CRANBERRY-ZUCHINNI MUFFINS

There is a lot going on this cranberry muffin, but you won’t even notice that, because you’ll be too busy eating one after another. And as if cranberry, zucchini and carrot weren’t enough in this recipe—I went and added some coconut. I couldn’t help myself, I had about 1/2 cup of coconut sitting around, so I threw it in–aside from that, coconut is a great way to balance any tartness that cranberries may have.

And to keep the theme of healthy going I used whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour. I’m sure I could have taken this recipe a step further and halved the 1 cup of oil with applesauce or Greek yogurt, but I didn’t.

In fact, if you are wondering if I’m going healthy—um, no–there’s too much sweet-fatty badness to embrace. This just so happens to be a recipe pumped with veggies and fruit. It’s also a highly adaptable recipe  from one of my favorite cookbooks, The Sono Baking Company Cookbook, so have fun and be adventurous if you want to swap out the aforementioned oil for applesauce or Greek Yogurt, beets for the zucchini and any other berries for the cranberries. And if you do, please come back and share with the rest of us, what you’ve done.

So along with all that I’ve mentioned, here’s another reason you are going to want to bookmark this recipe—this is a one bowl batter that can be whipped up with a whisk and wooden spoon—no mixer required!

CRANBERRY, ZUCHINNI & CARROT MUFFINS

The muffins can be made into a breakfast cake by using a bundt pan or loaf pan. Prepare the recipe as directed and bake until tester comes out clean when inserted into center of cake.

YIELD: Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup canola oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup finely grated carrot (about 2 medium)
• 3/4 cup finely grated zuchinni (about 1 medium)
• 1 cup whole fresh or frozen cranberries
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups of whole wheat flour

Directions:

Preparation: Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Line muffin pan with paper or spray and cover wells with non-stick baking spray.

1. Place sugar, canolia oil, eggs and vanilla extract in a bowl and whisk until well blended. Add in carrot, zucchini, cranberries and whisk to blend.  Next add in salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda and whisk to blend. Lastly, add flour and fold until blended (do not over mix).
2. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake at 375 degrees F until tops are golden brown and tester inserted in the center is comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Use an offset spatula to remove muffins from pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.  

http://www.bakersroyale.com/cranberry-zuchinni-and-carrot-muffins/