There is this restaurant in our small town called Tim Hortons, that has some incredible chocolate chip muffins.
I would say Tim Hortons is a cross between a Dunkin Donuts, Paradise Bakery and Starbucks. I have been trying my best to recreate these dang muffins for the past few months, and I think I finally cracked the code to their Chocolate Chip Muffins.
Then I had to one-up them by making Nutella Stuffed Chocolate Chip Muffins.
These muffins are soft and moist on the inside, with a golden brown top. The Nutella on the inside adds to the richness of the mini chocolate chips that are layered all throughout the muffins.
Simply put – they are delicious.
So how do you get the Nutella on the inside?
You just lay spoonfuls of the hazelnut goodness onto a wax paper lined baking sheet then pop it in the freezer.
Once they have hardened, stick them right in the center of the muffin batter!
The key to a delicious Chocolate Chip Muffin is to sprinkle some extra chocolate chips on top, then give it a little sprinkle of turbinado sugar. They look and taste more “bakery style” that way.
Trust me, I’ve been practicing for a while now!
Yup, these are definitely my new favorite muffins.
If you’re not a fan of Nutella, then just leave it out. The Chocolate Chip Muffins are still to die for!
But seriously, the Nutella in the center is uuuuuh-mazing!!
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Nutella Stuffed Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
- 15 tsp chocolate hazelnut spread
- 3 cups flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 10 tbsp butter, softened
- 1 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3/4 cup Vanilla Yogurt
- 3/4 cup Vanilla Yogurt
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp turbinado sugar
Instructions
- On a wax paper lined baking sheet, drop 15 round teaspoonfuls of Nutella (making sure they do not touch). Place the baking sheet in the freezer for at least 2-3 hours, or until the Nutella is frozen solid.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 15 muffin cups with paper or foil liners and set aside.
- In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk to combine, set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer until light and fluffy (2 min). Beat in one egg at a time, then add the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Alternate adding the flour mixture and the yogurts to the butter mixture. (Batter will be really thick) Add the cup of mini chocolate chips, and stir them in.
- Divide the mixture evenly into the prepared muffin tin (note: fill above the top of the cup). Remove the Nutella from the freezer and quickly push the frozen Nutella into the center of the muffins. Then sprinkle each muffin with the remaining chocolate chips and turbinado sugar.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Best served slightly warm. Enjoy!
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Keona
Hi Shawn! i was just wondering if I could replace the two yogurts with sour cream? Please reply, because I am TEMPTED to make these delicious muffins! Thanks : )
Shawn
I think the sour cream will work for this recipe. Enjoy!
Keona
Thanks for the reply! 😀
Iva
Yum yum!! I’m big fan of Nutella and chocolate! Your muffin looks delicious.
What can I use to substitute with Greek yogurt? Milk?
Shawn
Hi Iva, you’ll want to substitute something with the same consistency. I would go with a sour cream or you could try a plain yogurt, but that is even on the verge of too thin of consistency. Hope this helps!
Janice
I made these yesterday for my friends birthday. The were D E L I C I O U S. I did make quite a mess trying to put nutella on the baking sheet and and then in to the freezer so at the end I scraped it of the baking paper and filled a silicon ice cube making mold with nutella and it was way less messy and easier to work with. I got these firm nutella cubes that very easily popped out of the mold and I just pushed them into the dough.
The muffins were gone before I could even taste them and everybody LOVED THEM. Really recommend.
Shawn
Brilliant tip about the silicone ice cube mold! I feel like I need to make another batch just to try it out. 🙂 Thanks Janice!
Ash
Is there a alternative to 10tbs butter? Can we do healthier coconut oil or canola?
Shawn
I’ve never tried to substitute the butter in this recipe with coconut oil, but I have heard that using avocado in place of butter is a great alternative? It might turn them a slight green color, but I bet it would work out still. 🙂
Ash
Ok thanks I wonder if apple sauce maybe?
Shawn
I found this post that has a few great alternatives to butter and when to use them. It does have applesauce as an idea!
http://www.fitsugar.com/How-Replace-Butter-When-Baking-21875486
Ash
Thanks! Otherwise awesome recipe!!! Never seen something like this before!
Shawn
Thanks! They are amazing muffins, I know you’ll love them! 🙂 Let me know how they turn out with the substitutions too!
Jemima
Dear Shawn,
I just tried these (in a hurry!) and they turned out great! Thanks for this recipe.
