Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins! The perfect healthy breakfast recipe that delivers a serving of fruits AND veggies! Paleo, gluten-free & dairy-free!
This post was originally published on February 3, 2016. It has been updated with new photos and a video but the recipe remains unchanged.
Good morning. Welcome to my favorite time of the day. Yes, it’s true. I am unquestionably a morning person.
What’s not to love? Breakfast? Yum! Exercising? Endorphins. Coffee? Yes please. I think the main reason I love mornings is because it’s the two hours in the day when my house is quiet. I wake up at 5 AM in order to experience this peaceful bliss, but I’ve always had a thing for the early morning hours.
You see, I’m an introvert trapped in an extrovert’s body. Being surrounded by people drains me, while alone time renews and refreshes me. The minute my sweet kiddos come bounding down the stairs I need to be ready to be an extrovert, answering 1.5 million questions, soaking in every snuggle and playing endless rounds of candy land. It’s awesomely exhausting.
What that means is that having healthy breakfasts on hand and ready to go, like these Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins is absolutely critical for me. The less time I spend making breakfast, the more peace and quiet and I can enjoy…feel me?
I have tried my fair share of healthy muffin recipes, and these Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins reign supreme. They have everything I’m looking for to help my kids start the day right! Fruit, veggies, protein and fiber! Plus they actually taste good.
These don’t need a dollop of this or half a jar of peanut butter on top to make them palatable. These Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins stand alone beautifully and my kids devour them. I keep them on hand in the freezer at all times. One minute in the microwave and I have a healthy delicious breakfast to start our crazy day off deliciously. Win. Win. Win.
How to make Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins
Here are a few tips on how to make these Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins!
1. Use a Vitamix.
- It shouldn’t be a surprise to you that I recommend using a Vitamix to make these Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins! No other blender is powerful enough to make the zucchini completely undetectable…which, if you have a picky eater, is very important!
2. Let the batter rest.
- Once you have blended the batter, let it rest before adding the chocolate chips for 3-5 minutes. This allows the coconut oil to soak in some of the moisture and thickens the batter substantially!
Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins: Substitutions
These muffins are perfect as-is. However, if you must, here are a few potential substitutions.
- Coconut sugar. Any granulated sugar can be used in this recipe. Just be sure that you choose a variety that complies with your dietary needs.
- Coconut oil. Grass-fed butter or ghee can be used in place of coconut oil.
- Chocolate chips. These are optional but recommended! Really you can use any mix-in that you’d like, the possibilities are endless! You can also use cinnamon chips in these Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins (although they are not paleo they are delicious)!
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Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins
Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins! The perfect healthy breakfast recipe that delivers a serving of fruits AND veggies! Paleo, gluten-free & dairy-free!
Ingredients
- ½ cup coconut flour
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 4 eggs
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 TBS coconut oil
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 banana mashed
- 1 cup unpeeled finely shredded zucchini (about 1 medium zucchini)
- ¼ cup chocolate chips or cinnamon chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a standard muffin pan, set aside.
- Combine the coconut flour, almond flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl, set aside.
- Put banana, coconut sugar, and coconut oil into your food processor fitted with the “S” blade or blender (Vitamix) and process until smooth.
- Add the eggs, vanilla, and apple cider vinegar and process/blend until just combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and pulse to combine.
- Add the zucchini and process/blend until evenly mixed into the batter.
- Mix in chocolate chips (or cinnamon chips) by hand.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pan.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of each muffin comes out clean. (To make into bread bake in 9x5” loaf pan for 35-40 minutes!)
- These muffins freeze VERY well. I make a batch, freeze them and pop them out for an easy, healthy breakfast for my kids! I just reheat for 1 minute in the microwave (from frozen) and let them cool a bit! My kids LOVE these.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
This recipe is slightly adapted from the blog Meaningful Eats! Please click here for the original recipe!
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase a product through a link you clicked on here, I receive a portion of the sale. Thank you for supporting JoyFoodSunshine!
Jennifer
Yum yum! These came out perfectly!
