I love adding vegetables in unexpected places, which means kids will love this recipe for cinnamon and sweet yummy Yellow Squash Muffins!
So today’s recipe may seem a little on the odd side. Even my mother said, “You put squash in a muffin?!” Yes. Yes, I did, and they are delicious! These mighty yellow squash muffins were indeed born out of desperation. You see, my lovely little garden produced a rather large bumper crop of summer squash. So large, in fact, that I froze about 15-18lbs of yellow squash and it does freeze very well. Unfortunately, there aren’t a whole lot of things you can do with it. While it is great to use in a stir fry and the yellow squash pan fries very well, that is about all the options I knew of and I still had a LOT left over. That got me to thinking about my zucchini muffins recipe and I decided, why not?
Summer squash has a natural buttery quality that I hoped would work well in my experiment. Also, I am firmly becoming a believer that you can cover up any weird taste by adding enough cinnamon so adjusting my recipe seemed like it might just work. And the results? Fabulous. Since this recipe makes 24 muffins, I even tested them out on my poor unsuspecting sweet neighbors and co-workers. I have already been asked for the recipe several times so that is a winner. (And the squash is put to good use!)
NOTES ON MAKING THIS YELLOW SQUASH MUFFIN RECIPE
Ok, so here are my personal notes on the yellow squash muffin recipe (also found on the recipe card when you print it). First, muffins are always best served warm, and these summer squash muffins are no exception. Pop them in the microwave for 15 seconds and enjoy! Secondly, I listed unsweetened applesauce but, honestly, use whatever applesauce is on hand unless it is flavored like strawberry or something. Those six-packs that you can buy for to-go lunches are perfect. Also, the squash preparation whether you are using fresh summer squash or frozen is the same. Drain as much liquid as you can from them.
Frequently asked questions:
Food Processor: This is the newer version of the one I have used for over a decade. It saves me so much time in the kitchen! And the reviews are so spot on, especially since it is so affordable! Now, if I could just find a worthy blender.
The Muffin Pan: Ever since I first discovered the awesomeness that is this baking mat, I just had to try the new muffin pans. These things are awesome! I honestly still keep my old muffin tins around to make transporting baked goods easy though.
Fresh Vanilla Beans: I make my own vanilla extract and there is no substitute in certain recipes like homemade ice cream or whipped cream. To be honest, I can’t tell the difference in most baked goods but it’s nice to always have on hand anyways. I usually look for Madagascar bourbon vanilla beans, but I have heard of shortage problems, which means high prices. However, I can usually make about 40-50 fl oz. of vanilla extract with just 5 beans.
Yes! I grow yellow squash in my garden, and sometimes I have more than I know what to do with! I love to create great recipes like this to use up all my fresh veggies, but I do end up freezing the excess often.
If you’re not a big fan of nuts, you can definitely omit them entirely. You can also substitute them for walnuts, macadamia, or any nut you prefer. You might even try swapping them out for raisins or any other kind of dried fruit you like.
Looking for More Recipes to Put Vegetables In? Check These Out:
Yellow Summer Squash Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups squash
- 3 Eggs
- 3 cups Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 cup sugar
- ¾ cup Brown Sugar
- ½ cup oil
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tsp Vanilla
- 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, stir in the squash. Stir in nuts. Spoon batter to ¾ full in muffin tins. Bake for 16-20 minutes or until golden brown. Increase baking time for larger muffins.
Notes
Nutrition
Not Sure
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Margaret says
Made this afternoon. Used walnuts instead of pecans because that’s what we have. Very good!
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!