SO. MANY. THINGS to love about these Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins! First, and most importantly, they’re probably one of the most DELICIOUS chocolate muffins you’ll ever bake. Period.
The secret is the ingredient we often try to use up at the end of summer: zucchini. Like banana, it lends incredible moisture to baked goods, but here’s the magic—it imparts absolutely no flavor. This means your friends and family will have no idea they’re enjoying a dose of veggies, unless they happen to spot a stray green fleck!
The texture of these muffins is nothing short of heaven. And I’m not even exaggerating. They are soft, plush, bouncy…all of my favorite words for a really perfectly textured muffin (or cake or cupcake). Loaded with moisture. They taste just as good on days two and three as they do fresh from the oven.
Even better, they’re an easy breezy one-bowl muffin recipe (no mixer needed!) that comes together quickly! I’m SO EXCITED for you to make these chocolate zucchini muffins! I hope you love them!
PS If you love streusel as much as I do, I *HIGHLY* recommend adding the blonde streusel from the Raspberry Muffins to this recipe! Scroll down to see a photo of the zucchini muffins with the streusel!
Best chocolate zucchini muffin recipe ever. We grow so much in our garden and my family, friends and neighbors love it when we make this one and share…everyones favorite.
—Carole
My Favorite Pro Baking Tips for
Perfect Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
Don’t squeeze your shredded zucchini.
Shred the zucchini onto several layers of paper towels and let it sit while you prepare the muffin batter. There’s no need to squeeze any moisture out of the zucchini; we want it in our muffins!
Let the chocolate zucchini batter sit for 20 minutes.
Giving the gluten in the flour a bit of time to relax while also letting some of that moisture be absorbed by the flour will yield a really lovely muffin with a soft crumb and puffy crown. Everything we’re looking for in a muffin!
Careful getting them out of the muffin pan, they’re soft!
If you try to get them out too soon, they’re likely to fall apart. This is a very soft zucchini muffin (the stuff of dreams, really). So gently get them out of the muffin tin!
Step-by-Step Instructions & Photos for
the Best Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins of Your Dreams!
More Delicious Muffin Recipes!
There’s nothing better to start the day (or snack on) than muffins! Check out fan favorite Raspberry Muffins and these ultra cozy Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins. You can find all of the muffin recipes here!
Enjoy these rich chocolate muffins made with zucchini!
The Very Best Chocolate Zucchini Muffins!
Ingredients
- 2 cups (240 g) fresh zucchini grated; about 2 to 3 small zucchinis
- 3/4 cup (165 g) light brown sugar packed
- 8 tablespoons (113 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup (43 g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup (80 g) sour cream room temperature; use full-fat
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 3/4 cups + 1 tablespoon (246 g) all-purpose flour how to measure flour
- 2/3 cup (160 g) whole milk room temperature (see Notes below for more info)
- 1 cup (170 g) dark chocolate chips reserve about 1/3 cup (57 g) for the tops of the muffins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line every other muffin well of your muffin pan with paper liners (if using); otherwise, thoroughly grease your muffin pan.
- Place grated zucchini on several layers of towels. You don't need to press out the excess moisture. Just let the towels soak up any moisture that drains off. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, cooled melted butter, sugar and vanilla until well blended. Add in the eggs and mix for 1 minute more or until thick and combined.
- Then add the cocoa powder, mixing until smooth. Mix in the sour cream, baking powder, baking soda and salt until completely combined.
- Alternate adding the flour and milk in two batches, mixing each addition until just barely combined. Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips until just combined and evenly distributed throughout the muffin batter.
- Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure the zucchini muffin batter is thoroughly blended. At this point, you can let your muffin batter rest for 20 minutes to achieve a higher muffin top and a tender crumb.
- Scoop the muffin batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling every other muffin liner at least 3/4 full. Jiggle the pan a little so that the muffin batter levels out in the cups (the more even it is here, the more even the muffin rise will be).
- Sprinkle the reserved chocolate chips over the tops of the muffins. Bake for 8 minutes in the center of the oven and then reduce the heat to 350℉ (177℃) and bake for 9 to 10 minutes more. When done, the tops will be puffed up tall; they should also bounce back when gently pressed in the center.
- Let the muffins cool in the muffin pan for about 10 minutes, then use a butter knife to gently remove them from the pan before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
Variations
- Streusel topping: I love adding the streusel topping from the Raspberry Muffins recipe. It gave them a funky look (see photo above the recipe) and the slightly crunchy top combined with the softness of the muffin crumb…delish. You can also use this brown sugar-based 5-Minute Streusel Topping!
- Mini or Regular Chocolate Chips: I love mini chocolate chips, but preferred the look and taste/texture of the regular-size chocolate chips in these. Both will work.
- Demerara sugar: What am I even doing with my life if I’m not putting Demerara on everything? Fun to add a little sparkle to the tops if you’re feeling it!
- Flaky Sea Salt: Delish sprinkled over the top post baking!
Storing Zucchini Muffins
Once baked, store these moist double chocolate zucchini muffins in an airtight container at room temperature.
Muffin Yield
Depending on the size of your muffin pan, the size of your muffin wrappers and how full you fill them, will impact the muffin quantity that this recipe makes. When I used a regular-sized muffin tin with regular muffin liners, I got 16 muffins. When I used homemade parchment paper liners and really filled them up, the recipe yielded 13 muffins.If You Don’t Have Butter (read this!)
You can use 1/3 cup (75 g) of cooking oil. You can use any cooking oil. I tested them with olive oil and sunflower seed oil, and both worked great. Avocado oil would also be a good option!If You Don’t Have Sour Cream (read this!)
This recipe was originally tested without sour cream. You can omit the sour cream and increase the whole milk to 3/4 cup (180 g). I loveee the plushness that the sour cream gives these muffins. So if you can, use it!If You Don’t Have Milk (read this!)
This recipe was created without milk!! So you can absolutely use 3/4 cup (168 grams) of hot water in place of the milk (if not using sour cream) or 1/2 cup (112 g) of hot water with the sour cream. If you’re using the hot water, let the muffin batter sit for a bit longer to come back to room temperature; you’ll get the highest rise in the muffins this way. You can also use hot coffee or espresso in place of the milk or water. Do this if you love a chocolate-flavored muffin experience. Don’t add the chocolate chips until the muffin batter is closer to room temperature so that they don’t melt.The post Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins You Need to Make ASAP! appeared first on DisplacedHousewife.
