Chocolate Chip Muffins

My boys love chocolate, and they will eat anything with chocolate in it!

As I was flipping through my baking books, trying to decide on what to bake for snacks for the kids to bring to school, my attention was drawn to a nice photograph of some Chocolate Chip Muffins. I stared at the photograph for quite some time, and suddenly realised that I had not made these muffins for my boys since we entered the woods! Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Cake, Chocolate-Frosting, but not Chocolate Chip Muffins.

Adapted from "Williams-Sonoma : Muffins"

1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, Melted

3/4 cup Buttermilk

2 Large Eggs

1 tbsp Vanilla Extract

2 cups All Purpose Flour

3/4 cup Sugar

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

2 cups Semisweet (plain) Chocolate Chips (I use mini morsels)

• Preheat oven to 350F/180C.
• Grease 12 standard muffin cups with butter/cooking spray, or line with paper liners.
• Whisk together melted butter, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla till smooth.
• In another bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Make a well in the centre and add the buttermilk mixture.
• Beat until smooth and well mixed, 1-2 minutes.
• Fold in the chocolate chips just until evenly distributed.
• Do not overmix.
• Spoon batter into each muffin cup, filling it level with the rim of the cup.
• Bake till golden, dry and springy to the touch, 20-25 minutes.
• A toothpick inserted into the centre of a muffin should come out clean.
• Let cool for 5 minutes on a colling rack.
• Unmold the muffins and let cool completely.
• Serve them at room temperature.

These muffins were very soft to the bite!

The boys gave the thumbs up and asked for more as their "after dinner dessert". I had been on an emotional roller-coaster ride for the past few days, with my spirits hitting the bottom of the emotional well and getting stuck there ... the aroma of the muffins baking in the oven, the sweet crispy bite into the muffin helped lift my otherwise low spirits =)