Moist and healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with chocolate chips (of course!), a few other sneak ingredients (yes, yes), and tender crumb are the mid-month treat we need right now. Their wholesome ingredient lineup speaks to all things healthy + January + I want to eat this all the time, so letโs behave. Their decadent, fudgy texture screams treat yo self + Iโve been good long enough + chocolate for breakfast makes life better, so letโs do it.
I originally shared this recipe to celebrate a big-time blog milestone (5 YEARS of blogging. Update: we are now approaching 7, eek!). Iโm resharing today because these Chocolate Zucchini Muffins are so very perfect for the January mid-point.
Weโre removed enough from the holidays for the reality that the next โfreeโ day off isnโt until end of May is settling in. The healthy eating mantras we set on January 1 are feeling decidedly less decided. Weโre busy and weโre hungry and does eating a healthy muffin for breakfast make any difference anyway?
Yes, it does. And yes it can be delicious! Case in point: Chocolate Zucchini Muffins. Theyโre whole wheat, naturally sweetened with honey, and when you start your day with one, youโll feel like youโre a part of a super special club.
The tasty chocolate for breakfast, I eat healthy and itโs happy, homemade muffins are the best muffins club!
Chocolate Zucchini MuffinsโA Healthy Muffin Recipe for a Happy Day
When I first shared this Chocolate Zucchini Muffins recipe on my 5-year โblog-iversary,โ I spent a long time deliberating what kind of recipe to share. I wanted it to feel representative of both my overall recipe point of view AND of the recipes I know that you, my wonderful readers, love most.
Answer:ย MUFFINS!
But not just any muffins. These muffins needed to be indisputably delicious while still using wholesome ingredients. I wanted them toย tasteย rich and satisfying but still be fit for a healthy breakfast. Also, chocolate. We need chocolate.
Although this is a mostly โhealthyโ food blog, to me healthy doesnโt mean sticking to a specific diet, giving up favorite foods (chocolate forever โฅ), or blowing your budget on fancy ingredients.
I firmly believe that healthy eating can (and should!) be just as satisfying as the alternative, if not more so. A healthy, balanced diet will help you lead a more energetic, balanced life, and it can be SO YUMMY too. I delight in creating more wholesome versions of everyday comfort foods, and muffins have been some of your absolute favorites.
Healthy Muffin RecipesโA Stroll through Your (and My!) Favorites
- Healthy Chocolate Muffins. Another chocolate for breakfast recipe!
- Blender Banana Oatmeal Muffins: One of the most popular recipes on Well Plated!
- Chocolate Banana Muffins: All the fudgy, chocolate goodness!
- Healthy Blueberry Muffins: My personal favorite (and many of your favorites too!).
- Healthy Banana Muffins with Walnuts: One of my more meaningful posts, because I published it when Ben graduated law school (staying busy in the years he studied is why I started a blog in the first place!).
- Healthy Zucchini Muffins with Chocolate Chips: My other favorite. I can have more than one favorite one, yes?
- Zucchini Carrot Muffins: Mega moist and healthy.
- Breakfast Egg Muffins: Breaking the muffin mold.
- Applesauce Muffins: Like eating a hug (in a good way).
- Raspberry Muffins: Moist, healthy, and kissed with lemon!
- How to Properly STORE Your Muffins: Because clearly, we are into all things muffin.
- PLUSย ALL OF THESE MUFFINS.
Recipe Adaptations
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, Gluten Free. Iโd suggest swapping a gluten free 1:1 baking flour like this one.
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, Calorie Count. Considering the healthy fats in these muffins, I find the calorie count reasonable, but if youโd like to reduce it, you can omit or reduce the amount of chocolate chips.
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, Vegan. For this adaptation, use a non-dairy milk. Youโll also need this recipe to be Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, no eggs, so Iโd suggest a flax egg (not yet tested, but I believe it would work!).
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, Keto. This is one Iโm afraid I canโt comment on, since I donโt follow a keto diet. I believe you will need to use an alternative sweetener, so Iโd suggest looking for a recipe that is already designed this way. (The avocado, however, should be keto friendly!)
- About That Avocado. The avocado makes the muffins ultra moist, and its taste is super duper subtle. I hardly noticed it, and a few of my friends make them routinely for their kids, and the kiddos donโt notice it either.
How to Store and Freeze These Muffins
- To Store.ย Store leftovers at room temperature according to my guide for How to Store Muffins for up to 5 days.
