These moist, light, & fluffy bakery style Chocolate Chip Muffins are perfect for impressing overnight guests or just treating yourself. They’ve got sky-high sugared tops, lots of chocolate chips, and the BEST flavor and texture. Recipe includes a how-to video!
(Still) The Best Chocolate Chip Muffin Recipe
When I first shared this recipe back in 2016, a google search for “chocolate chip muffins” generated roughly 1.2 million results. Today you’ll find that number is closer to 64 million. 🤯 Despite the stiff competition, I still firmly believe that I have the BEST chocolate chip muffin recipe out there…yes, better than 64 million other muffin recipes!
What makes these muffins so good? Well for starters, they’re huge–we’re talking jumbo, bakery style chocolate chip muffins! They’re also perfectly soft and fluffy (in contrast to the crisp biscotti I just shared), and of course, they’re chock full of chocolate chips. As a finishing touch, they’re sprinkled with coarse sugar, so not only are the tops slightly crisp, but they’re also kind of glittery. These muffins truly belong in a New York City bakery display, but luckily, you don’t have to plan a trip to NYC to try them.
Like my basic muffin recipe, this recipe uses a technique from The Kitchen Whisperer for nice, tall muffin tops. I use this technique in my banana muffins too, and so many of you have commented to let me know how well it works for you.
Let’s dive right into the details!
What You Need
Besides technique, these muffins use carefully selected ingredients to claim their title as the BEST. Here are a few of the game changers we’ll be using today:
- Butter + oil. I love to use this combination for a flavorful AND moist crumb. Don’t substitute one for the other–we need both!
- An extra egg white. What makes these muffins so light and fluffy? To get that bakery style chocolate chip muffin texture, we’re adding an additional egg white. Both your egg and egg white should be at room temperature for best results.
- Buttermilk. Buttermilk is the secret to moist muffins! These muffins begin their bake at a fairly high temperature, so it’s important that they have the right ingredients to prevent dryness. You could use my buttermilk substitute if you don’t have the real stuff on hand, but real buttermilk adds moisture and thickness that isn’t quite duplicated with a substitute. (And no, you do not need baking soda in this recipe just because we’re using buttermilk).
- Cornstarch. This is my secret ingredient for extra soft, tender muffins. Don’t skip it!
- Chocolate chips. I like to use a blend of mini and regular sized chocolate chips, and I always reserve a few for placing on the muffin tops just before baking.
- Coarse sugar. While you’ll use granulated sugar in the muffins, I recommend sprinkling coarse sugar on the tops. This is optional, but it really elevates the look and texture and makes these truly “bakery style” chocolate chip muffins!
SAM’S TIP: Don’t have jumbo muffin liners? You can make muffin liners out of parchment paper! Not only does this save you a trip to the store, but it also gives you that bakery-style look.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Whisk together the butter and oil and sugar. Add the egg and egg white, plus the vanilla. Stir this until it is very well combined, then add the buttermilk and stir well.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then carefully fold them into the wet ingredients.
- Pause when the ingredients are about halfway mixed and add in the chocolate chips. Continue folding until everything is just combined.
- Cover your bowl with a towel and let the batter rest for 15 minutes or up to one hour while your oven preheats
Resting the batter is optional, but doing so gives us fluffier chocolate chip muffins and taller muffin tops. If you’ve made my buttermilk pancakes, you know I like to allow that batter rest while the pan preheats for the same reason, the batter thickens and the results are fluffier!
Now comes the special technique for chocolate chip muffins that rise higher than any others! You’ll start your oven on a high temperature and then drop the temperature about a third of the way through baking–without opening the door! This little trick makes your muffin tops spring to life without burning (or drying out) your muffin bottoms. Pretty cool, right?
- Once batter has had time to rest, preheat your oven and line your muffin tin.
- Fill your muffin liners with batter, making sure to fill them almost to the top (leave about ⅛ inch)–but don’t let them overflow.
- Sprinkle each muffin with coarse sugar and bake at 425F for 8 minutes. Reduce the oven to 350F (don’t open the door!) and continue baking until they begin to turn golden brown. This can take anywhere from 7-15 minutes, so keep an eye on them!
