The Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffin Recipe

Pumpkin is not just for the fall, let's set the record straight right off the bat! Pumpkin is so versatile, and especially delicious when making breakfasts. I happen to love making muffins so of course I needed to make the best pumpkin chocolate chip muffin recipe for you! You'll love the texture, the flavor, the color of the muffins, everything about this recipe screams delicious.

While pumpkin is popular in September and October, these muffins are great to have on hand any time of the year. Pumpkin delivers on many nutrients and health benefits that limiting it to just one season is blasphemy. Yes, I said what I said!

If you know me, and you've been around here long, you know my obsession with muffins. These muffins are inspired by my pumpkin pancakes and my sour cream chocolate chip muffins, all equally mouthwatering in their own way.

Jump to:

• What ingredients do I need for these muffins?
• How do I make this recipe?
• Muffin Swaps and Substitutions
• Muffin Variations
• Kitchen Tools and Equipment
• Muffin Storage
• PRO TIP
• Hungry for More?
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

What ingredients do I need for these muffins?

Most of the ingredients to these muffins are easily found in your kitchen, and as we are not using any typical sugar, we are going to be calling in a favor from our maple syrup, light brown sugar, and of course, pumpkin. Here's what you'll need:

• Pumpkin: We are looking for pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling!
• Light Brown Sugar: dark brown sugar works great here too!
• Avocado Oil: You can swap for olive oil if you do not have avocado oil.
• Maple Syrup
• Eggs
• Vanilla Extract
• All Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder + Baking Soda
• Salt
• Pumpkin Pie Spice: If you don't have this, you can add clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon, We'll explore the amounts in the recipe card.
• Chocolate Chips

See the recipe card below for more information on specific quantities.

How do I make this recipe?

For these muffins, the instructions are pretty straightforward, so here's what you'll do:

To the same bowl, pour in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and the pumpkin pie spice, then whisk until the flour is just combined. Using a spatula, fold in the chocolate chips by moving the spatula around the bowl and mixing the chocolate chips into the batter gently. Do not overmix! Using a cookie scoop, scoop the batter into the muffin ⅔ of the way and divide the batter evenly. Place the tin into the oven, the bake for 22-23 minutes.

HINT: Remember to let the batter sit on the counter for at least 25-30 minutes, this allows the baking soda and baking powder to work and gives the loaf/bread a nicer rise and an airy texture.

Muffin Swaps and Substitutions

Gluten Free? Don't have pumpkin pie spice? I've got a few swaps and substitutions for you below that'll be perfect for this recipe:

• Gluten Free - instead of all purpose flour, you can use a 1:1 gluten free flour like Bob's Red Mill 1:1 flour or whichever gluten free flour you trust.
• No Pumpkin Spice - use equal parts of clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon (all one teaspoon) and add to the batter. This will give the same type of aroma and flavor.
• Add-ins - you can swap out the chocolate chips if you want to add in some fruit like raspberries, strawberries, or add the fruit to the chocolate chips.

Muffin Variations

These muffins are fabulous as is, but if you want to vary how you serve or make them, feel free to consider the following ideas:

• Make a Loaf - instead of making individual muffins, you can pour the batter into a loaf pan and bake it like a quick bread for breakfast.
• Make 'em mini - if you have a miniature muffin tin you can easily make these bite size for a fun little snack for your kids.

Kitchen Tools and Equipment

The most important kitchen tool I highly recommend is a scale for anyone who likes to bake, even if not professionally. The reason for the scale is because one cup for me may not be one cup for you. There's lot of methods out there for measuring dry, or even wet, ingredients, but I am here to tell you having a scale is a game changer. I like my Zwilling digital scale, (affiliate link) but you can find many more on Amazon, Sur La Table, or even Target.

If you are not using a scale: Use the scoop and level method: Scoop flour into a measuring cup until it fills the entire cup, the level it off by scraping the excess with a butter knife back into the bag of flour or whatever contain you keep your flour in.

Other common kitchen tools include:

• Muffin tin and liners
• Cookie scoop
• Spatula
• Whisk
• Measuring spoons and cups
• Mixing bowls

Muffin Storage

These muffins will stay on the countertop in a tightly sealed container for up to 4-5 days. I also suggest adding a batch to the freezer for a day where you just don't feel like being in the kitchen. Be sure to label the freezer batch for the date in which they were baked, and they will be good for up to one month in the freezer.

Hungry for More?

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these: