Moist and rich, these chocolate courgette muffins are the perfect way to use up a glut of courgettes from your garden or allotment. Best of all, they can be made in under 30 minutes.
Enjoy them for breakfast, as a snack, or even as a quick and easy dessert!
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A little bit of magic happens when you add courgettes to cakes and baked treats (check out my fudgy courgette brownies too). They help the chocolate muffins become incredibly moist, rich, and moreish. I guarantee you won't be able to stop at just one.
I use my trusty basic muffin recipe as the base for these delicious chocolate courgette muffins, and add grated courgette, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips for a double chocolate hit.
Love chocolate muffins? You'll want to try my moist chocolate orange muffins too!
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✔️ Why should you try it?
- Incorporating courgettes into your muffins provides a nutritional boost, as courgettes are packed with beneficial vitamins and minerals. Plus, the taste is disguised by the rich chocolate, making these muffins both healthy and delectable to kids.
- The moisture from the courgette contributes to a tender and moist texture in these muffins without making them overly dense.
- For those who struggle to get their daily dose of vegetables, especially children, these muffins are an excellent way to 'sneak' in some extra greens without anyone being the wiser.
- These muffins make for a perfect breakfast on-the-go, a satisfying midday snack, or a guilt-free dessert. Plus, they're a wonderful way to use up an abundance of courgettes you may have from your garden or allotment.
Courgette or Zucchini?
Courgettes and zucchini are the same thing. In the UK we call them courgettes and in the US, they are known as zucchini.
If you are based stateside, just use zucchini instead of courgettes. I also have a handy weight conversion to US customary in my recipe card, at the bottom of the post.
🥘 Ingredients
My basic muffin mix combines plain flour, caster sugar, and bicarbonate of soda, with natural yogurt, eggs, and melted butter.
I swap out some of the plain flour for cocoa powder in these courgette chocolate muffins, add grated courgette, and add an extra chocolate hit of milk chocolate chips (although feel free to use dark chocolate if you like).
🥄 Equipment
A couple of mixing bowls, a 12 hole muffin tin, and some muffin cases (paper or silicone), are all you need to make these intensely rich chocolate muffins.
🔪 Instructions
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
One: Combine the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients and mix gently until combined.
Two: Stir in the grated courgette and chocolate chips.
Three: Be careful not to over mix, otherwise the muffins will become tough.
Four: Spoon the muffin batter into paper cases and bake in a preheated oven for 18 minutes.
Top Tips
- Grate the courgettes finely so they blend into the muffin batter well, adding moisture without noticeable chunks.
- After grating the courgette, squeeze out excess water using a clean tea towel or kitchen paper. This helps ensure your batter doesn't get too watery, which could impact the texture of the muffins.
- Mix the ingredients until just combined. Overmixing can lead to tougher muffins as it develops more gluten in the batter.
- Good quality cocoa powder or chocolate will provide a deep, rich chocolate flavour.
- Make sure your oven is preheated to the right temperature before putting your muffins in. This helps the muffins rise properly.
- Insert a toothpick into the centre of a muffin to check doneness. If it comes out clean or with a few crumbs clinging to it, the muffins are ready.
🍴 Serving suggestions
These delicious sweet courgette muffins make a great after-school snack for kids.
I also serve the muffins as a quick and easy dessert straight from the oven with a scoop of honeycomb ice cream. They could also be eaten with warm creamy custard, for a comforting snack or dessert.
📖 Variations
- You could add other flavours to complement the chocolate, such as orange zest, vanilla extract, or a hint of mint.
- For a bit of crunch, consider adding nuts like walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts. These can be mixed into the batter or sprinkled on top before baking.
- You could try using different types of chocolate, such as milk or white chocolate chips, instead of the traditional dark chocolate for a slightly different taste.
- For an additional fruity note, consider adding dried fruit like cranberries or raisins.
- Add a bit of warmth to your muffins with spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg, or cardamom would all work nicely with the chocolate.
🥡 Storage
Stored in a sealed container, these muffins will keep fresh for up to 3 days
🧊 Suitable for freezing?
These muffins freeze brilliantly. I often make a double batch and freeze half for another day.
Place the muffins in a freezer-safe container with a lid, placing a sheet of baking paper between each layer of muffins, to prevent them from sticking together.
❓ FAQS
Courgette is perfect for adding to sweet baked goods because the delicate flavor allows it to blend in perfectly with cake mixtures. It also helps to keep baked goods moist without having to add a lot of extra fat to the recipe. Grate the courgettes finely and you will not even notice them!
This recipe makes 12 standard muffins.
Yes, you can leave out the chocolate chips if you prefer. The muffins will still be tasty and moist, but they won't have as much of a chocolate flavour.
Yes, you can add chopped nuts or dried fruit to these muffins if you like. Chopped walnuts or pecans, raisins, or dried cranberries would be good additions.
Typically, the taste of courgette is very subtle and is usually not distinguishable, especially with the dominant flavour of chocolate in these muffins.
Yes, yellow courgettes can be used in place of green ones. The taste and texture are similar, so it won't affect your muffins significantly.
Peeling is not necessary. The skin of courgettes is soft and adds extra fibre to your muffins.
