These flourless chocolate zucchini muffins are gluten-free, grain-free, oil-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free, but so soft and chocoately that you’d never be able to tell they’re healthy! Whipped up in the blender in under 5 minutes flat, they make a delicious breakfast or snack!
This probably isn’t the best time to admit that I’m not a fan of zucchini.
And when I say “not a fan,” what I really mean is that I hate it with a vengeance. As in… it’s on my hit list, and you will be too if you try to feed it to me. So please don’t.
I have a feeling that my disdain for the squishy summer squash has something to do with the handful of really bad experiences I had with things like zucchini noodles and soggy baked zucchini “fries” that I experimented with back in the day before I had any sort of idea as to what I was doing in the kitchen. Those recipes should come with warning labels. Seriously.
Needless to say, zucchini and I didn’t start off on the right foot and I’ve been giving it the stank eye ever since.
That’s why I’ve never been able to understand why people would put it in things like loaves and muffins. Never. Like… why on earth would you ruin a perfectly good dessert by lacing it with a squishy squash?
Well, friends, I think I’ve figured out why…
Say hello to the newest batch of flourless muffins to grace my kitchen counters — flourless chocolate zucchini muffins. Yes, zucchini.
I can’t really tell you what prompted me to throw a zucchini into these guys, other than the fact that: a) I believe in second chances, b) we’re going into summer and zucchini is in season, and c) I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
Well… I get it. I do. And I’m, quite literally, eating my own words…
These may just be some of the softest muffins I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating.
And the best part is that they’re loaded with chocolate flavour without even a hint of zucchini. Trust me. I was looking for it. I wanted to be all “HAHAHAHA! I knew it! It tastes like squishy squash!” But nope. Not a trace. Heck, I couldn’t even see it in there, which means you could easily sneak some extra veggies into someone’s diet by feeding them some of these delicious muffins…
That being said, I don’t recommend being sneaky. I mean, you’re looking at a girl who still has trust issues stemming from the fact that the cookies her mom told her were chocolate chip actually turned out to be raisin. Mmm hmm. Like I wasn’t supposed to notice that one… I know it’s hard to get kids to eat healthier and all, but you don’t lie about chocolate. You just don’t.
Then again, I’m probably not one to talk, seeing as I may have omitted the ‘zucchini’ part when I told my taste-testers what I was giving them, but that’s only because I wanted to see if it really was as undetectable as I thought. And it was.
These muffins are super soft and super chocolatey. They’re a little denser and fudgier than your average muffin because of the fact that they don’t have any flour to fluff them up, but that just puts them somewhere between a muffin and a brownie, which is never a bad thing in my books.
They’re gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, oil-free, refined sugar-free, and 100% crazy delicious. And the best part is that you only need about 5 minutes and a blender/food processor to whip them up, followed by 20 minutes of delicious smells wafting out of your kitchen.
So whether you’re looking to get some more veggies into your diet, or you’re just in desperate need of a soft and chocolatey muffin, then I definitely recommend giving these flourless chocolate zucchini muffins a try!
I’d love to know if you make this recipe! Leave a comment and rating down below to let me know what you think, and subscribe to our mailing list to receive new recipes in your inbox!
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Flourless Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Total Time: 25 mins
- Yield: 9 muffins 1x
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (128 g) almond butter*
- 1 ripe medium-sized banana (100 g or 1/2 cup mashed)
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup (80 g) honey
- 1/4 cup (20 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 Tbsp (14 g) ground flaxseed
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup (100 g) zucchini, shredded and squeezed of excess liquid
- 1/4 cup (60 g) chocolate chips, plus more for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F and prepare a muffin pan by spraying 9 cavities with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Add all ingredients except for zucchini and chocolate chips to a blender and blend on high until batter is smooth and creamy. Stir in shredded zucchini and chocolate chips by hand.
- Pour batter into prepared muffin pan, filling each cavity until it is about ¾ full. Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips, if desired.
- Bake for 20 minutes, until the tops of your muffins are set and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Allow muffins to cool in pan for ~10 minutes before removing. Store in an air-tight container for up to a week.
Notes
* You can sub almond for your favourite nut butter, OR use a sunflower seed or soy nut butter to make these nut-free.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
Looking for more flourless muffin recipes? Try one of these!
Flourless Banana Bread Muffins
Flourless Double Chocolate Chip Muffins
Flourless Apple Cinnamon Muffins
Flourless Vegan Banana Muffins
Banana Oat Greek Yogurt Muffins
These are very good and smell fabulous as they bake. I left out honey and subbed chia seeds for flax seeds and it was perfect for my taste. Slightly sweet from the banana but not much of a banana taste. For my children I will do them again with a little honey. Thanks!!
Baking them now and they smell HEAVENLY.
My friend had just come by a few days ago and brought me some of her homegrown giant massive zucchini from her farm, which of course meant chocolate zucchini bread or cake! Unfortunately our recipe included ingredients such as sour cream, white flour, and more so we couldn’t try that (and honestly I wasn’t patient enough to experiment with the recipe- the cravings hit hard!). Anyway, so I searched for recipes and found this one and tried it out that night. Oh. My. Gosh. These are perfection! You can’t taste the banana AT ALL! (Neither the zucchini!) I subbed chia seeds for flaxseeds, and a 70% dark chocolate bar, broken up into morsels versus chocolate chips. Seriously guys, so worth trying! I can highly recommend this recipe and know I’ll be having it again soon!!!!
(And I ate 3 within the first 15 minutes after coming out of the oven. So worth it!)
I’m so glad you like them, Maxi!! Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know 🙂
Do you have to use flax seeds? Or any seeds for that matter? Is it just for texture or is it something I need? Live in the country and have everything but lol
It helps with the texture and with holding everything together. You can try it without, but I’d recommend adding 2-3 more tablespoons of oats.
