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Rich double chocolate muffins made with sourdough discard, chocolate chips, and plenty of summer zucchini are the perfect breakfast or snack!

Summer is quickly coming to an end and the zucchini and squash are growing like crazy. I’m not sure if it’s been the heat or the crazy rain that we’ve had but it seems like all the gardens are growing out of control right now.

I received some zucchini from a friend and needed to figure out how to use it. I wanted to make some type of bread or muffins as well as Greek Zucchini fritters. I had already made a batch of blueberry zucchini muffins so I needed something different.

It just so happened that I also needed to use my sourdough starter. I hate throwing away the discard so I was looking for a way to use it without making a sourdough bread loaf which takes 2-3 days to make. With the school year starting I don’t have time for that right now.

what is a sourdough starter?

Sourdough starter, or sourdough culture, is a mixture of flour and water that contains naturally occurring wild yeast and beneficial bacteria. It is used as the leavening agent in sourdough bread baking instead of yeast or baking powder. Sourdough bread is unique because it does not rely on commercial yeast to rise. Instead, it utilizes the microorganisms present in the sourdough starter to help ferment and leaven the dough which gives the finished bread a tangy flavor.

how do you make a sourdough starter?

The simple answer is you can create a sourdough starter by a simple process of combining flour and water and allowing the wild yeast and bacteria to colonize in the mixture. You will need to feed it, discard some, and let it rest for up to a week or two before it’s ready to use. See my post on How to make a sourdough starter.

I came across a recipe for Sourdough Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins that looked amazing and used both zucchini and sourdough discard. They also had cocoa powder and chocolate chips in them which made them sound like more of a dessert then breakfast or snack but with the addition of zucchini I figured I could eat them at any time of day.

ingredients:

butter (I prefer salted but you can use unsalted)
granulated sugar
eggs
sourdough discard (from your sourdough starter-this is something you need to have made ahead of time)
milk (cow’s milk or plant based is fine)
all purpose flour
cocoa powder
salt
shredded zucchini (I use a box grater but see below for options)
chocolate chips (Use your favorite flavor-milk, semi-sweet, dark, or even white chocolate)

The ingredients for this recipe are pretty basic so I had everything I needed already in the house. I creamed together the butter and sugar then added in the eggs. Then I mixed up the dry ingredients.

Before mixing the wet ingredients you will need to shred the zucchini. This gets a little messy but it’s easy to do.

How do i shred the zucchini?

Shredding zucchini is fairly easy and there are several tools you can use to make it easier. Leave the skin on the zucchini but wash it and pat it dry. You can use a box grater and rub the zucchini against the side with the large holes. Continue grating until you either reach big seeds or you have grated the entire thing.

Another way to shred zucchini is in the food processor. Cut the zucchini into smaller pieces that will fit into the food processor’s feed tub and attach the shredding blade. Feed the zucchini through the feed tube while the processor is running until all zucchini is shredded.

Mixing the wet and dry ingredients together results in a thick batter. Once I added in the shredded zucchini the batter thinned out and then I folded in the chocolate chips. It already smelled great and I couldn’t wait to try the muffins.

I poured the batter into the muffin cups and then topped each muffin off with a few more chocolate chips. Then they went into the oven. When I pulled them out I was having a hard time grabbing one and biting into it!

More Sourdough Discard Recipes:

If you didn’t know there was zucchini in it you would never guess. These muffins are rich and chocolatey and totally tasty. They could easily pass as dessert but are delicious with a cup of coffee or glass of milk for breakfast as well. Plus they have zucchini in them so they have to be healthy, right?

Do yourself a favor and make these soon. Kids and adults will love them and they are super easy to make!

Pro Tips & Substitutions:

Add your favorite flavor of chip: chocolate, white chocolate, or even cinnamon!
If you don’t have zucchini you can use yellow squash or apple as a substitute.
Do not over bake these as they will dry up quickly if baked too long.

If you’ve tried my Sourdough Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on: