Double Chocolate Chai Zucchini Muffins Are Exactly What You Need to Use Up All that Zucchini

Do you ever get a recipe idea in your head that you just can’t shake?

That’s how I felt about these chocolate zucchini muffins with chai spices – once I dreamed up the idea, I couldn’t stop thinking about them! Rich chocolate and warm chai spices are delicious together and I had a feeling that they’d make an especially delicious treat when added to zucchini muffins.

It took me a few tries to perfect this recipe, but I’m glad I kept going until I nailed it.

The chocolate and chai flavors are nicely balanced, and the muffins are moist and cakey. I love that they’re healthy enough for breakfast, but decadent enough for dessert.

What you’ll love about this zucchini muffin recipe:

• A great way to use garden-fresh zucchini with unexpected flavor from chai spices
• Grab and Go. Muffins are a great option for a breakfast or snack on the go. 
• Under 200 calories each

What you’ll need to make them

To make these double chocolate zucchini muffins, you’ll need:

• Unsweetened Coconut Milk. For this recipe, you’ll need refrigerated coconut milk beverage (not canned coconut milk). You could also use almond milk or dairy milk if you prefer. 
• Spiced Chai Tea bags. For the best flavor and texture, I found that using chai spice tea bags works best. I like the ones from Tazo a lot!
• Zucchini. One medium to large zucchini should be plenty. 
• Coconut Oil. Cocout oil is a nice alternative to butter in this muffins. If keeps them dairy free and adds lots of moisture. 
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. My absolute favorite is Ghirardelli but you can never go wrong with Hershey’s either!
• Chocolate Chips. Milk, dark, or semi-sweet. It’s your choice!

You’ll also need standard baking supplies like flour, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. 

Substitutions:

• Try applesauce instead of coconut oil
• For a healthier muffin, use whole wheat pastry flour in place of all purpose flour
• You can also use a cup for cup gluten-free flour blend. 

How to make them:

1. Brew the chai. Heat the coconut milk until it’s lukewarm, then steep the tea bags until it take on a deeply spice flavor. Press as much moisture form the tea bags and as you before discarding them.

2. Combine the dry ingredients. Be sure to whisk everything well so you don’t end up with clumps of baking powder in your muffins!

3. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. The method of adding wet ingredients into the dry ones is key to muffin-making and is one of the key differences between muffins and cupcakes!

4. Scoop the batter into your muffin pan. I like to use a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop for this. It’s less messy and means all of the muffins will be the same size. If you want, sprinkle the top of each muffin with a few chocolate chips. 

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the top of a muffin comes out clean. 

Frequently Asked Questions

More delicious muffin recipes

• Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffins
• Spiced Sweet Potato Blender Muffins with Pecan Streusel
• Apple Cheddar Corn Muffins with Honey Butter
• Chocolate Cinnamon Muffins
• Roasted Peach Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel
• Bakery Style Raspberry-Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Peanut Butter, Banana + Bacon Muffins

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Chocolate Chai Zucchini Muffins

Moist and decadent double chocolate zucchini muffins with chai spices. These amazing muffins make a great grab and go breakfast or snack!

Course 14 Sweet Breakfast Recipes

Cuisine American

Keyword zucchini muffins

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 22 minutes minutes

Total Time 37 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Calories 194kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• ½ cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 2 bags chai
• 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup sugar
• ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup coconut oil melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ cups shredded zucchini about 1 large
• ½ cup chocolate chips

Instructions

• Heat oven to 350ºF. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners or spray it with cooking spray.
• In a small saucepan, heat the coconut milk over medium heat until its lukewarm. Add the tea bags. Remove from heat and let steep 5 minutes. Squeeze out as much liquid from the tea bags as you can, then discard the bags.
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• In a second bowl, combine the brewed chai, coconut oil, and vanilla. One at a time, whisk in the eggs. Stir in the zucchini.
• Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until combined. Add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.
• Divide the batter between the muffin cups, filling each cup 3/4 of the way to the top. If desired, top each muffin with a few chocolate chips.
• Bake 22-25 minutes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 194kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 193mg | Potassium: 102mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 87IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 1mg

What you’ll love about this recipe:

• Flavorful. The recipe is packed with flavor, thanks to the spicy jerk seasoning and the fresh, sweet pineapple salsa.
• Healthier. The recipe is a healthier take on a classic burger, made from ground turkey with addition of shredded zucchini to lighten up the meat and make it more nutritious.
• Perfect for summer. The recipe is a great option for summer cookouts and gatherings, and the tropical flavors of the pineapple salsa make it so refreshing!

