Healthy Breads and Muffins

Usually it’s a Sunday morning and you peruse your current food supply to determine your eats for the next week. If you have zucchini, bananas, apples, sweet potato, carrots or other produce that needs a new life, make a yummy and healthy bread or muffin with them. You can freeze them, share them, or gobble them up while reading the paper with a big mug of coffee. It won’t take long and you will save money, eat healthy and help reduce food waste.

Easy and healthy banana bread: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a loaf pan. In a large bowl, beat together 1/3 cup olive oil and 1/3 cup of maple syrup (or honey). Add 2 eggs and beat well. Add 2 mashed ripe bananas and 1/4 cup almond (or any) milk and whisk. Add 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp vanilla, pinch of salt, 1 tsp cinnamon and blend. Stir in 1 2/3 cup white whole wheat flour (and 1 T chia seeds and 1T flaxseed if you have them) and stir until combined but still lumpy. Toss in any nuts (almonds or walnuts are great), a few dark cacao chocolate chips, dried fruit or raisins, apple chunks or whatever is your preference. Bake for about an hour and then cool for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack. Cool before slicing.

Easy and healthy zucchini muffins: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 12 muffin pan by spraying or using muffin papers. In a large bowl stir together 1 2/3  cup white whole wheat flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cinnamon, and pinch of salt. Set aside. In a smaller bowl, whisk together 1 egg, 1/3 cup maple syrup (or honey), 1/2 cup almond (or any) milk, 1/4 cup olive oil, and 1 tsp vanilla. Pour this into the larger bowl and mix together. Add 2 grated unpeeled zucchini and 1/3 cup uncooked old fashioned oats and stir until just combined. Add nuts, chocolate chips, dried fruit, seeds or other items you want to add.  Divide between the 12 baking cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Enjoy and let us know how much you love them!