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These healthy chocolate zucchini muffins are a rich, chocolatey treat you need to try. Made with simple ingredients, they deliver rich chocolate flavor in every bite. Warm mini chocolate chips melt throughout the muffins, making them feel extra indulgent while still being a lighter option.
Grated zucchini keeps these muffins incredibly moist without any oil or butter, just like in our healthy zucchini banana muffins recipe. They’re perfect for breakfast, a snack, or dessert, and they’re so good you’ll want to make them again and again!
Table of Contents
- 🔍 Quick Look: Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Substitutions & Variations
- How To Make Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Shawna’s Expert Tips
- Storage Instructions
- Chocolate Zucchini Muffins FAQs
- More Healthy Muffin Recipes to Try!
- Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins Recipe
🔍 Quick Look: Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- ⏱️ Prep Time: 15 minutes
- ⏱️ Cook Time: 25 minutes
- 🕒 Total Time: 40 minutes
- 🍽 Calories: ~90 kcal per muffin
- 👥 Servings: 12 muffins
- 🥣 Key Ingredients: Eggs, applesauce, flour, cocoa powder, sweetener, zucchini, chocolate chips
- 👩🍳 Cook Method: Baked
- ⭐ Difficulty: Easy
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Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Decadent Chocolate Flavor: They are packed with decadent chocolate flavor!
- Moist & Delicious: Zucchini is the perfect addition to these muffins because it makes them moist.
- Double Chocolate: These zucchini muffins have a double chocolate flavor from the cocoa powder and mini chocolate chips!
- Light Texture: These muffins are soft, fluffy, and light.
- Versatile: They are perfect for dessert, breakfast, or as a snack!
- Meal Prep-Friendly: These muffins are great for meal prep! You can store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator or on the counter. Also, these muffins freeze well!
“Just made these today and OMG they are delicious! My husband wants these on regular rotation.”
– deb
Key Ingredients
- Eggs: You will need two large eggs for this recipe. The eggs help the muffins come together.
- Applesauce: Use unsweetened applesauce in this recipe.
- Milk: Use your milk of choice. We like unsweetened almond milk.
- Flour: These muffins are made with all-purpose flour.
- Cocoa Powder: Use Dutch-processed cocoa powder. For more delicious chocolate muffins, try our chocolate Kodiak protein muffins and chocolate blueberry muffins next!
- Leavening Agents: The baking powder and baking soda are necessary so the muffins rise in the oven.
- Sweetener: Use sugar or your 1:1 sugar-free sweetener of choice such as monk fruit or stevia.
- Zucchini: Grate the zucchini for this recipe. You will need one cup of grated zucchini, from about one medium zucchini. Try our air fryer zucchini fries next!
- Mini Chocolate Chips: Add mini chocolate chips to the muffins for extra chocolate flavor.
Find the full measurements in the recipe card below.
Substitutions & Variations
- Flour Options: To make these muffins gluten-free, substitute the all-purpose flour for a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.
- Dairy-Free Option: You can make these muffins dairy-free by using dairy-free milk and dairy-free mini chocolate chips. Some dairy-free milk options are unsweetened almond milk, oat milk, or cashew milk.
- Make Chocolate Zucchini Bread: If you don’t want to make muffins with this recipe, you can make chocolate zucchini bread instead. Simply pour the batter into a 9×5 loaf pan. Spray the loaf pan with oil or add parchment paper before pouring the batter. Then, bake the loaf for 50-60 minutes, or until fully cooked and a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Add-Ins: We made these double chocolate zucchini muffins by folding mini chocolate chips into the batter. For another flavor and texture, you can fold in chopped nuts such as walnuts or pecans.
- Sugar-Free Option: You can substitute the sugar for a sugar-free sweetener such as monk fruit and use sugar-free chocolate chips. Or, roughly chop some sugar-free chocolate and fold it into the batter.
How To Make Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Grate the zucchini and remove all of the excess moisture.