Bring the Heat and the Sweet with These Jamaican Jerk Turkey Burgers

If you ever ate out at a restaurant with me, you’d probably figure out pretty quickly that burgers are my favorite guilty pleasure food.

When I was invited to participate in Burger Month, I obviously couldn’t say no. What better way to celebrate my love of one of summer’s favorite foods than to share a new burger recipe just in time for your Memorial Day cookout?

Deciding to participate was easy, but figuring out what to make what much more difficult. Burger Month is all about celebrating epic, over the top burgers, but I also wanted to keep my contribution in line with my healthy, fresh point of view.

After a ton of brainstorming, I finally settled on this spicy jerk burger with pineapple salsa.

They’re chock full of flavor without being heavy or greasy, and they won’t make you feel like you’re in a food coma.

If you have a smoker, they’d be delicious using this method for smoked burgers.

Ingredients You’ll Need:

Ground turkey. The mild flavor of turkey really complements the jerk seasoning and salsa in this recipe. Choose a lean grind to keep things on the lighter side.
Grated zucchini. Mixing grated zucchini in with the meat is my favorite hack for making burgers healthier and super juicy!
Cheese. Because what good is a burger without cheese? I like to use a light jalapeno or pepper jack to play up this burger’s spiciness.
Dry jerk seasoning. Provides the signature Jamaican jerk flavor to the burgers.
Fresh pineapple. The pineapple salsa adds a sweet and tangy flavor to the burgers, and balances out the spiciness of the jerk seasoning
Scallions. To add a mild onion flavor.
Cilantro. For a pop of freshness.
Jalapeno. I like adding jalapeno to my salsa for even more heat, but you can skip it if you prefer.
Lime juice. Adds acidity and brightness to the burgers
4 hamburger rolls. To serve as the vehicle for the burgers, providing a sturdy base for all the flavorful ingredients. I love using brioche rolls!

How to make Jerk Turkey Burgers with Pineapple Salsa

Mix the ground turkey with jerk seasoning, shredded zucchini, and a generous pinch of salt to give the burgers tons of flavor.

Form the meat into patties and grill until just cooked through, then top them with cheese. Traditional cheddar works, but I like to spice things up even more with jalapeño cheddar or pepper jack. I usually cook my burgers on the grill or in a grill pan, but there are so many ways you can go. Do you know how to cook burgers in the oven? It’s so easy and they come out great.

While the burgers cook, make the pineapple salsa. This is the most exciting part of this recipe, and it’s really easy. Just mix together finely diced pineapple with green onions, jalapeños, cilantro, and lime juice. When I first started making this salsa, I always used red onion, but lately I’ve switched to scallions, which have a much milder flavor and don’t have the same sharp onion bite. Since scallions are a major component of jerk sauce, they feel right at home on these burgers.

Top the burgers with the salsa, and serve them on toasted buns.

Any leftover salsa you have is delicious scooped up with tortilla chips!

FAQs

More summer grilling recipes:

• Dill Havarti Turkey Burgers
• Juicy Bison Burgers with Mushrooms & Onions
• Greek Burger with Feta and Tzatziki
• Baba Ganoush (Eggplant Dip)
• Homemade Chicken Spiedies
• Buffalo Street Corn
• Grilled Zucchini

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Jerk Turkey Burgers with Pineapple Salsa

 

Calories 324kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 small zucchini grated (about 1 cup)
• 2 ounces light jalapeño or pepper jack cheese shredded
• 1 teaspoon jerk seasoning
• 1 cup finely diced pineapple
• 2 scallions chopped
• ½ cup cilantro chopped
• 1 jalapeño seeded and minced
• 1 lime juiced
• 4 hamburger rolls toasted

Instructions

• In a mixing bowl, combine the turkey and zucchini. Season with jerk seasoning and a generous pinch of salt. Mix gently to combine to ingredients without overworking the meat. Form into 4 patties.
• Grill the burgers over medium-high heat, turning at least once, for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through. Top with cheese. Cover and cook 30 seconds to 1 minute to melt.
• While the burgers cook, prepare the salsa. In a second bowl, combine the pineapple, scallions, cilantro, jalapeño, and lime juice. Mix well and season to taste with salt.
• Top the burgers with the salsa and serve on toasted rolls.

