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.
Olga Lashmanova
Hi ! I haven’t tried baking these and before I start I was curious if I can add some alcohol to it?
Sam
Hi Olga! You might be able to do it with the vanilla extract but if you do, add it sparingly or else you end up changing the whole chemistry of the muffin. 🙂
Lauren Sacharanski
My family and I are obsessed with all of your recipes! And this one is no exception – the absolute BEST chocolate muffins we’ve ever had! Thank you for these out-of-this-world treats!
Sam
I am so glad everyone has enjoyed everything so much, Lauren! 🙂
Jessica
Incredible recipe and I love the fact that you have researched the science behind the perfect muffin!!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Jessica! 🙂
Elaine
These are THE best chocolate chip muffins!! I’ve been baking for well over 40 years and tried many recipes. I made 12 regular size and found they needed 12 minutes at 350°. *after 8 min. @425°
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Elaine! 🙂
Laura
I made a different recipe from Allrecipes.com a couple of months ago and my husband and I thought they were bland. Glad I had the guts to try a different recipe. I just made these and OMG were they delicious. I actually made them into mini muffins. Just baked them @ 425 degrees for 5 minutes and then @ 350 degrees for another 5-6 minutes.
Sam
I guess this recipe was just a better one. I’m glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
Evane
This is the best recipe I tried so far, and I plan of keep using it! I really think that the buttermilk changes everything. The muffins are just perfect. I also tried with blueberries…they are delicious. I have compliments every time. Thank you!
Sam
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed, Evane! Thank you so much for commenting and letting me know how they turned out for you!
Alison
I made these muffins (in a regular size cupcake pan) last night to have for breakfast this morning. My boyfriend, who isn’t a fan of chocolate chip anything, ate THREE of them. He loves blueberry muffins, so I’m going to use the same recipe, but substitute blueberries for the chocolate chips. I hope they turn out half as good as these did. Thank you so much for the recipe!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Alison! 🙂
Ima
I made them. They were delicious. Hubby and kids loved them. Thank you.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them! 🙂
Nicole
I can’t wait to try these but also wanted to know where you found the beautiful metal tray you use to display the muffins. Great presentation.
Sam
Hi Nicole! I actually found it on ebay one day while I was just looking around. I can’t even remember what it was called. I’m sorry. 🙁
Laura
Hi- we absolutely love these muffins! 2 questions, can you freeze muffins? And can you add blueberries instead of chocolate chips?
Sam
Hi Laura! You should be able to freeze these muffins without issue. You could also substitute blueberries as well. 🙂
Jessica Diamond
Best chocolate chip muffins ever! I made this for my family and friends and they loved them so much I had to make 2 more batches for them! The sugar on top really adds to the deliciousness of this muffin!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Jessica! 🙂
Victoria
I’ve never made muffins before so this was my first time and they turned out great! However next time I think I’ll just use 1/2 cup of sugar instead as the addition of chocolate chips already made it sweet enough. Regardless, this was a great recipe 🙂
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Victoria! 🙂
Alyssa
You said when about half of the dry batter is in the wet ingredients, but you didn’t say what to do with the other half. So if you could jut help me out that would be great!
Sam
Add in the chocolate chips and then continue to stir until everything is combined as written in step 6. You will want to add all of the dry ingredients to the wet and then when it’s about halfway incorporated you add the chocolate and continue mixing. This helps keep you from over-mixing. 🙂
Kristina
I have been looking for a great recipe for chocolate chip muffins that my kids would enjoy. My daughter told me these were the best muffins she has ever tasted in her life, (she’s 7 )
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Kristina! 🙂
Virginia
I just ordered a jumbo muffin tin but didn’t realize it would be so hard to find liners! Can you tell me where you found yours? Did you make them yourself out of parchment? Thanks!
Sam
Hi Virginia! I make my own, I actually recently shared a tutorial on how to make your own muffin liners. The tutorial is written for a standard-sized muffin tin so you will have to make yours a bit larger, but the same idea applies. Alternatively you can spray the pan with baking spray (not cooking spray, make sure it’s a baking spray made with flour) or grease and flour the pan. I hope that helps!
Virginia Faddy
Thank you! I made these and they were absolutely delicious! Probably the best muffins I have ever had. Keeper recipe for sure!
Sam
That’s awesome! I am so glad you enjoyed them so much. 🙂
Cristina
Hello Sam! What can I use if i do not have corn starch?
I just baked the vanilla cake with chocolate frosting for my birthday and everybody loved it!
Thank you!
Sam
Hi Cristina! You can substitute flour for the cornstarch. I am so glad everyone enjoyed the cake so much. 🙂