Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins (video)
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
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12
- Category: breakfast, snack
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
The BEST chocolate chip muffin recipe – soft, moist, fluffy, loaded with chocolate chips, and a perfect crispy sky-high muffin top!
Ingredients
- 2 & ½ cups (315g) 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) buttermilk (see notes for substitutions*)
- 1 tbsp (15ml) vanilla extract
- 1 & ½ cups (275g) semi-sweet 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
*You can substitute the buttermilk with any kind of milk. Even non-dairy milk like almond or rice milk works. Simply mix it with 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to make 1 cup.
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.
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.
Hi I am excited to try out after reading so many wonderful reviews. May I find out if its possible to use solely whole milk instead of buttermilk (while milk with lemon)? Will the texture be different? Thank you!
Yes, you can use solely whole milk. The texture won’t be noticeable unless you compare the two side by side and it will still taste just as great!
very good!!! thanks sm!! if i wanted to make a double batch, i just double the ingredients and get a larger bowl, right?
You got it! Enjoy and have a great weekend!
the muffins are the best!!!!!!; I love them and everyone I gave them to!!!❤️
Can a jumbo size muffin pan be used for this recipe? Thank you.
Yes, and bake for an extra 10-15 minutes. Enjoy!
I’ve been on a mission to create bakery style muffins and this recipe is the best! The only sub I made was cornstarch for egg since we have an egg intolerance in the house – but I’ve been doing that with cookies for a couple of years without impact to final product. Thanks, Lily, for this recipe and all of your tips. 😊
You’re very welcome, Sue, and thank you for your lovely feedback!
I’m making these for a 2nd time in 1 week – my daughter especially requested a second batch! So big and yummy 🙂 thanks for the recipe. We used almond milk and coconut oil and they still turned out perfect.
You’re very welcome, Meredith! I’m so happy you and your daughter enjoyed the muffins:)
I just baked them! Delicious!
This is my go-to muffin recipe! Super easy and delicious!!
Hi! I believe I have made this recipe twice, but I have gotten slightly oily muffins, and not as high rise. The only substitute I made was using salted butter, but I left out the salt, and making my own buttermilk, per recipe instructions. Well see how this second batch comes out, but I don’t know why they aren’t working… Any suggestions?
Huh, the muffins should not be oily. Let me know how the 2nd batch turns out. If it’s the same, I’ll try to figure out possibly what went wrong. Fingers and toes crossed:)
Can this recipe be used for 6 larger muffins
Yes, you can. Just extend the baking time by 10-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Enjoy!
So fluffy and yummy! Not too sweet. Added walnuts and used the almond milk + vinegar substitute for buttermilk, kept everything else the same. Thanks for the great recipe!
You’re very welcome, Claire! Thank you for your kind words and enjoy the muffins!
Can these be made with whole wheat flour?
Yes, but only replace half of the AP flour with WW flour or else it will change the taste and texture too much. Enjoy!
This recipe is amazing!! They come out fluffy, moist, and taste like a genuine muffin. I made these for a crowd and they all loved them!
Can I freeze them? If so, should I freeze the batter or the muffins themselves?
Yes, the muffins themselves freeze really well. Do not freeze the batter.
Hi I was wondering if the tablespoon of vanilla is a mistake? It seems like a lot of vanilla. Also, for the mini muffins, do you bake it at one temperature. The regular muffins include 2 different temperature. Thank you!!!
One tablespoon of vanilla is correct. I know it might seem like a lot but it really makes the muffins fragrant and flavorful. For mini muffins, just bake at 375F for 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Tastes amazing, perfectly moist and super easy!
Made these muffins today and they turned out so fluffy and delicious!! Thank you so much for the recipe!!!
YOu’re very welcome, Sakina! Glad you liked them so much:)
These are great, honestly the best I’ve made homemade. My family is definitely a fan. They are so much like bakery style with the crunchy top. I added some pearl sugar to the top to add a little more crunch! Delish!
What if using a large 6 muffin tin? What would the cooking time / temperature be? 🙂 these look awesome!
Same temperatures just add an extra 10-15 minutes at the end until a toothpick comes out clean. Enjoy!
Delicious and has beautiful peaks. I substituted canola oil for butter and will be making these again!