Nutrition

Calories: 324kcal | Protein: 35g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 8g

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Seafood Nutrition Partnership. All opinions are 100% mine.
5-ingredient crab and corn pasta with avocado-dill sauce is a simple and delicious meal made for laid back, late-summer nights. 
I have a terrible habit of making last-minute travel plans to random places, then scrambling at the last second because I have no idea what I’m actually going to do once I get there. Last summer, it was Stockholm and Portland. This summer, we set off for Providence with no plans other than to drink as much coffee and eat as much seafood as possible in 48 hours. I think we did a pretty good job and I pretty much fell in love with the town.

Saturday night, we ate dinner at the cutest restaurant, The Salted Slate. It’s the kind of place where you can’t decide what you want to eat because everything sounds so amazing. We ended up ordering a ton of food, and everything was perfect.

Shawn ordered pasta with lump crab, avocado, corn, and dill. I knew from the second I saw it that I’d be recreating it at home ASAP.  The timing was perfect, since I had just partnered with the Seafood Nutrition Partnership to create a few recipes. This crab pasta is light, and fresh, and tastes like summer. Plus, the ingredients are super simple and the whole dish comes together in minutes. You don’t even need to cook the corn – just place it in the bottom of your colander and drain the pasta over it. The boiling water will warm it through and cook it just enough.

The USDA recommends eating seafood twice each week (did you know Seafood is high in healthy fats known as omega-3s, which are essential for heart health and brain health?) and with recipes this delicious and this easy, there’s really no excuse not to. While you’re at is, take the Healthy Heart Pledge – that means you recognize seafood is a healthy choice for you and your family and you’ll pledge to eat at least two servings of seafood each week and supplement with omega-3s. You can also enter the Seafood Nutrition Partnership 2016 Recipe Sweepstakes for a chance to win one of ten $250 giftcards! (You can submit up to one entry per day. Winners will be announced at SNPSweepstakes.com and on Instagram and Twitter. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Ends on 10/21/16. Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S. and D.C., 18 and older. For Official Rules, including odds, and prize descriptions, visit SNPsweepstakes.com.  Void where prohibited.)

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Crab and Corn Pasta with Avocado-Dill Sauce

Course Pasta Recipes

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 358kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 Ear fresh corn
• 8 ounces angel hair pasta (cappellini)
• 1 avocado
• 1 tablespoon fresh chopped dill
• 8 ounces lump crab
• salt and pepper

Instructions

• Cut the corn away from the cob. Place the kernels in the bottom of a colander over the sink.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook 2-3 minutes, or according to the directions on the package. Reserve 1 cup of cooking water, then drain the pasta over the corn. Return to the empty pan.
• Add the avocado, dill, and 1/2 cup of cooking water to a blender. Blend until smooth, thinning with additional water if needed. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour the avocado sauce over the pasta. Add the crab and mix well to ensure the pasta is evenly coated with sauce.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 358kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 484mg | Potassium: 547mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 137IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 1mg

This Spring, I’m partnering with Anolon to create a few recipes perfect for sharing at springtime celebrations. Last month, I shared lemon-berry popovers that would be perfect for bridal showers, Mother’s Day, or any other excuse for brunch with friends. Today, I’m focusing on date night at home.

Mussels make a great date-night meal because they’re elegant and seem fancy, but they’re super simple to cook – this recipe only calls for 5 ingredients! You can dish them out in individual bowls or share them straight from the pot. Plus since they take a while to eat, which means more time for conversation.  before we go our separate ways or plant ourselves in front of the tv.

