These Chocolate Chip Muffins have a beautiful golden dome top (we all know muffin tops are the best part!) and are nice and moist inside, not dry and crumbly which is a notorious problem with muffins. No stand mixer required, you just need a wooden spoon and 10 minutes.
This muffin recipe is a great base recipe for sweet muffins. The chocolate chips can be substituted with anything you want. Blueberries, raspberries, nuts, apple – let your imagination run wild!
Muffins are one of those recipes that many people think / say are really easy to make but in actual fact, I think a lot come out quite disappointing. The biggest problem being muffins that are dry and hard. I’ve made muffins in my time that I swear were as hard as baseballs!
Over baking is one culprit for this. But the batter is also a contributor. To avoid dry muffins, some recipes make the batter by creaming butter in a stand mixer. But it’s ingrained in my mind that muffins should be a fast recipe, and creaming butter doesn’t qualify!
The other way is to make the muffins using both baking powder AND baking soda / bi carb (which is baking powder on steroids) for extra lift power, plus buttermilk for moistness and also to activate the baking soda (which requires something with acid like milk + vinegar, yoghurt, sour cream or buttermilk to activate it).
This is my chosen method that I have always used. I know there are many muffin recipes out there that do not use baking soda and/or buttermilk. But they are not as moist and fluffy as these. I have made more than my share in my lifetime in a bid to find the moistest muffin with the least ingredients possible, and concluded that it is not possible to omit these without compromising the muffin!
And the good news? You don’t have to use buttermilk. You can substitute with milk and vinegar, left to curdle. I don’t always recommend that as a substitute, but for this recipe, I can barely tell the difference. Actually, I can’t tell the difference.
I know curdled milk doesn’t look very pretty, but I wanted you to see what it looks like because this is the magic ingredient in this recipe!
My “go to” sweet muffin base recipe used to be a Ina Garten blueberry muffin recipe. It really is a wonderful moist muffin BUT the batter is slightly thinner than this one so the choc chips sink to the bottom (even when I tossed in flour which is a trick that usually works for things like berries, like what I use for my Blueberry Lemon Loaf).
So now this recipe is my base recipe, and it has never failed me. My recipe is slightly adapted from this brilliant Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins recipe by Little Sweet Baker. This recipe is BETTER than Ina Gartens, I’ve tried both!
PS I top the muffins with extra chocolate chips so they are visible when they come out of the oven. This is optional. 🙂
If you don’t use paper patties and spray the muffin tin instead, the tops will spill over and become a bit crispy, just like muffins you get from some bakeries. My personal preference is to use paper patties because clean up is easier and I think it looks prettier, but it is entirely up to you!
Happy weekend! What have you got planned? Maybe baking some MUFFINS??? 😉 – Nagi x
PS These freeze fabulously. Promise. I’ve been eating frozen ones all week!
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Best Chocolate Chip Muffin
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups / 375g plain flour (all purpose flour)
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda / bi carb soda
- 1 cup / 220g white sugar (Note 1)
- 1/4 tsp salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup / 250ml buttermilk (Note 2)
- 1/4 cup / 60g unsalted butter, melted
- 4 tbsp / 80 ml vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, lightly whisked
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Chocolate Chips
- 1 3/4 cups / 300g chocolate chips (US: semi-sweet)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200C/390F (all ovens) (Note 6). Line a 12 hole muffin tin with paper patties.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt in a bowl. Stir through chocolate chips.
- In a separate bowl, whisk buttermilk, melted butter, oil, eggs and vanilla.
- Make a well in the flour bowl, pour in egg mixture. Mix until just combine – try not to stir more than 8 times. Some flour lumps in the batter is fine.
- Divide batter between paper cases. Top with remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips.
- Bake for 5 minutes, then turn down to 180C/350F (fan forced/convection) and bake for a further 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the muffin comes out clean.
- Remove muffins from the muffin tin immediately onto a cooling rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature (warm is extra yum!)
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer: Getting waaaaaay too close to the muffins…… But I can’t blame him. The smell as these were cooling must’ve been torture for him!!!
Count the muffins: Yes there is 1 missing. Restraint is imposed on Dozer by me. There was no one around to control ME.
Hi! Tried out this muffin receipe today, It was really awesome! The muffin is so moist and yummy. Thank you.
Nagi I tried out this recipe this morning and I’m absolutely blown away! Crisp on the top and deliciously moist inside! Yum yum 😋 Thank you!!!
That’s terrific to hear Mish! So glad you enjoyed this! N x
Can you use normal milk for this instead of buttermilk?
Please see note 2 for sub with normal milk! 🙂
Made it last week with exact ingredients and measurements and it was fabulously yummy.
