This chocolate chip muffin recipe has remained a reader favorite since I first published it many years ago. These bakery-style chocolate chip muffins are BIG in size, flavor, and texture. They’re deliciously soft and moist with a crackly muffin top. Cinnamon spiced and loaded with chocolate chips, you’ll never turn to another muffin recipe again.
I originally published this recipe in 2013 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more success tips.
Today’s homemade chocolate chip muffins rival any from a bakery. They’re large and in charge, bursting with flavor, and are topped with a sweet sparkly sugar crunch. Like an acceptable version of chocolate chip cookies for breakfast! It’s a variation from my master bakery-style muffin recipe.
One reader, Jennifer, commented: “This is the recipe I’ve been looking for! The muffins are light and moist, not too dense or heavy. I think this is the best muffin recipe on Sally’s site! I’ve made both jumbo and regular size muffins… Thank you for this wonderful recipe! ★★★★★”
Another reader, Sabrina, commented: “Me and my family loved this recipe, best muffins I’ve ever made. I wasn’t too sure about the cinnamon at first and was going to skip it, but I did end up adding half of it in the end and they came out perfect. Really loved the kick it gave. ★★★★★”
Video Tutorial
Ingredients in Chocolate Chip Muffins
Besides flavor and texture, you’ll appreciate the simple ingredient list. You only need a few basic ingredients to make absolutely awesome chocolate chip muffins. Each ingredient is important and transforms boring muffins into bakery-style chocolate chip muffins!
- Flour: Flour is the foundation of these chocolate chip muffins muffins; we need a thick batter to hold all of the chocolate chips.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: A lot of leavener is required to create a significant rise against all of the wet ingredients.
- Cinnamon & Nutmeg: Cinnamon is a muffin’s favorite spice. You only need a small pinch of nutmeg, too. I promise you that nutmeg is what most chocolate chip muffin recipes are missing. You’ll never go back!
- Vanilla Extract & Salt: Both are used for flavor.
- Eggs: Eggs add moisture and bind everything together.
- Sour Cream or Plain Yogurt: Just like I do with chocolate covered strawberry muffins, I began adding a touch of sour cream to this batter. It helps keep the muffins extra moist and I highly recommend it!
- Sugar: Use granulated sugar to sweeten these muffins.
- Oil: Oil produces a moist, tender muffin. These days I combine a little melted butter and oil. See my recipe note.
- Milk: Milk adds plenty of moisture and lightens up the crumb.
- Chocolate Chips: These wouldn’t be chocolate chip muffins without chocolate chips! I always keep a large stash on hand for these muffins and chocolate chip cookies.
- Coarse Sprinkling Sugar: My secret ingredient used for sparkle and crunch on top. I like Sugar in the Raw or you can use white sparkling sugar sprinkles, usually found with the sprinkles in the baking aisle.
How to Make Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
This chocolate chip muffin recipe couldn’t be easier. The batter comes together in minutes, so it’s a wonderful recipe for busy mornings.
Mix the wet ingredients and dry ingredients separately by hand, then combine them. The batter will be thick, which is ideal for holding muffin add-ins like fruit, nuts, or chocolate chips. Muffin batter is much thicker than cupcake batter because muffins are more dense. The thicker the batter, the less likely the add-ins will sink to the bottom.
- Tip: Make sure the eggs, sour cream, and milk are at room temperature, which incorporates them quicker and easier with other ingredients. I recommend taking these ingredients out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before starting.
Divide the batter in your muffin pan and fill each all the way to the top. You can make this recipe as 6 large muffins (shown), 14-15 standard size muffins, or 40 mini muffins. Top with a sprinkle of coarse sugar for a truly authentic bakery-style muffin!
Don’t Over-mix.
When combining the wet and dry ingredients, don’t over mix. This is very important to ensure soft and fluffy chocolate chip muffins. You’ll be tempted to keep on mixing because this batter is so thick, but it only takes about 20 strokes to mix it all together. You might notice a few lumps in the batter, but that’s normal. Remember, don’t overmix!
