A Southern Grace: courgette.

June 5, 2014

courgette.

Yum

I prefer the word courgette to zucchini and aubergine to eggplant, but I get the oddest looks when I use them out loud and in public. Oh, well.

My photo processing program wanted me to tag that farmer's face.  Sadly, I don't know his name.

I remember the first time I had a piece of zucchini bread–-I was shocked that something as nondescript and, well, vegetative could be a part of something so delicious!

Like most muffins, these come together quite easily; the most time-consuming part is grating the zucchini (but it’s a breeze if you use a food processor!). The whole wheat flour gives them a little more sturdiness than other muffins, but other than that, its presence is undetectable.


If you fill your muffins cups as instructed (rather than up-to-the-tippy-top like I did), you probably won’t get the mushroom effect that you see depicted here. It doesn’t make them taste any less delicious, of course; it’s merely a matter of aesthetics.

The chocolate chips and walnuts are optional, but in my humble opinion, they’re essential. A bite containing crunchy walnut, moist muffin, and rich chocolate first thing in the morning is a thing of beauty. Don’t skip the maple flavoring either, if you have it on hand–it adds a whole new level of complexity!

Zukey Muffins
Makes 12-14
Ingredients:
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup brown sugar, packed
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon maple flavoring
  • 1 cup shredded zucchini
  • ¼ cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
In a bowl, combine flours, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Combine the egg, sugars, oil, and flavorings; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in zucchini, chocolate chips, and walnuts. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until muffins test done.



42 comments:

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

Well, those are the British words you use, so I can understand you get odd looks when you pronounce them in America... ;-P

Lovely muffins!

Cheers,

Rosa

José Manuel said...

Se ve estupendo.

pam said...

Well, eggplant definitely sounds more appealing as aubergine, but you can't fool me, it's still eggplant.

I WIlkerson said...

We love chocolate chip zucchini muffins--my recipe uses a full 3 cups of grated "courgettes" so it really helps knock down my supplies. You wouldn't happen to have an aubergine muffin recipe now would you?

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

I still have tons of zucchini languishing in the fridge.

Sue/the view from great island said...

Seriously, Grace, those are some of the most awesome muffin tops I've EVER seen!

Rosita Vargas said...

Lindas magdalenas lucen estupendas ingrediente especial con chips de chocolate muy goloso,abrazos hugs,hugs.

Choc Chip Uru @ Go Bake Yourself said...

Courgettes is classier ;)
This looks incredible!

Cheers
Choc Chip Uru

Blond Duck said...

The word makes me giggle!

tania@mykitchenstories.com.au said...

Yes how funny. I dont understand where you got those words from.....I do have to admit that eggplant is not as appetising as aubergine, but dont take away the zucchini there are precious few vegies that begin with Z

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Hehe it's true, we use eggplant here and people give you slightly odd looks if you use the a word or even odder,the c word :P

Pam said...

I have a sudden craving for muffins.

Charlie said...

Keep on using your British Words!

After all the Brit terms have been around a lot longer than American.

We are all unique, do not give up that uniqueness.

I prefer aubergine and courgette myself.

Have a Joyful Day :~D
Charlie

Erica said...

That muffin looks amazing,Grace!Love the other blog! Great group of bloggers.

Katerina said...

I also have posted a recipe for chocolate zucchini cake, oops I meant courgette lol! Well, I love them however they are called! Actually in Greece we call them kolokithakia, well that would be super weard if pronounced in the States. The muffins look super tasty and i am sure they were in reality too!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a terrific muffin!

vianney said...

yummy~ great pic~~

Unknown said...

so you can imagine the weird looks I get when I say melongene which is what eggplants are called here:-)Veggies in muffins works or my kids

Lori said...

I want to call them courgette's too. And aubergines just sound so fancy. Dang people get hip, I want to use those words too!

Carolyn Jung said...

Whatever you call it, it sure looks scrumptious! LOL

The Squishy Monster said...

I especially love how Nigella says it...it makes it sounds terribly exciting!!!

Beth said...

That is one delicious-looking muffin! I'll be sure to check out the recipe.

Anonymous said...

A grand, tasty & fabuliscious looking muffin!

MMMMM,...! I also love your new blog look!! Very stylish too!

Laura said...

I should've taken a page from your book and called my bundt cake a courgette cake. I made 3 bundt cakes for my kids' school's cakewalk. The chcocolate ganache banana and earl grey chocolate went fast, but I am pretty sure the oh so delicious glazed orange zucchini bundt cake (which was labeled as such) was still sitting there when I left lol!

Hey do you watch Vampire Diaries? I started this summer and am madly racing through season 3 so I can start watching live in October...

Barbara said...

I agree, Grace. Courgette and aubergine are much more glamorous sounding. Luckily, I love both, no matter the name. They make good cooking partners too.
Yummy muffins with the maple flavoring and chips as surprise ingredients!

jillian said...

Love baking with zucchini and this recipe does them justice! I totally agree that courgette and aubergine sound like they give the vegetables the fancy titles they deserve. Maybe you will get it to catch on! :)

Anonymous said...

we had our first slice of moist zucchini bread baked with olive oil and slathered with honey butter and we were in bliss...so these cookies are certainly going to recreate that bliss of good home baked treats,thanks so much for sharing this fabulous recipe :-)

Angie's Recipes said...

Now I have a craving for zucchini muffins. Chocolate and zucchini are fantastic together.

Beth said...

I love baking with courgette, too. (Even though I don't usually call it that.) These muffins look great!

Pam said...

I've never thought to add maple flavoring to my zucchini muffins before. They look and sound tasty.

Marjie said...

I love me a good courgette bread! They will be in season soon, and the addition of the maple flavoring is a brilliant idea.

vanillasugarblog said...

Ms. Grace, now that---is a muffin top!

scrambledhenfruit said...

Call 'em what you like, but don't call me late for breakfast if you're having these. :)

Big Rigs 'n Lil' Cookies said...

I have been looking for a new recipe for zucchini muffins. Trying this recipe as soon as the garden starts producing!

~~louise~~ said...

Anyway you say them, Grace, I love them all!!! We usually use the Italian words around here anyway. I would share them but I have no idea how to spell them, lol...

I love the "mushroom effect" it makes muffins oh so much more fun to eat IMHO, biting off the sides frost is my favorite:)

LOve all the ingredients in these muffins. Oh I can't wait for zucchini season! Thanks so much for sharing, Grace. They sound oh so yummy!

Erica said...

What a wonderful way to use zucchini! They look absolutely delicious...Love the giant muffin top :)

pam said...

Chocolate chips are always essential!

Carolyn Jung said...

I'm totally with you on that: Wherever zucchini goes, chocolate chips should not be far behind! ;)

Katerina said...

These muffins are the best way to hide zucchinis especially when you have children! I love these muffins and I would gladly devour them!

Barbara said...

The first thing I'd do, is rip off that muffin top and chow down. Best part! Nice recipe, Grace. I've never combined cchips with zucchini. What's wrong with me? :) Your muffin recipes are always the best!

Joanne said...

One of my coworkers is from Australia and she is always using courgette, aubergine and capsicuum! Maybe I'll start adding them to my vernacular as well.

Dianne said...

Oh my goodness! Those look sooo good. That overflowing muffin top is actually my favorite part of the muffin! ;-)