A crispy, sky-high muffin top, full of chocolate chips, soft and buttery on the inside – a perfect way to start your morning!
I love enjoying a good muffin with a nice, warm cup of coffee, especially now that the fall weather is setting in. My favorite part of a muffin is the muffin top, that’s why I love bakery style muffins. Breaking off that large, crispy muffin top and taking that first bite is heaven to me. When I was a kid, I would only eat the tops of my muffins and it used to drive my mother crazy because she though it was so wasteful. But, the bottom just couldn’t compare to the top. This reminds me of that Seinfeld episode back in the 90’s where Elaine had the idea of a store just selling muffin tops. I know I totally dated myself with the last reference, but I hope some of you know what I’m talking about or else I’m just going to feel old and geeky.
Anyway, let’s talk baking science. The key to the perfect bakery style muffin is to have just enough leavening agents (baking soda and baking powder) to create that puffy dome when baking, but not so much that you can taste it. Baking at an initial high temperature will cause the air bubbles in the batter to expand even further. This will help give the muffin a soft and fluffy texture and also create the high rise. Using enough fats and liquids like butter, eggs, and milk, will make the muffins moist and rich. You also need enough volume of batter to fill the tins to the top. Lastly, and this is a tip in general for making soft and tender muffins, mix the wet with the dry ingredients until JUST combined. Over mixing will result in hockey pucks and you don’t want that. Everything else is a matter of preference in taste.
I used mini chocolate chips for this recipe because they disperse more evenly throughout, but you can use regular chocolate chips or chocolate chunks if you prefer. I also added some salt to enhance all the flavors. I used to shy away from salt, but I learned from watching Master Chef that it’s useful for more than just adding a savory taste, it also potentiates all the other flavors. I added 1 tablespoon of vanilla because I like vanilla in all my baked goods. It’s just one of those flavors that goes well with most things, and of course you need some sugar. I only used 1 cup of sugar for this recipe because the chocolate chips are already sweet. So, in a nutshell, that’s pretty much how I came up with the recipe.
Enjoy these fabulous muffins with your morning coffee and/or as an afternoon snack. They’re moist, fluffy, rich in flavor, loaded with sweet chocolate chips, and they’re so delicious, I promise you’ll want to devour the whole thing, not just the tops.
Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
The BEST chocolate chip muffin recipe – soft, moist, fluffy, loaded with chocolate chips, and a perfect crispy sky-high muffin top!
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12
- Category: breakfast, snack
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 & ½ cups (308g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp (13g) baking powder
- 1 tsp (5g) baking soda
- ½ tsp (2.5g) salt
- ½ cup (114g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (250ml) milk (whole or buttermilk is preferred)
- 1 tbsp (15ml) vanilla extract
- 1 & ½ cups (275g) chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray a 12 cup muffin tray with non-stick cooking spray or line with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, toss together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, sugar, eggs, milk and vanilla. Slowly add to the dry ingredients. Gently fold together until JUST combined.
- Divide the batter into the 12 muffin cups and bake at 425°F for 5 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 375°F and continue to bake for another 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Do not overbake or the muffins will be dry. Let cool for about 5-10 minutes and enjoy warm.
Notes
Muffins taste best the day of, but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
For mini muffins; bake for 10-12 minutes at 375F only.
Keywords: chocolate chip muffin recipe, easy chocolate chip muffins, best chocolate chip muffins
You might also like my Bakery Style Blueberry Streusel Muffins, Bakery Style Banana Nut Muffins, and Double Chocolate Muffins. Click here to see all muffin recipes.
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies (video)
Easy Fruit Galette
Easy Apple Crumble (video)
Ultimate Cherry Cheesecake
Mango Pudding {video recipe}
Loved the muffins. can I substitute whole wheat flour for all purpose flour, and brown sugar instead of white sugar. Kindly advice. Thanks.
★★★★★
Hi Divya,
I always recommend to start with half and half, and see how you like it from there before you substitute all of the flour with whole wheat and all of the sugar with brown.
I substituted almond milk with 2tsp lemon juice and added 1tsp orange zest! Loved these, they were phenomenal!!
★★★★★
Thank you for your lovely feedback, and adding the orange zest sounds delicious!
These muffins are sorcery! The best chocolate chip muffin recipe I’ve ever tried. They’re going into permanent rotation at our house!
★★★★★
Thank you for your rave review, Kirsten!
WOULD I be able to substitute powdered sugar for the white sugar? If so, would I use twice as much?
No, not in this recipe because the texture is too different. The batter would become like a paste, so definitely not. Is there a reason you need to substitute the white sugar?