Made it today again with 275 gms of plain flour and 100 gms of ground oats to make a total of 375 gms of flour as I ran out of plain flour keeping other ingredients exactly same. And trust me these are even better than previous cupcakes…so soft, moist and delicious. My kids loved them. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe ❤️❤️❤️
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed this Aarti, thanks for letting me know! N x
The BEST muffin recipe I have come across! Moist yet light and so delicious. My family and I absolutely love it! Just one thing though. I didn’t add the whole 300g of choc chips and it already seemed a tad too much? Of course my little one was very happy about the chocolate 😂
Thank you so much for sharing!
I have found the Holy Grail of muffin recipes !!!!!
Before today every muffin recipe I have tried has just not quite been right – they are either too dry, too cakey, too dense, or even down right horrible….
I was a little apprehensive when I tried your recipe – no offence – as I was expecting it to be like the rest. Gosh was I so wrong. They are the best muffins I have ever had.
My life is now complete 🙂
I think you just made my weekend Gertie!!!! 😂 N xx
Hi Nagi,
How could I include banana in this recipe?
LOVE all your recipes!
Ang 🙂
Hi Angela! I’m sorry to say I don’t know 🙂 I must confess, banana is the ONE “normal” thing that I hate so I have no idea how to use it in things! N xx
Thanks for taking time to reply! I made the ‘blueberry’ muffins and put 1 cup of mashed banana & 1 cup of choc chips and they came out fab.. I wondered why there were no banana recipes on your site.. oh well, there’s still lots of cheese 😉
These muffins are absolutely DELICIOUS!~ I used large muffin tins in which are like two medium-size muffins and baked them for a total of 23 minutes. GREAT flavour!~
That’s great Judi! So pleased to hear that! N x
So I am curious. I never baked chocolate chip muffins but buy them in store. How does the chocolate chips sit on the top of the muffin totally whole unelted when they are baked in a hot oven? Is there a trick to get whole , unmelted chips on top of chocolate chip muffins?
Hi Nancy! The chips don’t melt down when baked 🙂 but they melt when microwaved, if that makes sense?? 🙂 N x
Thank you !
Made these yummy yummy muffins. Turned out amazing! The only disappointment is that they are already all gone. Family is already requesting that I make more.
Ba ha ha! I saw the word “disappointment” and was disheartened then saw the end of the sentence and laughed! 🙂
Can I use wholewheat flour instead of all purpose flour???
Yes!
I’ve make this yummy chocolate chips muffins yesterday and it turned out great! It was very moist in the inside and crispy at the top. I replaced with 3/4 brown sugar and 1/4 white sugar and still turn out great. Very grateful for sharing this awesome recipe 🙂
I’m so happy you enjoyed this Rasheedah! Thank you for taking the time to let me know! N x
Dear Nagi, not only i love these muffins, my family members also enjoy them greatly. Baking another batch of lovely muffins today. Your recipe is the best keeper and im sooo glad ive found it. 😘
Love hearing that Rasheedah! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed it! N xx
These are amazing muffins and really easy to make. love them!!
So pleased to hear that Robin! N x ❤️
Hiii
I made this recipe! IS THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!! p e r f e c t !!!!!!
thank youuuu
Mara from Spain
That’s so great to hear Mara! Thanks for letting me know! N x ❤️
The muffins raised beautifully and they were very moist and delicious for the whole family. Thank you so much for sharing this with us all!
I’m so pleased to hear you enjoyed this Ashlee!! Thanks for letting me know – N x
I made these last night. Granted I don’t consider myself a baker, but my family was impressed. My 17 year old son inhaled 4. (He’s very picky). I was thrilled that I finally found a real family pleaser. I just finished batch two.
Wonderful to hear Chris! Thank you for sharing your feedback – N x ❤️
Hello. I’d like m to make this a chocolate chocolate chip muffin. How do you think I can add some cocoa powder?
Hi Hakuna! That’s a separate recipe, sorry! I will share one soon! N x
Hello nagi thanks for the lovely recipe! My very first successful recipe! It’s very tasty but a but sticky in texture… not sure what went wrong?
Also can I use this recipe for other fillings like bananas, carrot etc?
Hi Shannon!!! Sticky in texture?? Could you describe this a bit more for me? YES this is a great muffin base for anything!
I see 4 tbsp vegetable oil in wet ingredients but I dont see it in the Instructions, please advice. Thanks!
I can’t believe no one else has mentioned that before!! It gets added with the other wet ingredients, thanks for picking that up!
These muffins were absolutely the best moist, tasty morsels I have ever made and ate! Raised up so nice! Thank you for this recipe. Everyone loved them.?
Thanks for trying my recipe Celeste! I’m so glad you liked it, thank you for the kind words. 🙂 Have a lovely weekend! N x
Just tried this recipe and it is the best!!!!
I’m so pleased you enjoyed it Monica, thank you for letting me know! N xx