Since my parents host a small party for the Super Bowl nearly every year, I flew into town the Friday before so I could attend and catch up with some of our family friends that I hadn’t seen in a couple of years. But before my family and I headed to bed on the evening I arrived, I convinced them to go to our favorite brunch spot on Saturday morning—just not too early in the day so everyone could still sleep in!
So the following day, we drove to that particular restaurant a little under an hour away, yet when we arrived, we were surprised to find it twice as busy as normal, even in the very late morning. Thankfully, we only waited a few minutes for a table, and less than ten seconds after the hostess set menus down in front of us, we already knew what we wanted to eat.
My brother ordered a cheesy homestyle hash brown dish; Dad asked for a combination of chicken apple sausage, homestyle hash browns, and eggs over medium; and Mom and I opted for plates of steamed veggies with the same homestyle hash browns and a side of protein (scrambled eggs for her, grilled chicken for me). All fairly healthy choices, until…
Three of us ordered towering slices of supremely moist and tender blueberry coffee cake topped with a thick layer of cinnamon streusel. And two people asked for extra butter to slather all over the hot breakfast cake so it’d melt into all of the nooks and crannies for an extra rich and indulgent treat.
I left my slice untouched and boxed it up to take home and savor for dessert that evening, so I focused on enjoying the healthy plate in front of me at the restaurant instead. I finished all of my chicken and steamed veggies, and when I noticed Mom left half of her veggies untouched, she offered to let me bring them home too.
I happily agreed, so for dinner that evening, I polished off another round of the colorful steamed vegetables, along with some of the leftover potatoes, before diving into my blueberry coffee cake. With a wide variety of produce, everything from carrots and zucchini to cauliflower and purple cabbage, those steamed veggies really hit the spot!
When I flew home the day after the Super Bowl, I was still thinking about those delicious and healthy vegetables… So I chose two of my favorites from that wholesome brunch plate to make these Healthy Spiced Carrot Zucchini Muffins!
These muffins are supremely moist and tender with a cozy blend of spices permeating throughout every bite, and they’re packed with fresh carrots and zucchini. Yet unlike most store-bought muffins, these contain no refined flour or sugar and just 102 calories!
Continue reading & see the rest! ›› Healthy Spiced Carrot Zucchini Muffins
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