Triple Chocolate Zucchini Muffins — These muffins are incredibly chocolatey without being too sweet. They’re studded with mini chocolate chips and packed with grated zucchini. Warning: these are addicting!
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The BEST Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
These chocolate zucchini muffins are wonderfully chocolaty, and anytime I can eat chocolate for breakfast, I’m happy. And when a recipe is on the healthier side, even better. There’s no dairy, no butter, and only 1/4 cup oil in the entire batch!
These zucchini bread muffins are easy to make and you don’t need a mixer. They’re extremely soft, tender, and moist all thanks to zucchini. If you’ve never baked with zucchini before, this is the recipe to start with.
If you’re not a zucchini fan, I promise you can’t taste it. I think it’s fairly neutral-tasting and takes on the flavor of the ingredients it’s prepared with, but my family has keen tastebuds for zucchini and they couldn’t detect it. I recommend finely grating the zucchini with a box grater. It incorporates better both in terms of texture and undetectable flavor when it’s finely grated.
Love Zucchini Recipes?
If you loved these double chocolate zucchini muffins, you’re bound to love my classic zucchini bread recipe as well!
What’s in Chocolate Zucchini Muffins?
For this easy zucchini muffin recipe, you’ll need:
- Grated zucchini
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Egg
- Silk Dark Chocolate + Walnut Nutchello
- White vinegar
- Vegetable oil
- Vanilla extract
- Boiling water
- Mini chocolate chips
This is the perfect recipe to have on hand during the warmer months when zucchini is in season! Make a big batch and share some with your neighbors — they’ll love you for it!
Is There a Nutchello Substitute I Can Use?
To intensify the chocolate flavor, I used Silk Dark Chocolate + Walnut Nutchello. However, this product is no longer available. Instead, feel free to use another of Silk’s non-dairy milks in this. Their regular soy, almond, or coconut milk would work well in these chocolate zucchini muffins, as would regular chocolate milk. Use whatever you can find!
How to Make Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
To make these chocolate zucchini muffins, you’ll first need to grate the zucchini. Then, add the wet ingredients to one bowl and the dry to another. Combine the wet and dry ingredients, then stir in the zucchini and boiling water. Note that the batter will be very thin!
Stir in the mini chocolate chips, then divide the batter among the prepared muffin tins and bake the zucchini muffins until a toothpick in the middle comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for a few minute in the tins before removing them (otherwise you might break them).
How to Freeze Muffins
If you have a lot of zucchini to use up, make a few batches of chocolate zucchini muffins and freeze them for later! To do so, let the muffins first come to room temperature, then pop them into a zip-top bag and freeze.
When you’re ready to eat the frozen muffins, either nuke them in the microwave for 30 seconds or let them come to room temperature on your countertop.
I like having frozen muffins on hand for quick afternoon snacks or grab-and-go breakfasts. These muffins are so flavorful on their own that you don’t need to worry about adding toppings to them (although these taste amazing with a little peanut butter on them!).
Tips for Making Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
First and foremost, the water MUST be boiling when you add it to the batter. Hot tap water won’t cut it here — you actually need to boil the water in a kettle. It makes a big difference, trust me!
Also, if you don’t have white vinegar on hand, another neutral vinegar (like apple cider vinegar) will work. Just don’t use a really flavorful vinegar like balsamic in this recipe, since that would alter the flavor of the muffins.
To make these chocolate zucchini muffins prettier, I like to sprinkle a few more mini chocolate chips on top before baking them. It just adds a little something, and makes these zucchini bread muffins seem even more decadent.
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Triple Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup finely grated zucchini, measured loosely laid and not packed in the cup (from about 1 medium zucchini)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup Silk Dark Chocolate + Walnut Nutchello, Silk Soy, Almond, or Coconutmilk, or chocolate milk, may be substituted
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
- ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup boiling water
- ½ cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
- about 12 teaspoons semi-sweet mini chocolate chips, divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 12-Cup Regular Muffin Pan with liners; set aside.*
- Grate the zucchini on the fine blade of a box grater; set aside.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and whisk to combine; set aside.
- To a medium bowl, add the egg, Nutchello, vinegar, oil, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and stir to combine; don’t overmix but take care to make sure all dry bits are incorporated at the bottom of the bowl.
- Add the zucchini and stir to combine.
- Add the boiling water and stir to combine. Batter will be thin.
- Add 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips and stir to combine.
- Fill each muffin liner 3/4 full. Some of mine were a bit fuller than 3/4 because the batter is thin and was ‘pouring fast’ but it’s okay because the muffins don’t rise a ridiculous amount.
- Evenly top each muffin with a generous pinch of mini chocolate chips, about 1 teaspoon per muffin.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until tops are domed, set, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Cool muffins in pan on a wire rack for about 10 to 15 minutes or until you can remove them. Muffins will keep airtight at room temp for 5 days or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Even More Zucchini Dessert Recipes:
Zucchini Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake with Chocolate Ganache — The best zucchini cake ever!! Soft, moist, and you can’t even taste the zucchini! Tastes like a yellow bakery cake drenched in chocolate!!
Carrot Zucchini Bread — Fast, easy, one bowl, no mixer!! Super soft, moist, and tastes so good you’ll forget it’s on the healthier side!!
Zucchini Banana Bread with Browned Butter Cream Cheese Glaze – Soft and moist with a special ingredient!
Banana Zucchini Pudding Cake with Vanilla Browned Butter Glaze – The softest, moistest cake ever! So easy and the glaze is heavenly!