Since my very picky 12 year old son just finished his fourth one this morning, I would say these are great! Thanks for the recipe.
★★★★★
You’re very welcome! My kids are picky eaters too, so I know nothing makes a mom happier than when her picky child likes to eat something:)
I am going nuts….the minute we run out of these the kids ask me to make another batch!
Lol, I’m glad your kids like them so much, but I’m sorry to keep you busy!:)
How can I make these into banana chocolate chip muffins?
If I add mashed bananas, will I need to reduce the flour?
Hi Jane,
I have never tried to convert this recipe into a banana version, but I do have a banana chocolate chip muffin recipe https://www.littlesweetbaker.com/banana-chocolate-chip-muffins/ that’s a favorite with my kids. I hope you like it!
Just made these muffins and all I can say is WOW!! I’ve been looking for a good receipe that looks like store bought muffins and this is it!!
So soft and moist with the perfect amount of crunch.
These definitely will be a family favourite.
★★★★★
Great to hear, and thank you for your rave review!
I made it yesterday morning for school and they were quick, easy, and delicious! I loved this recipe and excited to use the recipe again.
★★★★★
Hi Emma,
I’m so glad you like it and thank you for your kind words!
THANK YOU FOR THE RECIPE IT IS SO GOOD
You’re very welcome!
This will be my go-to recipe from now on. I used a mix of semi-sweet chocolate and white chocolate chips. Perfect crisp top and moist centre. Exactly what I wanted. Thanks!
★★★★★
You’re very welcome! Thank you for your kind words:)
Hi, I’m Sumi from India. This is an awesome recipe. I just loved it. I have a question. The muffins turned out awesome but the chocolate chips got melted and did not retain it’s shape. What could be the reason for it?
★★★★★
Hi Sumi,
Thank you for your kind words. As for the chocolate chips melting, I have never experienced that before. My only guess is that perhaps the chocolate chips from India have a lower melting point than the chocolate chips I get here from Canada.
THESE ARE SO GOOD!!! Just made these with my son and they are so delicious, thank you!!!
★★★★★
You’re very welcome Rachel! Thank you for your kind words. So happy you and your son enjoyed the muffins:)
I’ve made these muffins quite a few times now. They turn out perfectly every time. Thanks so much for the recipe!
A note for anyone who is vegan, these muffins can easily be veganized. Sub flax eggs (1 tbsp flax + 2.5 tbsp water per large egg), margarine, nut milk of choice, and “chocolate” chips for the relevant non-veg ingredients. I’ve made them both ways, original recipe and vegan version, and both are delicious.
★★★★★
Hi Kirsten,
You’re very welcome! Thank you for your kind words and great vegan tip – much appreciated.
This recipe was so simple to follow and tasted great! I made a half batch, and reduced the sugar from 1/2 cup to 1/3 cup. Total yield was 24 tasty mini muffins! Wondering if half brown sugar and half white sugar would enhance the flavour of the batter itself? Anyone have any ideas on that? I know it works well in choc chip cookies!
★★★★★
Hi Denise,
Thank you for your feedback. The recipe would work fine with half brown sugar, so feel free to try that. Thanks again for your kind words and have a great day!
Wow, best muffin recipe I ever tried . I added some Nutella swirls on top.
Great idea with the Nutella! Thank you for your comment:)
This was an amazing Recipe if we had those muffins every day for a week it really helped everyone get moving thank you for creating this recipe it worked great
Lily, what did I do wrong? I followed directions to a t. The muffins would not release from the well greased tins, so after awhile I used a butter knife to get them out. The muffin tops were beautiful but the rest of the muffin was pale and not holding together very well. I did eat one muffin top and it was delicious.
Hi Suzee,
I’m sorry to hear that you had difficulties removing the muffins. Did you use an aluminum pan or non-stick stainless steel pan?
Stainless steel. I was thinking of using a silicone pan next time.
I thought so. That would explain why the bottoms were pale. Try using a non-stick next time. You still have to grease the pan, but it will not only come out much easier, it will also darken the bottoms nicely. I hope that helps and feel free to email me back if you have any other questions. Have a lovely day!
Fantastic! My kids loved these. I love extra chocolate chips so I used 2 cups.
★★★★★
Hi Becky,
Thank you kindly for your rave review! I’m really glad your kids loved them:)
Please email nutrition facts on Burberry, cranberry, and chocolate chip muffins. I’m diabetic and need it. Thank you
Hi Pat,
I’ve updated all my recipes to contain full nutrition information. Enjoy and have a great weekend!
