Zucchini blueberry muffins come out so moist and delicious! Fluffy homemade mini or regular muffins with fresh fruit and vegetables are the best breakfast or dessert. We couldn’t help but collide that recipe + our VERY popular moist zucchini bread recipe together. How could that not be totally and completely delicious?
If you haven’t made zucchini blueberry muffins or bread yet you’re missing out! With fresh fruit packed inside I bet your kids will never know that there are vegetables inside too! One of the best muffin recipes on our site. (affiliate links present)
I mean we have shared tons of zucchini dessert recipes + how to make blueberry muffins here on The Typical Mom blog. It was time to combine the two… This is yet one more variation that sneaks veggies into your bellies!
Table of Contents
- Zucchini Blueberry Bread
- Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
- Mini Zucchini Blueberry Muffins
- Can I use frozen blueberries in my muffins?
- How do you keep blueberries from sinking in muffins?
- How do you shred and dry zucchini?
- Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
- What do you put in empty muffin cups when baking?
- What is the difference between crumble and streusel?
- How do you keep streusel topping crunchy?
- Lemon Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
- Can you substitute oil for butter in muffins?
- What gluten free flour is best for muffins?
- Zucchini Blueberry Muffins Recipe
Zucchini Blueberry Bread
If you have never baked with vegetables it is easy and so worth it. Beyond the benefits of nutrition it is a great way to make them extra moist and fluffy inside. Shredded carrots would work the same way but this is less noticeable.
Let’s talk a bit about my favorite things when it comes to baking shall we?
- You really should get a 24 cup muffin pan, or opt for a quicker baking time with mini size.
- I ALWAYS use paper liners and you should too. They make cleanup easier and grab and go breakfasts easy. 😉
- No pan, no problem! You can use stiffer or silicone self standing cups instead!
Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
You could bake this or our zucchini carrot muffins in a loaf pan too if you’d rather. We prefer grab and go breakfasts so this works best for us.
Mini Zucchini Blueberry Muffins
In order to make these a regular size 18-20 minutes is typical. However if you have little hands at home you may want them teeny tiny in a smaller muffin pan which takes closer to 11 minutes.
If you have a vegetable garden at your house you know how many of these green squashes you get come summertime. We get so many that we cook all the zucchini recipes we possibly can.
Can I use frozen blueberries in my muffins?
You can but I definitely prefer fresh with any of my blueberry recipes. The difference is that once thawed out, frozen will lose a lot of the juice in the process. That will make your muffins less moist. If that is all you have make sure to thaw in a bowl, drain liquid, and then measure out.
Be as gentle as possible when moving them around as their skins will be thinned and you want to keep them whole and as in tact as possible for the best results.
How do you keep blueberries from sinking in muffins?
The key whether you’re using fresh or frozen is to very gently toss your berries with a bit of flour. You can see this in the photo above. This will keep your berries floating throughout the pastry and not sink to the bottom.
How do you shred and dry zucchini?
Fold 4 paper towels in half, then put your grater on top and shred as you normally would. (remove ends beforehand) Then fold the dry ends over the top and gently press down with your hand to remove excess moisture.
You will do this whether you make a loaf, zucchini applesauce muffins, or fritters.
Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
How full do you fill muffin cups?
You do not want to overfill them or they may bubble over the top and make a huge mess. Then you’ll have a huge clean up AND nothing to enjoy. Instead fill 3/4 of the way full.
If you want to add a crumb topping you can add some from there like our apple zucchini muffins have. To keep it on pat gently with a fingertip.
What do you put in empty muffin cups when baking?
If you are making 18 with two 12 count pans you will have some that are empty (not for this recipe). You can fill those half full of water for even baking. It will also prevent your pan from potentially warping.
What is the difference between crumble and streusel?
A crumb topping for muffins is usually referred to when making a fruit dessert like our huckleberry cobbler recipe. When making a baked good like this one you’d call it the latter, but whatever really if you ask me. 😉
You do not have to add this portion. That is up to you. It will make it more sweet overall and add to the great texture but will also add more calories and a bit of fat too.
Alternatively you could just drizzle maple syrup over the top of this muffin recipe when done.
