Fluffy, tender, and just sweet enough, these easy Chocolate Muffins are a favorite breakfast and snack to share with the kids. Bonus: They bake up in less than 20 minutes and store so well!
Chocolate Muffins
We’ve long made our Chocolate Protein Muffins, Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins, and Chocolate Banana Muffins, but I had a craving for a straight-up Chocolate Muffin…so here we are. This muffin recipe, which is similar to my Yogurt Muffins, is both easy to make and super delicious.
We love these healthy muffins for their chocolate flavor but also because they are satisfying with the inclusion of yogurt and eggs for protein. They’re great on their own served warm or cold and pair nicely with diced berries or banana as an easy meal or snack.
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What’s the secret to making moist muffins?
In this recipe, there are a few things that create very moist muffins. First, there’s a full cup of yogurt which adds a lot of moisture and fluffiness in the baked muffins. And the all-purpose flour keeps them light, too.
From there, stir the batter together gently. And transfer the baked muffins from the pan to a wire rack so they can cool fully on a wire rack. If they cool in the pan, they will likely continue to bake and may be tougher.
Ingredients You Need
Here’s a look at the ingredients you need to make this muffin recipe, including dry ingredients and wet ingredients.
- Whole-milk plain yogurt: Full fat yogurt is best if possible. This helps the muffins be super moist and super tender.
- Eggs: Large eggs help the muffins cook through and stay moist. See the Notes at the end of the recipe for the egg-free options.
- Vanilla extract: Adding vanilla extract balances the flavor of the cocoa powder nicely.
- Maple syrup: Or you can use honey for kids over age 1 or sugar to save a little money on groceries.
- Unsalted butter: This needs to be melted and cooled, slightly so we can stir it into the batter. I prefer unsalted butter so I can decide how much salt to add.
- All-purpose flour: This helps the muffins stay tender and light.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: I typically use SACO, Hershey’s Special Dark, or Trader Joe’s brand.
- Baking powder and baking soda: A combination of these helps the muffins rise nicely and bake through properly.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips: You can use full size or mini chocolate chips. You could even use chocolate chunks. We stir these into the batter for extra chocolate flavor to make double chocolate muffins. (You can also use berries or diced fruit instead if you prefer.)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at how to make this recipes so you know what to expect. Scroll down to the end of the post for the full recipe, including the amounts and timing.
- Preheat the oven. Grease a muffin pan. Stir together the yogurt, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla in a large bowl.
- Add the flour, sugar, chocolate chips, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Gently stir or whisk the mixture together.
- Divide batter among the muffin tin. (I prefer to use classic nonstick Pam instead of muffin liners as muffins without a lot of oil can stick to liners. If you want to use them, parchment ones may work better.)
- Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out cleanly. Remove from oven, then transfer muffins to a wire rack to cool fully.
Frequently Asked Questions
I prefer Hershey’s Special Dark, SACO, or Trader Joe’s store-brand.
Sure. You can trade in 1 cup of diced strawberries or bananas, or blueberries, to add more flavor in place of it if you prefer.
Follow the recipe and simply reduce the baking time to about 12 minutes.
The main difference in my recipes is that chocolate muffins have more nutritious ingredients including yogurt and less added sugars so they are less sweet.
How to Store
Once cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature. Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Warm slightly to serve from the fridge (they firm up a bit when they’re cold so warming slightly returns them to their softer texture).
You can also freeze the muffins in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or in 15-second increments in the microwave.
Best Tips for Success
- To make as mini muffins, divide batter in a greased 24-cup mini muffin pan and bake for 12-14 minutes.
- Dairy-free: Use a nondairy Greek-style yogurt, like the plant-based options from Siggi’s, and a neutral oil, like canola oil or vegetable oil in place of the butter. (If the batter is very thick, add a few tablespoons of nondairy milk.)
- Gluten-free: Substitute cup-for-cup gluten-free flour in place of the wheat flours.
- Egg-free: Omit the eggs. Reduce the yogurt to ¾ cup. Add ¼ cup additional milk. Proceed with the recipe.
- I prefer dutch process cocoa powder from brands including SACO, Hershey’s Special Dark, and Trader Joes.
- Coat nonstick pans with nonstick spray (I use classic Pam) to ensure they don’t stick.
I’d love to hear your feedback on this post, so please rate and comment below!
