Gluten Free Chocolate Muffins

Chocolatey, fudgy, soft, and moist gluten free chocolate muffins in less than an hour!

After an exhausting week, there is nothing more delightful than having a warm gluten free chocolate muffin with vanilla ice cream. This is one of my favorite recipes because it's quick and tastes great. Try eating them right out of the oven...you won't regret it.

Moist Gluten Free Chocolate Muffins

When developing these gluten free chocolate muffins, I wanted the muffins to be chocolatey, fudgy, and, most importantly, moist. Nobody wants a dry muffin; that is just not fun. Anyways, let's look at the role of each ingredient in achieving the best gluten free chocolate muffins.

Gluten-free flour mix: The foundation of these muffins and what makes them great is the combination of gluten-free flours used. I learned the hard way that using a store-bought flour mix does not always lead to the same results. Also, each brand is different. So you and I will definitely get different results. Therefore, to make sure these muffins turn out the way they are supposed to, the gluten-free flour combination we will be using is white rice flour, tapioca flour, corn starch, and brown rice flour. The ratio of each of the flours was well studied to achieve the desired muffin texture. Meanwhile, to bind all the ingredients, we will use xanthan gum.
Baking powder & Baking Soda: Muffins are all about the rise, you know why? Cause they are high on leavening agents. Is the joke a bit too much? Sorry. To ensure that the muffins rise as desired, we will use both baking powder and soda. Baking powder will start to work as soon as we add the liquids, making the gluten free chocolate muffins rise and creating a dome.
White & Brown Sugar: To add sweetness to the muffins, we will use white and brown sugar. The brown sugar provides gluten free chocolate muffins with a subtle caramel flavor. It also makes the muffins moist.
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: The STAR of the show! Use high-quality cocoa powder when making these muffins as it creates all the difference in flavor.
Salt: The salt compliments the chocolate and brings out its flavor more.
Chocolate Chips: I recommend using semi-sweet chocolate chips. I use Hershey's Gluten-Free Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips. They taste and work great in baked goods!
Sour cream: The sour cream does two things; the tanginess of sour cream compliments the sweetness of chocolate and makes the muffins moist. For a dairy-free option, you can use soy-based sour cream.

gluten free chocolate muffins eaten in half

Vegetable Oil: There is always a debate between which is better, butter or vegetable oil. But here is the truth, neither is better. Both are great; it all comes down to how you use them. These gluten free chocolate muffins work best with vegetable oil. Why? Because vegetable oil has a higher fat percentage than butter and hence makes the muffins moist. Also, vegetable oil is a healthier fat, so I will substitute it with butter any chance I get.
Milk: Chocolate and Milk, the classic combo! The milk adds a subtle milky flavor to the chocolate muffins and also makes them soft and moist. For a dairy-free option, you can use coconut milk or cashew milk.
Vanilla Extract: The vanilla extract adds a great vanilla flavor to the muffins.
Instant Coffee: Instant coffee brings out the flavor of chocolate and makes it much more intense. You can omit the instant coffee if you like.

Making Gluten Free Chocolate Muffins

These gluten free chocolate muffins are so quick and straightforward to make that you will have them ready in less than an hour! So here is what you need to do, with step-by-step instructions!

Mix The Dry Ingredients: In a bowl, sift and add all the gluten-free flours. Then add the white sugar, brown sugar, xanthan gum, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Then using a whisk, combine the ingredients and set the flour mixture aside.

Mix The Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, add the eggs, sour cream, vegetable oil, milk, vanilla extract, and instant coffee. Using a whisk, combine the ingredients.

Create The Muffin Batter: Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and gently fold the mixtures into one another using a spatula until combined. Ensure that you don't overmix the batter. Then, align a cupcake tin with cupcake liners. Fill each cupcake liner all the way to the top with the muffin batter. Meanwhile, you can add more chocolate chips to the top of each muffin if you like.

Bake The Muffins: The muffins need to be baked at 200°C (392°F) for 5 minutes. The sudden exposure of the muffins to high heat helps them rise and puff. Then reduce the heat to 180°C (356 °F) and bake for another 13-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted at the center comes out with little to no crumbs. It is okay to have a few crumbs and chocolate smudge on the toothpick. Meanwhile, allow the gluten free chocolate muffins to cool down in the cupcake tin for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

gluten free chocolate muffins in a cupcake tin

Dairy-Free Option

The beauty of these gluten free chocolate muffins is that you can easily make them dairy-free too!

To make these muffins dairy-free, you can do the following swaps:

Cocoa Powder: Make sure that the cocoa powder is dairy-free. I use Hershey's Unsweetened Cocoa Powder which is both gluten and dairy-free!
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: I have not personally used dairy-free chocolate chips before, but I heard that Enjoy Life Food Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips are dairy-free and work great. If you know a good brand, mention it in the comment section below to help fellow readers!
Sour Cream: You can substitute sour cream with soy-based sour cream.
Full-Fat Dairy Milk: You can use cashew milk or full-fat coconut milk.

Commonly Asked Questions

What is the secret to moist muffins?

The secret to moist muffins is sour cream and vegetable oil. Both are high in fat, resulting in moist muffins.

Are muffins better with oil or butter?

You can use either oil or butter when making muffins. Each source of fat has its own characteristics; therefore, it is not possible to decide which is better as it depends on the recipe being used. For this recipe, it is best to use vegetable oil to achieve a soft and moist texture.

Why are my muffins flat on top?

When muffins have a flat top, it means that they have not appropriately risen. This can happen due to cold oven temperature. Make sure that the oven temperature is hot and that the oven is preheated. Moreover, make sure that the baking powder and baking soda are not expired.

gluten free chocolate muffins on a white serving plate

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