Lemon Thyme Yellow Squash Muffins

During the past month, I have been getting a couple of either zucchinis or yellow squashes from my CSA every single week. The boyfriend doesn't eat squashes or zucchinis. So it falls to me to not waste the food. I mostly used them in salad and fried rice. The last attempt at zucchini muffins from this recipe turned out disastrous. The whole batch was bitter with metallic after taste from un-activated baking soda.

I was scarred and afraid of any kind of zucchini bread ever since. But that was no more. The abundance of summer squashes needs its channel. I decided to try again. This time with a recipe using much less baking soda. Plus I adapted to add lemon juice to make sure that all of the chemical gets activated leaving no after taste.



I also added fresh thyme (which I got from the same CSA at the beginning of the season as potted herb) to make thing more interesting. The result is very satisfying. The muffins came out light, moist and sweet. They are a little bit tart and fragrant with thyme. This one is a keeper. The only thing I might change the next time is that I might make 8 muffins instead of 6 to make the muffins prettier. These came out with flat top overflowing the pan. But then again, I love eating muffin tops. So I might just leave them be.



Ingredients - adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

• 1 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour


• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda


• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder


• 1/2 teaspoon salt


• 3/4 cup sugar


• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme - leaves picked


• 1 cup grated yellow squash - with skin, seeds and all


• zest and juice from 1 lemon


• 1/4 cup light tasting olive oil


• 1 egg

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease 6 cups of a muffin pan.


2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar and thyme.


3. In another bowl, whisk the egg with oil. Add grated squash, lemon zest and juice. Pour over the flour mixture. Stir until moist.


4. Spoon into the prepared muffin pan. Fill 3 of the empty cups with water up to half full. Bake for 25 to 28 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning onto a cooling rack.