Yield: 6 chocolate chip muffins // Total Time: 30 min. // Disclaimer: This post includes affiliate links.
Get ready for some easy and delicious small batch chocolate chip muffins.
Small batch chocolate chip muffins recipe tips
Weigh your ingredients
Weighing your ingredients is important for getting the recipe perfect and getting consistent results. Not weighing your ingredients can lead to adding too much or too little of an ingredient. In a small batch recipe it is especially important to get those correct measurements because there is less room for error. If you haven’t already, I highly recommend purchasing a kitchen scale. This one is super cheap and worked well for me when I was starting out!
Mix the batter carefully
It is super important to not overmix the muffin batter. Overmixing the batter leads to more gluten development which is not desirable in these muffins. Not only will you get those pointy tops on the muffins, but you will end up with tough and chewy muffins.
Room temperature ingredients
It is important for the ingredients to be at room temperature so that they properly incorporate with each other. If you have ever had your batter look curdled, it is most likely due to the ingredients separating from being at different temperatures. Take out the egg, milk, and sour cream at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hr 30 min. before starting the recipe. For some tips and tricks on how to get ingredients to room temperature fast, you can check out this blog post here!
Under-bake, don’t over-bake
Muffins like to go from under-baked to over-baked super quickly so it is important to keep a close eye on them. Start checking at 14 minutes with a toothpick. If the toothpick comes out wet, check them again in 2 minutes and so on until only a few moist crumbs stick to the toothpick.
Get those perfect muffin tops
The trick to getting those nicely domed muffin tops is (mostly) all in your oven’s temperature! Bake the muffins at 400°F / 205°C for 5 minutes. Then, without opening the oven, reduce the temperature to 350°F / 175°C and continue baking until done. The super high heat will make the muffins rise nice and tall! You will also want to bake them lined in every other tin on the muffin pan, and fill them to the very top. This recipe makes the perfect amount of batter to fill every muffin liner straight to the top for those perfect muffin tops!
Get evenly distributed muffin batter
My favorite way to evenly distribute muffin batter is to use cookie scoops! Works perfectly every time. So long are the days of eyeballing which muffin may need a little more batter.
Ingredients and substitutions
All purpose flour: for structure and chewiness.
Baking powder: for helping the muffins rise.
Baking soda: for helping the muffins rise.
Salt: to help balance and bring out the sweetness of the muffins.
Unsalted butter: for tenderness and flavor. You can use salted butter in place of the unsalted, just be sure to omit the extra salt from the muffins.
Light brown sugar: for sweetening and for moisture.
Granulated sugar: for sweetening and helping lock in moisture.
Egg: for binding and for moisture.
Vanilla: for flavor. I use and love this vanilla extract!
Whole milk: for moisture. You can use 2%, 1% or your favorite plant-based milk here, just note that the texture may change and the muffins may be less light and fluffy.
Sour cream: for moisture and tenderizing the muffin batter. You can also substitute in greek yogurt here!
Chocolate chips: I used a mixture of some large 60% baking chips, and semi-sweet mini chocolate chips. Use your favorite chocolate here!
How to make small batch chocolate chip muffins
1. Melt the butter. In a small mixing bowl, melt the butter. Whisk in both sugars.
2. Add wet ingredients. Whisk in the egg, vanilla, milk, and sour cream until the mixture is well combined.
3. Fold in dry ingredients. Add in the dry ingredients, and use a rubber spatula to fold the mixture together just until a few streaks of flour remain. Then, fold in the chocolate chips just until no flour streaks remain.
4. Top with extra chocolate chips. Distribute the muffin batter evenly between the muffin liners. Top with extra chocolate chips and turbinado sugar if desired.
5. Bake. We’ll start the muffins out at 400°F for 5 minutes, which will help them rise up nice and tall. Without opening the oven door, reduce the temperature to 350°F / 175°C for the remainder of the baking time.
6. Serve and enjoy! Serve warm with butter, or room temperature without. Either way is delicious!
Small batch chocolate chip muffins Q & A
Can I double these small batch chocolate chip muffins?
Of course! Obviously they will not be small batch anymore but small batch isn’t always what we need! Simply double all of the ingredients in the recipe to make 12 delicious chocolate chip muffins. However, I even more strongly recommend measuring by weight if you are going to double the recipe for the best results.
How to store these muffins
Like most baked goods, these muffins will definitely taste the best on the day that they are baked. They will last for up to 3 days stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Why do you measure in grams?
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale, and here’s an article about why I use a kitchen scale, and why you should too!
A note on oven temperature
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature. For example, I always have to set my oven to 330°F if I want it to bake at 350°F. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
Tools and ingredients
Muffin pan: I absolutely love USA pan products because of their great quality. This is their muffin pan.
Cookie scoops: A life saver for getting evenly distributed muffins. I have gone through a lot of cookie scoops in my baking journey, and these ones have lasted me the longest without breaking. Plus they are dishwasher safe!
For a full list of tools, equipment and ingredients that I use and love, you can check out this page here.
Did you make these small batch chocolate chip muffins?
If you made these small batch chocolate muffins I would love to see them and know your thoughts! Please leave a comment and review down below, and tag me on Instagram @freshbeanbakery. If you have any questions about the recipe I will gladly do my best to answer them in the comments below!
Small Batch Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
- 56 g unsalted butter (¼ c.)
- 60 g light brown sugar (¼ c. + 1 tbsp.)
- 30 g granulated sugar (2 ½ tbsp.)
- 1 egg room temperature
- ½ tsp. vanilla
- 65 g whole milk room temperature (¼ c.)
- 30 g sour cream room temperature (2 tbsp.)
- 120 g all purpose flour (1 c.)
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. baking soda
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 100 g chocolate chips (½ c. + 1 tbsp.)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F / 205°C. Alternate lining a muffin pan with 6 parchment liners.
- In a small mixing bowl, melt the butter. Whisk in the brown sugar and granulated sugar.
- Whisk in the egg, vanilla, whole milk, and sour cream until well combined.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Use a rubber spatula to lightly fold the mixture until only a few flour streaks remain.
- Add in the chocolate chips and fold just until no flour streaks remain, and the chocolate chips have been evenly distributed.
- Evenly distribute the muffin batter between the six parchment liners, filling each liner to the very top. If desired, top the muffins with extra chocolate chips.
- Bake the muffins at 400°F for 5 minutes. Without opening the oven door, reduce the temperature to 350°F / 175°C. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean.
- Serve and enjoy!
Replacement of egg (substitute for 1 egg?)
Hi, I’ve never tried this recipe with an egg substitute however it looks like some people have success by swapping out the egg for sour cream! So for this recipe just increase the sour cream from 30g to 80g. I hope this helps!
now i know these are just muffins, and i am about to be so dramatic– but these are the best muffins i have ever had. since i started baking (ab a month or two ago!) your blog has been my guiding line through this lovely journey ! and after a lot of fun recipes i decided to make this lovely classic night before exam. i just have to say i literally, stopped everything when i bit into the first muffin and ate it with my eyes closed just EXPERIENCED IT! as the biggest muffin lover ever, i never thought anything would top the muffins from my local bakery, but wow❤ this is the best thing in the world❤ also the recipe is a DELIGHT to read, everything is so easy to follow and written with fun and interesting explanations<3
You just made my entire week with your two messages, thank you so much!! I am so delighted to hear that you find the blog posts helpful and easy to follow especially on your newer baking journey. You are too kind and I am so happy that you enjoy my content and enjoyed this recipe. <3