An easy recipe for supremely tender chocolate bran muffins full of chocolate chips! Perfect for chocolate lovers! Only 128 calories with no refined flour or sugar!
A few weeks ago, one of my new neighbors and I stopped to chat while her nearly three-year-old daughter peddled a tricycle on the sidewalk. “I’ve been meaning to ask you,” my neighbor mentioned. “Do you have any easy chocolate recipes?”
(As the author of this chocolate cookbook, my eyes always light up when somebody else starts a conversation with me about chocolate!)
My neighbor explained that her young daughter loved chocolate treats, especially sweet store-bought pudding cups and fudgsicles… But as a personal trainer, she didn’t like their ingredient lists and wanted healthier alternatives for her little girl!
I offered to text her links to my one-bowl brownie and flourless brownie recipes, and she looked relieved when I explained neither included any refined flour or sugar. After waving good-bye to her daughter, slowly riding past the houses on her tricycle, I headed inside to find my phone.
As I typed, a light bulb went off in my head… I still had an entire batch of thesein my freezer! I quickly piled them onto a plate and brought them over to my neighbor. She sent me a cute picture two minutes later of her toddler halfway through eating one, the chocolate still lingering on her lips. Absolutely adorable!
So when I baked a batch of these Healthy Double Chocolate Bran Muffins, I immediately knew the girl I wanted to give them to! They’re supremely tender and moist, full of melty chocolate chips and rich chocolate flavor, but just 128 calories with no refined flour or sugar!
And yes… Judging by my sweet little neighbor girl’s reaction of, “Mmmm! I like it!” after her first bite, they’re totally kid-approved!
Like I mentioned, these healthy chocolate muffins are full of wholesome ingredients! The kind of stuff that makes your mind and body feel good… And somehow magically tastes incredible at the same time. My favorite kind of recipe—especially since two types of chocolate are involved!
The first is cocoa powder! Just the regular ol’ kind, like this. Because you’re adding more cocoa powder than whole wheat flour (or gluten-free flour, if you prefer!), these muffins already taste really rich and decadent and chocolaty without Dutched or special dark chocolate.
Remember to measure the cocoa powder correctly, with this method or a kitchen scale! Too much cocoa powder will make your muffins dry and slightly bitter. This is the kitchen scale I own and love. It only cost $20! I use it to make every recipe that I share with you here because it ensures my treats turn out with the perfect taste and texture every time.
You’ll skip the refined sugar and use a combination of molasses (like this!) and pure maple syrup (like this!) to sweeten your muffins instead. I highly recommend using the molasses! It’s what gives bran muffins their iconic deep, cozy flavor. Molasses is inexpensive, shelf-stable, and great for all kinds of treats! (And with the holidays quickly approaching, you’ll need it for all of my gingerbread recipes too!)
I have a special trick to making extra tender bran muffins… You mix the oat bran (like this!) with milk and Greek yogurt first! Letting the oat bran sit in that liquid mixture while preparing the other ingredients makes it soften (similar to the way my overnight oats recipes work!). This means your bran muffins turn out supremely tender without lots of butter or oil. Total win!
Psst… You just need ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil!
Of course, we can’t forget that second super important type of chocolate… The mini chocolate chips! I prefer using mini chocolate chips because their smaller size ensures that every bite contains rich melty chocolate. These are my current obsession because they taste decadent and melt so well!
How’s that look for a healthy breakfast muffin?? ♡ And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your muffins!
| Healthy Double Chocolate Bran Muffins | 5.0 from 12 reviews |
©: Amy's Healthy Baking
Yields: 12 muffins
These muffins are perfect for any chocolate lover! They’re supremely moist and tender, and they’re full of rich chocolate flavor and decadent chocolate chips. It’s almost like eating a cross between a bran muffin and a brownie! Leftovers will keep for at least one week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- 1 ½ cups (180g) oat bran (measured like this and gluten-free if necessary)
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ¾ cup (180mL) nonfat milk, divided
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ cup (60g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured like this)
- ¼ cup (30g) whole wheat or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- ¼ cup (60mL) molasses, room temperature
- ¼ cup (60mL) pure maple syrup, room temperature
- 3 tbsp (42g) miniature chocolate chips, divided
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 12 muffin cups with nonstick spray.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the oat bran, Greek yogurt, ½ cup of milk, and vanilla extract. Let the mixture rest for at least 10 minutes while preparing the remaining ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a third bowl, whisk together the coconut oil and egg whites. Stir in the molasses and maple syrup. Add the oat bran mixture, stirring until fully incorporated. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining ¼ cup of milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Fold in 2 ½ tablespoons of miniature chocolate chips.
- Evenly divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, and press the remaining miniature chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 16-19 minutes or until the tops feel firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack.
Notes: Other readers have had success substituting wheat bran for the oat bran. I have not tried that myself and cannot personally vouch for that substitution. If you do decide to try substituting wheat bran, measure by volume (cups), not weight (grams). This is because wheat bran and oat bran have different densities, so they have different weights per cup.
For the gluten-free flour, use the following blend: 2 tablespoons (15g) millet flour, 1 tablespoon (7g) tapioca flour, 1 tablespoon (7g) brown rice flour, and ⅛ teaspoon xanthan gum. Most store-bought blends (like this one!) should also work, as long as they are measured like this.
White whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the whole wheat flour.
Remember to measure the oat bran, cocoa powder, and flour correctly with this method or a kitchen scale. (← That's the one I own and love!) Too much of any of these ingredients will make your muffins dry (especially the oat bran; it acts like a sponge and soaks up so much liquid!). Too much cocoa powder will also make your muffins taste bitter, rather than rich and chocolaty.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
Honey or agave may be substituted for the maple syrup. Do not substitute pancake syrup because it will not produce the same taste or texture.
I don’t recommend substituting anything for the molasses; it’s required to produce the iconic bran muffin flavor. (And you'll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡The Ultimate Healthy Chocolate Mini Muffins
♡Healthy Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
♡Healthy Mocha Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins
♡Healthy Chocolate Chip Banana Bran Muffins
♡Healthy Morning Glory Bran Muffins
♡Healthy Almond Joy Bran Muffins
♡…and the rest of Amy’s healthy muffin recipes!
