Sourdough Zucchini Muffins

These easy and moist Sourdough Zucchini Muffins are the best way to use zucchini in your garden.

The tender muffins are made with grated zucchini, sour cream or yogurt, oil, and sourdough discard so they remain extremely moist and soft for days.

They’re lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg with a crunchy and shiny topping from raw sugar.

Follow my detailed instructions with photos and tips below so the sourdough discard zucchini muffins rise tall and you get domed bakery-style muffin tops.

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👍 Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Simple and quick way to use zucchini from your garden like using bananas in Sourdough Banana Bread or carrots in Sourdough Carrot Cake Scones.
• Sourdough discard, oil, and sour cream (or yogurt) keep the muffins moist and tangy.
• Domed bakery-style tops that rise tall in the oven.
• Crunchy raw sugar topping.
• Lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, but versatile to add other spices or inclusions like chocolate chips.

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🔍 Tips for Making Sourdough Zucchini Muffins

• No need to peel or squeeze out the water in the zucchini in this recipe. Just grate and fold into your batter! The green specks are nice to see in the muffins.
• Rest the batter at least an hour and up to overnight in the refrigerator for domed bakery-style tops.
• Bake at a high temperature (400ºF or 204ºC) so they rise tall.
• Don’t overmix the batter so the muffins will stay tender.
• Line your muffin pan with muffin tins/paper and grease them with oil to prevent sticking.

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🛠 Tools Needed

You only need a few basic tools to make these zucchini muffins.

• Baking scale
  • Flour and sourdough starter can weigh differently from person to person, so weighing your ingredients is the best option! Measuring your ingredients by weight will make your baking more consistent and accurate.
• Muffin Pan
  • I love this USA Muffin Pan because it’s naturally non-stick and heavy-duty.
• Muffin Liners
  • Oiled paper liners prevents sticking and help you transport the muffins.
• Spatula and Whisk
  • If you have an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, you can also use them to mix the muffin batter.
• Box Grater
  • Or a food processor to grate the zucchini.

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🛒 Ingredients Needed

See below for my ingredient recommendations and possible substitutions.

• Zucchini, grated
  • You don’t need to peel or squeeze water from the zucchini in this easy recipe.
• All-purpose flour
  • You can substitute some or all of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour or a gluten-free flour like oat flour or almond flour.
• Salt
• Baking Powder
• Cinnamon & Nutmeg
  • I like keeping things simple with this recipe using cinnamon and nutmeg as warming spices.
  • However, other spices like ginger and cardamom would be great in the muffins too.
• Neutral Oil
  • I usually bake muffins with melted butter like my famous Sourdough Blueberry Muffins, but opt for oil in this recipe to keep the muffins extra moist for days.
  • You can use vegetable oil, canola oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, or any unflavored oil.
• Sour Cream
  • I like the rich tanginess of sour cream paired with zucchini (I also use in these decadent Sourdough Chocolate Muffins), but yogurt is a great substitute like in my Sourdough Cranberry Muffins.
  • Use full-fat sour cream for the best flavor.
• Vanilla Extract
• Light brown sugar
  • Brown sugar has molasses, which adds a little more richness to the muffins.
• Granulated sugar
  • Adds structure and sweetness to the muffins.
• Eggs
  • Adds structure to help bind the ingredients together and helps the muffins rise tall.
• Sourdough Discard
  • If you don’t have an active sourdough starter, learn how to make one in a week following my how-to guide. See my top sourdough starter tips and other sourdough discard recipes.
• Raw sugar, for topping
  • Finishing with raw sugar creates a shiny, crackly exterior on these zucchini muffins that texturally contrasts the soft interior.

Variations

• Add ½ cup of toasted walnuts or pecans to the batter.
• Fold ½ cup of chocolate chips to the batter for chocolate zucchini muffins.
• Add a crumb topping like in my Sourdough Apple Butter Muffins or Sourdough Strawberry Muffins.
• For more brightness, zest lemon or orange into the batter.
• Make sourdough zucchini cream cheese muffins by adding softened cream cheese mixed with powdered sugar into the muffin tins.

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💚 How to Make Sourdough Zucchini Muffins

Follow this detailed recipe guide as you make the best sourdough discard zucchini muffins.

1. Grate the Zucchini

Use the large holes of box grater or food processor to grate the zucchini in a bowl. Set aside.

2. Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a large mixing bowl, mix the all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

3. Whisk the Wet Ingredients

In another medium bowl, whisk the two eggs, sugars, oil, sour cream, vanilla extract, and sourdough discard until incorporated.

4. Mix the Batter

Add the wet ingredients to the bowl of dry ingredients and fold with a spatula until only a few flour spots remain.

Gently fold in the grated zucchini until evenly distributed. The batter will be quite wet.

5. Chill the Batter

For the best results, chill the batter for at least one hour and up to overnight.

Chilling the zucchini muffin batter will help the flour and flavors hydrate so it’s easier to scoop, improve the flavor, and help the muffins rise tall in the oven. You can also bake them on your own schedule for convenience!

6. Bake

Preheat the oven to 400ºF (204ºC).

Line your muffin pan with paper liners or tins and spray with non-stick oil or grease.

Divide the zucchini muffin batter evenly among the 12 muffins. It should fill them up almost to the top. I like to use a large ice cream or cookie scoop.

Sprinkle the tops with raw sugar for a sparkly, crunchy topping.

Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Cool the muffins on a wire rack.

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How to Store and Serve

You can store sourdough zucchini muffins at room temperature, in the refrigerator, or freeze them.

Before storing, always let your muffins cool down completely.

The zucchini muffins can stay moist on the countertop for 3 days, or you can refrigerate them for up to a week.

To freeze, wrap them in plastic wrap and freeze for up to three months in a freezer-safe bag. Thaw overnight and reheat in the oven or a toaster oven.

Serve the muffins for breakfast or brunch as they are or with a schmear of cultured butter, creme fraiche, or ricotta.

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❓ Frequently Asked Questions

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Other Sourdough Breakfast Recipes You May Enjoy

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