Healthy keto zucchini muffins packed with shredded zucchini, cinnamon, and heart-healthy walnuts. They’re made with coconut flour, so they make perfect low carb breakfast recipe. Don’t be intimidated by baking with coconut flour, it’s easy!
This recipe for keto zucchini muffins is an updated version of an older post. They are lighter, fluffier, and even lower in carbs! They’re made with coconut flour but if you would prefer to make them with almond flour, I’ve preserved the older recipe at the bottom of this post.
NOTE: The story below is from a long time ago. I am now over-run with zucchini and I couldn’t be happier! I have so much zucchini and so many delicious keto zucchini recipes. Be sure to check out my Cheesy Zucchini Casserole for a delicious savory side dish. And if you’re looking for something sweet, try my low carb Chocolate Zucchini Cake.
Got Zucchini?
At this time of year, you see a lot of zucchini recipes. People with gardens are over-run with zucchini and eager to use them up. They start putting zucchini in everything from soup to cake in a desperate attempt to keep up the the over-productive plants, and many gardeners come to resent the lowly squash.
That’s what they say, anyway – I wouldn’t know. You want to know how much zucchini we got out of our garden this year? One. One single zucchini. We planted 6 plants and we got one single zucchini. I don’t know if it’s because our soil is too sandy, or they weren’t getting enough sunlight.
Or it may be that the volunteer pumpkin plant that sprung out of the compost we spread on the soil in early spring has now taken over the entire garden and sucked up all the nutrients in its quest for life. Whatever it is, we are decidedly not among the gardeners over-run with zucchini.
Zucchini is an ideal vegetable for diabetics
I have to confess, I am more than a little disappointed. I love zucchini and it is an ideal vegetable for diabetics, being low in carbs but packed with nutrients. I’ve been buying some every week at the farmer’s market from the moment in came in season.
My husband and I enjoy it in many dishes, in stir-fries and soups, and I love sauteing it in some coconut oil for an easy side dish. I can’t really get my kids to eat it unless I bake it into muffins and cakes, but it’s wonderful that way too. It lends moistness to all sorts of baked goods, and it certainly ups the health quotient of these treats.
So, even though I have not been able to harvest much zucchini from my garden, I thought I should offer up a good low carb, gluten free zucchini recipe. It’s that time of year and even though I am not over-run by zucchini, YOU might be, and might be desperate for yet another way to use it. And this easy keto zucchini muffin recipe is a great way to
How To Make Keto Zucchini Muffins
- Shred that zucchini. You can do it in a food processor or on a box grater. Either way works. 2 cups of shredded zucchini is about 1 medium zucchini.
- Salt it and drain it well. You want to let it sit in a sieve in the sink for at least an hour.
- Squeeze the heck out of it! Some people put it into a dish towel and squeeze it out this way. I don’t like to dirty a dish towel so I press on it over and over in the sieve. Then I ball it all up in my hands and keep squeezing as the green juice runs out into the sink.
- Whisk together all your dry ingredients first. Then add the zucchini and the wet ingredients, the eggs and oil, etc. You can add them all at once, it doesn’t need to be whisked separately and then poured in. Just be sure to mix well.
- Stir in chopped nuts after it’s all mixed. Or try sugar-free chocolate chips instead! My kids love them that way.
- Divide between muffins cups, bake, and enjoy! They are oh so good with a smear of butter.
Hungry for more? Click here for all the best keto zucchini recipes!
Keto Zucchini Muffins with Coconut Flour
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded zucchini about 1 medium zucchini (196g)
- ⅔ cup coconut flour (71g)
- ½ cup Swerve Sweetener
- ¼ cup unflavored whey protein powder or egg white protein
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cloves
- 6 large eggs
- ¼ cup butter, melted or melted coconut oil
- 3 to 4 tablespoon water
- ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans or chocolate chips!
Instructions
- Set the shredded zucchini in a sieve in the sink and sprinkle lightly with salt. Let drain one hour, then squeeze as much liquid from the zucchini as possible.
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a muffin tin with 12 parchment or silicone liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, sweetener, protein powder, baking powder, spices, and salt. Add the zucchini, eggs, butter, and 3 tablespoon water. Add additional water if the batter is overly thick (low carb batters tend to be quite thick as it is. This should be scoopable but not pourable).
- Stir in the nuts, if using. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups and bake about 25 minutes, until the tops are lightly browned and firm to the touch.
- Remove and let cool in the pan.
