Easy Chocolate Muffins

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You’ll flip for these easy Chocolate Muffins filled with chocolate chips and a rich sour cream batter.

I’m completely powerless when it comes to resisting these chocolate muffins. With a slight tang from the sour cream batter to the crisp sugary top, every bite is a delightful treat. Sometimes I think about cutting the recipe in half and making only 9 muffins; but then I come to my senses and change my mind. Who am I kidding?  I don’t like living with regrets and know I’d regret making too few muffins.

The TOP 5 reasons why these chocolate muffins are so much better than cupcakes:

• Coming in at Number 5: No icing. This may seem silly but if you don’t have icing on top you can eat muffins immediately, fresh from the oven! No waiting for them to cool means instant gratification. Warm muffins are so good, so, so good. Gosh I’m drooling just thinking about these chocolate muffins.
• Number 4: If they don’t have icing on top, they’re easier to store and transport. Take a container filled with muffins to your next potluck, office brunch or picnic. They’ll look just as good when you get there as they did when you loaded them in the container. They also hold up well in the heat. You won’t have to worry about melted icing but you may have gooey chocolate chips, which is a good thing!
• Reason Number 3: Muffins are much healthier than cupcakes. This is one of my favorite reasons because if you don’t have icing on top, you’ll eat fewer calories. Yes? Yes! 😉
• Number 2: Muffins have a thicker batter than cupcakes making it easier to fill with fruit, nuts or chocolate chips! Let’s hear it for chocolate chips!
• And finally, the Number 1 reason why muffins are so much better than cupcakes: This may be a bit Captain Obvious but… muffin tops. Seriously one of the best, most delicious, crunchy, sugary, moan-worthy treats, ever. What do you eat first? Yup, muffin tops. What is everybody’s favorite part of the muffin? Muffin tops. I should also mention that these are not the kind of muffin tops that hang over the tops of my jeans – just saying.

Make these Chocolate Muffins with mini or regular sized chocolate chips, fruit or nuts – it’s all good!

I usually just make these muffins with whatever kind of chocolate chips I have on hand. Bittersweet, semisweet, minis, or even dark chocolate chips are all good add-ins. Sometimes I put chocolate chips on top or just go with a sprinkle of chopped nuts. Our taste testers had a clear preference for the chocolate muffins made with mini chocolate chips on the inside, and on top. They also loved these muffins with a sprinkle of coarse sugar. I’ve tried this recipe using plain Greek Yogurt in place of the sour cream but personally prefer full-fat sour cream in the batter. Change it up and add a few frozen raspberries to the mix for a nice pop of tangy flavor. And finally, I’ve had great success substituting black cocoa powder for some of the all-natural cocoa powder. One tablespoon of black cocoa powder really does the trick. King Arthur Flour produces a wonderful Black Cocoa powder I’ve been using for a while now. Click HERE to check it out.

We hope you’ll try these rich and easy Chocolate Muffins with a tender, soft crumb that won’t fall apart, loads of chocolate chips and a sugar dusted, crispy top. This recipe is a keeper and no mixer required!

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PRINT THE RECIPE!

5 from 2 votes

Chocolate Muffins

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 40 mins

Yield: 18 muffins

Course: Breakfast or Brunch

Author: Tricia

PRINT RECIPE

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup natural cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup sour cream (8 ounces)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 cups mini semisweet chocolate chips
• coarse sugar for sprinkling on top

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400F. Lightly grease 18 muffin cups or cupcake liners with vegetable cooking spray. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, baking soda and sugar. Make a well in the center.
• In a small mixing bowl combine the sour cream, melted butter, vanilla, milk and eggs. Pour the sour cream mixture into the flour and sugar mixture. Fold together with the spatula until the dry ingredients are just moistened. It may seem very thick and dry, just keep folding! It will come together. Add 1 1/2 cups of the mini chocolate chips to the batter and gently fold to combine. Divide the batter between the 18 muffin wells or paper liners. I use a heaping ice cream scoop to portion out the batter. Allow the unbaked muffins to rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before baking.
• Sprinkle the tops of the unbaked muffins with the remaining mini chocolate chips (mounded in the center) and then sprinkle with coarse sugar, if desired. Bake at 400F for 16-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with no wet batter; moist crumbs are okay. Cool the muffins in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve slightly warm if desired.

Recipe Notes

These muffins are best served the day they are made but keep well a day or two in an airtight container at room temperature.

Recommended substitutions:

• Substitute regular size chocolate chips for the minis if desired. Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, semisweet or bittersweet chips are all good in these muffins.
• Replace the sour cream with Greek Yogurt if desired but I recommend using full fat yogurt.
• Top with your favorite chopped nuts in place of the mini chocolate chips.
• Add 1 tablespoon black cocoa powder in place of 1 tablespoon natural cocoa for a beautiful dark color and rich chocolate taste.

Here are a few more delicious muffin recipes you might enjoy:

Cranberry Orange Muffins – made with tart cranberries, fresh squeezed orange juice and bright orange zest folded into a moist, rich sour cream batter. Click HERE to get the recipe.

Lemon Blueberry Muffins with a Lemon Crumble Topping ~ Plump, ripe blueberries and tart, fresh lemon juice are the stars in these wonderfully moist, sour cream muffins. Not overly sweet, these muffins are terrific with, or without, the bright lemon glaze. Click HERE to get the recipe.

Classic Blueberry Muffins made with fresh juicy blueberries that don’t sink to the bottom, and a tender, soft crumb that won’t fall apart, all tucked under a sugar topped crispy crust. Click HERE to get the recipe.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  Tricia