Spiced Zucchini Muffins with Walnuts

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon mace
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger
pinch salt
1 egg
1/2 cup canola oil
2 cups shredded zucchini (one medium zucchini)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Line or grease and flour 12 wells in a muffin tin.

In a large bowl, mix (using a mixer or a big spoon) all ingredients together until a thick batter forms. Divide evenly among the wells in the muffin tin. Bake 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the center muffin comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Cool on a wire rack.

My thoughts:

I realized that I have been posting here for 16 years and I’ve never posted a straight-up zucchini muffin recipe before. I’ve posted a chocolate version back in 2007 and in 2004 I posted both my then-boyfriend (now husband)’s zucchini bread recipe (so long ago that Blogger really didn’t have much in the way of photo capabilities, I’m seeing) and what looks like the recipe we always made growing up as either bread or muffins but no recipe that straight up made a nice even dozen zucchini muffins*.

My husband loves zucchini muffins and since we are all stuck at home thanks to the coronavirus, I thought it would be a good time to make a batch. I had some zucchini left from my last trip for groceries on 4/1/20 and it looked great but who knows how long that would be true.

He likes nuts in his zucchini bread and nuts in quickbreads. I do not at all, as they remind me of coming across a baby tooth that fell out while you were eating but he is going to be the one eating the majority of these anyway so I added them. He likes to eat breakfast and I’d rather skip it and have an early lunch. Plus we had some walnuts in the freezer leftover from something or another that might as well be used.

We have a robust spice cabinet and he loves spice bread so I really went wild and even pulled out the mace but I think they’d be fine with just cinnamon and whatever else you have on hand. You can leave the nuts out if you’d prefer and I think the recipe would be fine as-is.

These are a pretty classic zucchini muffin but they do use a touch more zucchini than a lot of recipes, and the recipe make exactly 1 dozen. No more, no less, which is my ideal in a muffin recipe.

They freeze well. I find they defrost best in the fridge overnight.

*I’ve also made savory zucchini cornbread cheddar muffins (2012),  carrot-zucchini bread (2006) and mini crookneck squash loaves (back in 2012 when we were still attempting to vegetable garden) over the years. 

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