- To Freeze. Individually wrap muffins and place in an airtight freezer-safe storage container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
I truly wish that we could all squeeze into my kitchen so that I could serve you a Chocolate Zucchini Muffin, warm from my oven with the chocolate chips still melty on top, and do my best to tell you in person how I am abundantly, fiercely grateful that you are here.
When I began this website, I barely knew what a food blog was, let alone that it could be an actual job. If you had told me back then that if I stuck with blogging long enough and worked hard enoughย that other peopleโpeople who were not my mom, grandma, or Benโs auntโwould read it and even make my recipes, I would have stared at you like you had two heads.
If you had told me that Iโd eventually leave my very stable consulting job to pursue blogging as an actual career in which I would earn an actual income, I would have stared at you like you had three.
Although we are separated by a computer screen, that doesnโt change one ounce of how much I appreciate you. Thank you so much for being here, for putting up with my life stories and overuse of alliteration, and for bringing recipes like these Chocolate Zucchini Muffins to life in your kitchen.
You make this little corner of the internet (and therefore this recipe!) possible. Cheers to you, to Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, and to many more healthy muffin recipes to come!
Recommended Tools to Make Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- This brilliant muffin tin: Itโs durable, easy to clean, and comes with a lid so that you can easily transport the muffins too.
- Coarse grater: Easiest for grating a small amount of zucchini. (For larger amounts, I like to use the grater blade on my food processor.)
Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Avocado
Ingredients
- 1 cup very finely shredded zucchini about 1 small/medium zucchini
- 1 medium avocado peeled and pitted
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted and cooled to room temperature (or substitute light extra-virgin olive oil or canola oil)
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2/3 cup coconut sugar or substitute granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk any kind you like (I use unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips mini or regular
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 12-cup standard size muffin tin with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Spread the zucchini out on a few layers of kitchen or paper towels. Press out as much water as possible, changing out the towels as needed. Set aside.
- Place the avocado in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl. Beat with the mixer until the avocado is very smooth and no chunks remain. You should have about 2/3 cups of smooth avocado paste. Add the coconut oil, egg, coconut sugar, milk, and vanilla extract, beating until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the white whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, folding by hand with a wooden spoon or spatula and stirring just until the flour disappears. The batter will be very thick, almost like brownie batter, and the dry ingredients will take several strokes to work in between additions.ย Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips, reserving a few of the chocolate chips to sprinkle on top of the muffins.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling no more thanย three-quarters of the way to the top. Sprinkle with the remaining chocolate chips. Bake for 15ย to 18 minutes, until the tops are set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Let cool in the pan for 2 minutes, them transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Store leftovers at room temperature according to my guide for How to Store Muffins for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- If you would like to reduce the calorie count of the muffins, omit or reduce the number of chocolate chips.
Nutrition
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I can not say enough about these muffins. Actually mine ended up being bread because I oddly do not own muffin tins. I ย was skeptical when trying this recipe because I thought โhow could this possibly be good?โ But hey, chocolate. To my delight, this recipe was super duper easy to make and I could not have just one after I tried my first.ย
Lauren, thanks for taking the time to report back! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi Erin any advice on what to substitute for avocado? Itโs pretty expensive around here. Iโve thought of applesauce ย and pumpkin. how much do you think would be required?
Lyf, I am afraid the avocado is necessary, because it also adds fat to the recipe you’d miss with applesauce or pumpkin. If you don’t want to purchase it, I have lots of other healthy muffin recipes here: https://www.wellplated.com/category/recipes-by-type/muffins/.
Hi Erin after your reply I made it with avocado and I absolutely love these. I try to minimize sugar so I halved the sugar content and they turned out delicious ย and much more suitable for breakfast. The fudgy rich texture makes you think you are eating a brownie. Thank you for yet another faboulous baking recipe and I hope you continue is to sneak more avocado in them!
Lyf, I am so pleased to hear how much you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for taking time to leave this lovely review!
First, I want to start by saying I can’t ever remember posting on a food blog – – but these muffins! Wow. So delicious and – – dare I say it: DECADENT! I swapped the granulated sugar for 1/3 c honey and did 1/2 c oat flour and 3/4c all purpose. The results are on point: a muffin that satisfies my chocolate cravings AND I don’t need to feel guilty about! Thanks!
I’m so glad they were a hit, Jenn! Thanks for taking the time to share this review!