Adreanne
I loved these! Made them multiple times. I omitted the chocolate chips (didn’t have any on hand), but I’m sure they make these muffins that much more amazing. It’s awesome to find baked good with hidden greens…veggies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
Laura
I’m all about the sneaky veggies! 😉 I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Danielle
Two substitution questions for you please! 🙂
1) Can I sub the chia seed egg recipe (like in the blender spinach banana muffins) for regular eggs?
2) Thoughts on substituting maple syrup for the sugar in this recipe?
We love your blender spinach banana muffins and I’m excited to try these as well….my 5 year old just started kindergarten and I’m looking to expand my “easy healthy quick” breakfast recipes!
Laura
Hey Danielle! Here are some answers for you! 🙂
1) I am unsure about substituting the eggs in this recipe. I have never tried it, as Paleo baking is a little bit more finicky than baking with oat flour (like in those spinach muffins). I’m concerned the texture would be perfect, but if you try it PLEASE let me know how it goes!
2) I think if you substituted both the eggs and the sugar for maple syrup the recipe wouldn’t turn out because that is adding a lot of liquid (maple syrup) and removing a leavening agent (eggs). I would recommend only tinkering with one ingredient at a time. I would also recommend not substituting the coconut sugar with a liquid sweetener because I think the muffins may turn out mushy or too moist!
Danielle
Thanks for getting back to me, Laura! Your answers totally make sense. If I try either of those tweaks I will let you know how they come out 🙂
P.S. All of your recipes look so amazing and delicious! Wish I was part of your family and could have someone make me some of the dishes!
Valerie
Just made this recipe and it turned out great and was little person approved. 🙂 I didn’t have enough zucchini on hand, so I made them with a carrot/zucchini mix. It was nice to find a recipe where you don’t have to drain the juice from the zucchini. Thank you!
Laura
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Aria Caden
Thanks for sharing these tips, i Will definitely try making your recipe again soon. Awesome! Thanks.
Liz
I absolutely ADORE the banana zucchini bread combo, so I know I will love these muffins! I am so with you – I am SUCH a morning person. Even on the weekends, I’m up around 6 just because I love the calm, quiet time before the busyness of the day sets in. I will definitely be giving these a try soon!
Tirza
My New Fav muffin!!! Made these earlier and I cannot get over how delicious they came out!!
My ONLY adjustment: Instead of coconut sugar I used Swerve.
Thanks a lot for the recipe…
Laura
YAY! I’m so glad you enjoyed these! I literally always have some in the freezer! 🙂
Aly
Followed the recipe exactly. However, muffins came out very mushy as if there was too much liquid. My coconut flour works wonderfully in other recipes, absorbs the liquid to create a nice consistency. Very disappointed 🙁 Did you wring your zucchini out with a cheesecloth?
Laura
Hey Aly! I’m so sorry! It is so disappointing when you make a recipe and it doesn’t turn out the way it is supposed to! I make these at least once a week and we love them! I do not wring out my zucchini in a cheesecloth. How long did you bake them for? Ovens can vary significantly, so if they were still mushy maybe they just needed to bake longer? I wish I was in your kitchen to see what went wrong!
Amy
Made this morning for breakfast and they’re Delish!
Laura
Yay Amy! I’m so glad you like them! How did Bradley like them? (Or did you save them all for momma)? 🙂
Miz Helen
Your Zucchini Banana Muffins look delicious. Thank you so much for sharing with us for our 5th Anniversary of Full Plate Thursday! Hope you have a fantastic week and hope to see you again real soon!
Miz Helen
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I am totally with you on being a morning person for the EXACT same reason! The quiet peace of the morning is my therapy and I love being able to start my morning off with some blog reading, tons of coffee, and just being able to BE (if that makes sense!). I live with 10 other 21 year olds, so the break is much needed!
These look amazing and I love that they don’t need anything extra on them to make them yummy!
Laura
Christine! Wow! College life is definitely a challenge when you like peace and quiet! 🙂 I see on your about page that you’re a bio major…I majored in chemistry! Between classes and labs and having a life you *definitely* need to find time to just breathe and “be.” Thank you for the sweet comment! I love your blog it’s beautiful!
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These sound so good…thanks for sharing with the Thursday Blog Hop!
Laura
Thank you so much for stopping by Pam! 🙂 <3