Trying to get more veggies into your family’s diet? Turns out winter squash – think butternut, acorn and hubbard – make a pretty fantastic addition to a batch of muffins. Grate it raw, like carrots – the trunk end of butternut is the easiest to peel and handle – and it melts right into the batter. Try it in cakes and quickbreads, too – and if you have too much to use, grate and freeze in ziplock bags for baking days down the road.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup canola oil
2 large eggs
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 grated raw winter squash, such as butternut or pumpkin
1 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, pecans, raisins, dried cranberries, or a combination of dried fruit and nuts
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
In a smaller bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs, ginger and vanilla. Add the oil mixture, grated squash and yogurt to the dry ingredients and stir with a spatula until almost combined; add the nuts and/or dried fruit and stir just until the batter is blended.
Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them almost full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden and springy to the touch.
Makes 1 dozen muffins.