Mussels have a lot of flavor on their own, so you don’t need to do much to them to transform them into a delicious meal. For these basil-butter mussels, I cooked them in a simple butter sauce known as beurre monté . It’s essentially melted butter emulsified with a little water to form a rich, velvety sauce. Add a little bit of lemon zest for acidity (don’t use juice, which causes the sauce to break) and tons of fresh basil to round things out. Serve the mussels with fresh baguette – perfect for sopping up any extra butter sauce – and a crisp white wine for an impressive date night meal.

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Mussels with Basil-Butter Sauce for Two

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoons water
• 4 tablespoons salted butter cut into 8 pieces
• 2 pounds mussels scrubbed well
• ½ lemon zested
• ¼ cup fresh basil chopped

Instructions

• Visit Anolon's web site for full preparation instructions.

I made these mussels in Anolon’s Nouvelle Copper 12″ Covered Skillet. It’s the perfect size for cooking two pounds of mussels and the cover fits nice and snugly so the mussels steam quickly. The pot itself is a gorgeous, heavy stainless steel with a copper bottom that helps it heat quickly and evenly, preventing hot spots. It retails for $89.99 but I’m giving one away to a lucky reader for free! Enter via the form below (if you’re reading this on mobile, you might need to click through to the desktop site.)

There are only a few weeks of my culinary program left, and I’m in major catch-up mode. I managed to keep somewhat on top of the reading and quizzes, but I’m woefully behind on the practical exercises. This week, I’ve been tackling some of the earlier tasks that I skipped (I figured they were basic and wouldn’t take long… and they wouldn’t have if I had actually done then when I was supposed to instead of trying to cram a whole bunch of them into one afternoon). That meant a lot of chopping, blanching, and roasting, without an actual recipe as the end-goal.

Of course, I wasn’t going to let all of those vegetables go to waste just because I didn’t have a plan for them! By adding some lemon juice and marcona almonds to my cauliflower while it roasted and then tossing it with lemon zest, pomegranate arils, and parsley, I was able to transform my “practice” into an easy and delicious recipe. It’s delicious as a side (try it will grilled flank steak or a piece of fish) but it also makes a great main dish if you serve it over steamed couscous.

I really love the bright, juicy burst of flavor the the pomeranate arils add to this cauliflower. I’ve been working with BloomFresh to create some recipes with their new ready-to-eat pomegranate arils, so I’ve had a ton of them in my fridge. I’ve been adding them to practically everything, but this cauliflower is one of my favorites. The arils are hand-packed in convenient containers without any preservatives, additives, or residues, eliminating the need to mess with whole pomegranates (plus they include a spoon for easy snacking!) They take a ton of frustration out of eating pomegranate.

I used marcona almonds for this because I love their soft texture and slightly sweet flavor – in a recipe as simple as this one, they really make a big difference. If you can’t find them, feel free to substitute regular almond halves.

(I also have to share the best secret to perfect roast vegetables that I learned: don’t use too much oil. I’ll admit that I can be a lazy cook and frequently just throw my vegetables onto a baking sheet and drizzle oil over the top. That still tastes good, but the vegetables mostly end up steaming and don’t get those beautifully browned bits that goof roast vegetables should have. Instead, take the extra minute to mix everything up in a bowl, then use your hands to lift the vegetables out and onto the pan, leaving the extra oil in the bottom of the bowl. The vegetables will get a better coating of oil that way, but it will be lighter. That means the vegetables will lightly “fry” in the oil without all of that extra moisture steaming them, so they’ll brown a lot easier. Plus, you’ll be eating way less fat which is also a plus!)

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Roast Cauliflower with Lemon, Almonds + Pomegranate

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 medium head cauliflower cut into florets (about 6 cups)
• scant 1/4 cup almonds preferably marcona roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lemon juiced and zested
• ⅓ cup BloomFresh pomegranate arils
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper

Instructions

• Heat oven to 450ºF.
• In a mixing bowl, toss the cauliflower with almonds, oil and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Spread the cauliflower in a single layer on a baking sheet.
• Bake 20-30 minutes, or until tender and golden.
• Remove from the oven and toss with lemon zest, pomegranate arils, and parsley.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you’re looking for more pomegranate goodness, be sure to check out Mother Thyme’s Pomegranate Blondies and Skinny Chef’s Quinoa Chicken Tenders with Pomegranate Pumpkin Seed Dipping Sauce.

