Fluffy Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins are swirled with pumpkin spice and totally addictive!
Well look at these moody little muffins, will ya?!
Haha we had the gloomiest of gloomy days during this shoot and I felt like I was racing total darkness as the storm clouds rolled in.
Hurricane season is still in full-force here in Florida so I’ll be scarfing my pumpkin zucchini muffins with a cup of coffee and a hurricane Zeta chaser.
YIKES!
SO! THESE MUFFINS!
They’re packed with pumpkin flavor and swirled with what my daughter and I like to call “zucchini sprinkles.”
Legit all I have to do is call the bright green grated zucchini squash sprinkles and this kid is shoveling them in her face without a second thought.
I am totally employing this renaming technique next time I grate zucchini into our spaghetti sauce for pasta night!
Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins
Recipe yields 12 fluffy muffins.
They’re sweet, flavorful, and guaranteed to make your kitchen smell like straight up cinnamon spiced paradise.
Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour (180 grams)
- 2.5 TBSP pumpkin pie spice blend
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1.5 cups unsweetened canned pumpkin puree
- 1 + 1/4 cup granulated sugar (250 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup avocado oil or vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup pulp-free orange juice
- 1 cup coarsely grated unpeeled zucchini
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- Combine flour, pumpkin spice, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Mix and set aside.
- Coarsely grate zucchini, skin on. Measure out 1 cup. For best results, place grated zucchini on a cutting board and coarsley chop into small pieces. This way there are little flecks of zucchini throughout the muffins. Place zucchini in the center of a clean dishcloth or a stack of paper towels. Squeeze well to remove moisture, as zucchinis have a high water content. Set aside.
- Combine pumpkin puree, sugar, egg, oil, and juice in a large mixing bowl. Whisk until blended.
- Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and stir with a fork or whisk until just moistened. Fold in zucchini.
- Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. For a domed top we're filling them about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, checking for doneness with a toothpick inserted to the center of the cupcake. I bake at sea level (if this helps) and oven times will vary a bit, as they tend to do.
- Allow a few minutes to cool then carefully remove muffins from muffin tin. Allow to cool completely on a wire baking rack before diving in. (Flavors will be more pronounced once fully cooled.) Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
If you get a chance to try these pumpkin zucchini muffins, let me know! Leave some love in the comment form below or tag your photos with @peasandcrayons on Instagram so I can happy dance over your creation. I can’t wait to see what you whip up!
Crazy for Cupcakes?
You can totally give these pumpkin zucchini muffins a frosted cupcake (or carrot cake) vibe by topping them with a little cream cheese frosting. Yum!
Here’s the recipe:
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- Combine softened butter and cream cheese in a medium/large mixing bowl. Use an electric hand-mixer and beat until lusciously creamy and free of lumps.
- Beat in vanilla and salt until incorporated. Adjust mixer speed to low and, in batches, gradually add powdered sugar while mixing the frosting. After the powdered sugar is incorporated, beat at medium speed for a few more seconds, then add to a piping bag to frost fully cooled muffins (which are now cupcakes, by definition – LOL!)
Hi, can I substitute anything else for the orange juice?
Hi Nicole! I believe milk (dairy-free or regular) or applesauce should work texturally in place of the orange juice. I’d have to test it out to be 100% sure but the purpose of the orange juice was to add moisture and a little flavor boost – so either of those two ingredients should add the same type of moisture to the muffins. Greek Yogurt or sour cream may work as well.
it’s new information for me, pumpkin with muffins. i love this recipes.
Can you tell me what to do if I don’t use sugar because my dad is diabetic.
what kind of sugar should i use?
thank you for your response 🙂
Hi Pratiwi! I don’t specialize in diabetic recipes but my friend Carolyn does on her blog “All Day I Dream About Food” and she has several low-carb and sugar-free pumpkin muffin recipes to choose from!
What would be a good sub for the egg to make the recipe vegan? Thanks!
Hi Lydia! You could try flax eggs in place of regular eggs. I’d have to give it a test run to know for sure! xo
Fantastic texture! Just the right sweetness the balance the zucchini.