Double Chocolate Banana Muffins

Chocolate disguised as breakfast? Count me in!

Ingredients · Servings 17

1 1/4 cups (159 grams) all-purpose flour, (measured correctly)
1/2 cup (43 grams) Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (100 grams) light brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder, (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, (optional)
1 1/2 cups (354 grams) mashed banana ((from about 3-4 very overripe bananas))
1/2 cup (114 grams) sour cream, (at room temperature)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten, (at room temperature)
1/3 cup (80 grams) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup (128 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup (64 grams) mini semisweet chocolate chips, (for topping)

Method · 30 min

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line two standard muffin tins with 17 paper liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, espresso powder, and cinnamon.
In a medium bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, sour cream, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just barely combined. Gently fold in the ¾ cup chocolate chips, being careful not to overmix.
Divide the batter evenly among the lined muffin tin cavities, filling each to ¾ full. Sprinkle about a teaspoon of mini chocolate chips onto the batter in each cavity.
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center (avoiding chocolate chips) comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

These Double Chocolate Banana Muffins look like they’re from a fancy bakery and are secretly SO easy to make.

I absolutely love making my Banana Bread Recipe when I have overripe bananas – but sometimes, I want an excuse to eat chocolate for breakfast.

So, using my decadent Double Chocolate Banana Bread recipe as a base, I made a few tweaks and created rich, ridiculously moist, tender, crave-worthy muffins.

Pure chocolate-banana bliss.

So if you have overripe bananas begging for a glow-up, look no further than these Double Chocolate Banana Muffins! Adults and kids alike will devour these easy, delicious muffins.

The Bananas

Be sure to use very overripe bananas. They should be very soft and covered with dark brown speckles for the best flavor, moisture, and overall texture.

Underripe bananas can’t provide as much moisture or flavor, so if your bananas aren’t yet ripe, your muffins will be dry and a bit bland.

How to Ripen Bananas Quickly

Faster: To speed up ripening, place bananas in a paper bag and store in a warm area for a day or two. The peels create ethylene gas, which fills up the bag and helps them ripen faster.
Today: While it’s not as effective as allowing bananas to ripen naturally, you can place whole unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet in a 300°F oven for about 30 to 40 minutes, or until the skins are darkened and the fruit is soft.

How to Make Moist Muffins:

Measure your flour and cocoa powder correctly! Too much flour or cocoa will create dense, dry muffins. I highly recommend using a digital kitchen scale, but if you don’t have one, use the “spoon and level method” to measure your dry ingredients.
Don’t reduce the sugar. A combination of light brown sugar and granulated sugar achieves the best combination of flavor and moisture. Lowering the sugar will impact much more than just the sweetness. Learn more about all sugar does in baking here.
Sour cream. Sour cream (or plain full-fat yogurt) helps create super moist, soft, and tender muffins. Don’t skip this!

The Cocoa Powder

I used Dutch-processed cocoa powder to achieve a deliciously decadent chocolate flavor and dark color for these muffins. Learn about the differences between natural cocoa powder and Dutch-processed cocoa powder here.

If you need to, you can use natural cocoa powder in this recipe instead.

The Chocolate Chips

I used a combination of regular-sized and mini semisweet chocolate chips, but all regular/mini chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or milk chocolate chips will work fine. Just keep in mind that milk chocolate will make the muffins a little sweeter, and dark chocolate will make them a little less sweet.

Note that the chocolate chips on top of muffins may develop a white coating (aka “bloom”) the longer they sit, but they’re still perfectly edible. Learn more about Chocolate in Baking here.