Yellow Squash Muffins are sweet, spiced, and fluff up perfectly nice. These delicious grab-and-go breakfast bites are kid-approved and they’re brimming with veggies. A simple muffin recipe celebrating the buttery flavor of summer squash.
We love fun breakfast muffins like Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping, Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, and Zucchini Muffins. This recipe was a bit of a happy accident. My lovely little garden produced a HUGE bumper crop of summer squash.
And now, I’m asked for the recipe nearly every time someone bites into one of these petite breakfast muffins. They’re seriously SO fluffy, flavorful, moist, infused with sweet cinnamon flavor and a nice pecan crunch.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- A slightly sweet, buttery flavor with a touch of cinnamon.
- These bite-size quick breads are brimming with hidden veggie goodness.
- Yellow Squash muffins bake up moist & fluffy without fail.
- Less oil with a secret weapon ingredient.
- Store muffins in the freezer for an easy grab-and-go breakfast option.
Ingredients and Notes
Here’s an overview of the ingredients you’ll need to create this recipe:
Flour: I use all-purpose flour. Whole wheat flour will work as a 1:1 substitution in the muffins.
Yellow Squash: You need roughly 2 cups of shredded squash. Use the entire squash including the seeds and skin.
Oil: Vegetable or canola oil are the preferred choice. Melted butter or coconut oil will work as a substitute; I haven’t experimented with either.
Nuts: I prefer chopped pecans. Choose walnuts, macadamia nuts, or another nut of choice.
Unsweetened Applesauce: This makes the homemade muffins lighter in calories and balances the flavors. In most of my recipes, the applesauce is a substitute for ½ of the oil. Sweetened or cinnamon flavored will work in a pinch. The little 6-packs for kid’s lunches are perfectly sized.
OPTIONAL ADD-INS:
- Unsweetened Coconut Flakes
- Fresh Lemon Juice or Zest
- Fresh or Frozen Blueberries
- Raisins or Dried Cranberries
- Nutmeg or Ginger
- Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
How to Prep Squash
- When handling fresh squash, there’s excess moisture present. To help with moisture absorption, rest slices on paper towels for at least 30 minutes. Blot as necessary.
- If using frozen squash, thaw and drain a small amount of water. Press into a colander to remove as much liquid as possible and blot with a paper towel.
- Chop squash in a food processor until it’s diced to the size of corn kernels. It’s fine if a few pieces in the squash mixture are a bit larger.
PRO TIP: This is the same technique used to shred zucchini in baking recipes such as Zucchini Muffins or Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread!
Tips for Making Perfect Muffins
- Choosing Squash. It should feel firm and evenly bright. While scratches are common, don’t choose squash with soft spots. Small squash typically have fewer or smaller seeds than large squash.
- Use fresh baking powder. This will ensure that the muffins rise properly. Replace your baking powder if it’s older than a year.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Mix the flour into your wet ingredients until it’s just combined. The batter will be thick. If you overmix the batter your muffins may turn out too dense.
- Fill muffin tin cups to ¾ full. Add some chocolate chips or nuts to the top of the muffins for a little something extra if you’d like.
More Hidden Vegetable Recipes
- Zucchini Muffins
- Pumpkin Bread with Cheesecake Swirl
- Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake
- The Best Carrot Cake
Serving and Storing Suggestions
Serving Ideas: Muffins are always best served warm, and these Summer Squash Muffins are no exception. Heat them in the microwave for 10-15 seconds and enjoy!
Store: Store in a cool, dry place in an airtight container, away from bright lights or heat sources. Muffins can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer. If properly covered, they’ll keep 4-6 months in the freezer and approximately 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
Freeze: Allow muffins to cool completely before storing in the freezer in an airtight container.
Make Ahead: These are great to make ahead and store. I don’t recommend storing uncooked batter because the muffins won’t rise as well.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Sometimes I grow more yellow squash than I know what to do with! I love to create great food like this muffin recipe to put all my fresh veggies to good use, but I end up freezing the excess often.
If you’re not a big fan of nuts, feel free to omit them entirely. Or swap out the pecans with walnuts, macadamia, or any other kind of nut you prefer. Try swapping the nuts out for raisins or an alternative bite-size dried fruit.
Nope! There’s no rule about this, it comes down to personal preference.
Not Sure
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Yellow Squash Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups squash shredded or petite diced
- 3 cups All-purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup Granulated Sugar
- ¾ cup Light Brown Sugar
- 3 Eggs
- ½ cup Vegetable Oil
- ½ cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Chopped Pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350. Grease muffin tins or use muffin liners.
- Prepare squash. For fresh, slice and place on paper towels for at least 30 minutes and blot as necessary. If using frozen squash, thaw and drain. Press into colander to remove as much liquid as possible. Chop squash in a food processor until diced (about the size of corn kernels).
- In a mixing bowl, blend oil, applesauce, and eggs together. Add vanilla, sugar, and brown sugar. Mix until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together.
- One cup at a time, add dry mixture to wet and blend before adding next cup until all are just mixed.
- Using a spoon, fold in the squash and nuts. Spoon batter to ¾ full in muffin tins.
- Bake for 16-20 minutes or until golden brown. Increase baking time for larger muffins.
Ashley says
I love any recipe where I can disguise some healthy goodness! Thanks for sharing your ideas!
Jenna says
My kids loved these! Thank you for sharing!
Helen says
I love zucchini bread, but I never thought to use Squash! This was genius and so delicious!
Margaret says
Thank you so much! I’m going to be making these all the time!
Wendy says
How inventive! These turned out amazing!
Christine says
I’m always trying to find new recipes to use up all of my extra squash. I will be using this recipe to share with friends and family. Thank you for sharing!
Margaret says
Made this afternoon. Used walnuts instead of pecans because that’s what we have. Very good!
Rhonda says
Oh my word, I was surprised how delicious these were. Great idea!
Cindy says
These were fantastic! I couldn’t resist them right out of the oven. They made the whole house smell amazing!
Leah says
If I only have vanilla extract how much should I use?
Rachel says
2 tsp works wells!
Amber says
Ok so I saw your notes after I finished making these lol but all I had on hand was unsweetened summer strawberry flavored applesauce so I went with it, and honestly they turned out great you can’t really taste the strawberry lol!! Thanks for the recipe!
Rachel says
haha, glad it worked! I had that happen once, but luckily it was with cinnamon applesauce so I didn’t fret. Glad you enjoyed them!
Erika says
Question: can the nuts be left out, or must they be replaced? If they must be replaced, what non-nut ingredient can you suggest, please? Thank you!
Rachel says
The nuts can easily be left out if you like. Enjoy!
chris says
These look great and I have the squash ready to go. Do you leave the outer skin on the squash? Also, what do you mean you “shred the squash with a cheese grater”? The recipe says you use a food processor. Thanks in advance for clarifying!
Rachel says
Actually, I have used both a food processor and a cheese grater. I usually slice and freeze the yellow squash when I get too much from the garden. You can’t grate it from thawed so I use a food processor. However, if it is fresh I usually just grate it. Either way is completely fine for the recipe and won’t change the result. Enjoy!
Rachel says
Oops, forgot to answer the the skin question. Yes, I leave the skin on and grate it with a large hole grater or a food processor.
Becky says
Do you cook the squash before adding to muffin recipe or leave uncooked?
Rachel says
Whether fresh or thawed from frozen, you can leave it uncooked. I shred the squash with a cheese grater (the larger holes if there is a choice) so it is pretty thin and incorporates well in the muffins. Happy to help!
Stephanie says
This looks absolutely delicious! Thanks so much for sharing it at Tasty Tuesday where you’ve been featured and pinned!