The Secret Trick for Tall Muffin Tops
Fill your muffin tins all the way to the top. If using a giant muffin tin, your batter will fill 6 large tins to the brim, as shown above. Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425°F, then for about 25 minutes at 350°F. This initial high oven temperature lifts the muffin top up quickly and creates a tall crust, which is why filling the muffin tins to the top is imperative.
Most muffins bake between 350°–375°F for the entire time. Setting the oven to 425°F initially and then lowering the temperature after 5 minutes guarantees muffins with tall, sugar-crusted, crackly tops. I do this in all my muffin recipes.
See my Master Bakery-Style Muffin Recipe for more flavor options and ideas.
More Favorite Muffin Recipes
- Blueberry Muffins
- Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Mini Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Banana Chocolate Chip Streusel Muffins
- Morning Glory Muffins
- Banana Muffins
Bakery-Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 jumbo muffins or 15 standard muffins
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Big, bakery style muffins stuffed with chocolate chips and topped with a sprinkle of sugar. This recipe is written to yield 6 jumbo muffins. For standard size or mini muffins, see notes at the bottom of the recipe. Baking times differ.
Ingredients
- 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
- 1/3 cup (5 Tablespoons; 71g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 1/3 cup (80ml) oil (vegetable oil, melted coconut oil or avocado oil)*
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80g) sour cream or yogurt, at room temperature*
- 1 cup (240ml) milk, at room temperature*
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups (270g) semi-sweet chocolate chips*
- optional: coarse sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Generously grease a jumbo 6-count muffin pan with butter or nonstick spray (nonstick spray recommended) or line with muffin liners. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk the melted butter, oil, sugar, and eggs together until combined. Then whisk in the sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract. Mixture will be pale yellow. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and fold together with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon until completely combined. Use a whisk to rid any large lumps of flour, if needed. Avoid overmixing. The batter will be thick. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Divide batter between each muffin cup, filling all the way to the top. Sprinkle with coarse sugar (for added crunch, recommended!). Bake at 425°F for 5 minutes, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C) and continue to bake for 25-26 minutes until the tops are lightly golden brown and centers are set. Stick a toothpick in the center of a muffin to test for doneness. If it comes out clean, the muffins are done.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan before serving.
- Cover leftover muffins and store at room temperature for 5 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. Muffins freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or on the counter.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 6-count Jumbo Muffin Pan | Jumbo Muffin Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula or Wooden Spoon | White Sparkling Sugar
- Oil: Vegetable oil, canola oil, or melted coconut oil work best in this recipe.
- Sour Cream/Yogurt: I recommend full fat sour cream or full fat or low fat plain yogurt. I don’t recommend fat-free for either.
- Milk: I like to use buttermilk or whole milk in this recipe because either add wonderful moisture and flavor. You can use any milk, dairy or nondairy, but the lower fat milk you use, the less flavorful and moist your muffins will taste.
- Chocolate Chips: I love using a mix of regular size and mini size chocolate chips for varying chocolate texture. You can also use chocolate chunks or milk chocolate chips.
- Standard Size Muffins or Mini Muffins: For standard size muffins baked in a 12-count muffin pan, reduce baking time to about 20 total minutes: 5 initial minutes at 425°F and 15 minutes at 350°F. Yields 14-15 standard size muffins. For about 40 mini muffins, bake for 11-13 minutes at 350°F the entire time.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read for more about the importance of room temperature ingredients.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Sally-I made this a few months ago and it was perfect. I recently bought muffin top pans. I was curious if I could use this exact recipe for muffins tops (or any of your other muffin recipes?) Do you know what the baking temp/time would be adjusted to? Thanks.
Hi Bree, We are happy you enjoyed these muffins! It would likely work to make just the muffin tops but we have never tried it so we are unsure of the bake time they would need. Let us know if you give it a try!
OMGosh!!! These turned out amazing! Your recipes never disappoint. NOT DRY AT ALL! I always measure my ingredients. I used half AP flour and half whole wheat flour and added orange zest to the dry ingredients and replaced the 1c milk with 1/2c orange juice and 1/2c milk. I used a 6-count muffin tin and these rose beautifully. I wish I could upload a picture. Mine baked for 23min. They are a hit. Thank you so much 🙂
Hi Sally… I am looking forward to making these muffins!! Would I be able to mix up the muffins, divide the batter into muffin tins, place them in the fridge overnight and then bake them off the next day?