I thought coconut sugar was brown sugar yet your recipe says to use white sugar in its place. ย ย
Please clarify. ย Thanks so mich
Hi Anne, coconut sugar is actually different than white or brown sugar, but either one will work here!
These are some beautiful looking pancakes!!! i love your chocolate recipe……………..
Thank you for sharing this kind comment! I hope you love the recipe!
In the Chocolate Zucchini Muffins with Avocado recipe can you use almond flour instead of the wheat flour? Thanks & Merry Christmas!
Hi Karen! Almond flour acts much differently than wheat flour, so I can’t recommend it. However, another reader has reported success with this swap, so you could experiment with it. If youโd like an almond flour recipe, you can view lots of options here: https://www.wellplated.com/tag/almond-flour/. I hope this helps!
This recipe sounds amazing, and I am eager to try it. Could it be made into a bread instead of muffins? Thanks!
Hi Rosa! I have not tried to make these muffins as a bread, but I think it would work. If you decide to experiment, I’d love to hear how it goes!
these ย muffins were so good! i reccomended these to different people and they loved them! deffinetly they need a little more milk so i added 1/2 a cup instead. these were such a treat and so yummy! thanks well plated! :)
Thank you for sharing this kind review, Halle! I’m so happy you enjoyed them!
These are amazing! So rich, they feel like youโre really indulging even though theyโre pretty healthy! Iโve made them twice in the last 4 days. My kids couldnโt tell the avocado and zucchini were in there. My super picky son, who can usually spot a hidden veggie from all the way across the kitchen, thought I was joking when I told him there was zucchini in the muffins! The second time I made them, I used half chocolate chips and half white chocolate chips and added some raspberries. To die for!ย
I’m so pleased that they were a hit, Elizabeth! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
This is my favorite muffin recipe. They taste like really good chocolate cake. My kids and I love them.
I’m SO happy they’ve been a hit, Alyssa! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
These muffins are incredible!!! I plan to double the recipe next time. I will NEVER buy chocolate muffins again.
I’m so happy that you enjoyed them, Sheila! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
These are my go-to muffins now! I’m not a zucchini fan, but these taste like rich brownies to us. I’ve shared the recipe with all of my family as well! Perfect combination of ingredients to make a healthy snack taste like a decadent treat.
I’m so happy that you’ve enjoyed them, Jennifer! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
Delicious! I was nervous at first that my kids would see the zucchini and not eat them, but they love them! I donโt try to hide the avocado and zucchini from them & they love these muffins. I feel good about feeding these to my kids for a snack or for breakfast. yum. Thank you!
I’m so happy that they were a hit, Emily! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
Have wanted to try zucchini chocolate muffins for a while glad I found this recipe. One daughter said I want to eat these every day, another said they were delicious and had 3!
I used 1/3 cup honey and 1/3 cup date syrup instead of coconut sugar and turned out well.
I’m so happy that you enjoyed them, Shannon! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
Holy moly these are delicious. Made earlier today and will make again. Thank you
I’m so happy that you enjoyed them, Doree! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
Hello, I have all purpose flour at home. How would I adjust?
Hi Kim! You can use all-purpose flour in this recipe instead. I hope you enjoy the muffins!
Holy cow, these exceeded my expectations. If I hadnโt just made these myself I wouldnโt have believed the ingredients. I made 2 batches to freeze and Iโm so glad I did. Even my super picky toddler who hates veggies with a passion gobbled them down! Thank you so much!
Yay! So glad to hear this Amanda! Thank you for this kind review!
I found it to be a very unforgiving recipe that has many steps and leads to many dirty dishes (processor, mixer, dry and wet dishes, measuring cups, surface, and towel used to dry the zuquini). Not suitable for a busy working mom.
Made 2x. The first turned out dry, so on the next, I used 4oz of milk and 2 eggs. Less dry but not moist and tasted blend. I used less sugar than called for and olive oil instead of coconut oil, which is something I always sub as I do not cook with anything but extra virgin Olive oil (it is just the healthiest and less processed oil).
I don’t think the low veggie per portion makes up for the sugar in this recipe and do not recommend it.
Iโm so sorry you had trouble with this recipe, Kate. Itโs hard to say what went wrong without being in the kitchen with you.
I know itโs frustrating to try a new recipe and not have it turn out. I (and many other readers) have enjoyed them, so I really wish they wouldโve been a hit for you too!