- Remove the muffins from the pan and let them cool before enjoying.
SAM’S TIP: (Carefully) remove your chocolate chip muffins from the pan within 5-10 minutes of them coming out of the oven. If you leave them in their hot pan, the bottoms may become soggy.
Frequently Asked Questions
We’re using a varying temperature technique here, which plays a big role in helping the muffins rise. But another key step is resting your batter. The longer it rests, the thicker it will be, and thicker batter means taller muffins! I recommend letting your batter rest for at least 15 minutes, but if you can let it sit for about an hour or so, you’ll be rewarded with beautifully tall muffin tops!
Yes! They won’t need to bake as long though, so just keep a close eye on them.
Your chocolate chip muffins will stay fresh when stored in an airtight container at room temperature. You can also freeze them!
If you try these, I’d love it if you commented to let me know how they stack up against the 64 million (and counting) other chocolate chip muffin recipes out there!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Bakery-Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled at least 5 minutes
- ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil or vegetable oil or canola oil may substitute vegetable oil
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg + 1 egg white room temperature preferred
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup buttermilk room temperature preferred
- 1 ¾ cup (220 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup (175 g) chocolate chips I used a mix of mini and regular sized, but you can use either or a combination
- ⅓ cup (67 g) additional granulated sugar, coarse sugar preferred for topping
Recommended Equipment
- 6-count Jumbo Muffin Tin (see note for making 12 muffins)
Instructions
- Combine butter, oil, and sugar in a large bowl and whisk together.4 Tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter, ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil or vegetable oil or canola oil, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- Add egg, egg white, and vanilla extract. Whisk together thoroughly, until all ingredients are well-combined, then stir in buttermilk until combined.1 large egg + 1 egg white, 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, ½ cup buttermilk
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, corn starch, and salt.1 ¾ cup (220 g) all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 2 teaspoons corn starch, ½ teaspoon table salt
- Fold dry ingredients into wet gently, taking care not to overmix. Once about half of the dry ingredients have been incorporated into the batter, add in chocolate chips and continue to fold in to batter until all ingredients are just combined.1 cup (175 g) chocolate chips
- Cover bowl with a dry towel and allow batter to sit while your oven preheats (see note).
- Preheat oven to 425F (215C) and line a 6-count jumbo muffin tin with paper liners.
- Once your oven has preheated (maybe give it a few extra minutes or check your oven thermometer, my oven often says it's reached temperature when it really hasn't yet!), portion batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each tin all the way to the top with batter (without overflowing).
- Sprinkle tops generously with additional sugar and place muffin tin in preheated oven.⅓ cup (67 g) additional granulated sugar, coarse sugar preferred
- Bake on 425F (218C) for 8 minutes and then, without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 350F (175C) and bake another 15 minutes, or until tops are just beginning to turn golden brown Note: if you are using a standard 12-count muffin tin rather than jumbo-sized, they will not need to bake as long, check your muffins after 7-8 minutes on 350F (177C)).
- Allow muffins to cool in the muffin tin for 5-10 minutes then carefully remove from muffin tin and enjoy!
