Tasty Tuesday - Zucchini Mini Muffins

I am by no means a cooking expert, but I really enjoy cooking for H and B.  Finding new, nutritious options for them to eat has become somewhat of a hobby. I am sure they would be happy to consume all of their vegetables in pouch form, but I'd go broke and a little variety is a good thing.

One of the best options I've found so far is making vegetable "bites." They aren't really bite size, but pretty much every recipe refers to them as bites. Vegetables mixed with a grain, eggs, cheese and a little seasoning.  We've made bites with quinoa and carrots, broccoli and cheese, and most recently zucchini, onion and cheese.  

They've all been super easy to make and have been huge hits with the kids.  I usually make a double or triple batch and put them in the freezer.  They're super easy to heat up, less than a minute in the microwave, and they taste just as good as they did when they were fresh out of the oven.  

You can use any muffin or mini muffin tin to bake them.  You can even have fun with it and bake them in shaped silicone trays.  Little hearts or stars would be so adorable. 

When these were done cooling the kids went to town on them.  They each had a couple with lunch and then 3 or 4 more each as a snack. 

Zucchini Mini Muffins

Ingredients (yields 36 mini muffins)

2 small zucchinis

2 small yellow squashes

3/4 cup diced red onion

3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

3/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs

3 large eggs

Pepper for seasoning

1. Preheat oven to 400* F. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray, I use Pam olive oil spray, and set aside. 

2. Shred zucchini and squash (I used the medium size on my cheese grater) soak up excess moisture using paper towels or a dish towel.  If you don't blot out enough moisture the muffins will be soggy in the middle.   There should be approximately 3 cups of zucchini and squash once shredded and blotted.  

3. Dice red onion

4. Whisk eggs in large mixing bowl and then add all the ingredients.  Stir ingredients together until we'll combined.   

5. Spoon mixture into greased muffin tin, filling each cup to the top.  

6. Bake at 400* for 18-20 minutes or until the top and edges are crisp and brown. Remove from tray and let cool before serving.  

Notes: I used a mini muffin tin, so cooking times may vary if you are using a full size muffin tin or silicone bakeware. I used ingredients I had on hand.  You can use only zucchini, use yellow onion instead or red, or mix up the seasoning depending on what you have on hand. I modified my recipe from one I found on Pinterest.  Unlike baking, cooking isn't a science, so have fun with it.  

I am hoping to do a weekly post with a new recipe I've recently tried for the kids. If you're looking for ideas, search Pinterest or the web for baby lead weaning recipes. That's how I find most of my recipes. I've had luck with the majority of the things I've found, but there have also been a couple things that didn't go over well, and one particular cooking episode that should have been put on Pinstrosity.  

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and that it gets your kids eating their veggies.