I created this recipe for my client, BloomFresh, who is also generously providing the giveaway prizes. As always, thank you for supporting the brands that keep me inspired in the kitchen. 

I’ve been really into sheet pan dinners lately: They’re delicious, impossibly easy to make, and they give me an excuse to turn on the oven and warm the house up a little bit. Plus, since everything cooks together, I’m only left with one pan to wash!

As I mentioned last week when I shared the recipe for my breakfast risotto, I’ve been working with the New York Apple Growers to develop some recipes using their new Ruby Frost apples. The apples are firm and crisp, so they hold up to roasting and, since they’re not super sweet, they work well in savory dishes.

For this recipe, I combined thick apple wedges with peppery parsnips, creamy potatoes, and a small bunch of broccolini; a few mild chicken sausages rounded out the meal. The flavors were amazing together and I’m already looking forward to making this recipe again (it’s perfect for a Monday night after a long day at the office.)

Ruby Frost apples ripen later in the season and are available for a limited time in the winter months. They provide a healthy dose of vitamin C (about 14% of your daily amount) so they’re great for a mid-February immunity boost. They’re just starting to hit stores in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic states now, but they can be a little tricky to find. Check out the NY Apple Growers website to see a list of stores that carry them – hopefully there’s one near you!

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Roast Sausages with Apples and Parsnips

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• ¾ pound small yellow potatoes halved
• 4 Ruby Frost apples cored and cut into thick wedges
• 2 parsnips peeled and cut into coins
• 1 small bunch broccolini
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme chopped
• ½ teaspoon fresh rosemary chopped
• 4 chicken sausages

Instructions

• Heat oven to 425ºF.
• Combine the potatoes, apples, parsnips, and broccolini on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil; toss to coat. Springle with the fresh herbs.
• Spread the vegetables out so they're in a single layer and add the sausages to the baking sheet. Season everything with salt and pepper.
• Roast for 20 minutes, or until the apples and potatoes are fork-tender.

 Do you have any memories that are so vivid it’s almost like looking at a photograph? One of my earliest memories – I couldn’t have been much older than three – is of me sitting on the stoop and eating buttered egg noodles and peas straight out of a huge mixing bowl. I remember thinking those noodles were one of the most delicious things I had ever tasted.

With the exception of that simple dish, I typically only serve egg noodles with really rich dishes, like Swedish meatballs, Mushroom Stroganoff, and Beef Bourguignon. When the opportunity to create a recipe using No Yolks® presented itself, I set out to make a recipe that was lighter and fresher. I ended up making the dish you see here – noodles mixed with slightly caramelized brussels sprouts, caraway seeds, and fresh lemon juice and topped with chicken cutlets – and I couldn’t be happier with the results. We gobbled it up and immediately started dreaming about the leftovers. I’m already planning to make it again!
If you like egg noodles and caraway, you should definitely make this recipe soon. I’m already planning to make it again – it’s really that good!

With the exception of one time that I bought a store brand (never again), I always buy No Yolks® noodles. They’re so good, and they always cook up smooth and firm (unlike those other ones that turned into a pile of mush). They’re also available in a new whole grain variety! I went use the original noodles for this recipe since the flavors are so delicate, but I can’t wait to try the whole grain noodles that next time I make a heartier dish.

Be sure to grab a coupon for $1 of 2 bags of No Yolks® noodles and check out their website for more recipes to inspire you. It’s filled with delicious recipes, from chicken soup to lamb stew to noodle kugel.

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Noodles with Brussels Sprouts, Caraway, and Lemon

Soft caramelized onions and Brussels sprouts add enough moisture to this noodle dish that you don't need to add sauce – just be sure to stir it well so the vegetables and cooking oil distribute evenly throughout the dish.

