These double chocolate muffins have been our favorite chocolate muffin recipe for over a decade. I love them so much that I published the easy recipe in my 1st cookbook back in 2014! (We now add even more chocolate chips and a touch of vanilla for extra flavor, as you’ll see in the recipe below.) The muffins are incredibly rich, mega chocolate-y, and loaded with chocolate chips in every single bite. Sour cream helps guarantee a soft and moist muffin that has a denser texture than chocolate cupcakes.
Not pointing fingers or anything but chocolate sweet rolls, you’re kind of high maintenance for the morning. (Worth the hype and effort for sure though.) Here’s something easier that satisfies your chocolate craving and doesn’t require a ton of effort, time, or patience. Ha!
One reader, Teck, commented: “It’s truly a superb recipe. Moist and full of flavor. Easy to follow. Voted the best muffin by my family. ★★★★★”
Another reader, Paulina, commented: “They turned out just perfect and looked so good, you’d think I bought them. This will definitely be my go-to chocolate muffin recipe from now on! ★★★★★”
Double Chocolate Muffins Details
- Flavor: Chocolate. Seriously, that’s all you really need to know! This chocolate muffin recipe comes together with cocoa powder and chocolate chips. In recent years, I began adding vanilla extract to the batter for a touch of extra flavor. You can certainly leave it out if you’d like (and as mentioned above, the cookbook recipe doesn’t include it).
- Texture: Unlike chocolate cupcakes and chocolate cake, these muffins don’t really have a sponge-like texture. And that’s mostly because we aren’t adding hot water to the batter. They’re more like a bakery-style muffin with a tighter crumb and satisfying bite.
- Ease: Besides the deep chocolate flavor, what you’ll love most about this double chocolate chip muffin recipe is its ease. The recipe uses common baking ingredients, doesn’t require a mixer, and is super straightforward like this pumpkin muffins recipe—2 cups of this, 1 cup of that, and whole eggs. (No separating needed.)
Key Ingredients in Double Chocolate Muffins
The full written recipe is below, but let’s walk through some key ingredients so you understand their importance. This is always helpful when looking for substitution options.
- Cocoa Powder: Use unsweetened natural cocoa powder. You could get away use dutch process cocoa powder, but the muffins may not rise as much. For best taste and texture, stick with natural. Most of the flavor comes from the cocoa powder, so choose a good one! I’ve baked with many over the years and I always go back to Hershey’s.
- Sour Cream: If you were to skip the sour cream and replace it with milk, the chocolate muffins would be thin, flat, and wet. Just like it does in chocolate covered strawberry muffins, sour cream lifts the crumb and keeps the muffins moist. You can replace it with plain yogurt and I often do—in fact, that’s how the recipe is written in the book!
- Oil: We usually use creamed butter and sugar in muffin recipes like blueberry muffins. However, cocoa powder is a very drying ingredient so it’s best paired with oil to keep the muffins moist. If you replace it with melted butter, the muffins will dry out. You won’t miss the flavor of butter because chocolate overpowers it.
By the way, if you enjoy banana + chocolate together, you’ll love these chocolate banana muffins—they’re whole wheat, too!
Expect a thick and sticky batter.
Avoid Overmixing & Use Room Temperature Ingredients
Really all you’re doing here is whisking the dry ingredients together in one bowl and the wet ingredients together in another bowl. The dry ingredients include the sugar and chocolate chips. This way you’re only mixing the ingredients together once—dry + wet instead of dry + wet + mixing in the chocolate chips. Make sense?
- The reason why you’ll mix the chocolate chips into the dry ingredients is to avoid over-mixing the final batter. Over-mixing muffin batter can lead to a tough, dense baked good. While these chocolate muffins are certainly denser than our soft and spongy chocolate cupcakes, they aren’t heavy as bricks.
- What will also help you avoid overmixing is using room temperature ingredients. Bring the eggs, milk, and sour cream to room temperature before starting. As a shortcut, place the eggs in a glass of warm water for 10 minutes and—honestly this is what I do—microwave the sour cream and milk for 10-15 seconds to take the chill off.
Tip: You won’t regret eating one warm out of the oven. Those melty chips!
Double Chocolate Muffins Recipe Video
Double Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 21 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes (includes slight cooling)
- Yield: 12-14 muffins
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These double chocolate muffins are incredibly rich, mega chocolate-y, and loaded with chocolate chips in every single bite. Sour cream helps guarantee a soft and moist muffin that has a denser texture than chocolate cupcakes.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (41g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 3/4 cups (315g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (185g) full fat sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil*
- 1/2 cup (120ml) whole milk, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or use cupcake liners. This recipe yields about 14 muffins, so prepare a second muffin pan in the same manner or bake in batches and reserve leftover batter at room temperature for when the first batch is done.
- Whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk the eggs, sour cream, oil, milk, and vanilla extract together until combined. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and fold together with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon until completely combined. (Batter is quite thick, so I recommend a spatula or spoon over a whisk.) Avoid overmixing. The batter will be thick and sticky.
- Spoon the batter into liners, filling them all the way to the top. Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20-21 minutes, give or take. (For mini muffins, bake 13-14 total minutes at 350°F (177°C) the whole time.)
- Cool muffins for 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack until ready to eat.
- Cover leftover muffins and store at room temperature for 5 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: For longer storage, freeze the muffins for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then heat up in the microwave if desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Cupcake Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Wooden Spoon or Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Jumbo Muffins: If you’d like to make about 6 jumbo muffins instead of standard size, follow the recipe through step 3 using a greased jumbo 6-count muffin pan. Spoon batter into the liners, filling all the way to the top. Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 25-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Sour Cream: Use full fat sour cream. In a pinch, you can replace it with plain yogurt. (Full fat Greek style or regular yogurt would be best.)
- Oil: For best taste and texture, use vegetable oil. In a pinch, you can replace with canola oil or olive oil. The muffins can taste greasy with melted coconut oil, but if you try it, it’s imperative the other ingredients are room temperature so the coconut oil doesn’t solidify as you mix the batter together.
- Milk: Whole milk is best. 2%, 1%, or nondairy milk work in a pinch. Do not use nonfat milk. Don’t use buttermilk. (You could use buttermilk if replacing both the sour cream AND milk, but the muffins taste a little spongy that way. Best to use sour cream and whole milk.)
- Recipe excerpted from Sally’s Baking Addiction. This version includes more chocolate chips and the addition of vanilla extract for a little extra flavor. The cookbook version also uses plain yogurt, but you can use sour cream as noted here.
Reader Comments and Reviews
These are the best muffins I’ve ever made. My kids loved Costco double chocolate muffins but they got rid of them. These are a great substitute, and much tastier. Thank you!
hi!! i reallyyyy want to make this recipe but my microwave oven only goes up to 200 degrees celsius. how do i adjust the baking time?
Hi Vishaka, you can bake the muffins at 350°F (177°C) the entire time then, knowing that the bake time will be a few minutes longer and the muffins won’t have the same high tops with that initial burst of heat.
can i bake it at 200 degrees c for five minutes and then at 180 for 16 ish minutes?
This was good but my muffins turned out cakey and I’m not sure why
Great texture, but even with subbing out the semi-sweet choc chips for bittersweet, it was too sweet for my family. I’m thinking about next time reducing the amount of choc chips to an even bag (283g for Ghiradelli chips instead of the stated 315g) and reducing the granulated sugar. My concern is if I remove 50 or 100g of sugar, that will throw the wet/dry ratio and dry ingredient composition off and impact the texture.
Any suggestions regarding that? I was thinking about reducing AP flour, oil, and milk a bit to compensate. This would reduce overall yield as well, maybe to 10-12 muffins down from the stated 12-14.
Hi Jeremy, while you can certainly try reducing the sugar, keep in mind that it plays an important role in the overall taste, texture, and structure of the muffins, so the final outcome will be different. We’d recommend starting small, then adjusting further (or tweaking other ingredients) for future batches.
Outstanding and delicious recipe Quick and easy too.
2 cups means 500g as the recipe states 250 g, little confused, thx
Hi Kate, ingredients weigh different amounts. For example, 1 cup of sugar weighs more than 1 cup of flour. 2 cups of spooned and leveled flour is 250g. (125g per U.S. cup)
Definitely looking forward to trying this recipe, but whenever I’ve made cakes with chocolate chips in before they sink to the bottom during baking. Is this something you’ve ever come across while making these? Do you have any tips to avoid it from happening?
Hi Beth! We’ve never had trouble with the chocolate chips sinking in these muffins — it’s quite a thick batter to hold them suspended.
Where can I find the nutritional value? These are delicious.
Hi Moe, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
I made this recipe yesterday and was so easy and very tasty we all loved it .thank you
I want to make around 18-20 of the muffins to take to a event. Cani just simply double all the ingredients in one bowl or will i need to make it in separate bowls if that makes sense? Ive made these before and they are delicious but ive only made 12.
Hi Stevie, for best results, we recommend making separate batches rather than doubling.
