Chocolate Chip Muffins

These simple to make fluffy soft and moist chocolate chip muffins are loaded with mini chocolate chips and a sprinkle of coarse sugar or sparkling sugar on top to give them that bakery style look and flavor! They are great for brunch with a coffee or tea, a midday sweet treat, or a satisfying dessert. Easy to bake and universally loved!

Chocolate Chip Muffins on a cooling rack

Chocolate Chip Muffin Recipe Ingredients

  • CHOCOLATE CHIPS: I prefer to use semi-sweet chocolate chips but feel free to use milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, or chopped chocolate. I ALWAYS use mini chocolate chips because I love how they stud the muffin batter perfectly and the bakery muffins I love always use mini chocolate chips so they are definitely the way to go.
  • EGGS: Two large eggs is what you will need and room temperature. I have not tested this recipe with flax eggs
  • SUGAR: Just one cup of granulated sugar is what I use - and its just enough sweet for me - not too sweet but if you prefer yours sweeter feel free to increase the mount to 1⅓ cups
  • VANILLA: Pure vanilla extract adds just the right flavour to all sweet baked goods
  • OIL & BUTTER: The combination of both helps keep these muffins moist and adds to the overall texture and flavour. I use unsalted butter and for the oil you can use Vegetable oil, canola oil, or melted coconut oil.
  • BUTTERMILK: Buttermilk gives baked goods just the best texture, moisture and helps with the leavening as well as adding to the flavor. If you do not have any buttermilk - make it by combining 1 cup of milk and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar lemon juice. Allow it to sit for 5 minutes and voila you have simple homemade buttermilk
  • SOUR CREAM: Helps keep these muffins extra moist. Feel free to use plain yogurt or Greek yogurt instead.
  • FLOUR: I use regular all purpose flour for this recipe but feel free to use a good quality 1-1 GF baking flour for an easy gluten free swap or if you want to swap up ⅓ of the flour for whole wheat flour (for more fiber or nutrition) you can do that too
  • BAKING POWDER AND BAKING SODA: Both for leavening
  • SPICES: I like to use just a pinch of ground cinnamon, and espresso powder for flavor but those are totally optional - if you prefer to stick to just vanilla that is great. I just think the little bit of cinnamon and espresso powder gives then a little something extra just like brown butter adds a little something extra to baked goods.

Chocolate Chip Muffins Ingredients layed out

How to Make Chocolate Chip Muffins

These Chocolate Chip Muffins are quite simple to make. Here are the basic instructions with more details in recipe card below.

  1. WHISK together dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, spices and mini chocolate chips
  2. WHISK together wet ingredients: melted butter, sugar, eggs, sour cream, buttermilk, oil and vanilla.
  3. ADD in the dry ingredients gradually and FOLD / gently stir until just about combined - do not over mix
  4. REST batter for 30 minutes or if you are n a rush until oven is preheated (the batter will be puffy)
  5. Gently SCOOP out batter (you don’t want to deflate the batter) evenly into prepared pan right up to the brim of each muffin tin, sprinkle over more chocolate chips and coarse sugar if using
  6. BAKE at 425°F for 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 375°F and continue to bake for another 12-15 minutes
  7. COOL in pan a few minutes then remove from pan, allow to cool and enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Muffins Step By Step Directions

Chocolate Chip Muffin Tips

There are a lot of tips out there - here are a few that I implement often to get nice domed bakery style muffins! Of course these are optional but if possible are a great way to get a taller bakery style muffin top.

  • RESTING BATTER: Resting muffin batters prior to baking gives the leavening agents a head start and increases “doming” during the baking process. 30-60 minutes if you have time. If not have no fear your muffins will still be delicious but they may not have super tall muffin tops.
  • BAKING MUFFINS AT INITIAL HIGH TEMPERATURE: The initial high blast of heat will help these beauties rise and dome/puff up really nicely
  • SPACING OUT BATTER: Or spacing out the liners in the muffin pan allows the heat from the oven to circulate around each muffin equally, helping muffins to rise, bake, and brown more evenly. Spacing them out also allows you to fill the liners to the brim without the tops overflowing. So that means for a standard 12 muffins tin you would make 6 muffins and would need 2 trays to bake the muffins. This definitely does work but most of the time I just use one single pan cause I simply want to make them all together - one and done!

Chocolate Chip Muffins Close up

How to Store Muffins After Baking

Before storing or freezing muffins it’s important that muffins have fully cooled before storing them – otherwise they will end up soggy. After that you are set to store or freeze them as directed below:

  • Room temperature: Keeping muffins in an airtight container on your kitchen countertop is the best way to store muffins for up to 2-3 days. Line an airtight container or zip-lock bag with paper towel and store the muffins in a single layer. Place another layer of paper towel on top of the muffins as well. The paper towels act to absorb excess moisture. They can be stored in a container without paper towel, but are more likely to become soggy the longer they’re in there.
  • Freezer: To freeze muffins, place them in a single layer in a freezer bag or wrap individually with plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Make sure you get as much air out of the bag as possible, to reduce the chance of freezer burn, place that sealed bag inside another bag and seal that one too. Freeze for up to 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature, or in the fridge overnight or place them unwrapped on some paper towel in the microwave for 20-30 seconds
  • Refrigerator: Typically, avoid refrigerating muffins. Doing so tends to dry them out.

Chocolate Chip Muffins Close Up and Isolated

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Recipe

Servings: Yields 12 standard size muffins
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 17-20 mins
Non Active Time: 30 mins (optional for resting batter)
Total Time: 40 mins

Ingredients

  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
  • ⅛ teaspoon Espresso powder (optional)
  • 1½ cups mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
  • ¼ cup sour cream, room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil, or vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2–3 tablespoons sparking sugar or coarse, for sprinkling

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and espresso powder if using and 1 cup of chocolate chips. Set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, sugar, eggs, sour cream, buttermilk, oil and vanilla.
  3. Slowly add to the dry ingredients. Gently fold together until JUST combined.
  4. Cover the bowl with a clean dish towel and let the batter sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Optional but resting the batter will help let these muffins rise just that extra bit taller with larger domed muffin tops.
  5. Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray a 12 cup muffin tray with non-stick cooking spray or line with paper liners.
  6. Genly scoop up the now fluffy batter using an ice cream scoop or spoon (try not to deflate the batter) and divide the batter into the 12 muffin cups. Top with remaining chocolate chips and a sprinkle of sugar
  7. Bake at 425°F for 5 minutes. Then REDUCE the oven temperature to 375°F and continue to bake muffins for another 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or mostly clean. Do not overbake or the muffins will be dry.
  8. Remove the muffins and let them cool for 10 minutes in the pan on cooling rack. Then, carefully loosen and remove each muffin from pan and transfer to wire rack. (use a butter knife or a thin flexible spatula to help loosen muffins if they seem a little stuck around the edges)
  9. Let the muffins cool on rack then enjoy

Recipe Note

  • Buttermilk gives baked goods just the best texture, moisture and helps with the leavening as well as adding to the flavor. If you do not have any buttermilk - make it by combining 1 cup of milk and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar lemon juice. Allow it to sit for 5 minutes and voila you have simple homemade buttermilk.

Chocolate Chip Muffin With A Bite