Chocolate Chip Muffins with Sour Cream

Any baker would love to have picture-perfect, bakery-style muffins from their own oven, but it’s not always obvious how to make them. While you can let the batter sit for a bit, use sturdy muffin liners for a better rise and be vigilant about using only room-temperature ingredients, there’s one less known tip that works wonders: incorporating sour cream into the batter.

Just like in sour cream cookies, the tangy richness of sour cream brings complexity to muffin recipes, while adding a ton of moisture for a super tender crumb. That’s why these chocolate chip muffins with sour cream are so popular at Taste of Home (although I suspect the warm chocolate chip morsels have something to do with that, too). We’ve also included a few optional bakery-style muffin tips in this recipe, but, written as-is, this recipe is a real winner.

Ingredients for Chocolate Chip Muffins with Sour Cream

• All-purpose flour: When measuring flour with measuring cups, avoid sticking the cup straight into the bag and digging up the flour. That can pack in way too much flour, causing dense, dry muffins. Instead, spoon the flour into the measuring cup until it’s heaped, then use the flat side of a butter knife to level it off.
• Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens the muffins. You can use brown sugar in a pinch.
• Baking powder and soda: We want sour cream chocolate chip muffins to rise nice and tall like bakery-style muffins, so we use both baking powder and baking soda to achieve that rise.
• Egg: I recommend taking the egg out of the fridge 30 minutes before starting the recipe. This way, it can come to room temperature and blend into the batter more easily, giving the muffins a voluminous rise.
• Sour cream: Sour cream is the key ingredient. Its tangy, rich taste adds complexity to the muffins’ flavor while adding more moisture and tenderness to the muffins’ crumb.
• Butter: Melt the butter and let it cool slightly at room temperature so it doesn’t cook the egg. Take it one step further and brown the butter for a deeper, nuttier, toastier flavor in the muffins. If you use browned butter, be sure to measure 5 tablespoons of butter after browning it, as some of the water in the butter will evaporate.
• Vanilla extract: Whatever baking recipe you make, avoid the most common vanilla mistake of buying imitation vanilla instead of pure vanilla extract. Real flavoring is always worth the little extra splurge. If you can, buy the best vanilla extract you can afford.
• Chocolate chips: Regular chocolate chips or mint chocolate chips taste great in this recipe. Some stores only carry mint chips around the Christmas season. If that’s the case in your area, stock up at Christmastime and store them in a cool, dry place.

Directions

Step 1: Make the muffin batter

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, sour cream, melted butter and vanilla extract. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until the dry ingredients are moistened.

Editor’s Tip: Avoid overmixing the batter or the muffins will be very dense. I like to whisk the wet and dry ingredients together just until no flour streaks remain. You’ll do a bit more mixing in the next step, too.

Step 2: Add the chocolate chips

Fold the chocolate chips into the batter just until they’re evenly dispersed.

Editor’s Tip: A rubber spatula is a great tool for folding the chocolate chips into the batter; use it to scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl to ensure everything is combined. If desired, let your batter rest for at least 15 minutes or up to one hour so the flour can hydrate for a more flavorful muffin and better rise.

Step 3: Portion into muffin tins

Grease the muffin cups or line them with paper liners. Portion the batter evenly between the muffin cups until each one is three-fourths full.

Editor’s Tip: We’ve found that sturdy muffin liners give the muffin batter something to cling to and climb up while baking, resulting in taller muffins. A cookie scoop makes quick, consistent work of filling the liners.

Step 4: Bake

Slide the muffin tray into the oven and bake the muffins for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Let the muffins cool at room temperature in the pans for five minutes to finish setting up. Remove the muffins from the pan and transfer them to a wire rack.

Recipe Variations

• Add other mix-ins: Instead of chocolate chips, add toasted nuts, dried fruit, citrus zest, fresh berries or swirls of jam to the muffin batter for a whole new flavor.
• Top with streusel: If you’re anything like me, you love texture on desserts. That’s why, almost any time I make some sort of quick bread recipe like muffins or banana bread, I add a streusel topping.
• Use different chip flavors: Switch up the chips with your favorite flavor! Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, peanut butter chips, cinnamon chips or butterscotch chips all work here.
• Add a crackly muffin top: Do you love those crackly sugar tops that bakery muffins have? Recreate them at home by sprinkling coarse sugar—like sanding sugar or turbinado sugar—on top of the muffins just before they go in the oven.

How to Store Chocolate Chip Muffins with Sour Cream

To store chocolate chip muffins with sour cream, allow them to cool to room temperature, then place them in an airtight container. They can keep at room temperature for up to five days. While they can keep in the fridge for up to a week, keep in mind that they’ll dry out a bit.

Can you freeze chocolate chip muffins with sour cream?

Yes, and they freeze beautifully! To freeze chocolate chip muffins with sour cream, allow the muffins to cool completely to room temperature. Place them, uncovered, on a baking sheet and pop them in the freezer for one hour. Transfer the frozen muffins to zip-top bags. You could also just place the room-temperature muffins in an airtight container in the freezer.

Muffins can be frozen for up to three months. Thaw them on the counter or warm them in the microwave before enjoying them.

Chocolate Chip Muffins with Sour Cream Tips

How do you serve chocolate chip muffins with sour cream?

Chocolate chip muffins with sour cream can be served warm from the oven or at room temperature. They’re excellent in the morning with a cup of coffee or a steaming mug of tea. I love to serve these on a pretty platter for an easy brunch recipe that impresses!

Can you bake chocolate chip muffins with sour cream in a different-sized muffin tin?

Yes, you can bake the muffin batter in jumbo muffin tins or mini muffin tins! If using mini muffin tins, I recommend buying mini chocolate chips so they fit better in the cups. Keep in mind that mini muffins will most likely take less time to bake than regular-sized ones, and jumbo muffins will most likely take longer to bake. As always, test the muffins for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center. It should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Can you replace sour cream with Greek yogurt in these muffins?

Yes, you can replace sour cream with Greek yogurt in these chocolate chip muffins with sour cream. They’re both moistening ingredients that create a tangy and rich flavor and tender texture in quick breads. Go for a plain-flavored Greek yogurt. If you only have access to vanilla-flavored, omit the vanilla extract from this recipe.