It’s dessert… for breakfast! These triple chocolate muffins are rich, dense, and extra indulgent thanks to real melted chocolate, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips. They’re excellent paired with a cup of coffee in the morning or with milk as an after-dinner treat.
One reader, Debb, says: “Love this muffinโand get rave reviews when I share it. I added a few packets of Starbucks Via (instant coffee) to the recipe this time to get a triple chocolate mocha muffin. โ โ โ โ โ “
Have you ever woken up and felt like it was the perfect day to have chocolate cake for breakfast? If so, today is your day.
Triple chocolate muffins are a totally acceptable way to sneak in dessert first thing in the morning. I love making muffins for their ease and simplicity, and while I usually reach for wholesome favorites like healthy bran muffins or whole wheat banana nut muffins, once in a while it’s ok to indulge your sweet tooth.
Perfectly dense and packed with 3x the chocolate-y goodness (more on this chocolate trio later), these muffins will be appreciated for birthday breakfasts, as part of your special Mother’s Day recipes or Father’s Day recipes, as a Valentine’s Day treat, or really on any morning that just needs a little extra sweetness.
These Triple Chocolate Muffins Are:
- Denser than chocolate cupcakes or chocolate cake, but not as rich as homemade brownies
- Extra chocolate-y thanks to chocolate bars, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips
- An even deeper, darker, and more decadent version of these double chocolate muffins (which come from my 1st cookbook, Sally’s Baking Addiction!)
- Easy to prepare in just 1 bowl, with no mixer required
- Positively indulgent in a way that will grab any chocolate lover’s attentionโin the best way possible!
Triple Chocolate Lineup
These muffins get their deep chocolate profile from a triple-threat lineup of ingredients:
- Pure Baking Chocolate: Most of the chocolate flavor comes from one melted chocolate bar. You want to use a high-quality brand of pure baking chocolate, such as Ghirardelli or Baker’s brands, which can be found in the baking aisle. Do not use chocolate chips because they contain stabilizers that will prevent them from melting properly. (No baking chocolate on hand? Try my double chocolate muffins instead.)
- Cocoa Powder: Just like in chocolate cake, reach for natural unsweetened cocoa powder rather than dutch-process cocoa powder. You can read up on the differences between natural unsweetened vs. dutch-process cocoa powder if you’re interested. Choosing the right variety will make a big difference in the taste, texture, and appearance of your muffins.
- Chocolate Chips: Last but certainly not least, add a heaping cup of chocolate chips to the batter to provide a little texture in each bite. Use semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips, regular size or mini. If you enjoy a certain type of baking chip in your chocolate chip cookies, you’ll enjoy them here, too!
I also use these 3 powerhouse chocolate ingredients in my homemade brownies.
FAQ: Are These Just Cupcakes?
While you may feel the same joy you get while biting into a chocolate cupcake, today’s muffins are not quite as light and spongy. And of course, there’s no tower of chocolate buttercream or swipe of chocolate ganache on top. (Although there’s no rule saying you can’t…)
Muffin Success Tips:
- Avoid over-mixing: While these chocolate muffins have a denser, tighter crumb, too much mixing can over-develop the gluten and create an overly heavy, squat muffin. Mix the batter until just combined.
- Use room-temperature ingredients: Proper room-temperature ingredients are important so the batter comes together with ease. Especially when we’re working with warmer ingredients like melted butter and chocolate, you’ll want to make sure your eggs and sour cream aren’t coming straight from the cold refrigerator.
- Fill the liners to the top + use a burst of high heat: My #1 trick for those bakery-style high muffin tops? Filling the muffin pan to the top with batter, along with an initial high burst of heat (exact details in the recipe instructions), help the muffins to rise quickly without over-baking.
Again, there’s no masking that these triple chocolate muffins are every bit as rich, indulgent, and chocolate-y as they taste and sound. If you’re looking for something on the lighter side, my healthier chocolate banana muffins will still satisfy those early-morning chocolate cravings. Or browse all my muffin recipes to find your next breakfast bake.
More Muffins:
- Bakery-Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Chocolate Covered Strawberry Muffins
- Banana Chocolate Chip Streusel Muffins
- Pumpkin Muffins (with or without chocolate chips)
- Banana Muffins
Triple Chocolate Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 10-12 muffins
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These brownie-like muffins come together with pure baking chocolate, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips for 3x the chocolate goodness!
Ingredients
- one 4-ounce bar (113g) semi-sweet chocolate*
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (80g) sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (63g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/3 cup (27g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder*
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 heaping cup (180-200g) semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips (mini size works too!)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ยฐF (218ยฐC). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- Coarsely chop the chocolate. Place in a medium heat-proof bowl along with the butter. Microwave on high in 10 second increments, whisking after each until completely smooth and chocolate has melted. Cool for 5 minutes, then whisk in the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and sour cream. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the wet ingredients and fold to completely combineโmake sure there are no flour spots at the bottom of the bowl. Fold in the chocolate chips. Batter will be thick.
