Chocolate Banana-Zucchini Muffins

These vegan muffins are chocolatey, moist and perfectly sweet due to the addition of roasted banana. If you have picky people in your life who balk at a speck of green, just Peel the zucchini before shredding - they'll never know!

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Well, we've hit the official time of the year where we realize we have far too much stuff in the freezer. This is usually bags of produce we prepped and froze over the growing months - though I've gotten more realistic with my stamina when it comes to mass canning. Zucchini, shredded and packed in individually wrapped 1 cup bundles, has a more or less permanent spot in amongst the nuts, seeds, bread and meat, but since this summer featured all of the household cooks going on vacation for 2 weeks at a time, the hoard was getting a little unwieldy.

Enter the second round of zucchini-based baking. Of course, along with the standard (and previously posted) plain zucchini bread, I took the opportunity to use up some of the roasted bananas I froze as well in the treats. These muffins arose out of not only ingredients but a house-wide craving for chocolate, and boy do they deliver. Perfectly moist (yes, I used the word moist) and tender, each bite is packed with chocolate and banana flavour. I've made a few batches of these over the last few months and froze any that we couldn't finish in about 3 days - popping a still frozen one in a lunchbox allows it to be thawed and not dry by lunchtime, and if you're really desperate a quick burst in the microwave heats it just enough to where it feels like it was fresh from the oven.

Chocolate Banana-Zucchini Muffins

Serves 10

1 large or 2 small bananas, peel on 

1/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

1/4 cup unsweetened milk of choice (I used oat)

3/4 cup flour

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup cocoa

1 tbsp ground chia seeds or flaxseeds

1/2 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup coarsely shredded zucchini, patted dry (no need to squeeze)

3/4 cup miniature chocolate chips

1. Heat the oven to 300°F and line a baking sheet with parchment or silpat.
2. Place the unpeeled banana(s) on the lined baking sheet and poke a few holes in the skin with a fork or skewer.
3. Roast for 20 minutes, or until the peel becomes black and glossy. Remove and let cool slightly.
4. Scoop out the roasted banana pulp into a large mixing bowl.
5. Place the unpeeled banana(s) on the lined baking sheet and poke a few holes in the skin with a fork or skewer.
6. Roast for 20 minutes, or until the peel becomes black and glossy. Remove and let cool slightly.
7. Scoop out the roasted banana pulp into a large mixing bowl. 
8. Raise the oven temperature to 350F and grease a muffin tin.
9. Scoop the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 23-25 minutes.
10. Immediately turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.