Notes
Allowing the muffin batter to sit
This step is optional, but it helps the batter thicken and ultimately results in taller muffin tops. Allowing the batter to sit for up to 60 minutes also works and will yield even taller tops.Storing
Store leftover muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Baked muffins may also be cooled and then frozen in an airtight container for several months.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Jodie
I just made these for my adult daughter who is a true lover of all things sweet, especially chocolate. She loved them! I didn’t have coarse sugar on hand to sprinkle on top so I used fine granulated. It didn’t take the entire 1/3 cup for 12 regular size muffins. I would definitely buy some coarse ground for next time because I can see where it would make the texture on top better. They still were delicious and will definitely be adding this recipe to my recipes. I can’t wait to try your other muffin recipes. Thanks!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much for my recipe, Jodie! I am so glad that you and your daughter enjoyed the muffins. I can’t wait to hear what recipe you try next. 🙂
Angie
Can I use this recipe to make muffin tops?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Angie! Yes, you can! Please keep in mind that the baking time will be different than what is listed so you will want to keep an eye on it. 🙂
Karen
I Have Baked These Muffins Many Times for Family and Friends. Absolutely Delicious! Everyone Loves Them. Thank You For Sharing Your Recipe.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that everyone has enjoyed them, Karen. Thank you so much for using my recipe and for commenting. 🙂
Malika
Muffins turned out absolutely delicious! I did not have buttermilk, so I followed the alternate recommendation and used milk and lemon juice. My daughter and I enjoyed making these together and will certainly make them again!!!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you and your daughter had fun making this recipe together, Malika. I am happy that the muffins turned out well and you enjoyed them. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Jen
Absolutely delicious muffins! Of all things, I found them a little *too* chocolatey (who am I, right? 😂), so I would reduce to a full 3/4 cup next time. I also used full-sized chips, so perhaps stick to 1 cup if you’re using the suggested combo of mini+full-sized. Based on supplies, I gambled and used regular granulated sugar, and this worked great for me! Next grocery trip, I’ll re-stock on something a bit coarser, but I wasn’t disappointed without it. A decadent recipe for lockdown baking. Thanks! 😋
Sugar Spun Run
Too chocolatey?!!! lol. These muffins are rich in flavor and I am glad that you enjoyed the recipe, Jen. Thanks for commenting 🙂
Jesse
Followed the recipe and they turned out fantastic!
Sugar Spun Run
That is wonderful, Jesse! I am so glad that you enjoyed the muffins. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Olga
Oh, my so good! Followed recipe to a T, and muffins came out perfectly delicious! Thank you very much!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the muffins, Olga! Thank you for trying my recipe and for commenting. 🙂
Charity
I ran out of butter of all things and had to substitute 1 tbls peanut butter and the other 3 tbls apple sauce with the normal oil, and it still turned out great!! I also do almond milk with vinegar in recipes that call for buttermilk and it worked perfectly for this. Definitely letting it sit and mixing well is important. Also for almond milk I added a little extra rise time before spooning out the batter.
Fantastic recipe. I bake all the time and never write reviews but this just really deserves it.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you were able to make quick adjustments, Charity. I am happy to hear that the end results were perfect and that you enjoyed the muffins. Thank you for commenting. Your feedback is appreciated. 🙂
Julianna
Absolutely delicious! So happy I finally found the perfect chocolate chip muffin recipe. I made my own buttermilk with your suggestion of mixing lemon juice into regular milk and it turned out great. Thank you for sharing, this will be my go-to recipe!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the muffins, Julianna! Thank you so much for trying my recipe and for commenting. 🙂
Debra
The 15 min at 350 has passed and my muffins are no where near done. Nicely brown on top but a toothpick comes out with raw dough. I’ll continue to check them but now I’m worried about the tops getting too browned 🙁
Debra
Another 5 minutes did the trick! They look amazing and I’ve no doubt they will taste as good as they look!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad, Debra! Thank you for letting me know. Enjoy! 🙂
Kaila
Hello, is it possible to use almond milk and lemon juice as a substitution for buttermilk? Can’t wait to make this recipe! Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Kaila! I typically don’t like to use almond milk as it alters the texture of the muffins. Others have tried using almond milk and had success. I hope that you do too. Keep me posted on how they turn out. 🙂
Aimee
Could you use a mini muffin tin to make these? If so, would the directions be the same? Any idea on cooking time? Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Aimee! Yes, you can make mini muffins using this recipe. I recommend keeping an eye on them, as the bake time will vary. Enjoy! 🙂
Caitlin Balint
can I substitute buttermilk for almond milk? are there any other changes I would need to make?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Caitlin! I typically don’t like to use almond milk as it alters the texture of the muffins. Others have tried using almond milk and had success. I hope that you do too. Keep me posted on how they turn out. 🙂
Elísabet Jóhannsdóttir
They turned out amazing! Thank you!
Kind greetings from Iceland 🙂
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Elisabet! I am so glad that you enjoyed the muffins! Thanks for trying my recipe. 🙂
Elisabet
Amazing! Thank you 🙂 greetings from Iceland.