Hi Delfa, we don’t recommend it as the muffins won’t rise properly when baked. Best to make the batter fresh!
Have tried many of Sally’s recipes and none have disappointed me ever. And as such these muffins turned out absolutely delicious too
Delicious
Sally, you’ve done it again! I’ve been baking a lot of muffins these days (thanks to Sally). It didn’t take long to subscribe to Sally’s Baking Addiction. It would normally take me to 5recipes to subscribe but so far one recipe from you made me subscribed right away. This Chocolate Chip Muffins has definitely won the hearts of the children, parents, teacher, cater, literally everyone in the school where my son goes to. They said “THESE MUFFINS ARE DELICIOUS!” Great recipe for bake sale!
Takes 30-40 mins to make. Not 15. Not a quick recipe but they taste ok. Usually take longer to cook in oven too.
these were hands down the most delicious and decadent muffins i’ve ever made, and believe me, i’ve made a LOT! so glad my craving lead me to your website. my family had more than one each at the initial sitting ;). thanks for sharing such a wonderfully rich cake like treat of a muffin!
Love this recipe! I’m wondering if the baking temperature is meant for a conventional oven or a convection oven?
Hi Sydney, We always recommend conventional settings for baking (not convection/fan). The flow of air from convection heat can cause baked goods to rise and bake unevenly and it also pulls moisture out of the oven. If you do use convection/fan settings for baking, lower your temperature by 25 degrees F and keep in mind that things may still take less time to bake.
I used light vanilla Greek yogurt as it was all I had. I also only had margarine.
These muffins were moist, fluffy, and over all delicious. My bunch loved these and I will definitely make them again!
I love this recipe! I like to incorporate a bit of whole wheat pastry flour, so I used 1/2 cup of pastry flour and 2 cups of unbleached cake flour, reducing the total to 2.5 cups flour. I also prefer buttermilk, and the muffins came out moist and tasty!
I have never been disappointed by one of your recipes, and this one is no exception! They are delicious – not dry at all . I made 12 muffins, with papers, and they domed beautifully.
What can you use instead of sour cream? I would usually use sour cream but I don’t have any at the moment?
You can use plain yogurt in place of the sour cream. Enjoy!
Amazing recipe
I’ve used a lot of your recipes, and they’re always winners. Thank you so much!
These are a favourite! We love them! Could I add flax seeds to this recipe? Should I reduce the flour when I add the flax?
Hi Sarah, we haven’t tested this recipe with flax seeds, but you could certainly try adding them. Let us know how they turn out!
Thank you so much! My boyfriend loves muffins so I’ve been making him a bunch of varieties he can eat for breakfast. He really likes them! The cinnamon really comes through, I might reduce to half a teaspoon next time. Mine weren’t dry whatsoever, I used the spoon levelling method that Sally recommends and I think it really worked.
These were so good! We make muffins often and I do feel the flour measure was a bit high – the batter turned out very dense once baked through, and the tops of the muffins stayed in the exact same (ridiculous-looking) position I spooned them into the pan in. Otherwise, perfect! I will try them with half a cup less of flour next round. Thanks!!
Hi Maja! How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
used bob’s red mill gluten free flour and substituted coconut oil for the vegetable oil. they were PERFECT.
I just made these. They are perfect and beautiful. Thank you for the recipe! The sparkling sugar on top is like a cherry on top of a sundae!
Sally’s recipes never disappoint! Followed the directions exactly (weighed the flour using a scale) and they came out perfect and moist! I made 15 standard size muffins and the cook time was spot on. Yum yum yum!