Post is brought to you by Silk. The recipe, images, text, and opinions expressed are my own. #Nutchello @LoveMySilk
Hi! I love your recipes and have made several with great results. The taste of these muffins was delicious but I had problems with them holding together and being too moist at the end. I baked an additional 5 minutes as well but still the same. I am an amateur baker but Averie do you think it would it have helped to reduce the water either by adding less boiling water or by squeezing the water out of the zucchini first? Would love to figure out what I did wrong so that I can make them again.
When baking with something like zucchini, there is a lot of variation from one to the next so in the case of these being too moist, you could:
wring out the water from the zucchini
add less boiling water
add more flour
I would scale the water back by half (use 1/4 c) and see how the batter looks and then decide if you want/need to add more water. Baking is part science, but also part art and experimentation. Good luck!
These are so so good. I used AP white whole wheat flour and they were perfect!
I am glad they were perfect with AP white whole wheat flour!
I made these muffins last night and promptly made another batch this morning since they were such a hit. I used a gluten free flour since my hubby is celiac and I reduced the boiling water to 1/4 cup since I didn’t want the batter too thin or have extra unused batter. I also used regular almond milk. These were moist, soft, delicious, and beautiful! Us and the neighbors loved them. In fact, my neighbor promptly gave me another zucchini from her garden once I shared what I had made with her first sharing of the harvest :). Thanks for the great recipe! It’s a winner!
So glad that these came out great for you and that you were able to make them GF, too! And glad your neighbor already came to the rescue with another zucchini for you :)
Tami G
Did you use a GF flour blend and how much?
these are so easy to make and amazing to eat!!!
this recipe will now be on my repeat list. Thank you!
That’s great to hear and glad they are amazing for you!
This is such a good recipe .
I made a large batch to share on Sunday morning at church
Glad you enjoyed it and shared with others!
This is my go-to recipe during zucchini season when I have a zucchini that gets forgotten in my fridge for a few days. :) So chocolate-y and delicious! I substitute chocolate milk for the Nutchello, since I don’t have that on hand, and it tastes just great! (Though maybe it would taste even better with that…Hmmm…) Thanks for a great recipe!!
Glad this is your go-to zucchini recipe!
I was really looking forward to enjoying these. Unfortunately, I took them out after 25 minutes…thinking they HAD to be done. Nope. Raw on the inside. The cooked parts don’t taste very sweet. I used chocolate milk since the other stuff can’t be found.
Oh well! Perhaps I’ll try again sometime or just look for a new recipe.
All ovens, ingredients, pans, etc. are different so always bake until done in your particular oven and situation – whatever amount of time that means.
They are not an excessively ‘sweet’ muffin. There is sweetness but more of a rich chocolate taste rather than a ‘sugary’ sweetness. Thanks for trying the recipe.
I made the chocolate zucchini muffins and they were wonderful. I didn’t have the chocolate milk the recipe called for so I just mixed up chocolate ice cream topping with regular milk and it turned out fine. This is a definite keeper of a recipe. Oh, and I didn’t have mini choc chips so I just tossed regular choc chips into a mini food processor and pulsed for a few seconds. Perfect!
Great idea to pulse your regular chocolate chips and that chocolate syrup + regular milk did the trick, too! Glad they were wonderful!
Can this be made in loaf form? I’m sure it will take longer to bake, but I just don’t have the patience for muffin tins today!
Yes. Enjoy!
Nutchello has been discontinued. :( I looked all over for it and then found out the news from Silk’s Facebook page. Guess we’ll just have to use the dark chocolate almond milk instead.
Dark chocolate milk, chocolate milk, chocolate non-dairy milk, even regular milk will all work. Enjoy!
Don’t know why but barter didn’t cook after 45 minutes. :/
Cooked parts taste good.
Some zucchini has more moisture than others. You could always wring out in paper towels before adding to the batter. Otherwise it could be your oven running on the cool side.
Is there a substitute for Nutchello? Possibly regular or nondairy milk?
Yes you could try that, or chocolate milk. Enjoy!
Most recipes with zucchini direct the excess moisture needs to be removed before including in recipe. I presume this step is not necessary for this recipe?
I know usually that is the case but for this case, no I did not wring it out. Saves a step and the recipe works just fine that way!
This is the 3rd time ive made the chocolate zucchini muffins in less than one week I absolutely love them !!! My grandson 6 yr old loves them as I am now making a batch as I email you !!! They were a hit with my b friend and his daughter ! Thank you for sharing your great recipes I also made the cinnamon Nutella rolls ! So good !!!!!!!!!!!!
Dolores !
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you, three times in less than a week! Glad this is a hit even with the 6 yr old!
Great to hear you love the Nutella rolls as well! Keep me posted what else you make! :)
These were delicious! Tasted like brownies! Made with chocolate almond milk and made into mini muffins. Baked 16 minutes. Kids devoured them! Your recipes are always a success! Thank you!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! Thanks for the compliments on my recipes and glad you have success with them!
Just made these because I found your recipe on foodgawker and had extra zucchini left over… they turned out great! I was skeptical when I saw how thin the batter was, but they came out so light and fluffy! And wonderfully moist. I used regular sized chocolate chips because it was all I had and they kind of sank to the bottom, but it made for an extra decadent bottom and I’m not complaining! Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
I even wrote in the blog post, trust in the thin batter, it all works out, and see it did :) And yes full size chips will sink but as you said, made for an extra decadent bottom!