Danielle Walker's expertise in the area of grain free/dairy free cooking and baking has inspired our household for many years now. I immediately LOVED her first two cookbooks (Against all Grain and Meals Made Simple) and her blog has been frequently visted and perused for food prep inspiration over the years. Never have I made a recipe of Danielle's that was a "fail"!
In the fall of 2016, I was on the launch team for Danielle's third cookbook, Celebrations, which quickly became my favorite of her then-three cookbooks. In the summer and fall of 2017, I was chosen to be a recipe tester for her fourth cookbook - Eat What You Love. Getting to take many of Danielle's new recipes for test runs and providing feedback to her team was a really neat experience. Grain free/dairy free delights like Chicken and Dumplings, Lemon Ricotta Pancakes, Pizza Pockets, Fish Sticks, Ricotta (made with almonds!), and Apple Crisp were just a few of the incredible recipes we tried.
It is SO exciting to report that Danielle's FOURTH cookbook is being released TOMORROW!! I've enjoyed cooking and baking my way through this book and would love to share a sneak-peek recipe with you: Chocolate Zucchini Muffins! I made these this weekend and they are pretty darn delicious.
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini
8 eggs
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup pure maple syrup
2/3 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup unflavored collagen peptides or protein powder of your choice (optional)
1/2 cup raw cacao powder
6 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (optional)
PROCEDURE:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two 12-cup muffin tins with baking cups, or grease the tins with coconut oil. Line a plate with paper towels.
Place the zucchini on the prepared plate and allow it to drain some of its moisture while you make the batter.
Place the eggs, applesauce, and maple syrup in a stand mixer fitted with the beater attachment, or use an electric handheld mixer. Mix on medium speed until combined. Add the coconut flour, collagen peptides powder, cacao powder, arrowroot, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and mix on medium speed until combined.
Wrap the paper towels around the zucchini and give it a light squeeze to remove any remaining moisture. Add the zucchini to the batter along with 1/4 cup of the chocolate chips and mix on low speed until incorporated. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling each two-thirds full. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips over the top.
Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the pan and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack before serving or storing.
Freeze in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, tightly covered with plastic wrap for 4 hours. Place the frozen muffins in an airtight container and freeze for 4 months. To eat the muffins directly from the freezer, heat them in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes, until warmed through. Or, defrost in an airtight container in the fridge overnight, or for up to 1 week. If you prefer, warm on a baking sheet in a 400 degree F oven for 2 to 3 minutes.
Reprinted with permission from Danielle Walker’s Eat What You Love: Everyday Comfort Food You Crave by Danielle Walker, copyright © 2018. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
VEGAN OPTION:
These muffins can easily be made egg free/vegan. I made a second batch of these muffins, subbing 8 flax "eggs" for the 8 eggs (1 flax egg = 1 tablespoon ground flax whisked into 2.5 tablespoons water) and omitting the collagen peptides to experiment with making them egg-free and vegan. The texture became more dense, but they were still quite delicious! (Note: these were MY edits and not the expert/Danielle's!!)
Order the Eat What You Love cookbook here:
It officially releases tomorrow (December 4, 2018) - but if you pre-order today (Monday, December 3, 2018!) you will receive a code to download a bonus chapter!
I hope you enjoy this book as much as we have been!