- Spoon the batter evenly into each cup or liner, filling each all the way to the top. Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425ยฐF, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Bake for an additional 15โ17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20โ22 minutes, give or take. Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
- Muffins stay fresh stored at room temperature for a few days, or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: For longer storage, freeze cooled muffins for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or warm up in the microwave if desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Chocolate: For the 4 ounces (113g) of chocolate, make sure to use high-quality chocolate, not chocolate chips. (You will use chocolate chips as the last ingredient.) I suggest high-quality chocolate baking bars sold in the baking aisle such as Baker’s, Ghirardelli, Guittard, or Lindt.ย
- Cocoa Powder: Use natural cocoa powder, not dutch-process cocoa powder. Read about the difference between natural cocoa powder vs. dutch-process cocoa powder.
- FAQ: Is there really only 1/2 cup of flour required? Yes, that’s correct. The cocoa powder takes the place of some flour. These are fudge-brownie-like muffins. Here’s my traditional double chocolate muffins recipe, if you want to try those instead.
- Mini Chocolate Muffins: Fill muffin cups only about halfway. A couple teaspoons of batter per mini muffin cup is plenty. Bake at 350ยฐF (177ยฐC) (for the whole timeโno initial high heat) for 12โ14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Yields about 30 mini muffins.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I have made these triple chocolate muffins several times, they are always a huge hit.
Today I made them with Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free flour and you would never know they were GF. They tasted exactly the same and baked perfectly. That was the only change I made.
I was a little skeptical about making these Triple Chocolate Muffins after reading so many comments about them sinking. I am happy to say I did not have that problem at all. I followed the directions exactly including the two different baking temps. They are moist and so chocolaty. I will definitely be making these again.
I really like that they donโt contain seed oils. I really try my best to avoid all seed oils.
I tried making these twice but they sank both times. Why would that be? I already know it isn’t the baking soda; I made two other kinds that turned out fine.
Hi Becky! Cocoa powder is a pretty light and drying ingredient and more often than not, baked goods can sink in the center. You could try adding a little more flour for stability, such as using 2/3 cup instead (about 80g). Youโll want to make sure youโre using unsweetened natural cocoa powder here, too (and not Dutch process cocoa). Hope this helps, and thank you so much for giving these a try!
I tried this recipe (for the first time) this afternoon, following directions precisely. Ingredients were all as should be — baking soda fresh, sour cream and eggs at room temp. I did the two-step bake, starting at 425 for 5 minutes, then turning down to 350 (without opening the door) and baking for remainder of time. I didn’t get that nice bakery-style top to the muffins. The flavour is great (thankfully), but I can’t figure out why I didn’t get the puffy top. I filled each muffin to the top of the liners.
Can I replace butter with olive oil?
The recipe calls for 113g of unsalted butter so can I replace it with the same 113g of vegetable oil? If so, I whisk the oil with the sour cream, sugar, vanilla and egg? Chocolate melts separately?
I have a 6 cup jumbo muffin pan (silicone) that I am keen to use. Would this recipe work using that pan, or would any adjustments be needed? Thank you for any advice ๐
See these jumbo blueberry muffins for baking guidelines.
How many cups/ml of oil can I replace butter with?
Very moist and delicious, I just need to cut down the sugar and chocolate chips more for personal preference.
I had my doubts about this recipe but decided to have faith and trust the process, however it was a mistake. I followed the recipe exactly and it was a disaster. The muffins initially rose but collapsed into a messy heap. They look awful. I think they will be edible but they have all collapsed. I won’t waste ingredients on this recipe again.
As usual, Your recipe was perfect. I doubled it so I could freeze the majority of them so I can have them in the future. I also use these muffins to bribe my twin Grandchildren in helping me with cooking when I babysit them. They love Your recipes especially Your Chocolate ones. Thank You again!
tried making these muffins and they ended up cooked at the top but wet and raw in the middle. did I do something wrong? I haven’t had such an experience with previous muffin recipes.
Hi lav, it sounds like the muffins cavities may have been filled too much, making it difficult for them to bake evenly and thoroughly. You can fill the cavities to the top, but be cautious not to overfill them. You can even try a bit less in each for your next batch. Or, they may simply have needed a few additional minutes in the oven. An easy fix for next time!
I made them yesterday. I had no chocolate chips, so I added mini peanut butter cups instead. The muffins turned out very delicious. Thank you very much for the great recipe, Sally!