Did you grind the chia seeds or use them whole? I’m looking for an alternative to the flax seeds…
Just made them…yum! I used peanut butter, but I’m thinking an almond butter would be better as per your recipe. I added some walnuts for an extra punch of protein. Great recipe…thanks!!!
How long do you think these would take to cook in a mini muffin tin?
The Flourless Chocolate Zucchini muffins are really good!
Help – baking soda – is that baking powder or bi-card soda?
It’s bi-carb soda, Lisa!
Great recipe! Made a batch today and the only thing I have to say is that the flaxseed flour I used has a -very- strong taste of its own, so next time I will give almond flour a try as my kids didn’t really like it. Also good to know I can sub peanut butter for the almond butter 🙂
These were awesome 🙂 Especially the texture, you wouldn’t know these are completely flourless !!
That’s the craziest part! I’m glad you liked them, Jessica 😀
What chocolate chips do you use that’s refined sugar free?
My local health food store actually has a no-name brand that’s sweetened with stevia. Have you checked Amazon?
This is the second recipe of yours that I have made; the other being the no-bake banana granola bars. I was good about squeezing out the water from the zucchini (I actually used yellow squash)–a pinch of salt helps them drain!–so I had no problems with the baking. I baked them for exactly 19 minutes and they seemed soft but the toothpick was clean when I poked them so I pulled them out of the oven. That 10-15 minutes of setting time is essential for them to firm up to proper muffin texture. I love how soft they are! Also, I used peanut butter and omitted the chocolate chips because I was trying to make them uber healthy (and while they do taste good, I would not pass up on the chips next time)!. The zucchini isn’t even noticeable, the nut butter provides a hint of flavor, but the banana is what stands out to me. The yogurt sub sounds neat so maybe I’ll try that next time (plus it would add more protein!). I love the oil/butter free aspect of these muffins and would love to see more recipes utilizing zucchini 🙂
I MUST KNOW – which do you like better, these flourless choc-zucch muffins or the healthy doub-choc-chip-zucch muffins?? I’m considering making both JUST because I must know. Helppp meeeee!
Ooooh that’s a toughie! Probably these just because I can make them in the blender 🙂
Do you know if this works to use maple syrup in place of honey?
Really wanting to try these! Have you found a chocolate chip that doesn’t have refined sugar?
It can be a little tricky. I have one that’s sweetened with stevia, but it’s a no-name brand from a local health food store. You could always sub in some dark chocolate chunks from a dark chocolate bar.
Is there a calorie breakdown for these anywhere? I made them last week and THEY WERE AMAZING.
I’m so glad you liked them, Sonya! I don’t calculate the nutritional facts for my recipes, but you can use an online calculator like this one to figure them out — http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
I cannot tell you what a fabulous recipe this is. Since I first tried making this over a month ago, I have been making it, on average, twice a week because we inhale them and have not tired of them. My two young boys love them, and I am now doing double recipes, twice a week, so I can get bigger muffins out of them. I fill up a muffin pan, then pour the remaining batter into a small loaf pan so we get a “cake” out of it, too. So so good, and it’s incredible that the texture makes it seems as if there is flour in the recipe! One note — I tried the recipe the first time with only 2 tbs of honey. It tasted great. I went to 1 tbs and it was still a hit. I have now tried it with no honey and it is still awesome and even healthier. Thank you for this great recipe…I have shared it with friends who are just as excited about it!
I’m so glad you and your boys like them! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave such a wonderful comment! And that’s great to know about the honey as well 🙂
I was really looking forward to eating these! The centres were not baked through and I left in for 10 minutes longer (30 minutes total). I cooled and cut open and these were not baked through. The recipe was followed exactly, except that I spread the batter into 12 cups. Any suggestions?
Hi Lizzie, did you squeeze the zucchini of all the excess liquid? I find that putting grated zucchini between a few paper towels and squeezing really helps get the water out, and that prevents it from being released during baking and making the muffins moister than they should be.
Mine just bubbled up in the oven and ran over and out of the patty papers. The mix was very runny, not sure what happened. My banana was very large maybe too big. 😭
Hi Jennifer. It definitely could have been an issue of your banana being too large. Did you squeeze out as much liquid from the shredded zucchini as you could? That also could have made it a lot more runny.
Wow! These were scrumptious! I made mine in the mini muffin tin. The batter filled all 24 spots. I figured I could convince my kid to eat a little one, and I could get a “chocotatey-cakey” fix without overdoing the calories and carbs. Hahaha! Now I eat two. Lol.
Here’s the calorie count for 24 mini muffins: cals 78, fibre 2.4, carbs 8, protein 2, fat 5
Thanks so much for the recipe
Oops. That’s per mini muffin
Oo I was just looking to see if anyone made them as mini’s. How long did you cook them for?
These look delicious And I’m getting ready to make them. Do your u know the nutritional value; example colories, carbs, fiber, etc…
Thanks
Sorry, Mary! I don’t calculate the nutritional info on my recipes and just try to focus on using healthy ingredients instead. But you can use a calculator like this one to figure out the specifics — http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
So mine were tasty but way undercooked. I noticed on the comment above you referenced adding more oats. Does this recipe call for oats? If I added oats, how much? Thanks!
The original recipe doesn’t call for oats, but if you’re having issues with them being undercooked, you could probably add 1/3 cup before blending. Also make sure that your zucchini is properly drained and squeezed of all excess liquid — that could really affect how the muffins cook.
these look fantastic, just wondering if the ground flaxseed is essential? Or if there is an alternative I can use? Thanks 🙂
The flaxseed helps the muffins “fluff up” a little more, but you could probably leave them out and add either an extra egg or 1/4 cup more oats.