I did make alterations, too: no eggs (I had only one and didn’t feel like ‘messing around with egg shell’ so I just left those out. I used european (belgian) dark brown sugar, vanilla sugar instead of vanilla (the only thing vanilla-ish at hand from my cupboards) and finally, I used real Belgian Cooking Chocolate (giant chunks + the ‘real stuff’ 🙂 ), chopped those in big bites and pushed them down the batter in the center of the muffins. Oh yes, i sprinkled normal white sugar on top since again that was what I have, which made the kitchen smell like caramel. Oh goody, they’re almost like french ‘moeuilleux’ in the middle. About 25′ indeed and perfectly tanned, not darkened. The first 10′ of baking time it seemed to me that it would turn out crap since they didn’t rise at all. Leaving the oven for what it is and not hanging around peeking is always a good idea 😉 As said, they turned out like masterpieces. Thanks! 🙂
Here’s a link to the belgian chocolate giant chunks: http://www.chocojacques.be/nl/het-groot-bloc-dessert-fondant It is written in Dutch but I assume you can hit ‘google translate’. http://www.belgianchocs.com/catalog/jacques-fondant-cullinaire-bloc-dessert-500g-c-11_29-p-62.html?zenid=66636730e38de99e978e0ad6abbb50f3 or to have an impression of how big a pack it is: http://ethicalrelish.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/jacques-bloc.jpg
Blessings for a tasty and joyful holiday season, from Germany!
Narelle
Would these freeze ok? They look amazing!!
MoonLight @ AWorldInMyOven
Oh this is such an interesting way of filling muffins! And they look amazing! Definitely going to try this technique soon… I could hand these out during my next school project. There’s no way anyone can resist nutella, right?
John
Very sweet and would recommend a reduction in sugar,also weights and measures to cater for the British public as having to convert is a bit of a bind,Otherwise a fairly good recipe.
Ashley @CenterCutCook
Okay, I like your method WAAAAY better for stuffing muffins with Nutella! Such a smart idea to freeze it! Pinning!
Shawn
Haha! Thanks Ashley, the freezing makes it so much easier!
Ifrah
Hello!
This is such a great recipe! I just wanted to ask what exactly you meant by vanilla ? Would it be vanilla extract?
I’m really looking forward to baking these muffins 😀
Thanks
Billy
Wow – the last (or first) thing I need is another way to consume nutella. Never would have thought of freezing it.
Cookin Canuck
These look fantastic, Shawn, and I love that you used Greek yogurt for extra moisture. I could eat this alongside a serving of Timbits, right? 🙂
Chels R.
OMG-These look so so good!!
Patty
What is turbinado sugar?
Shawn
Turbinado sugar is a course sugar, and usually found in raw form. It adds just a little bit of sweetness to the top of each muffin! 🙂
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust
These are so great Shawn! I love that Nutella inside!
Averie @ Averie Cooks
Shawn these look so good! So soft, fluffy, moist and Nutella – yes!
Nessa
I need!
Cookbook Queen
Best. Idea. EVER!!!!!
Stephanie
These look delicious. My kids adore Nutella so I bet they would love this.
momwithkids
This is a beautiful recipe that we are going to use as a snack this weekend for our dieting group. We are going to include dark chocolate and raw chocolate bits (cacao). Dark chocolate helps burn fat of the body
http://75poundsdiet.blogspot.com/2014/04/a-diet-to-lose-75-pounds-and-use-of.html
Shawn
That sounds wonderful! I love dark chocolate! 🙂
Rob Long
YUM! These look awesome! I absolutely love chocolate chip muffins, and nutella would put them over the top!
I couldn’t help but notice your reference to Tim Hortons. Tims was founded here in Canada, and up here, north of the border, Tims is a national institution! Notice, I simply called them ‘Tims’…here in Canada, that’s how we refer to that coffee chain…simply ‘Tims’ 🙂 Mention Tims to any Canadian and they’ll know EXACTLY what you mean! And I’m in total agreement, their baked goods are very good!!
Rob
Saint John, NB
Shawn
Thank Rob! I’m actually living in BC right now, so I quickly learned about the Tim’s phenomenon when we strolled into town. It’s one of the 5 restaurants here, so we go there often. 😉
ChristyM
Welcome to BC and to Tim Hortons. It’s cute how you are calling Tim’s a restaurant, I’ve never really thought to classify it as such, it’s always just been Tim’s.
I agree about their Chocolate Chip muffins. yum.
Shawn
Haha! I call it a restaurant because we only have a few places to eat here in our small town. I love Tim’s, and eat there more than I would care to admit! 😉
Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes
I love that you stuffed these with Nutella!! Everything you make always looks so delicious!!
Shawn
Thanks Ashley! I could say the same thing about your recipes! 🙂