These mint chocolate muffins came to me in a fever dream. I knew I wanted to make a mint chocolate chip muffin recipe that was naturally green, full of flavor, plant based and delicious. So I knew these would be the perfect addition to the Ben & Jerry’s Snack Series.
And little did I know what magic these babies would have in store. Not going to lie, this recipe took a couple of tries, but that is what make this recipe so worth it. These chocolate mint muffins are fluffy, moist, soft, and topped with a chocolatey crunch that you just. can’t. beat.
Along with this recipe being vegan, it’s also just SO EASY. It uses a few pantry staples, and the biggest commitment you need to make is blending up fresh mint. After that you just whisk, pour, and bake! You can do this 100% by hand, no mixer required. And you’ll be left with fluffy, delicious, mint chocolate chip muffins in less than 30 minutes.
Let’s break it down, shall we?
Table of contents
What you’ll need for this recipe
In terms of tools and equipment, you won’t need much to make these mint chocolate chip muffins. I designed this recipe so that it would be done with just a blender and a bowl (and a whisk! But even that’s not 100% necessary)
My absolute favorite blender for something like this is my NutriBullet, which is linked here. You can also see how I use it in my video. It’s just too easy.
But after the blending, you just mix and go! I even know people who just use a fork to mix this recipe. It’s all about what you have!
And when it comes to ingredients…
You can find a full list of all the ingredients you will need at the bottom of this page! But in terms of the “why” behind each ingredient, here’s a brief explanation:
- 150 grams all purpose flour – I’ve tried this recipe with other flours and it just never hit the same. I know all-purpose flour is crucial for a fluffier, lighter muffin, so if you are gluten free, I recommend using a 1:1 GF blend for this one!
- 1 tsp baking powder – self explanatory, but we are using baking powder as opposed to soda because we don’t have enough acid to cause a reaction in this bake!
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar – you can also use coconut sugar or cane sugar. You can see in my photo above that I was using a mix of granulated sugar and cane sugar, just because it was what I had!
- 1/8 tsp salt – this sounds counterintuitive, but it TOTALLY brings out the sweetness in the bake.
- 1/2 cup and 2 tbsp plant milk – I get asked all the time, but any variety of plant milk will do! I don’t tend to find too much variation across different blends/brands.
- 2 & 1/2 tbsp avocado oil – or another neutral tasting oil. I’m also not picky with this instruction, canola oil works great!
- 1/2 tsp peppermint extract – this is in the recipe because the mint leaves add a lot of color, but they don’t necessarily give us ALL the minty flavor we need. This extract helps!
- 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves – for color and flavor flav! The fresher the better 🙂
For the chocolate cookie topping:
- 1/4 cup flax meal – this ground up seed is my favorite for making any cookie “crunch” – it bakes up so well, and it makes a great crunchy addition to any meal.
- 3 tbsp dutch process cocoa powder – Dutch process is SO different than normal cocoa powder, so I recommend getting some for this recipe if you can! You can find my favorite brand here.
- 1 & 1/2 tbsp maple syrup – this brings the cookie crunch all together! You don’t want too much liquid or else it will not crisp up in the oven, so I opt to only use maple syrup as the liquid AND the sweetener for this topping.
Tips on making the batter
This batter is super simple to put together. I just have a few tips as you embark on your baking journey!
The first is that you want your mint to be fully, fully blended before you add it in to your mint chocolate chip muffins recipe. It can be easy to want to jump ahead before the mint leaves are fully puréed, but this will mess with the color and overall look of the muffin. So it pays off in the end to let your blender work just a bit overtime!
The second tip I have is that mixing the dough a bit is not a bad thing. Too often we are told not to over-mix a batter, because gluten will form and make the mixture tough. And while this is true, it’s ok to build up a bit more structure in these mint chocolate chip muffins, especially if you are mixing by hand. Feel free to give it a few more stirs after it’s combined, and once you see that beautiful ribbon of batter form, then you know you’re ready!
Tricks, hacks and substitutions
Here are a few tricks I use when making these mint chocolate chip muffins:
- No muffin liners? No problem! You are probably like me…highly disorganized, yet still here for the baking party. And that’s perfect! What I do is just cut parchment paper into 5′ squares, smoosh those down into my muffin tins and then pretend like my muffins aren’t malformed 😉
- Don’t skip the biggest hack of this recipe – starting in a hot oven and then decreasing the temperature. This will create those beautiful domed tops you want when you see a muffin! Don’t skimp on the temperature, your mint chocolate chip muffins with thank youuuu!
And of course, there are definitely some substitutions if you need them! Here are my best suggestions for substituions:
- All purpose flour – a 1:1 gluten free blend is best. If you want to do oat flour, you can. Use 180 grams and know the muffins will have a slightly more crumbly texture!
- Avocado oil – canola oil, vegetable oil or coconut oil (melted) all work great!
- Granulated sugar – you can use coconut sugar or cane sugar here! I would not recommend a liquid sweetener or any brown sugar, they tend to get in the way of the mint!
- Flax meal – you can also use almond flour or oat flour if you don’t have any flax meal on hand!
FAQ
Great question! I like to store mine in an air-tight container in a cool dark place like the pantry. They will last for 5 days at room temperature, but about 7-10 days if you store them in the fridge!
You can, but you will not get that electric green color! If you opt out of the mint, add an extra 1/4 tsp of the peppermint extract.
I personally wouldn’t. Herbs are so flavorful that they often need to be truly balanced in a recipe, and I did not formulate this recipe with another herb in mind! (but maybe one day? Pesto cake anyone?)
My next best choice would be a 1:1 gf flour blend. But if you don’t have that around, use 180 grams of oat flour. Just be warned the oat flour will make the muffins have a more delicate crumb!
Hell yes. That sounds amazing. Plus a great option if you don’t want to go through the trouble of making the cookie topping!
Looking for more vegan baking recipes?
Here are a few of my favorites:
And that’s about it! If you make these, please tag me on Instagram so I can see your amazing green mint chocolate creations! I’m also over on Pinterest and would love to see your stuff there! Of course, if you have any questions, please feel free to drop a comment below or leave me a DM. And as always, happy baking!
Mint Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
- 150 grams all purpose flour about 1 cup
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar you can also use coconut sugar or cane sugar!
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 10 tbsp oat milk or plant milk (this is 1/2 cup and 2 tbsp)
- 2 & 1/2 tbsp avocado oil or another neutral tasting oil
- 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
- 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
For the chocolate cookie topping:
- 1/4 cup flax meal
- 3 tbsp dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 & 1/2 tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425F.
- In a small blender, blend together the oat milk, avocado oil, peppermint extract and mint leaves. You want it to blend until you get a smooth green colored mixture.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
- Gradually add the wet ingredients in with the dry and whisk together until just combined.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flax and cocoa powder. Add the maple syrup and mix. The mixture should come together but be slightly crumbly, just like oreo cookie crumbles.
- Use muffins liners (or if you are lazy like me, parchment paper!) and line a 6-count muffin tin. Pour in the batter equally to each muffin tin.
- Top each muffin with about 1/2 tbsp of the cookie crumble mix. Use a toothpick to break up the mix and swirl it around the tops of the muffins.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425F. Then, without opening the oven door, decrease the heat to 375F and bake for another 15 minutes.
- Serve whenever!
I have a question, I don’t have peppermint extract but I do have mint leaves so can I replace the peppermint extract with more mint leaves or maybe keep the mint leaves the same and have less of a minty flavor or….?