingredient knock-out, I tried subbing honey for all the sugar. Check: that worked wonderfully.

Now, when I make this for my family, I use either only honey (for a healthier option) or reduced sugar (for a more budget-friendly option). Either way, I consider the recipe adjustments a total win–especially when I consider that I also have traded out the all-purpose flour.

Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Freshly Milled Whole Wheat Flour

When I was growing up, my mom made homemade whole wheat bread exclusively–to the point that I actually refused to eat white burger buns at McDonald’s as a child.

Now as an adult, I am getting back into freshly milled whole wheat flour. I have a favorite flour mill and a practical, budget-friendly Chinese medicine grinder that I use for small amounts of flour when I can’t use the WonderMill.

What’s the Difference Between Whole Wheat Flour and All-Purpose Flour?

Whole wheat flour is–essentially–the original form of flour, with bran, endosperm, and germ intact.

All-purpose flour, on the other hand is processed flour. “All-purpose flour is refined to use only one part of the wheat kernel, the endosperm. The bran and germ are removed during milling, leaving a pale, fine-textured powder with a longer shelf life and a mild taste” (source).

If so many parts of flour are lost in all-purpose flour, why do people use it? Because it behaves (and tastes) more pleasing in specific types of recipes….but all at the expense of nutrition.

Is Freshly Milled Whole Wheat Flour Better for You?

Whole wheat flour is an obvious better choice when you have your eye trained on nutrition. But is all whole wheat flour equal?

The grain seed of whole wheat is designed to remain intact for years and years. However, once it is milled (in other words, smashed) the air gets to the inside parts (such as the endosperm and germ) and messes with their longevity. According to one source, “wheat flour loses 40% of its vitamin content in the first 24 hours after milling and 85-90% after 2-3 more days.” That is quite dramatic!

What is the solution? For my family, milling our own flour provides us with the ingredient we need with all its nutritional benefits still intact.

I encourage other health-minded cooks and bakers to invest some time in researching the benefits of freshly-milled flour. If you don’t know where to start, then Bread Beckers is a great place to begin. They are a family-owned business that provides education on whole wheat flour, recipes, and our favorite at-home flour mill.

Why You’ll Like This Recipe:

There’s so much to love in these healthy chocolate mini muffins! Here are a few reasons why I think you will enjoy this recipe:

• It uses only whole wheat flour. No half-half sharing with refined flour. Just all the simple goodness of whole wheat nutrients.
• No refined sugar.
• The hidden zucchini is so well-disguised that it is not even detectable by picky eaters.
• They taste like brownies!
• Extra protein boost.
• Clean ingredients.

Equipment

• a flour mill (if you want to use freshly-milled whole wheat flour)
• two medium-sized mixing bowls
• measuring cups and spoons
• a spatula (for mixing)
• silicone mini muffins tins (these are our favorite brand and here is a cheaper option that we haven’t tried but looks similar)
• an oven
• wire rack (for cooling)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cup freshly-milled whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sea salt or Himalayan pink salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup honey (or 3/4 cup granulated sugar)
1/2 cup plain yogurt (I used homemade, which is similar in consistency to regular yogurt, not Greek yogurt)
1/4 cup coconut oil (or avocado oil)
2 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 – 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips (these are like gold where we live, so add more, if desired)

Step-by-Step Instructions (with photos)

STEP 1: Preheat the oven to 350F.

STEP 2: Use a paper towel (or your hands over a sink) to press the shredded zucchini and remove some of the water. Set aside.

STEP 3: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, sift together the whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, sea salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

STEP 4: In another medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together all the wet ingredients: honey, plain yogurt, coconut oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and shredded zucchini. Mix until all ingredients (including eggs and oil) are incorporated.

STEP 5: Stir the dry ingredients (flour mixture) into the wet ingredients just until combined.

STEP 6: Fold in the chocolate chips.

STEP 7: Using a 1/4 measuring cup, pour the muffin batter into silicone mini muffin tins. 

STEP 8: Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until baked through. (Do not over-bake, as the muffins will dry out.)

STEP 9: Remove from pans to a wire rack to cool.

Tips and Tricks

• Don’t over-mix. Like all muffin recipes, this one is best when the flour is incorporated but not vigorously mixed.
• Don’t over-bake. This is essential for maintaining the great moisture of these muffins.

Variations and Substitutions

• For more chocolate intensity, add more chocolate chips or sub them for bits of dark chocolate.
• If you want to make regular-sized muffins, simply prolong the baking time to about 20 minutes.
• Add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon for a Mexican-chocolate twist on these healthy chocolate zucchini muffins.

More Healthy Chocolate Snacks to Make

Don’t stop here! We have plenty more chocolate snacks to share. Check out these next:

• High-Protein Dark Chocolate Marshmallows
• Chocolate Covered Raspberry Bites (with Chia Seeds)
• Healthy No-Bake Cookies

Recipe Card for Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins made with Freshly-Milled Whole Wheat Flour

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