😋Related recipes
More muffin recipes you might like;
- Bakery Style Strawberry Muffins
- Carrot Cake Muffins
- White Chocolate and Cherry Muffins
- Blueberry and White Chocolate Muffins
- Banana & Peanut Butter Muffins
- Sweet Potato and Apple Muffins
- Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Rhubarb and Pecan Muffins
- Banana and Pecan Muffins
- Blackberry & Lemon Muffins
- Cinnamon Spiced Mincemeat Muffins
More courgette recipes
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Recipe
Chocolate Courgette Muffins
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Equipment
- Wooden Spoon
- 12 Hole Muffin Tin
Ingredients
- 140 g Caster Sugar
- 180 g Plain Flour
- 20 g Cocoa Powder
- 1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda
- 100 ml Natural Yogurt
- 2 Eggs
- 140 g Butter melted and cooled
- 250 g Courgette grated and excess water squeezed out (ungrated weight)
- 100 g Milk Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°c (170° fan/ 375F/ Gas 5) and line a 12 hole muffin tin with paper cases.
- Mix together the caster sugar, plain flour, cocoa powder and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl.140 g Caster Sugar, 180 g Plain Flour, 20 g Cocoa Powder, 1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda
- Whisk the yogurt, eggs and melted butter together in a bowl, until combined.100 ml Natural Yogurt, 2 Eggs, 140 g Butter
- Gently mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, being careful not to over mix.
- Fold in the grated courgette and chocolate chips.250 g Courgette, 100 g Milk Chocolate Chips
- Spoon the mixture into 12 muffin cases.
- Bake for 18 minutes. Cool on a wire rack once cool enough to handle.
Gina
These look so lovely! I wish I had a glut this year but my zucchini plants are male flower dominated and so far I've only gotten one!
Beth Sachs
Oh no! I always seem to end up with way too many.
Susan Lowe
Is it just me? I can’t find how much courgette is used or how much plain flour is substituted with cocoa powder. I’ve got everything ready, just can’t find the quantities needed. Sue x
Beth Sachs
Hi Susan. The recipe card is at the bottom of the post.
Susan
😊 Thank you. Didn’t read it properly☺️ All made now, look and taste lovely! Sue x
Janelle
I am a massive fan of zucchini in cake. Thanks for a great recipe
Sue
These muffins look delicious and a truly great way to sneak some veggies into the family!
Beth Sachs
I didn't tell my kids there were courgettes in them...until after they had eaten them and proclaimed them the BEST chocolate muffins ever!
Steph Tombs
Made these today with some courgettes from a friend's garden 😊 Easy to make and delicious 🙂
Beth Sachs
Glad you enjoyed them Steph!
Alisa Infanti
I have never heard a zucchini called that before so was intrigued. They are delish!
Carrie Robinson
I so wish that I had a couple of these for breakfast this morning! They look perfect. 🙂
Julie
Such a good way to get that green veggie in there. The muffins look delish too.
Jill
Great way to use up the abundance of zucchini from my garden. These muffins look scrumptious.
Jessica Formicola
Chocolate for breakfast sounds like a great idea to me, so I can't wait to try these muffins!
Becky
I have tried baking these buns and they are amazing. I used 200g of choc chips instead of 100g but everything else I kept the same. Xx
Beth Sachs
So glad you enjoyed them Becky! The extra choc chips sound like a good idea.
Mindy Fewless
These turned out beautifully!! Thank you!
Emily Liao
These chocolate muffins were so fluffy and delicious! Not to mention, pretty easy to make - so will definitely come to this for when I have a chocolate craving.
Kat (The Baking Explorer)
What tasty looking muffins!
Midge @ Peachicks' Bakery
Oooh these look like a fab way to use up courgettes! Definitely pinning it to make a peachick safe version! Thanks for sharing with #CookBlogShare 🙂
Tracy
They came out of the oven looking lovely with domed tops, but after cooling down they really sank in the middle. Any idea what I did wrong? I have a circotherm oven so it's definitely hot enough.
They still taste delicious though and my kids loved them!
Beth Sachs
Hi Tracy. Was it a really hot day when you baked them? It might pay you to chill the batter for 20 minutes on really warm days. Also check you used the correct amount of bicarb. Did you measure it using measuring spoons and not just a teaspoon. It has to be really accurate. Hope that helps.
Cat | Curly's Cooking
I love using courgettes in baking. These muffins look delicious!
Paula
Sorry if this seems a silly question or has already been clarified but is the courgette weight before or after grating?
Thanks
Beth Sachs
Hi Paula. Not a silly question. This is the weight before they are grated.
Sarah Caldwell
Hi Beth have you tried these in the air fryer? I have a very warm kitchen and trying to use the fryer instead of oven.
Sarah
Beth Sachs
Hi Sarah. I haven't tried them in an air fryer but there is no reason why they shouldn't work! Let me know how you get on.
Ellie
Amazing recipe, my husband just said ‘the lightest sponge he’s ever had’ didn’t have any chocolate chips so just added some chopped squares of chocolate.
Easiest recipe and hardly any washing up. 10/10
Janice
I’ve made this recipe a few times now and I just can’t get the timing of the bake right. The bottoms are always under-baked (gooey) even after 25 mins..any advice?! Love the flavour and recipe by the way!
Julie
These are lovely moist muffins, light and spongy. I’ve made them twice now and each time my mixture filled each cup but was not cooked after just 18 mins - more like 25 mins.
Ro
Can these be made with Gluten free plain flour?
Janice
Brilliant recipe. I tend to split the mixture between 22-24 cases and bake for 18 minutes. Always turns out great and big enough for my 2-5 yr old grandchildren per sitting as a chocolate treat !
I also weigh the mixture into the cake cases (about 45 g per case) . It’s a bit of a hassle but worth it.
Great way to use up my glut of courgettes, thanks for the recipe.