Fluffy Chocolate Muffins
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cocoa powder (sifted if at all lumpy)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole-milk plain yogurt
- ⅓ cup maple syrup (or honey for kids over age 1)
- 2 eggs (large)
- ¼ cup unsalted butter (melted and cooled, slightly)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chocolate chips (I prefer mini or to chop up full-size to evenly distribute the chocolate)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 12-cup standard muffin pan with nonstick spray.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the yogurt, maple syrup, eggs, butter, and vanilla.
- Gently stir or whisk together.
- Divide batter among the prepared muffin tin, using a heaping ¼ cup batter in each cup.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out cleanly. Remove from oven, then transfer muffins to a wire rack to cool fully.
Notes
- Once cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature. Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Warm slightly to serve from the fridge (they firm up a bit when they’re cold so warming slightly returns them to their softer texture).
- You can also freeze the muffins in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or in 15-second increments in the microwave.
- To make as mini muffins, divide batter in a greased 24-cup mini muffin pan and bake for 12-14 minutes.
- Dairy-free: Use a nondairy Greek-style yogurt, like the plant-based options from Siggi’s, and a neutral oil, like canola, in place of the butter.
- Gluten-free: Substitute cup-for-cup gluten-free flour in place of the wheat flours.
- Egg-free: Omit the eggs. Reduce the yogurt to ¾ cup. Add ¼ cup additional milk. Proceed with the recipe.
- Feel free to replace the chocolate chips with diced berries or other fruit, or to increase the amount of chocolate chips to 1 cup. Up to you!
Nutrition
This post was first published October 2022.
Amy, thank you for another great recipe! I had to make many swaps for dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free and they still turned out wonderfully! I’m so grateful for your knowledge, truly. It’s so refreshing to have easy swaps that are already staples and in my fridge/pantry. Navigating an allergy world is overwhelming, and you simplified it for me and my kids. Thank you!
You’re so welcome!
Can I substitute shredded carrots for zucchini? This recipe looks great!
There isn’t zucchini in this recipe but you might be able to add some carrots if you’d like.
I used Oikos Pro vanilla yogurt (2 containers) and brown sugar because I didn’t have maple syrup….Yum! So good, so fluffy, not overly sweet….adding to my recipes!
I actually made these for myself! Haha. I will let my kids try the muffins later to see if they like them (I’m sure they will) but oh my goodness these are soooo yummy!!!! So moist and fluffy! And not overly sweet. I did omit half of the maple syrup and sub with two tbsp brown sugar just because I don’t have that much maple syrup but they still taste great. These muffins made my day. Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Could you use low fat Greek yogurt in place of whole milk yogurt? Looking forward to trying this recipe. Loved all your other ones we’ve tried!
Sure, enjoy!
Goodness. I read the instructions incorrectly and added the whole milk yogurt AND whole milk. They still turned out okay, just kinda eggy. So be sure to read carefully everyone lol.
Second batch that I actually followed the instructions correctly were excellent 🙂 Thank you!
These hit the magical balance of not being overloaded with sugar and myself, my husband, and my toddler all love them. Every other muffin recipe I make either has loads of sugar or my husband or toddler doesn’t like them. Great texture and not too sweet!
Wonderfully moist and perfectly sweet. Made the egg free version and they turned out perfect!!!
Delicious! These were so easy to make and my kids LOVED them. Can’t wait to try them again with Hershey’s special dark cocoa powder. Quick to make and bake. Thanks for another great recipe!
Turned out great, even with plant based substitutions. (Almond/coconut yogurt, Bob’s Red Mill Egg Replacer, and applesauce instead of butter). And my 4 year old loved helping. He said “We should save this recipe!” Thanks for sharing.
One bowl, not too sweet, ready in a jiffy! I’m based in Japan, set my oven to 190 for 15 min and they came out perfect.
Can I sub avocado oil for the butter?
I haven’t tested them that way but it may work.
Thumbs up from the 6yo. A great easy muffin that feels more filling then some! Thanks!
My son loved the recipe but wished for it to be a bit sweeter. I would like it to remain sugar free as I used honey. Can I increase the amount of honey or add very ripe bananas? What do you suggest? Thanks!
You can increase the amount of honey and/or add more chocolate chips to the batter. (Honey is considered added sugar though, to clarify that.)
Could I use banana instead of yogurt? or a combo of both?
I haven’t tried mashed banana here but it’s a similar consistency so it might work the same. Let me know if you try it!