Veggie Muffins (Gluten and Dairy Free)

There are days when you feel like cooking a huge meal from scratch and sitting down at the table to eat together. And then there are days when you have 5 minutes to eat something before you have to run out the door. These muffins are for those days. Not only do they taste amazing, but they are a grab and go meal you can eat out of your hand. Standing at the sink, driving in the car, traveling on an airplane, packed in a school lunch box....no plates required!

One of my life goals is to perfect the "meal in a muffin" concept, because my child has never once turned down a muffin. Ever. It must have protein, fat, fruit, vegetables, and fiber. And it can't taste like any one of those things. It must taste like a muffin....and I almost forgot, it must be gluten and dairy free, because that's how we roll around here. These muffins are full of healthy real food that you will feel good about eating or feeding to your kids. This is my new favorite recipe and I hope you love it too!

Good things to know:

• this recipe makes 28 muffins

• you need a large food processor for this recipe....it is a MUST

• you can store them in the fridge or freezer (defrost in the fridge overnight)

• each muffin contains about 6 grams of protein (from the egg/oats/almond butter)

• you probably won't be able to eat just one, so pack 2 or 3 per person

• they are light and spongy, not dense or hard

• my 7 year old calls them "oatmeal cookie muffins" because that's what he thinks they taste like

• its a good idea to bake your sweet potatoes the day before to save time (store in fridge overnight)

Ingredients that go in food processor:

1 16oz jar of almond butter

4 large eggs

4 large ripe bananas, cut into large chunks

1 cup of cooked sweet potato (no skins)

1 heaping cup of shredded zucchini, tightly packed (you'll need about 2 good sized zucchinis, squeeze the water out before packing in the measuring cup)

1 Tablespoon maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Ingredients that are mixed in by hand:

2 cups rolled oats (make sure to use gluten free oats if this matters to you)

1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (make sure to use dairy free chocolate if this matters to you)

1. Bake 2 good sized sweet potatoes in a 400 degree F oven for about 1.5 hours. Let them cool for 15 minutes. Use a knife to slice them open, and scoop out the flesh. I then store it in the fridge (overnight usually). You will need 1 cup of this.

2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

3. Wash your zucchini, and then shred/grate it onto a cutting board. Pick up a handful and squeeze it tightly over the sink. Keep squeezing for about 10 seconds and then pack it tightly into the (1 cup) measuring cup. Repeat until you have filled the measuring cup (slightly overflowing is good).

4. Place the grated zucchini (from the measuring cup), sweet potato, eggs, bananas, almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla, baking soda and lemon juice into your food processor. (Basically every single ingredient EXCEPT for the rolled oats and chocolate chips). Puree for at least 30 seconds. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl (carefully, the blade is sharp!) to make sure all of the almond butter is incorporated. Puree again for at least another 30 seconds. You will know its done when there are no more chunks of banana visible.

5. Pour your batter into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the rolled oats and chocolate chips by hand until they are well mixed in.

6. Line your muffin tin with paper baking cups and divide the batter into 28 muffin cups. Fill each cup until just about full.

7. Bake your muffins for 27-29 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Carefully remove the muffins from the pan and cool on a cooling rack for at least 15-20 minutes. If you are impatient and try to eat them too early, the muffin will usually stick to the sides of the paper baking cup. Be patient and the paper will peal off neatly.

8. Store in the fridge or in the freezer.