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 495kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 6 ounces No Yolks® Extra Broad Noodles
• 1 pound chicken cutlets
• ¼ cup flour
• ½ teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 lemon juiced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion thinly sliced
• 3 cups sliced Brussels Sprouts about 20
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• Parsely for garnish optional

Instructions

• Heat oven to 200ºF. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil.
• While you wait for the water to boil, prepare the chicken. In a shallow dish, combine the flour, paprika, salt, and pepper. In a clean bowl, beat the egg with 1 tablespoon water. Dip the chicken into the egg, then dredge in flour.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large nonstick skillet set oven medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and cooked through. Sprinkle with half the lemon juice and transfer to the oven to keep warm.
• Add the noodles to the boiling water and cook for 10 minutes.
• While the noodles cook, heat the remaining oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook 2 minutes, or until softened. Add the shredded Brussels sprouts and cook 5 minutes, or until they begin to turn golden brown on the edges. Drain the noodles and add to the pan with the vegetables. Sprinkle with the remaining lemon juice and stir well to combine.
• Top the noodles with the chicken. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 495kcal | Protein: 74g | Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 11mg | Fiber: 4g

{Muffins with Fresh Berries}

Almond Blueberry Mini Muffins with Maple Cream Cheese Drizzle (Gluten-Free )

Bakery Style Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins

Blackberry Lemon Muffins (Gluten Free)

Blackberry Walnut Bran Muffins

Blueberry Honey Cornmeal Muffins

Blueberry Muffins with Blueberry Jam

Brown Butter Blueberry Muffins

Cherry Zucchini Crumb Muffins

Meyer Lemon Cranberry Poppyseed Muffins

Orange Blueberry Muffins

Seven Species Muffins

Strawberry Yogurt Flax Muffins (Gluten Free)

{Muffins with Fresh Citrus}

Grapefruit Honey Bran Muffins

Kiwi Coconut and Lime Muffins

Low Fat Meyer Lemon Muffins

{Muffins with Apples, Peaches, Plums, and Other Fresh Fruit}

Apple Carrot Great Grain Muffins

Blueberry-Peach Bran Muffins

Caramel Apple Muffins

Healthy Apple Spice Muffins

Pear Almond Muffins (gluten free)

Pear Ginger Walnut Muffins

Plum and Whey Soaked Oat Muffins

Plum, Marzipan, Cinnamon Muffins

Pumpkin Cranberry Apple Crumble Muffins

Roasted Peach Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel

Spiced Vanilla Pear Streusel Muffins

Tropical Mango Muffins

 {Banana Muffins}

Banana Chocolate Marble Muffins

Banana Crunch Muffins

Banana Toffee Coconut Muffins

Peanut Butter, Banana, and Honey Muffins

Kitchenaid Stand Mixer

Oh friends, today is your lucky day – not only because I have a delicious smoothie recipe to share with you, but because I also get to give one of you a Vitamix blender! How fun is that?! I’ve been using my Vitamix constantly ever since I got it back in January. It didn’t take long at all for it to replace my food processor as my favorite kitchen gadget.

 Earlier this Spring, Vitamix came out with the S30 – a new, personal-sized blender. In addition to a regular blender pitcher, it comes with a portable 20-ounce container that’s perfect for smoothies and blended juices. Just load up your favorite fruits and vegetables, screw on the blade, flip + blend, then replace the blade with a lid and you’re ready to start your day. My current favorites are this cherry-vanilla powder smoothie – loaded with black cherries, spinach, chia seeds, and coconut milk – and a green juice made with cucumber, kale, green apples, ginger, and lemon.

In addition to drinks, the 20 ounce container is perfect for grinding oats into flour for raspberry-oatmeal pancakes, chopping nuts, and making salad dressings and marinades. I find myself reaching for it just about every day.

The traditional pitcher is 40-ounces (about 2/3 the size of a full-size blender) and is perfect for sauces, soups, and margaritas for two.

Unlike my other blender, the S30 is tiny. It hardly takes up any space at all, which is definitely a plus in my kitchen, where counter space is at a premium. It’s also short enough that it fits under the cabinet (and light enough that, if I wanted to, I could keep it in the cabinet). Despite it’s small size, it still has a ton of power, which is pretty impressive. I love that I can add lots of greens to my smoothies without having to worry about being left with a gritty texture.

While the S30 is great, I have noticed a few differences form the full-sized machine. The first is that you can’t use a tamper with the travel container, which makes frozen drinks a little tricky sometimes. The cherries in this recipe are small enough that they blend without much difficulty, but I have had some trouble when I’ve tried adding ice cubes. It’s nothing that can’t be solved by giving the container a good shake though. (You can also use the 40-ounce pitcher for thicker frozen drinks, since the tamper does work with that one.)