Not a great recipe. Baking is science in a way, and the ratio of flour to liquid to fat to eggs is crucial to the delicious result. This recipe is all over the place, with too much flour and too much fat which inevitably results in the unpleasant
dense texture. I reckon an experienced baker can correct that by tweaking the recipe, hence some raving comments here about how moist and fluffy the muffins turned out ( or maybe some people are economical with truth?). If you are at the beginning of your baking journey, don’t waste good ingredients.
i have no idea what you’re talking about… they turned out amazing for me, and i’ve been making them for a while using this recipe. Maybe you’re doing something wrong? The recipe seems perfectly fien to me anyway…
Do you think you can omit the salt and use salted butter?
Hi Rachel, we recommend reducing salt to 1/4 tsp if using salted butter. Here’s more on salted vs unsalted butter in baking!
Can you replace some of the flour with whole wheat flour?
Hi SL, you can try, but expect a heavier and slightly drier muffin. You may want to start with 1/2 all purpose and 1/2 whole wheat and then adjust more/less for future batches.
I was a little worried as I’d run out of vegetable oil, so I used melted coconut oil as per the recipe notes. The coconut oil semi re-solidified when I mixed it in with the other wet ingredients and became lumpy. I persevered, mixed the wet and dry ingredients together, and added an extra dash of milk while mixing to incorporate the ingredients as batter is so dense. Got a batch of gorgeous, delicious, jumbo , cafe-style muffins. So impressed! This recipe is a definite keeper, thank you!
Was looking for a muffin recipe for a family gathering and wanted to try these. Anyone looking for chocolate chip muffins please use this recipe. Don’t listen to the people who gave this less than 5 stars! This recipe is AMAZING! I have tried over 150 of Sally’s recipes. I have never tried one i have not liked. Whenever people ask for a baking website I recommend this one becasue I have always been very pleased with it.
Hi sally can we make these muffins eggless? The ones with eggs turned out lovely.
Hi Chitra, We haven’t tested this recipe with egg substitutes, so can’t give any advice. Let us know if you try any! Here are all of our egg free baking recipes if you are interested in browsing there.
I accidentally forgot the eggs, they were sitting on my counter at room temp ready to crack and everything. Oops! But! Even without the eggs this recipe rises and tastes great and is moist without them! I *always* use avocado oil when I bake/cook, and it just adds another buttery dimension. My 2.5 year old girl, picky as anything, demolished her first muffin in record time. Safe to say these are good, with or without eggs.
The muffins turned out a little dry, what could be the reason?
Hi Ashiya, how did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level to measure, or use a food scale if available, to ensure just the right amount of flour. Even a little bit too much can dry out baked goods. Dry muffins can also be the result of baking too long, so for next time you can try just a minute or so less in the oven. Use a toothpick to test for doneness.
Hi Lexi, when using a scale, what would be the weight measurement for the flour? I live in Europe and we don’t use cups for measuring ingredients, we weigh them (in grams). Many thanks for the recipe, I am looking forward to trying it!
Hi Su, you will need 375g of all-purpose flour for this recipe. Gram measurements are provided in the recipe card, too! Hope this is helpful and that you enjoy the muffins.
Hello I’d like to make these but I’m out of butter. Can I use only oil and if so, how much should I use?
Hi Leila, for best results, we’d recommend waiting until you use the combination of butter and oil in the written recipe. By using all oil, you’ll lose quite a bit of flavor. If you do use all oil, you can use 2/3 cup total.
I made these muffins with King Arthur Gluten Free Measure for Measure flour. Perfect muffins! Light, fluffy, and you can’t tell they’re gluten free. Fantastic recipe!
I halved this recipe and I thought I measured all ingredients carefully. However, my batter was thin and all my chocolate chips sank to the bottom. The flavor was ok. I made these as mini muffins.
These were great! Easy to make and came out great. I noted some had complained of being dry so I weighed the flour and used just a tad bit extra sour cream, butter and oil. They are delicious!
Don’t leave out the sugar sprinkles on top! You’ll be glad they’re there.
I find adding coconut oil to the wet ingredients makes the muffins moist
These are GREAT! I doubled the batch and one pan I used liners and the other no liners. The no liner pain I thought domed over more, but both look and taste great!
Horrid tasting, very dry, flat..I did see someone fuffled the flour first but I doubt I’ll waste ingredients again
Delicious and so beautifuld