How do you keep streusel topping crunchy?
If you have leftovers with a crumble you should put a few saltine crackers in the airtight bag. These will absorb the moisture keeping your topping crunchy for the next day’s consumption.
Lemon Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
If you wanted to add a bit of lemon zest you could add that into the topping mix. OR fold it in with your fruit instead or in addition to. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Melt butter for batter and set aside. Toss blueberries in just a bit of flour so they are coated and prevent them from sinking to the bottom.
- Shred zucchini over a few paper towels, then fold them over and gently pat down to remove all of the excess water. You’ll add this at the end.
- Combine all dry ingredients for batter in a large bowl (leave your brown sugar topping mixture to use for later). Then add milk, butter and egg.
- Once mixed well gently fold in your shredded zucchini and whole blueberries.
- If you want to add the streusel topping combine ingredients for that well in a bowl. Cut in cold butter to create a crumble texture.
- Grease muffin pan or use paper liners. Fill 3/4 of the way with batter. Sprinkle topping on top of a few or all of them, gently pat down.
Now bake for 18-20 minutes, check after 18. With a toothpick inserted remove when it comes out mostly clean with crumbs attached. Then remove muffin tin so you don’t over-bake them. Take out of pan and put on cooling rack. And here they are!! Of course you could add 1/2 cup of crushed nuts inside as well if you’d like. 1/4 cup dried cranberries is kinda’ nice too.
Can you substitute oil for butter in muffins?
You could. I don’t know that it would change it to a healthy muffin but if you cannot have that ingredient it is a good alternative at least. Some people have used applesauce or mashed bananas instead. Note that these will make them a bit denser.
What gluten free flour is best for muffins?
Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Baking Flour is what my friend who has celiac disease swears by. Remember that cook time may change a bit if this is used.
Zucchini Blueberry Muffins
Equipment
- 1 muffin tin
- 2 bowls
Ingredients
- 2 c all purpose flour
- 1/3 c sugar
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 c milk, whole is best
- 1/4 c butter
- 1 egg
- 1 c blueberries
- 1 c zucchini
- topping, optional
- 1/4 c all purpose flour
- 1/4 c brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp butter, cold
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Melt butter for batter and set aside. Toss blueberries in just a bit of flour so they are coated so they won't sink to the bottom. Shred zucchini over a few paper towels. Fold paper towels over and gently press down to remove excess water, set aside.
- Combine all dry ingredients for batter in a bowl (leave topping for later), then add milk, butter and egg.
- Once mixed well gently fold in your shredded zucchini and whole blueberries.
- If you want to add the streusel topping combine ingredients for that well in a bowl. Cut in cold butter to create a crumble texture.
- Grease muffin pan or use liners. Fill 3/4 of the way with batter. Sprinkle topping on top of a few or all of them, gently pat down.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, check after 18. Mini size takes about 11 minutes. Use a toothpick to check center, if it comes out mostly clean with crumbs on it remove so as not to over-bake them.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These muffins were delicious! I highly recommend doing the topping. I used frozen blueberries and added right to the batter frozen. It’s definitely a keeper.
Oh good!!
Any tricks to make this gluten free?
I want to try and make these but I’m wondering if these can be made and frozen and thawed to enjoy at a later date?? trying to get my daughter to eat vegetables is rough but she loves blueberry muffins so I figured this will help get some greens in her!! Let me know at your earliest convenience they look pretty yummy!
Yes I have frozen some of my muffins in freezer bags. Do so in one layer, lay flat, zipped, and take out one or all and set on the countertop to thaw out.
My sister and I have been baking for years and we use frozen blueberries in our muffin recipe. The tip is to keep them frozen because if they thaw, they will cause blue muffins lol (unless it’s drained properly)
Fold carefully into your batter while frozen And they should be as good as fresh 🙂
Thank you for the how to keep blueberries through out when baking. I’ve never used zucchini so could you please tell me do I remove the skin( outer green part)? This probably is something everyone knows but me. Thank you for all the good recipes you share. Jane
@Jane,
Do not remove the skin. Simply wash well and grate the zucchini