Moist, chocolatey and delicious – these easy chocolate muffins are sure to become a favorite with all your friends and family. The perfect breakfast or snack, this recipe is better than the bakery!
Love chocolate? You HAVE to try my Ridiculous Chocolate Cake. It’s everyone’s favorite!
What’s the Secret to Moist Chocolate Muffins?
Big, rich, moist double chocolate muffins, like the kind you see at the bakeries are really easy to make at home. The are a decadent treat with a cup of coffee or milk in the morning, or even rich enough to be enjoyed as a dessert. I use a combination of whole milk and full fat sour cream in this recipe, along with oil to really make these the most moist muffins ever. Also I share some tips and tricks below that really make this chocolate muffin recipe the best!
What You’ll Need To Make Chocolate Muffins:
- All purpose flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Kosher salt
- Granulated sugar. I have made these muffins with light brown sugar as well. I haven’t noticed a difference in taste, but the texture is a bit heavier.
- Whole milk
- Optional – instant coffee granules
- Sour cream. If you don’t have sour cream you can use buttermilk as a substitute. But don’t use buttermilk as a sub for the whole milk! You could also use plain Greek Yogurt as well.
- Large eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Vegetable oil or Canola oil. You could use melted butter in place of the oil, but this can end with a slightly drier texture, in that butter has water content and oil does not. In the baking, the water will absorb and evaporate, taking moisture along with it.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips. You could even use chocolate chunks, chopped chocolate, or mini chocolate chips.
How to Make Chocolate Muffins
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the milk, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and vegetable oil until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and using a rubber spatula, fold together until just combined. Add in most of the chocolate chips, reserving a handful to press into the top of the batter before baking, and stir to combine.
- Using a large cookie scoop (1/4 cup) fill the muffin tins almost to the top. Bake for 18 – 20 minutes until the centers are set.
- Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Equipment You Will Need:
- Muffin tin. I use a standard sized muffin tin for this recipe that yields 16 muffins. You can bake jumbo muffins using this recipe if you prefer. You will need to increase the bake time to 25 – 30 minutes. You can also make mini muffins suing this recipe. Just line the pan with mini muffin liners and bake for 10 minutes.
- Large cookie scoop. I find that using a cookie or ice cream scoop to portion out the dough makes filling cupcake liners very easy!
- Good Chocolate. I love my Callebaut chocolate chips, and they are perfect in this recipe.
- Cupcake Liners. I love these parchment paper liners that I get on Amazon. If you prefer not to use liners, make sure you are coating the muffin cups in the pan with nonstick spray.
Tips For Success
- Use room temperature ingredients! These muffins work best if baked with all room temperature ingredients. The bake time will be more exact, as well as they will raise and create even domes if all the ingredients are the same temperature.
- Don’t over mix. The key to this recipe, as with most baking recipes is don’t over-mix the batter.To create the most tender muffins you don’t want too much gluten to form creating chewy, gummy, and tough muffins. Think about the texture of a muffin: you want a very moist crumb. Don’t over mix!
- You can add coffee granules for a deeper chocolate flavor. You see with a lot of chocolate cake recipes the use of coffee. And it’s an option here! You shouldn’t really be able to taste the coffee, it will just enhance the flavor of the chocolate. When I use coffee in this recipe I stir it into the milk and dissolve it, before mixing the wet ingredients.
- If you are looking to really amp up the chocolate in this recipe use dark or dutch process cocoa powder for a more intense chocolate base.
- And of course, don’t over-bake these. When the tops are just set, they will be done baking. You can insert a toothpick in the center to check. A few moist crumbs should stick to the toothpick. The longer you leave them in the oven after that, the drier they will get.
- How To Make Muffins Less Dry? This is a common problem with chocolate muffins especially and it’s an easy fix! Make sure to measure your cocoa powder and flour properly, using the spoon and sweep method. Also like I said before don’t over bake!
How to Store Them
These muffins are great if stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 30 days for best freshness.
More Muffin Recipes to Try:
PrintPerfectly Moist Chocolate Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Yield: 16 standard sized muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Breakfast
Description
These Perfectly Moist Chocolate Muffins are the perfect sweet treat with coffee!!
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
- Optional – 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules *see note
- 3/4 cup sour cream, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the milk, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and vegetable oil until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and using a rubber spatula, fold together until just combined. Add in most of the chocolate chips, reserving a handful to press into the top of the batter before baking, and stir to combine.
- Using a large cookie scoop (1/4 cup) fill the muffin tins almost to the top. Bake for 18 – 20 minutes until the centers are set.
- Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
*Instant coffee in this recipe will enhance the chocolate flavor. If using, dissolve the granules into the milk before mixing the wet ingredients together.
Store airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days. Freeze airtight for up to 30 days
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Great recipe
I made these today. I subbed Greek yogurt for the sour cream because that’s what I had on hand. I baked two cupcake tins at the same time for 20 minutes.
They are delicious.
I have dairy allergy can i sub butter for sour cream?
Absolutely delicious. I think I need to up the quality of the chocolate I use. Is there a brand of cocoa powder you like best?