Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins
Flavorful Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins with warm spices are soft, perfectly sweet and so delicious. They’re healthier and easy to make with less oil and sugar than most muffin recipes, yet they bake up moist and tender. A great snack or breakfast treat, especially in the fall!
You’re going to want to make these Chocolate Chip Muffins all season long! This muffin recipe joins the flavors of chocolate and pumpkin spice to create soft and tender muffins that have just the right amount of sweetness, cozy spices, and loads of flavor.
We love to enjoy these pumpkin chocolate chip muffins for breakfast, but they also make a satisfying grab-n-go snack. Freeze an extra batch, so you can enjoy a quick treat any time you’re craving pumpkin!
I just made a batch of these muffins and they turned out great. I added some chocolate chips and white chocolate chips. Very good recipe that I will make again!
— Suzy
Why we love this recipe
- These chocolate chip pumpkin muffins are richly spiced, subtly sweet, and packed with flavor. They’re sure to be a household hit!
- It’s an easy fall breakfast or snack that can be whipped up in less than an hour!
- The perfect way to use up leftover pumpkin puree!
- Meal prep an extra batch for the freezer, so you can pull out a sweet treat at a moment’s notice.
Ingredients needed
These healthy pumpkin muffins are made with less sugar and oil than most muffin recipes, and they still have the most amazing taste and texture. Here’s what you’ll need to make them:
- Flour. Use whole wheat pastry flour for soft, fluffy muffins while adding whole grains. You can also use white whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour.
- Spices. Pumpkin pie spice is typically a combination of ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground ginger and either ground cloves or allspice. This spice mix is so warming and delicious.
- Baking staples. Baking soda, salt and vanilla ensures proper baking with deliciousness in every bite.
- Chocolate chips. Use your favorite baking chips! We love both semi-sweet chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips and white chocolate chips in these muffins.
- Eggs. Two large eggs provide richness, structure and bind all of the ingredients together.
- Oil. A small amount of olive oil, vegetable oil, canola oil or melted coconut oil adds the perfect amount of moisture to these muffins.
- Pumpkin. You’ll need about 1/2 the can of pure pumpkin for this recipe. Use the other half to make pumpkin hummus or pumpkin cupcakes. Don’t use pumpkin pie filling.
- Brown sugar. We love dark or light brown sugar for adding a lovely molasses flavor.
Make pumpkin pie spice
If you don’t have pumpkin spice, you can substitute it with ground cinnamon. However, the warm flavor won’t quite be the same. If you don’t have any on-hand, try making your own. To make 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, mix ¾ tsp cinnamon, ¼ tsp nutmeg, ½ tsp ground ginger.
How to make this recipe
Not only are these chocolate chip pumpkin muffins some of the best I’ve ever had, they’re easy to make with basic ingredients. No mixer required! Here’s the simple process:
- Prep. Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin tin with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin spice, nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Whisk in chocolate chips.
- Combine wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs until the yolks break apart. Whisk in the oil, pumpkin, brown sugar and vanilla; mixing until smooth.
- Add liquid ingredients to flour mixture. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the dry ingredients, then fold everything together gently just until combined. Don’t over mix – some small lumps are fine.
- Spoon batter into pan. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups, filling them 3/4 full. If desired, sprinkle some additional chocolate chips on top and gently press them in.
- Bake. Place in the oven and bake for 5 minutes at 425ºF then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20-21 minutes, give or take.
- Cool. Allow the muffins to cool for 10 minutes in the muffin pan. After a couple of hours, the flavor instensifies and these become even more delicious!
You’re going to love these muffins. I recommend serving them warm with a pat of butter spread on top. Sooooo good and the best way to settle into fall.
Expert tips
- Follow the recipe. For best results, we recommend following the recipe and using the exact ingredients listed (unless substitutions are noted).
- Measure flour correctly. Using a food scale is the most precise method for measuring ingredients, especially flour. If you don’t have one available, lightly spoon flour (don’t pack) into a measuring cup and without shaking the cup, use the straight side of a butter knife to level the flour across the measuring cup.
- Separate bowls. For the best texture, be sure to mix the wet and dry ingredients in separate bowls. Don’t skip this step by mixing everything together in one bowl.
- Use fresh baking soda. If your baking soda or baking powder is older than 3 months, grab a new one for best baking results. Write the date on the lid when you open a new one, so you don’t forget how old it is.
- Dairy free. Make dairy-free muffins by using dairy-free baking chips.
Frequently asked questions
A few ingredients contribute to the moistness in these chocolate chip pumpkin muffins. The eggs, oil, brown sugar and pumpkin puree make these perfectly tender and moist.
If your muffins are too dense, it’s probably because you over-mixed the batter. Once you’ve combined wet and dry ingredients, it’s very important to avoid over-mixing the batter. This can make your muffins gummy and dense. For more info, read this guide on over-mixing.
Pumpkin puree and canned pumpkin are the same thing. However, sometimes homemade pumpkin puree can have a more watery consistency. For that reason, we recommend using canned pumpkin in this recipe and like Libby’s brand best.
Variations
You can get creative and add some more mix-ins aside from the standard chocolate chips. Other great options include:
- Pecans
- Coconut
- Oats
- Walnuts
- Dried cranberries or raisins
- Peanut butter chips
- White chocolate chips
- Dark chocolate chips
Storage recommendations
Store muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days and in the fridge for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature for about an hour. Then, heat up in the microwave, if desired.
More muffin recipes to try
Helpful tools
- Mixing bowls. Any mixing bowl will do the trick, but this nonslip mixing bowl set from Amazon is great.
- Nonstick muffin pan. This is where quality matters! I was given this muffin pan from Williams Sonoma and LOVE it. I don’t have to use paper liners and my muffins always come out so easily. As an added plus, there’s never cooked muffin left stuck to the pan, so it’s super easy to clean.
- Cooling rack. A cooling rack isn’t completely necessary, but it’s definitely nice to have one available. These allow for airflow and even cooling of your baked goods.
If you try this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves them as much as mine does, be sure to give it a five star ⭐️ rating! Also, tag @kimscravings on Instagram with a picture of your creation. Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (180 grams) whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice or ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup (60 grams) chocolate chips + more for topping
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil, canola oil or melted coconut oil
- 1 cup (244 grams) canned pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup (110 grams) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin spice, nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Whisk in chocolate chips.
- In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs until the yolks break apart. Whisk in the oil, pumpkin, brown sugar and vanilla; mixing until smooth.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then fold everything together gently just until combined. Don’t over mix – some small lumps are fine.
- Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups, filling them 3/4 full. If desired, sprinkle some additional chocolate chips on top and gently press them in.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425ºF then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20-21 minutes, give or take.
- Allow the muffins to cool for 10 minutes in the muffin pan. After a couple of hours, the flavor instensifies and these become even more delicious!
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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I just made these….wouldn’t change a thing! So yummy!!!
So easy to make and the result was perfect pumpkin muffins. Bonus was the refreshing fall aroma. They turned out delicious.
I just made a batch of these muffins and they turned out great. I added some chocolate chips and white chocolate chips. Very good recipe that I will make again!
Love this recipe! Easy and delicious. They freeze well. I have added frozen blueberries at times.
These pumpkin muffins are super moist and delicious. You can mix in anything you like. I mixed in peanut butter chips, but any chip would be great! Will make again!
These are fantastic!!! My whole family loved them! I will try with nuts and cranberries next time and maybe orange extract!