Almond Flour Recipe for Keto Zucchini Muffins
2 cups shredded zucchini (about 1 medium zucchini)
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups almond flour
⅓ cup vanilla whey protein powder
⅓ cup erythritol
2 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
⅛ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup greek yogurt
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon liquid stevia extract
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
¼ cup almond milk
½ cup chopped walnuts
Set shredded zucchini in fine mesh sieve and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt. Mix thoroughly and let drain for at least one hour. Place in tea towel and squeeze out excess water. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 325F and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, whey protein powder, granulated erythritol, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt.
In a large bowl, beat greek yogurt until smooth. Beat in eggs, shredded zucchini, vanilla and stevia until just combined. Beat in almond flour mixture in two additions, alternating with almond milk, and then beat in coconut oil until thoroughly combined.
Stir in walnuts and divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake 28 to 32 minutes, or until lightly browned on top and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Serves 12. Each muffin has 6.3g of carbs and 2.5g of fiber. Total NET CARBS = 3.8g.
Scarlett says
These muffins are AMAZING. I’ve made a couple of your muffins, Carolyn, and although all are delicious, these are my favorites by far (and my fiance agrees). They are perfectly spicy and moist and I really doubt anyone could tell these are gluten-free and low-carb. Now the trouble is not eating the entire batch at once…
Nancy says
As many times as I have read through this recipe, I can’t see the soy flour in the ingredients, just in the instructions, so I don’t know how much to add. And with the resoundingly positive comments, I want to try these!
Carolyn says
I was in the process of updating the recipe so it’s no longer in either the instructions or the ingredients.
Pat says
I did not have any soy flour and I try not to eat soy so I put in gluten free flour. I also used pecans instead of walnuts. These muffins are awesome. You can’t just eat one! Thanks for the recipe
Barb Hasty says
Going to try these with Stevia in the raw, that is all I have. Think it will be ok?
Carolyn says
That should be fine.
tractor wife says
These are wonderful. Just wanted you to know. Thank you!!
Laura says
I have the green ntea bread cooking right now! Would like to make these zucchini muffins but need a substitute as I can’t have soy. Any suggestions? If I used coconut flour would I need to add more liquid or could I just up the whey and almond flour to make up the difference?
Michelle says
Yum, these turned out quite good!
Catherine H. says
Just to clarify my above comment, since the ingredient portions are all out of whack–I made a triple batch, hence my measurements differing from Carolyn's. These are still the best low carb muffins I've ever had. I'm making a cranberry version today–can't wait till they come out of the oven!
marla {family fresh cooking} says
Hey girl! Linking back to these yummy muffins on Monday 🙂 Have a great weekend!
Catherine H. says
I finally made these today. My only regret is that I didn't make them sooner! They are absolutely delicious–the best low-carb muffins I've made. I made a triple batch, and I substituted 5 T. Coconut flour for the 1 1/2 c. Soy flour. I also used a half tsp. NuNaturals pure Stevia extract, because I don't use liquid Stevia in my baking. I also accidentally ended up with a little less than the recommended 3/4 c. Coconut oil but it seemed to turn out fine. 28 minutes baking time was perfect for them. They did not get the rounded nicely-risen tops in your pictures, but I'm perfectly fine with that. Fabulous recipe!
accordingtomaria says
Thanks, Carolyn! I will definitely try this very soon and let you know how it goes!
Maria
Carolyn says
Hi Peepers. Yes my carb counts are already with erythritol subtracted, as I 've found it has no effect on my blood sugar whatsoever.
Nami | Just One Cookbook says
Oh what a great recipe here… my son loves zucchini and he would eat it in any cooking method, but not my daughter. She'll adore this muffins and I bet she won't know what's in it!!
Carolyn says
Hi Maria! For this recipe, I think 1/2 cup honey or sugar would sweeten it sufficiently. If you use honey, you may need to add a little extra almond flour to make up for the additional liquid!
accordingtomaria says
These muffins sound delicious, and perfect for fall! Plus, I LOVE how healthy they are!
Do you know if I can sub the stevia extract and erythritol for honey or regular sugar? If so, do you know how much?
Thanks for your help!
Maria
MegSmith @ Cooking.In.College says
Mmmm zucchini baked goods are the best!
kita says
Oh no! A disappointing muffin just makes me sad! I am sure they are still wonderful!
Feast on the Cheap says
Yum! Such a great fall treat
Peepers says
Making these right now! Yum. Is the net carb count with erithrytol subtracted? Assuming so but just wanted to be sure. Trying with flax meal and coconut flour in place of the soy flour 1/4 c of each. 🙂
Thanks!
Angie's Recipes says
A list of great ingredients…love those zucchini muffins!