Chocolate Muffins

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 Chocolate Muffins are a tried-and-tested bakery-style recipe! Learn the tricks to moist, delicious, and flavorful chocolate muffins.

More popular muffin recipes: Mini MuffinsLemon Poppy Seed Muffins, and Chocolate Peanut Butter Muffins.

Chocolate Chip Muffins on a pedestal stand.My Favorite Chocolate Muffins

Growing up, we didn’t get a Costco membership (even with 9 people in our family!) until I was about to graduate high school. Once we did, I finally discovered the “magic” of Costco’s double chocolate muffins. If you’d asked me as a senior in high school what my favorite dessert was, I wouldn’t have even hesitated to tell you: “Costco chocolate muffins!”

So, while these aren’t the typical healthy (ish) muffins you’ll find on my site, I’m so excited to finally share a bakery-style, moist and delicious, double chocolate muffin recipe with you all. I’ve been slowly tweaking and working at this recipe for a few months and never got it up in time for the holiday season, so bear with me as I share these amidst all the healthy meals/treats you’re probably hoping to find this January. Or make these healthy-ish chocolate banana muffins in the meantime!

Dry ingredients for Chocolate MuffinsChocolate Muffins process shot

The process for these muffins is pretty similar to most muffin recipes, but here is a quick breakdown:

How do you make the best Chocolate Muffins?

  • Sift dry ingredients: The flour, cocoa powders, baking agents, and salt all get sifted together into a large bowl. Then you’ll toss in the chocolate chips. By adding the chocolate chips to the dry ingredients, you’ll get an even dispersion of chips throughout the muffins.
  • Beat wet ingredients: Beat the eggs and both sugars until thickened. Next, stream in the oil and butter while beating. Finally, you’ll mix in the sour cream, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.
  • Combine wet and dry: Add the dry ingredients to the wet and beat until JUST combined. Overmixing causes the gluten in the flour to activate; that will result in denser/drier muffins.
  • Bake: Fill greased and lightly floured muffin tins with the batter and bake! The muffins are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with moist crumbs.

Chocolate Muffins process shots: wet ingredientsProcess shots: Liquid ingredients for Chocolate Muffins.Tips for making homemade Chocolate Muffins:

  • Use good-quality cocoa powder: The better the cocoa powder you use, the better these muffins turn out! While natural cocoa powder is okay in these muffins, I recommend using Dutch-process cocoa to give you the most flavorful and moist muffins. This is my absolute favorite cocoa powder.
  • High-quality chocolate: Again, the better the chocolate, the better the flavor! I love Ghirardelli® or Guittard® chips or chopping a good chocolate bar.
  • Spoon and level flour measurement: If you pack in too much flour, you’ll get denser/drier muffins. Here’s a great video showing how to properly measure flour for this recipe.
  • Don’t overbake: Again to avoid dry muffins, you’ll want to make sure you don’t overbake these muffins — they can go from perfectly moist and fudgy to dry and less flavorful in just a few minutes. 

QUICK TIP

What is the difference between natural and Dutch-process cocoa? Cocoa si acidic and bitter with a very strong and concentrated chocolate flavor and almost no sweetness– very similar to 100% chocolate. Dutch-process cocoa powder has been processed with an alkaline solution to counter the natural acidity. This makes the flavor less acidic, milder, and more chocolatey and creates a darker and more red color.

Combining Chocolate Muffin Ingredients

Chocolate Muffins FAQs

How do you make Chocolate Muffins without chocolate chips?

This chocolate base of these chocolate muffins comes from a cup of cocoa powder. With that much cocoa powder, you’ll get a rich, chocolatey taste without chocolate chips. While this recipe also calls for chocolate chips, they aren’t necessary; you can simply leave out the chocolate chips (no other changes needed)!

Can I make recipe substitutions?

While it’s best to stick to the recipe, I have tested several substitutes for these muffins:

  • Greek yogurt: You can use Greek yogurt in place of sour cream. I recommend using Greek Gods® Whole Fat Honey Vanilla Yogurt (it’s AMAZING). If you use Greek yogurt, make sure it’s full fat.
  • Buttermilk: You can make your own buttermilk if you have milk and vinegar or lemon juice.
    • To make homemade buttermilk:
      • Pour 3/4 cup of milk into a bowl
      • Stir in 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or fresh lemon juice
      • Let sit for about 5 minutes. 
      • Add in the recipe in place of regular buttermilk!
  • Cocoa powder: I’ve tested this recipe with natural and Dutch-process cocoa powder — both work beautifully! While I’ll admit the Dutch-process is the BEST, the natural cocoa powder works fine in these muffins.

Chocolate Muffins

Storage/Freezing

Cooling muffins:

Once you remove the muffins from the oven, let them sit in the muffin tin for a few minutes before removing them to a wire rack to finish cooling. Remove the muffins after five to eight minutes to avoid the muffins getting soggy as they cool in the pan.

Storing these Chocolate Muffins:

Once completely cooled, store the muffins in an airtight container or bag at room temperature. Chocolate Muffins are best used within 2-3 days.

To freeze/thaw:

  1. Cool muffins completely before wrapping and freezing.
  2. To freeze: Wrap completely in plastic wrap and then place in large freezer bags.
  3. To thaw: Set out at room temperature, or heat frozen muffins in the microwave.

Chocolate Muffins

I hope you love these easy chocolate muffins!

