If you’re craving the cozy flavors of fall in the form of a warm, bakery-style treat, these Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins are exactly what you need. They’re soft, fluffy, and packed with pumpkin spice goodness, dotted with sweet chocolate chips in every bite. The batter comes together quickly, and they bake up with perfectly domed tops—basically the muffin of your autumn dreams. These are perfect for breakfast, after-school snacks, or cozying up with a mug of cocoa on a chilly day.
Ingredients Needed
- eggs – we always recommend large eggs for baking
- sugar – we use white sugar in this recipe
- 1 15 oz. can pumpkin – this uses the entire can of pumpkin
- cooking oil – a neutral flavored oil, like canola, is best
- applesauce – For baking, unsweetened applesauce is your best bet. It gives you full control over sweetness, so you can adjust to taste and keep your flavors balanced
- flour – we always recommend lightly spooning flour into measuring cups and leveling it off with a knife
- baking soda
- baking powder
- table salt
- pumpkin pie spice
- chocolate chips – whatever type you prefer is great!
How to Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Preheat your oven and prepare your muffin pans.
- Beat together sugar, pumpkin, oil, and applesauce.
- In another bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt.
- Blend wet and dry ingredients together until just combined. Add chocolate chips.
- Bake 15 – 20 minutes (18 was perfect for me).
- Cool slightly in pans, then move to wire racks.
Storage & Other Tips
Baking with pumpkin is delicious, but storing baked goods containing pumpkin can be difficult! Here are our best tips for keeping your muffins (and other pumpkin baked goods) fresh.
- Cool completely before storing:
- Let muffins cool fully on a wire rack before putting them away—storing warm muffins can trap steam and make them soggy.
- Room-temperature storage (best for 2–3 days):
- Layer paper towels in an airtight container, then add muffins in a single layer. Top with another paper towel before sealing. This absorbs excess moisture and helps retain the perfect texture.
- You can also try storing them in a paper bag.
- Refrigerator (good up to 5 days):
- For longer storage, place muffins (no paper towels needed) in a sealed container in the fridge.
- Freezing (perfect for long-term):
- Let muffins cool completely, then flash-freeze them on a baking sheet until firm. Transfer to freezer-safe bags, removing extra air to prevent freezer burn. They’ll keep beautifully for up to 3 months. Flash-freezing is a game-changer, as it prevents muffins from sticking together and keeps texture intact.
- To re-warm:
- Microwave: Heat one at a time with a damp paper towel for 15 – 20 seconds.
- Oven: Wrap individually in foil and warm at 300 °F for 10–15 minutes.
- Thawing from frozen:
- Let sit at room temperature for a couple of hours or reheat directly using the methods above.
- Individually wrapped: Wrap each muffin in plastic wrap before freezing for grab‑and‑go convenience. Perfect for sharing, too!
Frequently Asked Questions
Insert a toothpick into the center—if it comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs (and none of the wet batter), they’re perfect!
Go with semi-sweet or dark for a balanced flavor against the pumpkin. Milk chocolate or white chips will work, but expect a sweeter muffin.
You can swap up to half the all-purpose flour for whole wheat, oat, or gluten-free blends—but the texture will be a bit heavier.
Avoid overmixing! Stir until just combined—you want a few streaks of flour to remain in the batter.
Chopped pecans or walnuts are delicious—add up to ½ cup. For a flavor boost, sprinkle in extra pumpkin pie spice or a pinch of ground ginger or cloves.
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 15-oz. can pumpkin
- 1 cup cooking oil
- ½ cup applesauce
- 3 cups flour lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled with a knife
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 2 cups chocolate chips approximately one small bag
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 2 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside.
- Line 2 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside. (Note: a lot of users seem to get 30 – 36 muffins out of this recipe, which is great! But you may need to plan your muffin pans accordingly.)
- In a large bowl, beat eggs with an electric mixer. Mix in sugar, pumpkin, oil, and applesauce.
- In another bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Blend into pumpkin mixture until just combined.
- Add chocolate chips and mix.
- Transfer to muffin tins (a ¼ cup cookie scoop or measuring cup works great).
- Bake 15-20 minutes (18 is perfect for me) or until a knife comes out clean. Cool slightly in pans then transfer to wire racks.
Notes
- Storing baked goods featuring pumpkin can be a little tricky. See our “Storage & Other Tips” section for tips!
Questions & Reviews
I love this recipe and make it every year! I usually make a double recipe and freeze them to have delicious muffins on hand. So good!
Love this recipe so much. My family makes it multiple times each autumn!
Thank you for posting a pumpkin muffin recipe that uses a whole can of pumpkin instead of only a cup!!
Looove these! It made 30 regular sized muffins for me, which was perfect because I had plenty to share with neighbors and friends and still have some for my family, too. I even subbed a cup of white whole wheat flour and they were the most fluffy and light pumpkin muffins ever to come from my oven. So delish!
Made these with the leftover pumpkin from your turkey and black bean chili and it was a perfect end to our meal. Thank you for the recipe!
I had to use all brown sugar for these today (who runs out of granulated sugar??), but they have a nice warm taste and are extremely moist! These are definitely heading out with me tonight to VT and to work tomorrow as there are plenty (33 muffins) to share! 🙂
These look divine! If I don’t have applesauce, could I add more pumpkin to make up for it?
We loved these! I did half of the recipe and got 15 muffins out of it. My family loved them even more the next day.
Do you know the calories count of one of these?
Delicious! My kids loved these. I got 36 muffins.
Yum. Semi sweet or milk chocolate chips?
Either—I actually did a little of both! 🙂
These were absolutely perfect. They rose beautifully and I felt very good about myself even though I’m an experienced baker. ? The texture is a lot less dense than other pumpkin breads I’ve made. Love how light and fluffy they are. This will be a repeat for me FOR SURE. You guys never let me down!♥
I made these and we loved them!! It actually made 24 muffins and 24 mini muffins for me. Maybe my muffin pans are small? Delicious! Thanks!
I just made these and they are amazing, thanks for sharing! Everyone who has tried them has loved them. I’ll be posting my variation on my blog soon 🙂
These look wonderful. Any tips on how to keep the baked muffins from becoming soft/damp on the top after a day in the pantry? That always happens when I bake with pumpkin.
Thanks!
You can try keeping them in a paper bag—that will soak up some of the moisture. 🙂
Would this recipe make 1 loaf if you didn’t want the muffins and wanted a pumpkin bread in a loaf pan instead?
Sure!! I don’t know for how long, though.
YUM! These muffins look AWESOME! And we have pumpkin puree to use up!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com