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Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins

· Modified: by · This post may contain affiliate links · 11 Comments

I was in the mood for brownies, but Fuzz wanted chocolate muffins. Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins were our compromise. These are very chocolaty muffins, sweet enough for dessert, but not so sweet they'd be confused with cupcakes. Also, they are rich enough not to need icing. In other words, they're true muffins and not cupcakes. The coconut oil adds a hint of coconut flavor and gives them a moist texture, but if you don't have any coconut oil you can use another oil.

Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins

Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins Experiments

I did a few more experiments where I tried to replace the egg with drained applesauce and used soy yogurt for the buttermilk. That one didn't go over so well, but I did get good results when I replaced the sugar/cane sugar with sugar substitute. If you like artificial sweeteners, this is a good way to use them. Just be sure you use the equivalent to 3 tablespoons of sugar -- some sweeteners are 1 to 1 volume and others vary, as you probably know.

Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins

Things I've Done to These Muffins

This is a really good recipe. Since posting it, I've added a few tips for how to get the best results. These are all things I've tested over the years.

  • This recipe halves well. Just cut everything in half and for the egg, use 2 tablespoons lightly beaten.
  • Forget the coconut oil and use any other oil. Grapeseed oil works really well, as does a little light olive oil.
  • You can add a pinch of espresso powder for more intense flavor, although I'd say these are pretty flavorful without it.
  • For the cocoa powder, use natural for a higher crown and weigh or measure carefully. I use 28 grams total and could probably get away with using less rather than more. Too much cocoa powder will make them dry.
  • Weigh the flour or measure with a light hand.
  • For fluffier muffins, stir a heaping tablespoon of almond flour into the batter before baking.
  • No buttermilk? Try using buttermilk powder. I've noticed my muffins rise a little higher with the powder. I use Saco or Bob's Red Mill brand.

Recipe

Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins

Coconut Oil Chocolate Muffins

Anna
Chocolate Muffins made with coconut oil
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Total Time 32 minutes
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Servings 8 large muffins -- maybe up to 9

Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup 4.5 ounces/126 grams all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder plus about a teaspoon** (20 to 28 grams) --natural
  • 6 tablespoons sugar
  • ⅓ cup miniature or regular size chocolate chips
  • 4 tablespoons melted coconut oil** (50 grams)
  • 1 large egg room temperature
  • ⅔ cup buttermilk room temperature
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line 8 or 9 muffin cups with paper liners. If you're making jumbo size muffins, line 4 or 5 cups.
  • Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a bowl. When well mixed, stir in the cocoa powder and sugar. Stir in the chocolate chips.
  • In a mixing bowl, whisk together coconut oil and egg. When well mixed, gradually whisk in buttermilk and vanilla. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir just until blended.
  • Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups. It should come up almost to the top of each cup. Bake on center rack for 20 minutes or until the muffins appear set. Let cool in the muffin tin.

Notes

I've always used 28 grams of cocoa powder for this recipe, but depending on what brand and type the volume may vary from a little over  ¼ cup to ⅓. I've reduced the volume amount to ¼ cup to be safe. For best results, weigh 28 grams. If you don't have a scale, use the volume amount.
For the coconut oil, I use about 50 grams. If measuring by volume, it's best to melt it, in which case 4 tablespoons melted should be around 50 grams
Keyword Chocolate Muffins, Coconut Oil
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Muffin Recipes on Cookie Madness

Reader Interactions

Comments

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  1. Anna

    Hi Diana,

    I haven't tested them without the chips, but I imagine they will be fine.

  2. Diana

    I haven't made these yet but recipe looks good. If I leave out the chocolate chips, will the recipe still work?

  3. Angela Parris

    5 stars
    Making this now just put in oven my first attempt with coconut oil!

  4. Isabelle

    Today is the day, I am making them!!!!! Pretty exited!

  5. kristin

    I'm making these now- they smell great from the oven!

  6. Jen @ Coconut Oil Cooking

    These look amazing! Perfect for a sweet breakfast or an after dinner dessert. Yum!

  7. Cookie Sleuth

    These would get me up in the morning!

  8. vanillasugarblog

    I LOVE baking with coconut oil.
    Just started using it literally months ago. great flavor and it's really good for you too!
    so these are perfect with coconut oil and chocoalte! LOL

  9. Anna

    Darlene, I've made multiple batches of these (not sure what I'm going to do with them all!) and at one point, I did run out of buttermilk. Regular milk with lemon juice works just fine. I didn't measure the lemon juice, but I suppose I used about a teaspoon -- just enough to sour the milk

  10. Sue

    As always. These sound wonderful!

  11. Darlene

    These look absolutely decadent and would be perfect to pack in lunches without worrying about the frosting getting messy. Since I seldom have buttermilk on hand, I was wondering if the taste would differ much if I used buttermilk made with milk plus vinegar or lemon juice.