Wonderful recipe!! I followed it exactly and it turned out perfect! I have always struggled to make good muffins and these were so easy to make and tasted just like they came from a bakery. I can’t wait to try more of your recipes! Thanks a million! I shared your blog with a frugal food community I am a part of and hope you get a bunch more followers as everyone seems excited about this recipe!😁
★★★★★
You’re very welcome, Seychelle! And thank you for your rave review and for sharing my blog with your food community – much appreciated! Enjoy the muffins and have a great day:)
I would like to make them into jumbo muffins so what would I need to change?? Thanks
Just bake them for an extra 5-10 minutes at the end. Enjoy!
I followed the exact recipe and they turned out great! Make sure to use all the batter for the 12 muffins and you’ll get some awesome muffin tops. Love this simple and delicious recipe.
★★★★★
Thank you for your wonderful feedback and kind words, Erica! Enjoy the muffins and have a great day:)
Hi, first let me just thank you for this wonderful recipe! When I made it the first time.. my muffins came out just like in the picture, very light and fluffy on the inside and quite hole-y lol.. but then I made it again today and they came out dense and not at all light and spongy like the first time. Can you plz tell me what I’m doing wrong.. or how to prevent this from happening again. Thanks again..
Hi Rachel,
The fact that the muffins didn’t rise, and had a dense texture suggests to me that maybe the baking power and/or baking soda was missed the second time you made the muffins perhaps?
Did the batter look the same as the first time you made it, or was it much thinner or thicker?
I’ve made this THREE times in the month of April. My daughter had a bake sale at school and these were a very popular item. I loved them myself. These are really DELICIOUS muffins and it is now a main stay desert recipe in my kitchen
I’m so thrilled to hear that you love these muffins that much. Thank you for your kind word Rayman, and have a wonderful day!
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe (and many others). Do you have a recipe for makings smaller batch like half a dozen?
You’re very welcome, Jamia. I don’t have a small batch recipe, but you can simply divide all the ingredients in half if you only want to make 6 muffins OR you can make the full recipe and freeze half the batch since these muffins freeze well.
If I freeze the muffins- how do i thaw and use? Do you have a batter that can be left in refrigerator for a few days?
Hi Suzanne,
You can use the freezer muffins by thawing in the fridge overnight and warming up in the microwave (30-60 seconds) or toaster oven (1-2 minutes). And no, I do not have a batter recipe that can be stored in the fridge. I’ve only heard of that with bran muffins. Here’s one that look really good: http://www.crosbys.com/six-week-refrigerator-bran-muffins-natural-bran/
Simply amazingly wonderful muffins! Thank you for this simple, yet great recipe!
★★★★★
You’re very welcome, Ana! I’m happy you enjoyed it, and thank you for your kind words:)
The best muffins ever,, my kids are very picky about sweets, but they loooovvveeee this muffins,, thank you for the recipe,,
You’re very welcome, Marinela. I’m glad you’re kids loved the muffins. My kids picky eaters as well. Thank you for your kind words, and have a lovely week!
If I wanted to make the batter chocolate too, so its double chocolate chip. How much cocoa powder and extra liquid would you recommend?
I would reduce the flour by 1/4 cup, add 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, add keep everything else the same. I hope that helps and feel free to email me back if you have any other questions. Enjoy!
Hello! I’m planning to bake these this weekend but I have a question. When you reduce oven temperature do you leave the pan of muffins in the oven or take them out while the oven is lowering its temperature? Thank you!
Hi Chelsea,
You leave the muffins in the oven to continue to bake while the temperature is lowering. I hope you enjoy the muffins, and feel free to email me back if you have any other questions.
Thank you so much for the quick reply!! One last question I had forgotten to ask, if I wanted to add a swirl of biscoff or nutella to each muffin, would that work okay with this recipe? Is there anything I would need to change as far as baking temperature or time? Thank you!!
Yes you can swirl some nutella or biscoff in each muffin, and just bake as instructed. Enjoy!
Thank you so much for sharing this great recipe! It’s rare that I find a recipe that works first time and does not need altering but my muffins turned out a success! Thank you xx
★★★★★
You’re very welcome, Aniqah! I’m glad you enjoyed them so much, and thank you for your kind words:)
I have made many a muffin in my day but I came across your recipe today for my 14 year old daughter to make. These muffins are perfect, the best we have ever made. This recipe is great. Well done. Will now be a staple in my monthly baking for lunches. Will also give it a go with Dairy free products for my Lactose daughter and see how they go. Thanks
★★★★★
You’re very welcome Deborah, and thank you for your kind words. Have a lovely week!