My family LOVE this recipe, thank you❤️❤️❤️❤️
Can i prepare batter and leave in the fridge overnight?
Hi Eve, we don’t recommend it. The baking soda is activated once the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together, so it’s best to make the batter shortly thereafter. Otherwise, rise and texture will be compromised. We’re glad they’re a favorite!
I have cream cheese to use up, do you think I could use cream cheese instead of sour cream do you think?
Hi Carla, cream cheese is a little too thick to use here. Sour cream or plain yogurt are your best options.
Hi! This is a great recipe. How high would you recommend me to fill the cupcake liners if I intend to make cupcakes instead of muffins?
Also, do you have any suggestion for a frosting recipe that goes well with this muffin/cupcake? Thank you so much
Hi Mariana, you could try filling them only 2/3 way full, but the tops may still be a bit rounded just because of the nature of this batter. You might enjoy our chocolate cupcakes instead, and you could add chocolate chips to that. Chocolate buttercream would be great with these, or here are all of our frosting recipes for browsing. Enjoy!
Great recipe, easy to bake and one of the best muffins I have ever had. Keep them coming
Simple and straightforward recipe, muffins turned out amazing. I’ve made them 3 or 4 times in the past month to share with friends and coworkers, great reviews all around 🙂
These muffins are amazing! I didn’t have semi sweet chocolate chips, so I used white chocolate chips and some semi sweet bakers chocolate chunks I had. I also used 2% milk instead of whole.
Other than that, I followed the recipe exactly. I will definitely be making these again. Not to sweet, just perfect. Next time I’ll try with whole milk and see the difference – but, I’m not sure these could get any better! 10/10
Hello! Do you know if substituting sugar for brown sugar in this recipe would yield a more moist and dense muffin, or would it turn out relatively the same? I’m in a pinch and only have brown sugar but if you think it will greatly impact the muffins i can run to the store 🙂 Your recipes are always so amazing im excited to try this one today!
Hi Emily, you can give it a try, but like you said, it may yield a slightly heavier muffin.
This recipe is amazing. Absolutely delicious. And easy to make.
I made this recipe, twice. I didn’t have enough coco powder so I just divided up what I had which came to, probably, about, two tablespoons under what was called for in the second recipe and one tablespoon under in the first recipe. I added walnuts to the first recipe, about a cup. I’ve got a lot of walnuts around. Wow, the first recipe was intense. Eat with milk. The second recipe I used butterscotch chips instead of chocolate. I have to tell you, with less chocolate and the butterscotch chips, they were the best.
Hi, i have tried most of your muffin recipes and it has always been a hit..thank u. One question, i cant find semi sweet chocolate chips here, we only hv dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips n milk chocolate chips. Can u advise which is the better alternative to semi sweet chocolate chips? Thank u
Hi Khairani, any of those will work just fine! If you prefer a deeper, darker flavor, then go with the dark chocolate chips. If you prefer a sweeter flavor, go with the milk chocolate or white chocolate chips. Enjoy!
Do you use self raising flour or plain?
Hi Brooke, this recipe uses all purpose flour.
Hi Sally, would substituting the chocolate chips with a chopped milk/dark chocolate bar & nuts work for this recipe?
Hi Lowell, Yes, that’s fine! We’d keep the total amount of add-ins about the same.
These muffins were delish! We loved them, so easy and would make again!
Made these today!!! Absolutely loved them
if i were to make these using a mini pan, what would the temperature and time be? thanks!
Hi Lisa, For mini muffins, bake 13-14 total minutes at 350°F (177°C) the whole time.
my kids love these muffins! Have made them several times
This recipe is a hit. My kids loved it.
I made these muffins on Labor Day. Excellent! The recipe is easy to follow. The muffins have deep, delicious chocolate flavor. They are moist and tender. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
I usually substitute unsweetened apple sauce for oil in my recipes. Do you think it would work in this one?
Hi Marina, you can absolutely try it, but the muffins will likely taste dry especially since they’re made with so much cocoa powder. You can play around with the amount, perhaps add more, or try using some oil and some applesauce. I can’t guarantee the best results. Let me know how it goes!
Hi Sally.
Love love love your recipe.
Do you think i can substitute the oil with melted butter? Thanks
Hi Roxanne, it’s best to stick to oil for this recipe. Butter will yield dry-tasting muffins. So glad you enjoy these!
It’s truly a superb recipe. Moist and full of flavor. Easy to follow. Voted the best muffin by family
These were absolutely incredible!!!
Amazing recipe my kids loved it