- Add the eggs, unsweetened applesauce, almond milk, and vanilla extract to a large bowl. Whisk these ingredients.
- Sift all of the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients.
- Add the sugar to the bowl and mix until the wet and dry ingredients are combined, making sure not to over-mix.
- Fold in the grated zucchini and mini chocolate chips.
- Lightly spray a non-stick silicone muffin pan with oil. Then, pour the batter into the muffin pan and bake the muffins. Once done, let them cool and enjoy!
Shawna’s Expert Tips
- How to Grate Zucchini: Choose a medium-sized zucchini for this recipe because it will yield about 1 cup of grated zucchini. Then, wash and dry the zucchini. After that, cut both ends off the zucchini. Next, use a box grater to grate the zucchini. Or, you can add the grating attachment to a food processor.
- Remove Excess Moisture: Place the grated zucchini on a paper towel or thin towel and remove the excess moisture. It is essential to remove the moisture before adding the zucchini to the muffin batter.
- Don’t Over-Mix the Muffin Batter: It is important not to over-mix the muffin batter. This will ensure the muffins turn out light and fluffy. Make sure to combine the wet and dry ingredients. Then, fold in the grated zucchini and mini chocolate chips.
- Batter Consistency: If you are using a sugar-free sweetener, the muffin batter may appear more thick. If this is the case, add a splash of milk until the desired batter consistency is reached.
- Non-Stick Muffin Pan: Use a silicone non-stick muffin pan and spray it with oil before pouring the muffin batter so the muffins don’t stick to the pan. Or, you can add parchment paper muffin liners to a muffin tin.
- Check if Done: To check if your muffins are done and fully cooked, insert a toothpick into the center of a muffin. If the toothpick comes out clean, they are done.
Storage Instructions
You can store leftover chocolate zucchini muffins in an airtight container at room temperature on the counter for 1-2 days. Or, store them in an airtight container for 3-4 days. For longer storage, freeze these muffins for up to three months.
Chocolate Zucchini Muffins FAQs
Are Chocolate Zucchini Muffins Healthy?
These chocolate zucchini muffins are a lightened-up option. We used unsweetened almond milk and unsweetened applesauce in this recipe and there is no oil or butter!
Do I Have to Peel Zucchini for Muffins?
No, you don’t have to peel the zucchini for this muffin recipe. Simply cut the ends off of the zucchini and grate it.
Can I Freeze Chocolate Zucchini Muffins?
Yes, you can freeze these muffins. They will last 2-3 months in the freezer. Store them in a freezer-safe container. We like to use stasher bags because they are reusable.
More Healthy Muffin Recipes to Try!
Cottage Cheese
Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins
Breakfast
Healthy Banana Muffins
Breakfast
Chocolate Blueberry Muffins
Breakfast
Banana Chocolate Chip Kodiak Muffins
If you try this recipe please be sure to leave us a comment and star rating, ★★★★★, letting us know how it turns out for you.
Healthy Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
These healthy chocolate zucchini muffins are packed with double chocolate flavor! Made without oil or butter, zucchini and applesauce keep them moist.
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk or milk of choice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 cup sugar or sugar-free sweetener of choice
- 1 cup grated zucchini, about 1 medium zucchini
- 2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Cut off the ends of the zucchini. Then, grate the zucchini with a regular-sized grater or food processor. Then, place the grated zucchini on paper towels and remove all of the excess moisture from the zucchini.
- Add the eggs, unsweetened applesauce, almond milk, and vanilla extract to a large bowl. Mix all of these wet ingredients together.
- Sift the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and baking soda into a separate bowl. Then add these dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients until combined.
- Add the sugar to the bowl and mix. Make sure all of the dry and wet ingredients are combined but don’t overmix the batter.
- Fold in the grated zucchini and mini chocolate chips.
