As featured in FitnessMagazine.com

Sure, now we’re girls who love our veggies.  But it hasn’t always been that way.  As kids, we were pretty darn picky—well, aside from sweets, which we’d be all over!  (Now, as registered dietitians, we still love our sweets, but we know how to keep our sweet tooth in check, although it does take hard work!).  So when our Mom used to make her Zucchini Bread, it was one of the only times that we would scarf down our veggies.  And although Mom’s Zucchini Bread was actually more like a dessert than bread, it still helped us to get our veggies (and it absolutely rocked!).  And even though it did contain zucchini, it wasn’t the lightened up version that most of you, and our clients request.  So in honor of that awesome Zucchini Bread that our Mom used to make, we created this guilt-free version!  Each muffin is just 155 calories, yet has 5 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber.

Pssst… looking for more lightened up recipes?  Please feel free to search this blog!  And here are a frew to try…

Chocolate Drizzled Granola Balls

Skinny Oreo Balls

 5 Minute Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Who doesn’t love a muffin? The only bad thing about muffins? Most are packed with calories—and fat!  Not these! With the replacement of just a few ingredients, these Chocolate Chip Banana and Zucchini Muffins will quench your cravings without guilt.

Here are the ways this recipe has been lightened up from traditional muffins:

• Instead of oil, unsweetened applesauce keeps the muffins moist.  The applesauce adds a hint of natural sweetness and slashes a lot of the calories. We use organic applesauce whenever we can since apples tend to contain a large amount of pesticide residues.

• Zucchini is rich in vitamin C (to keep your immune system strong, as well as aid in collagen formation to keep your skin healthy), packed with fiber, and loaded with phytonutrients that help to keep your body healthy.  It’s low in calories, so it is great for cutting the calories here.  Adding veggies whenever possible is a great way to assist in body fat loss since you replace the heavier, more caloric items with a lower-calorie, satisfying food.

Chocolate Chip Banana & Zucchini Muffins

Enjoy this yumster for a guilt-free dessert or have it as part of a healthy breakfast with some protein like 6 ounces nonfat Greek yogurt or with some eggs.

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup shredded zucchini

1 ½ cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

2 medium ripe bananas

2 tbsp honey

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place cupcake liners in 12-muffin tin and lightly spray the inside of each liner with cooking oil.
3. Shred the zucchini in a food processor. Using a paper towel, squeeze the shredded zucchini to remove excess water.
4. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl and set aside.
5. Mix together mashed banana, honey, vanilla, and eggs. Then, add in zucchini, applesauce, and yogurt.
6. Add the dry ingredients into the mixture slowly. Be sure to avoid over mixing… this will help produce moist muffins!
7. Fold in the chocolate chips.
8. Spoon out evenly into muffins cups.
9. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the middle of the muffins are cooked through. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 155

Carbs: 26 grams

Fat: 3 grams

Protein: 5 grams

Cholesterol: 31 grams

Sodium: 218 milligrams

Sugars: 12 grams

Fiber: 3 grams

Chocolate Chip Banana & Zucchini Muffins

 

Print

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

45 mins

 

Author: NutritionTwins.com

Serves: 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• 1 ½ cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 medium ripe bananas
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs (We use Eggland’s Best eggs because they have 25% less saturated fat than other eggs.)
• ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
• ½ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
• ½ cup chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place cupcake liners in 12-muffin tin and lightly spray the inside of each liner with cooking oil.
3. Shred the zucchini in a food processor. Using a paper towel, squeeze the shredded zucchini to remove excess water.
4. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl and set aside.
5. Mix together mashed banana, honey, vanilla, and eggs. Then, add in zucchini, applesauce, and yogurt.
6. Add the dry ingredients into the mixture slowly. Be sure to avoid over mixing… this will help produce moist muffins!
7. Fold in the chocolate chips.
8. Spoon out evenly into muffins cups.
9. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the middle of the muffins are cooked through. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 muffin Calories: 155 Fat: 3 g Carbohydrates: 26 g Sugar: 12 g Sodium: 218 mg Fiber: 3 g Protein: 5 g Cholesterol: 31 g

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