For a 4 and 6-year-old, my kids are not what I would classify as “picky eaters”. They don’t like spicy food, trying new things is always a challenge, and 90% of the time they tell me they’d prefer cereal to whatever it is I’m cooking. But my 6-year-old can inhale spring rolls and sushi at an alarming (and expensive) rate, my 4-year-old’s favorite snack is a Cliff bar, they both love fruit, drinking lots of water, and mostly understand that you don’t get a sweet treat unless you’ve eaten some “real food”.

They both love these chocolate zucchini muffins – and what’s better, they KNOW that they have green stuff in them and THEY DON’T EVEN CARE. There are a million recipes for zucchini muffins out there, but they tend to fall into 2 categories for me:

1. Overly healthified, as in, there’s no way my kids would eat them.
2. Full of sugar and vegetable oil, which kind of negates the health benefits we’re seeking. Essentially, a chocolate zucchini cupcake.

These are the Goldilocks of muffins for me – not overly sweet, so you feel like you made a healthy choice, but sweet enough that you feel like you’re getting a treat. Win/win.
Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

1.5 lbs zucchini (about 3 standard size)

2 cups flour (can use WW if you don’t mind a denser muffin)

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

6 TBSP butter (can substitute coconut oil)

2 eggs

1/4 cup sour cream or greek yogurt

1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat to 350°. Grate the zucchini (no need to peel) on a box grater. Place the shredded zucchini into a colander and press on the top with paper towels to soak up excess moisture.
2. Stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Melt the butter or coconut oil and whisk in the sugar (it’s not much, I do it in a Pyrex measuring cup).
3. Whisk the eggs into the sugar/butter mixture and fold in the sour cream/yogurt. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until combined. At this point, the batter will seem overly dry, but then add the grated zucchini and the remaining moisture will loosen things up. Stir until combined, then fold in the chocolate chips.
4. Grease a muffin tin and fill with batter 3/4 full. I usually yield between 16 and 18 muffins. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick in the middle comes out clean.