A Mediterranean Spread + Lemon Poppyseed Zucchini Mini-Muffins

Tonight's dinner was a spread of beautiful Mediterranean bites. My mom and I made some stuffed peppers and tomatoes, some with rice and ground turkey, others with bulgur, carrots, and sauteed onions. Stuffed peppers and tomatoes are a great recipe to have in your cooking repoire, as it is fairly quick, requires few ingredients, can be made from mostly local foods, and makes enough for leftover lunches. The filling can vary according to your personal preferences. I snagged some fresh oregano a co-worker had brought in to share, and it was a delicious, last-minute addition to this dish.

I picked up some Bulgarian feta, fresh pitas, and ripe figs at Ed Hyder's Mediterranean Marketplace after work. I heated the sliced figs up, seed side down in a greased skillet with a drop of honey, and these were deliciousssssss. The Bulgarian feta was slightly different than traditional Greek feta in that it was a bit more sour, a smidge more salty, and minutely softer.

After dinner I was dying to bake some zucchini muffins. We had made a zucchini bread yesterday that was gobbled up within 12 hours of removing it from the oven, and I was itching for more. I wanted something with some lemony zest and a sprinkling of poppyseeds. I landed on A Spiced Life's blog and adjusted this recipe to fit my needs. Here it goes:

Jess's Lemon Poppyseed Zucchini Mini-Muffins

6 Tbsp unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 tsp. vanilla

2 Tbsp grated lemon zest

2 cups grated zucchini

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp poppy seeds

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray mini muffin pan with oil and set aside.

Melt butter and place in a mixer bowl. Add sugar, eggs, lemon juice and vanilla. Beat until blended. Stir in lemon zest and zucchini. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Add to batter and mix until blended. Mix in poppy seeds.

Put 1 Tbsp batter into each mini muffin hole. Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes clean, about 12-15 minutes. Cool five to seven minutes in pan, then, using a spatula, remove and completely cool on a wire cooling rack.

I doubled the recipe and probably ended up with 4 dozen muffins!

25, 25, 25

August 12 - 13 days until 25: Keep it real. No one likes a liar or a fibber. I appreciate the honest (sometimes brutal) truth over a flimsy lie. So, be true to yourself and be true to others.

Upcoming Festivities and Fetes for Food:

• Aug 13: Foodie Meetup to see Julie & Julia!
• Aug 14 & 15: Healthy Living Summit
• Posts to come... A book review on Clean Food, and a book review on Morning Glory Farm.

Question of the day: What's your favorite muffin recipe?