Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins
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Fluffy chocolate chip zucchini muffins are a great way to use up zucchini from your garden! These are soft, moist, and slightly sweet with a sprinkling of sugar on top. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Got Zucchini? Make Muffins!
These chocolate chip zucchini muffins actually debuted on the blog years ago. Today, I’m slightly adjusting the recipe to make an even dozen muffins (with just a bit more chocolate!) and sharing some new photos, too. If you were a fan of the old recipe, you’ll like this one just as much!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Flavor: chocolate chips, a touch of cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla add lots of flavor to this seemingly veggie-centered muffin. I promise, you do NOT taste the zucchini!
- Texture: While zucchini muffins are generally very dense, mine are lighter and fluffier. Thanks to the zucchini, they are also soft, moist, and tender.
- Appearance: We’ll get tall, bakery-worthy muffin tops using my special baking technique. Don’t worry, it’s simple!
- Ease: No mixer (please don’t use one!) and only 15 minutes to prep before they go in the oven.
Ingredients
Each ingredient in this recipe was carefully selected for the tastiest and most tender results. I’ll review a few you might have questions about before we get started.
- Zucchini. I always shred my zucchini in a food processor. I find that when I try to do it by hand (with a box grater), I end up with either zucchini shreds that are far too thick or zucchini that is so finely grated, it’s essentially mush. Maybe you have a better hand grater at home, but for me, using my food processor gets the job done quickly and correctly, providing perfectly grated strands. This is the food processor that I use (affiliate); I use this tool for shredding carrots for my carrot cake, too!
- Cinnamon. Optional, but I think it’s the perfect accent to the chocolate and the zucchini!
- Sugar. We’ll use three types of sugar today; granulated, light brown, and turbinado (for sprinkling on top). Despite three sugars, these muffins aren’t overly sweet (they’re a bit less sweet than my chocolate chip muffins, if you’re familiar with them) and they’re a perfectly acceptable breakfast option. Honestly, I feel that way about every single one of my muffin recipes though, even my chocolate cheesecake muffins 😜
- Milk. I typically use whole milk when I bake, but any kind should work here. Non-dairy milks will also be fine in this recipe.
- Oil. Use your neutral oil of choice. Lately I’ve been preferring avocado oil in my cakes and muffins, but canola or vegetable will also work.
SAM’S TIP: There’s no need to peel your zucchini before shredding–you won’t be able to detect the peels in the final product.
As always, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins
Prepare the Zucchini
If you’ve made any of my recently shared zucchini recipes (like my chocolate zucchini bread!), you’ll be familiar with this process. It’s easy, and it creates the perfect texture and size, so no one bites into a chunk of zucchini!
- Shred the zucchini with the shred blade of your food processor first, then switch to the normal blade. Pulse a few times to chop the zucchini into fine bits.
- Blot the zucchini with paper towels until you’ve removed most of the moisture. The zucchini will start to stick to your paper towels when it’s ready.
Prepare the Batter
- Vigorously whisk the wet ingredients together in a large bowl.
- Whisk the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
- Fold the wet and dry ingredients together until about 50% combined.
- Add the shredded zucchini and chocolate chips and keep folding until the batter is just combined. Do not over-mix, or you could create rubbery, dense muffins!
- Divide the batter into a lined muffin tin and bake. This is where my special baking technique comes into play; we’ll start at one high temperature and then reduce it without opening the oven door. The initial high temperature is what creates those tall, bakery-style muffin tops!
- Let the muffins cool in the pan for a few minutes, then remove them to a cooling rack.
SAM’S TIP: I like to use a spring-loaded ice cream scoop or large cookie scoop to portion my muffin batter into the liners. It’s easy, fast, and so clean!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! I would fold in up to a cup and and a half of cup of nuts when you add the chocolate chips and zucchini. Toasted pecans or walnuts would be tasty here, but really any kind of nut would be fine!
I let mine sit at room temperature in an airtight container for a few days (2-3 at most). If you want to keep them longer than that, then you will need to refrigerate them. Oh, they also freeze well!
Not at all! Just like in my chocolate zucchini cake, you don’t taste the zucchini one bit in these muffins. Instead of adding flavor, the zucchini adds moisture and a bit of nutritional value (though these are definitely still a sweet treat!).
What have you been doing with your zucchini this year? If you’re looking for more baking options, I recommend checking out my zucchini roll recipe–it’s like a summertime version of a pumpkin roll!
Enjoy!
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Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar, firmly packed
- ⅓ cup (78 ml) neutral cooking oil, I like avocado, but canola or vegetable will work
- ⅓ cup (78 ml) milk
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups (218 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup (150 g) finely shredded zucchini, Measure/weigh and then blot out the excess water with a paper towel
- 1 cup (170 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 Tablespoon turbinado or granulated sugar, for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F (220C) and line a 12-count muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine sugars, oil, milk, egg, and vanilla and whisk vigorously until mixture is very well-combined and uniform in texture.½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar, ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar, ⅓ cup (78 ml) neutral cooking oil, ⅓ cup (78 ml) milk, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate, medium-sized mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon (if using) and salt.1 ¾ cups (218 g) all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon table salt
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and use a spatula to gently fold together until about 50% combined. Add blotted zucchini and chocolate chips and continue to stir gently until batter is mostly uniform and zucchini and chocolate are well distributed.1 cup (150 g) finely shredded zucchini, 1 cup (170 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- Evenly divide batter into prepared muffin tin.