This blender also doesn’t have the ability to makes soup or hot chocolate like the full-sized model – you’ll have to heat those sorts of things up in a pot (the old-fashioned way ;)). That’s one of my favorite features of my bigger blender, so I was a little disappointed that this one can’t do that.

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Cherry-Vanilla Power Smoothie

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 1

Calories 195kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 cup frozen black sweet cherries
• ½ cup packed baby spinach
• ½ teaspoon chia seeds
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• ¾ cup unsweetened coconut milk from a carton

Instructions

• Add the ingredients, in the order shown, to a single-serve blender container (if using a traditional blender, add the ingredients in the reverse order; the cherries should be furthest away from the blades.)
• Blend on low for a second or two, or until it starts to "catch" then increase the sweet to level 10/high. Blend 10-15 seconds, or until smooth.

Nutrition

Calories: 195kcal | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Fiber: 3.5g

It’s been almost a full week since I shared a recipe here… I can’t even remember the last time I went that long! As delicious as that potato salad with crispy ham was, I’m kind of tired of looking at it so I decided it was time to get off the couch and post something new. (This is apparently what happens when you start watching Friday Night Lights on Netflix… you spend way  too much time sitting on the couch and not doing anything even remotely productive.)

Hopefully this pie will make of for my absence?

A few weeks ago, I got a copy of Teeny’s Tour of Pie in the mail. The author, Teeny Lamothe, spent a year traveling to the best pie shops and bakeries in the country in an effort to master the art of pie. The book is packed full of awesome pie ideas and gorgeous photos. Teeny’s personality really comes through in her writing; she basically seems like the most adorable person ever.

I had a really hard time deciding which pie I wanted to make first, but I was really drawn to her cream pie recipes. Chai Cream Pie? Yum. Earl Grey Cream Pie? Oh my. I ended up settling on her classic Banana Cream Pie. It’s my Dad’s favorite pie, so I brought it with me to Easter dinner.

From the first bite, it’s obvious that this pie is something special. The banana cream is made from scratch, and it’s lightyears away from pies made with boxed pudding mix. I was a little worried that it wouldn’t be banana-y enough, since I opted out of the optional banana extract, but it ended up being perfect. Honestly, I think the extract would have ruined it.

I also really loved the crust, which is made from crushed vanilla wafers. I haven’t had a vanilla wafer in ages, and I had completely forgotten how delicious they are. The crust gives the pie a banana pudding vibe and, now that I’ve tried it this way, I don’t think I can go back to banana cream pie made in a standard pastry crust.

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Homemade Banana Cream Pie

Prep Time 4 hours hours

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 4 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups vanilla wafer crumbs about 45 cookies
• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups whole milk
• 4 medium egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 bananas
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Heat your oven to 350ºF.
• In a large bowl, combine the cookie crumbs and melted butter; stir to combine. Transfer 3/4 of the crumb mixture to a 9-inch pie pan. Form the sides of the pie crust by pressing the crumbs up the sides of the plate (it should be about 1/4 inch thick). Spoon the rest of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the plate; press it to form the bottom of the crust.
• Bake 5-7 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool.
• In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Add the milk and egg yolks; whisk until there are no lumps.
• Turn the burner on to medium. Cook the pudding whisking constantly and scraping the bottom of the pot so it doesn't burn, until it begins to thicken and come to a boil – about 10 minutes. Let the pudding boil 1 minute; remove from heat.
• Add the butter; whisk until the pudding is smooth. Thinly slice the bananas into the pudding; stir gently to incorporate.
• Pour the banana cream into the cooled crust. Immediately cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until set (at least 4 hours).
• Prepare the whipped cream by combining the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on high speed until thick and doubled in size – about 3 minutes.
• Before serving, remove the plastic wrap and top the pie with whipped cream.

Want to win a copy of Teeny’s Tour of Pie for yourself? Enter using the form below!

Disclosure: I was given two copies of Teeny’s Tour of Pies – one for myself and one to give away – as well as a small assortment of baking supplies from Food Lion.