Hey! Guess what? As of last week, I have a preschooler. That’s right! A PRESCHOOLER! Dang! Where does the time go? In preparation for this monumental event, I let Cooper pick out his very own lunchbox and backpack. He went with a nice robot theme and I’m glad for that because the construction themed set was not my favorite color. I know it’s not MY lunchbox, but I’m the one who has to keep tabs on it, clean it out & fill it up every other day. I’m also left with the task of having to figure out what to put in said lunchbox and I need to get him excited about lunch time at school! It’s a tall order.

At the beginning of the week, I made these Zucchini Banana Flaxseed Muffins with the idea of putting one in his lunch box as a treat for all three days of preschool. Little did I know they would disappear in less than two days. Cooper loved them so much that I actually caught him standing on a chair at the kitchen counter reaching into the container of muffins I put aside for the week! And just when I thought my new hiding place was legit, I walked downstairs to see him eating another muffin behind the couch. SNEAKY kid! If these muffins were loaded with sugar, butter or oil, I’d be upset. But the fact that there’s both zucchini and banana mixed in with a little flaxseed makes his sneaky behavior totally OK. I can’t really blame him; they taste great! They’re moist, tender, full of flavor and the flaxseed gives the muffins a nutty flavor without nuts. You would never really know that there’s no oil in this recipe. I have now welcomed these healthy muffins into his lunchbox rotation. Victory!

And we’re off!

Gather your ingredients.

Measure out the flaxseed, sugar, flour, milk and what have you.

Mix all the dry ingredients together.

Grate the zucchini and mash up that banana. Look! I did it right in the peel. No extra bowl to clean up.

Mix it into your dry ingredients.

Get out the vanilla, milk & egg. Whisk!

Pour the milk mixture into the flour/zucchini mixture.  Stir!

Place the batter in muffin tins that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake!

Bust open a warm muffin and smother it with butter. They still taste really great without butter…

But I like butter…especially when it’s married to a hot muffin.

It kind of seals the deal, don’t you think?

Zucchini Banana Flaxseed Muffins

Makes 12

(recipe adapted from Everyday Food Magazine)

• nonstick cooking spray
• 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup ground flaxseed
• 3/4 cup lightly packed light-brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini (from 1 large zucchini)
• 1/3 cup mashed banana (from 1 large banana)
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F Lightly coat muffin tin with cooking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, flaxseed, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt & cinnamon. Add zucchini and banana and stir to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, egg and vanilla. Add milk mixture to the flour mixture and stir until combined (do not over mix)

Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, Let muffins cool completely in a pan on a wire rack, about 30 minutes. Store in an air- tight container, up to 3 days.