- Lightly spray a non-stick silicone muffin pan with oil. Or, place muffin liners in a muffin tin. Then, pour the batter into the muffin pan or liners to make 12 muffins. Optional: Add some mini chocolate chips on top. Bake the muffins at 350°F for 24-28 minutes, until fully cooked. Once cooked, let them slightly cool, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Storage: These muffins will last 1-2 days in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature. Or, they will last 3-4 days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- Zucchini: You don’t need to peel the zucchini for this recipe. Simply trim the ends and grate it using a regular grater. Then, place the grated zucchini on a paper towel or thin towel and squeeze out the excess moisture. This step is key to achieving the perfect muffin texture!
- Double Chocolate Flavor: These muffins have a double chocolate flavor from the cocoa powder and mini chocolate chips!
Nutrition
Calories: 90kcal, Carbohydrates: 16.1g, Protein: 3.2g, Fat: 1.8g, Saturated Fat: 0.8g, Cholesterol: 28mg, Sodium: 120mg, Fiber: 1.4g, Sugar: 2.3g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried this recipe?Mention @wwhealthyfoodiegirl or tag #healthyfoodiegirl!
These are delicious! For us they are the perfect little sweet to end dinner. I am totally satisfied at the end of the evening.
Hi Anne, I’m so happy you loved these muffins! It makes me so happy to hear they’re the perfect little sweet treat to end the day. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review!
These turned out really well. I didn’t have any applesauce on hand, so I used pumpkin puree instead. It works great with chocolate anyway.
Hi Vicki, I’m glad these chocolate zucchini muffins turned out well! Great idea to use pumpkin puree instead of applesauce. I’m sure that was delicious as well, and I’m happy you were able to adjust the recipe to fit what you had on hand. Thanks so much for leaving a review!
So very good. I will be making them and freezing for a treat. And it’s a plus they are 2 WW points. Thank you
Hi Carol, this makes me so happy to hear! I love that you will be freezing these muffins, that’s such a great idea. I hope you enjoy them, thanks so much for leaving a review.
Have you tried this with almond flour?
Hi Meryl, I haven’t tested these muffins with almond flour, so I can’t say for sure how they would turn out. Since almond flour absorbs moisture differently and doesn’t provide the same structure as all-purpose flour, I wouldn’t recommend substituting it 1:1. If you’d like to experiment, I’d suggest replacing only about 25% to 50% of the all-purpose flour with almond flour to start. If you’re looking to use only almond flour, you’ll likely need to increase the eggs for structure and possibly adjust the liquid, since it behaves very differently in baking. If you try it, I’d love to hear how they turn out!
This is the second time I’ve made these. I used gluten free flour, and it worked great. My grandchildren loved them.
Hi Rhonda, I’m so glad to hear that you are enjoying the healthy chocolate zucchini muffins, and made them twice! Thank you for sharing that gluten-free flour worked well, it’s so helpful for others to know. I love that your grandchildren enjoyed the muffins, too! 🙂
Yummy! Moist and chocolately without being greasy. I froze them and they’re great reheated when I have a chocolate craving. My son loved them and didn’t notice the lack of butter/oil. I’ll be making these again!
Hi Laura, that’s wonderful to hear! I’m so glad you and your son enjoyed the chocolate zucchini muffins! Thank you so much for sharing your feedback, I’m happy they’ll be a repeat recipe in your kitchen! 🙂
Delicious. I did use summer squash in place of zucchini. Will definitely be making these muffins regularly.
Hi Kelly, that’s such a great idea! I love that you swapped in summer squash instead of zucchini. I’m so glad you enjoyed the muffins and plan on making them regularly!
These muffins are so good! Thank you for sharing.
Hi Cheryl, I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed the healthy chocolate zucchini muffins. Thank you so much for leaving a review!
All of my family and friends love these muffins.
Hi Miyuki, that’s so lovely to hear! I’m so glad all your family and friends loved these chocolate zucchini muffins, thanks for sharing!
Moist and tasty. Was a hit at a potluck party.
This makes me so happy to hear! I’m so glad these chocolate zucchini muffins were a hit at your potluck party!