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Chocolate Muffins

5 from 5 votes
Chocolate Muffins are a tried and tested bakery-style recipe! Learn the trick to moist, delicious, and flavorful Chocolate Muffins.
Print Recipe

Chocolate Muffins

5 from 5 votes
Chocolate Muffins are a tried and tested bakery-style recipe! Learn the trick to moist, delicious, and flavorful Chocolate Muffins.
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword chocolate muffins
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 18 minutes
Total Time 38 minutes
Servings 18 large muffins
Chelsea Lords
Calories 238kcal

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

  • 2 cups white all-purpose flour, make sure to spoon and level
  • 1/2 cup special dark cocoa powder Note 1
  • 1/2 cup regular cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
  • 1 and 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips (or semi-sweet or dark, whatever you prefer)

Wet Ingredients

  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 1/4 cup canola (or vegetable) oil
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 1 cup full-fat sour cream or full-fat Greek yogurt
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk (or regular milk mixed with vinegar/lemon juice Note 2
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease (with cooking spray) and flour a 12-cup muffin tin and set aside.
  • In a large bowl, sift together the flour (make sure to spoon and level your measurement so you don't pack in too much flour), dark cocoa powder, regular cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir together and then add in the mini and regular chocolate chips. Stir to coat the chips in the dry ingredients. This keeps them from sinking to the bottom.
  • In another large bowl (or stand mixer with a whisk attachment) beat the eggs at medium-high speed. Slowly add in the white sugar and then brown sugar while continuing to beat. Beat until the mixture is pale and thickened, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Slowly stream in and beat the oil and then (melted and cooled) butter until completely combined. Beat in the sour cream (or yogurt), buttermilk, and vanilla extract until incorporated.
  • Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold in until JUST combined. You don't want to overmix here or you'll end up with dense muffins.
  • Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared muffin tin, keeping the scoops mounded. Fill muffin cups a generous 3/4 full.
  • Bake for 15-21 minutes. (Watch carefully; it can vary depending on actual oven temperature, how full your muffin tin is filled, etc.) As soon as a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs, they are done baking. 
  • Remove and allow to cool in the pan for 5-8 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Once completely cooled, store the muffins in an airtight container or bag at room temperature. Best used within 2-3 days.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: These muffins have been tested with natural cocoa powder and Dutch-process cocoa powder. If using Dutched cocoa powder, use 1 cup total. While Dutch-process cocoa powder truly makes these the best, regular cocoa powder is delicious as well!
Note 2: To make your own buttermilk: pour 3/4 cup of milk into a bowl, stir in 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or fresh lemon juice, and let sit for about 5 minutes. Add to the recipe in place of regular buttermilk.

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 238kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 46mg | Sodium: 194mg | Potassium: 145mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 231IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 85mg | Iron: 2mg

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

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These Chocolate Muffins are a tried and tested bakery-style recipe! Learn the tricks to moist, delicious, and flavorful chocolate muffins. via chelseasmessyapron.com #chocolate #muffins #easy #quick #muffin #kidfriendly #best #recipe #bakery #style #chocolates #chips #breakfast #brunch #dessert #snack #treat
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Recipe Rating




22 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Well, your “tweaking and working” was very successful. They smelled absolutely delicious while baking and taste fantastic!

  2. 5 stars
    I am a muffin junkie. I love all kinds of muffins. This recipe is now in my 5-star collection! One word for these: INCREDIBLE! I used paper muffin cups in my tins and after cooling thoroughly, they came out perfectly. I also got 24 beautiful muffins from this recipe. I kept some, froze some and gave some to family members. Thanks for a delicious recipe!

    1. Yay!! I am SO thrilled to hear that and so happy it made it to the 5-star collection 🙂 Thank you so much for the comment Maryellen!

  3. Just checking before I make these tomorrow – for the cocoa powder, we use a dark cocoa powder (like Hershey’s Special dark) & a regular cocoa powder (like natural Hershey’s ), or use 1 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder instead? Thank you. I am a little confused!

    1. Totally correct! 🙂 I prefer the 1 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder in these muffins but if you can’t access it, I’ve found mixing the two (dark and natural) is the next best thing!

  4. 5 stars
    I made these for breakfast and my son was in heaven. He ate 4 in one sitting. I had to make the butter milk with lemon juice but they turned out amazing! So moist and tasty! I think they are better than Costco, not as dense. Thanks for sharing this recipe!!

    1. This seriously made my day! I’m so happy to hear you guys enjoyed these! My boys can seriously eat 4 in a sitting too, haha. Thank you so much for your comment Elizabeth! 🙂

    1. Hey Veronica, I haven’t actually ever made this into mini muffins so I can’t say for sure. My recommendation would be to bake for 12 to 14 minutes (400 degrees F) or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean/with moist crumbs.

  5. Hi, these look absolutely delicious and I’d like to make them tomorrow for a little party 🙂
    I have one question about the cocoa powder: Do you mean 1/2 cup unsweetend cocoa powder and 1/2 cup sweetened cocoa powder (like the kind you’d use to make hot chocolate) or 1 cup unsweetened? I live in Europe so I’m not that familiar with American terms for cocoa powder – I simply have sweetend and unsweetened 🙂

    1. 1 cup unsweetened! 🙂 I recommend Dutch process for these muffins if you are able to find that!

  6. Hi! These look delicious! How do I make these dairy free? Can I substitute the Greek yogurt butter and buttermilk with something else? Thank you

    1. I’m sorry I haven’t ever tried making these chocolate muffins dairy free so I really couldn’t give a good suggestion especially with how heavily they do rely on dairy 🙁

  7. Hi, thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe. I am planning to make it tomorrow. Just wonder if I can substitute the vegetable oil with coconut oil in this recipe?

  8. These look delicious. I’m going out today to look for the Dutch cocoa. Would there be a way to sneak in some grated zucchini into this recipe? I love how you talk about healthy-ish and this time of year I have so many zucchini I’d like to sneak them in where I can! Thank you!

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