Hi Reader!

Rise up fellow Gemini's, our season is here! 👯‍♀️ I like to celebrate the entire month of May for my birthday and I hope you do the same. That means treats where I can get them and joy wherever I can find it.

I have been moderately MIA lately as life sometimes takes over in an aggressive, take-no-prisoners kinda way. I hurt my heel. Sigh. My doctor(s) thought it was a fracture and the glacial pace that our healthcare system works is truly stunning. So I've been lugging my booted right foot around like Jack Nicholson at the end of The Shining, slogging through visits with specialists to get it figured out.

Turns out, the gift of psoriasis has gone systemic and it has, indeed, moved into my body (specifically, my heel). Where are my psoriasis babes at? 👀 Starting Skyrizi this week and *HOPING* it's the magic I need it to be!🤞🏼

I had to give you the visual of Jack Nicolson lumbering through the snow at the end of the movie. It's too good.

​

But good news! It's finally, after months, feeling ok-ish to stand on. And thus, I made us these beautiful muffins. Yay!

My garden is FLOURISHING. And so the first thing I did was create these Zucchini Muffins with zucchini from my garden. I'm now realizing I didn't take a photo of this year's debut zucchini, but trust me, more garden pics are on the horizon.

These muffins are, in the world of muffins, everything. They have a whopping 2 cups (240 g) of shredded zucchini. For me, that equals one large zucchini or 2 to 3 smaller ones. Use the grams (240 g) for the best outcome.

The texture of these is unreal. Light, bouncy, moist, airy...all the descriptors. I leaned into spices big time. I have big love for cinnamon so I went bold with it. If you're meh on cinnamon, maybe half it.

Zucchini in baked goods, like banana, is a soft flavor that chocolate can overpower and dominate. She can be a bully. So for these, I did a light sprinkle of mini chocolate chips over the tops and that's it. Totally optional. But looks pretty and adds a nice contrast in flavor and texture.

I made my own parchment muffins liners and I reckon you should do the same. I like 5x5-inch (13x13-cm) squares. Use a small glass to press them into the muffin tin. They're not perfect and that's perfect. The older I get the less I love perfection. Make it a little messy. It's its own perfection.

I like to give the batter a short rest while I cut the parchment liners and preheated the oven, but it's not mandatory. Thus these can be mixed and baked in about 35-ish minutes if you move fast (and don't rest) or longer if you're taking life leisurely and include the rest.

I can't wait to hear what you think about these! They are the perfect late spring/early summer bite.

Sending love!

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​ "Following up on her acclaimed debut, The Cookie Book, writer, photographer, and recipe developer Rebecca Firth tackles cake in her new book. You may have trouble picking which recipe to start with: Chocolate Stout Cake with Champagne Buttercream or a tart, sticky Glazed Tangerine Donut Cake?” ― Epicurious, 25 New Baking Books for Cozy Fall Treats THE CAKE BOOK

​ "Writer, photographer and queen of cookies, Rebecca Firth teases my sweet tooth and I am not mad about it. Love following her and her tempting creations and can't wait to see what she comes up with next." ―Tiffani Thiessen, actress and author of Pull Up a Chair ​ ― Food & Wine, Best Baking Cookbooks to Own Right Now THE COOKIE BOOK