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Banana Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

By Laura Cipullo Whole Nutrition Services Team

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Banana bread is a favorite to bake, eat and share with friends; zucchini is also a favorite that has been abundant in farmer’s markets this summer. So, with some extra zucchini and slightly browning bananas on hand, I decided to combine these two for one hopefully yummy experiment, and it worked! This is an easy (and tasty) way to incorporate fruits and veggies into your little one’s or your own day. Mashing a ripe banana, measuring dry ingredients and mixing are all tasks perfect for getting kids involved in the kitchen!

 

Ingredients:

 Yields ~15 muffins

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup sugar

¼ cup milk

¼ cup olive oil

1 cup shredded (or made into noodles and then chopped*) zucchini

½ cup dark chocolate chips

¾ medium ripe banana, mashed

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 egg

½ tsp salt

 

Directions:

 

  1. Preheat oven to 350F, and grease or line muffin tin.
  2. In medium bowl, combine dry ingredients of flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
  3. In a separate large bowl, mix beaten egg, oil, milk, mashed banana, lemon juice and vanilla extract. Stir wet ingredients into dry until incorporated and moistened.
  4. Prepare zucchini using a shredder or by spiralizing into thin noodles and then chopping into ¼ inch pieces, for similar effect. Measure your 1 cup of zucchini now. Wrap measured zucchini into paper towel and squeeze out excess water–there will be a lot of it.
  5. Fold zucchini and chocolate chips into rest of mixture. Pour to fill muffin tins 2/3 of the way.
  6. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean, about 25 minutes.

Enjoy!

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Spring Asparagus

With the clocks springing forward this Sunday, we couldn’t help but post a recipe for a Spring-y dish. We can’t wait for the weather to warm up and the spring flowers to bloom, not to mention, eating delicious seasonal fruits and veggies! One of our favorite spring vegetables is asparagus and we especially love this asparagus salad recipe.

Photo Credit: hoveringdog via Compfight cc

Ingredients

  • 1 pound asparagus, washed and trimmed
  • 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups halved heirloom tomatoes
  • 1/2 tsp minced fresh garlic
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tbsp diced red onion
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 tbsp feta cheese
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

Method

  1. Cook asparagus in steamer for 2 minutes or until bright green.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add tomatoes and garlic; cook 5 minutes. Stir in vinegar; cook 3 minutes. Stir in salt.
  3. Arrange asparagus on a platter; top with tomato mixture and chopped onions. Sprinkle with cheese and pepper.
  4. Tip: if raw red onion is too strong, you can soak in water for 5-10 minutes to dilute the flavor.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light.

 

For more great asparagus recipes, head on over to Cooking Light. They have over 50 recipe variations perfect for Spring!