- Sprinkle muffin tops with additional sugar, then transfer to center rack of 425F (220C) oven. Bake for 8 minutes, then, without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 350F and continue to bake another 8-10 minutes, until muffins are baked through and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.1 Tablespoon turbinado or granulated sugar
- Allow muffins to cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes before carefully removing to a cooling rack to cool further before enjoying.
Notes
Storing
Once muffins have cooled completely they may be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. They may also be wrapped in plastic and frozen for up to several months.Original recipe
I updated this recipe to improve upon it, but if you are looking for the original recipe published in 2015 you can find the original chocolate chip zucchini muffin here.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Recipe originally published 7/24/2015, recipe has been improved and updated and a video has been added. Please see the notes in the recipe card if you are looking for the original recipe.
Another winning recipe!!! I doubled it and they are absolutely delicious!
I have made many of your recipes and they are consistently delicious- I am so glad I found your website! You rock!
Thank you so much, Gladys! I’m so glad they were such a hit! I truly appreciate you trusting my recipes. 🙂
I made these with my 3 year old this morning and they were so easy and delicious! She won’t eat her veggies a lot of times, but had no problem getting her to eat these since they were sweet. We’ll definitely be making again!
I’m so glad it was such a hit, Erica! 🙂
I’m always impressed with Sugar Spun Run recipes, and these are no exception. The moisture, flavor, and texture are all incredible, and the loft to them is absolutely amazing. I’m used to fruit muffins like pumpkin or carrot or banana being very dense and very sweet, which of course is tasty, but most mornings I’d like something just a little lighter and these strike a perfect balance and fit the bill every time!
I love this recipe to the point where I’ve slightly modified the base recipe to make standard chocolate chip muffins and blueberry muffins (both sans zucchini as they’re seasonal and I want to make them all year round, and with or without the streusel crumb topping recipe here on the blog), because this is the texture I’ve always sought out with my muffins.
Thank you so much, as always, for the high quality recipes and inspiration!
Thank you so much, Pixie! I’m so glad they have been such a hit! 🙂
So easy to make and so delicious! Thank you!
I made these for my daughter-in-law who is anemic and needs all the iron she can get. She gently hinted that they were “the best muffins, but she only got 2 because my son ate most of them” 😝. Guess I’m making another batch, they are that good. I did add one cup chopped walnuts for more iron and they still came out fluffy.
Too funny! Hopefully she can enjoy more of them the second time around 😉
Just made a double batch. Packaged 12 in one ziploc, then 10 in the other…..Hmmmm, my son had already eaten two! They are that fluffy and good 😊. Thank you for the recipe. I’m very glad that I’ve found your site. Kimberlee
Hi Sam. This is my first time watching you cook with your son, Luke. I haven’t baked the muffins yet, but I had to pop in to say this was such a refreshing video, watching the bonding + teaching moments between you + your son. He was an absolute delight. I loved his quiet confidence in his skills, his knowledge, his willingness to ask you questions. Given he hadn’t known how to do the “folding technique” until this moment, with your clear instructions + demonstration, he has added another baking skill to his repertoire. When your other little son popped in, at first I thought they were Twins until I noticed the height + age differences. There’s no mistaking them for brothers. I’m not sure how old they are, I’m guessing perhaps 4 & 2 or 5 & 2+1/2 to 3 (at the time of this Cooking Segment). They both speak so clearly too. Absolute gems, simply adorable. Since it’s now Jan.2025, I gather you’re a Mom of either 3 kiddos now or maybe more. Lastly, I love that they wear your “S.S.R” t-shirts for Cooking time. I wasn’t aware you had S.S.R t-shirts. That’s all for now. I’m in Sunny Australia + it’s time to sit on my verandah with a cuppa on this warm Summer day. Luckily it’s only 26* Celcius today. It was a hot humid 39* C a few days ago. I hope you+your loved ones are in the vicinity of Hollywood-L.A, with the current Fires. Stay Safe. My thoughts are with all Americans as you all slowly come to terms with the loss, destruction, grief + band together with the resilient American spirit you’re all known for. Thanks (sorry for my Essay) 🇦🇺
Thank you so much for the kind comment, Anneissa! I love having the boys in the kitchen. Cooking is a great skill to know. Enjoy your warm weather. I’m watching the snow fall outside right now. 🙂
How many muffins does this recipe make?
12
These were perfect! Just perfect
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Raechelle! 🙂
These were phenomenal. I bake a few times a week and the texture and taste were both top notch. Thanks for sharing! Parent and kid approved.
I’m so glad everyone enjoys them so much, Brittany! 🙂
Good evening! Amazing muffins! Thank you so much. If I decided not to put in the chocolate chips, would it affect the recipe?
Hi Sarah! They may bake slightly faster, but that would be the only difference. 🙂
Could I make mini muffin with this recipe? Ty.
Sure thing! Your bake time will be different though 😊
Do we do the toothpick test for doneness? I don’t want to overbake these. Thank you.
Hi Janet! Yes, we would recommend it. Hope you love the muffins!
Have I rated these before? I’ve made these two times already and each time they’re so delicious. I might have to make them every time I have extra zucchini!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much! 🙂