Savoury gluten-free zucchini and feta muffins are full of flavour, vegetables and healthy as a snack, to go with soups or salads or even for breakfast.
On their own, zucchini tends to have a bland, watery flavour but adding them to eggs, cheese and seasonings really improve their potential. While baking, the zucchini absorbs the strong flavours of the feta cheese and artichokes plus offers a nice texture to the slice.
Substitutes
You can substitute the olives and artichokes with sun-dried tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, bocconcini balls, parmesan cheese or anything you love. If you are looking to add some meat, I would recommend slivers of ham or prosciutto, or lightly fried bacon bits.
Serving zucchini & feta muffins
I make these often to have as a snack, a side to soups or with a salad. They are great for a packed lunch or a picnic. If you make mini muffins, these look fantastic on a platter to serve at a party.
Making a zucchini & feta slice instead
In Italy, a vegetable egg slice would be called a frittata and in Spain, a tortilla. Both countries have many variations of fillings and are usually served as tapas or sold in slices to eat on the go. A slice is more solid in texture and doesn’t need any milk or liquid. The large quantities of vegetables give the slice a strong structure and extra nutrition!.
Deciding whether to make it a slice or lots of muffins or both, is entirely up to you. From a practical point of view, I prefer to make muffins as they are easy to eat without utensils and freezing them in zip-lock bags is a breeze. If you intend to make this as a main meal, then I would opt for a slice.
Gluten-Free Zucchini & Feta Muffins
Equipment
- regular size muffin trays
Ingredients
- 550 g zucchini, unpeeled & grated (1 large zucchini weighs on average 200 g)
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp polenta
- 5 eggs
- 125 ml olive oil
- 1 tbsp chives, snipped finely
- 3 spring onions, finely sliced
- 50 g fresh or frozen spinach leaves, shredded
- 300 g feta cheese
- ½ tsp dried chilli flakes (optional)
- 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 200 g store-bought or homemade gluten-free plain flour
- 1 tsp gluten-free baking powder
- 20 black olives, whole & pitted
- 5 artichoke hearts, tinned, sliced in quarters
- snipped chives, to garnish
- fresh mint leaves, to garnish
Instructions
- Gather and measure the ingredients together.
- Cut one end off the zucchinis and grate them into a medium bowl.
- Add the salt and gently massage it into the zucchini. Leave them for 15 minutes in a colander to drain. This will draw out the excess water from the zucchini.
- Gently squeeze the zucchini to release any remaining water.
- Prepare the muffin trays by brushing the bottom and sides with either butter or oil and dust them with the polenta, shaking out any excess.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until foamy. Add the oil, chives, spring onions, spinach, half of the feta cheese, chilli flakes and pepper.
- Add the zucchini to the egg mixture and mix well.
- Sieve the flour and baking powder over the zucchini mixture and combine well.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared muffin trays.
- Decorate the tops of each muffin with olives, artichoke pieces and the remaining feta cheese, half submerging them into the mixture.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Bake on the middle shelf for 25-30 minutes. Use a toothpick to test if the inside is cooked by inserting it in the middle. If it comes out clean, the slice is ready.
- Leave the muffins to cool down for 15 minutes before removing them to cool down further on a wire rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
- Keeps for 3 days chilled
- Bring to room temperature for one hour or reheat in a moderate oven covered in foil
- Suitable to freeze
ALTERNATIVE TIP
Makes a large slice using a baking tin measuring 20 x 20 cm. Allow the slice to cool down for at least 30 minutes before slicing and removing it from the tin.
Easy recipe to fo follow and the muffins came out perfect , plus were delicious!
Thanks,
Marta
Thank you, Marta, for your feedback. I am so glad you found the recipe easy and delicious!