These chocolate protein muffins are loaded with wholesome ingredients including banana, zucchini, spinach, nut butter, and Greek yogurt. I make them without protein powder and use ground flaxseed instead of flour so they’re also gluten-free. Mix the batter in the blender and enjoy these moist chocolate muffins as a quick, high-protein breakfast or meal-prep snack!
Easy Chocolate Protein Muffins Recipe
These high-protein muffins look and taste like fudgy chocolate brownies (or brownie cookies) in muffin form! They’re dense, moist, and filled with cocoa powder and chocolate chips. BUT my chocolate protein muffins also contain fresh zucchini and spinach, with plenty of protein from eggs, Greek yogurt, nut butter, and flaxseed.
It’s a bit like a cross between my favorite homemade protein muffins and chocolate banana bread.
Best of all, chocolate protein muffins are quick to make in a blender. It’s no secret that I love using my blender to mix everything from pie crust to pancake batter and energy bites. It evenly combines the ingredients and makes this chocolate muffin batter ready for the oven in seconds.
Tell Me More About These Chocolate Protein Muffins!
- Moist and fudgy. These chocolate protein muffins are rich, and they taste like homemade brownies!
- Packed with protein AND veggies. I wanted to make these muffins high in protein and filling without protein powder. So, I packed them with nut butter, yogurt, and sneaky vegetables instead.
- Easy to make in the blender. Just add your ingredients, blend, and bake! The muffins store and freeze well, too, which I love for meal prep purposes.
- Gluten-free and refined sugar-free. These are flourless protein muffins, so they’re gluten-free and made with ground flaxseed instead. Meanwhile, bananas and maple syrup sweeten the muffins without refined sugar.
If there’s any excuse to eat chocolate for breakfast, whether that’s muffins or chocolate pancakes, I’ll take it! And if you’re looking for more easy homemade muffin recipes, try my lightened-up applesauce muffins or these flavor-packed peanut butter banana muffins next.
Ingredients Needed
Note the following ingredients you’ll need for these easy chocolate breakfast muffins. Find the full list with exact measurements in the recipe card.
- Nut Butter – I use almond butter, but cashew or peanut butter works too. Use sunflower seed (sun) butter for nut-free muffins.
- Banana – These chocolate muffins are an excellent way to use up overripe bananas. The browner and spottier the bananas, the sweeter the flavor. They’ll also be easier to blend or mash.
- Zucchini – Roughly chopped since you’ll be blending the batter. If you’re mixing the batter by hand, you can grate the fresh zucchini using the large holes of a box grater like you would for zucchini brownies.
- Spinach – Fresh or frozen and thawed. I recommend baby spinach as it’s more tender than Swiss chard or regular spinach. If needed, you can swap kale for spinach, but use 1 cup, as kale has a more intense flavor.
- Eggs – Bring them to room temperature.
- Greek Yogurt – Sour cream makes a good substitute.
- Maple Syrup – Make sure it’s the real stuff, and not pancake syrup! I love the flavor of pure maple syrup, but feel free to use honey or agave instead. You can also use regular sugar or brown sugar.
- Vanilla Extract – Or an equal amount of pure vanilla paste.
- Cocoa Powder – I recommend natural unsweetened cocoa powder as this muffin recipe contains both baking powder and baking soda. The baking soda needs the acidity in natural cocoa to activate.
- Flaxseeds – Ground flaxseed helps bind the ingredients and gives these gluten-free muffins structure in place of flour. You can buy them pre-ground or grind them into a powder using a mortar and pestle.
- Baking Powder and Soda – I use both so the chocolate protein muffins rise nicely.
- Dark Chocolate – Either in the form of dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, to fold into the muffin batter and also scatter on top before baking.
Recipe Tips
- Use ripe bananas. Since this muffin recipe doesn’t use a lot of added sweeteners, it relies on the sweetness of overripe bananas. Like banana bread, the bananas add moisture and flavor, and it’s a great way to use up older bananas.
- Don’t overblend the veggies. When blending the banana, zucchini, and baby spinach with the other batter ingredients, do not overblend. Stop once the mixture is combined and smooth.
- Cool the muffins completely. For the best texture, let these chocolate protein muffins cool completely and come to room temperature before serving. The muffins get firmer as they cool.
- Intensify the flavors. Adding a teaspoon of instant coffee or espresso powder to the batter will bring out the chocolate flavor (don’t worry, the muffins won’t taste like coffee!).
FAQ
Absolutely. You can bake these muffins in a mini muffin pan instead. Keep the oven temperature at 375ºF but decrease the baking time to 10-14 minutes. You might also love these mini chocolate chip muffins.
Yes! These chocolate protein muffins freeze well, which makes them great for meal prep. Store and freeze the cooled muffins for up to 3 months. See the Storage section below for details.
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Prep. Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.
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Make the batter. Add the almond butter, banana, zucchini, baby spinach, eggs, Greek yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Add the cocoa powder, flaxseeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Blend briefly until combined. Using a rubber spatula or spoon, fold in the chocolate chips.
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Fill the muffin cups. Divide the muffin batter between the paper liners, filling each to ¾ full. Add some extra chocolate chips on top.
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Bake. Transfer the muffin pan to the oven and bake for 22-26 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
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Cool, then serve. Let the muffins cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin. Serve the muffins once they’ve completely cooled.
- Use ripe banana for extra sweetness. This recipe doesn’t use much sweetener, so the banana rounds out the flavors nicely.
- When blending veggies, make sure to stop once blended. Do not overblend.
- Let the muffins cool completely before judging the texture. The cooler they get, the firmer they will be.
- You can use kale instead of spinach, but just 1 cup. The kale will have a more intense flavor.
- You can add 1 teaspoon of instant coffee to intensify the chocolate flavor.
Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 200kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.004g | Cholesterol: 41mg | Sodium: 101mg | Potassium: 374mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 441IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 126mg | Iron: 2mg
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
How to Make Chocolate Protein Muffins
Mix the ingredients in a blender or food processor using the same method as my banana oatmeal muffins.
- Make the muffin batter. First, add the almond butter, banana, zucchini, spinach, and wet ingredients to the blender. Blend, then add the cocoa powder and dry ingredients, and blend again. Fold in the chocolate chips last using a spatula or large spoon.
- Fill the pan. Next, divide the batter between the liners in a 12-cup muffin tin. Fill each liner about ¾ full. Sprinkle extra chocolate chips on top.
- Bake. Bake the muffins at 375ºF for 22-26 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then remove the muffins to a wire rack. Allow them to cool fully before eating.
Can I Make the Batter Without a Blender?
Sure thing! If you don’t have a blender, I’d suggest the following to mix your chocolate muffin batter by hand:
- Mash the bananas and grate the zucchini instead of chopping them.
- Wilt the fresh spinach in a skillet until soft (or thaw frozen spinach fully). Chop the spinach finely and then mash it evenly with a fork.
- Combine everything in a bowl with the other wet ingredients. Mix until well combined.
- Mix in the dry ingredients, transfer the batter to your muffin tin, and bake as usual.
Proper Storage
- Store on the counter. Keep the muffins covered in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Wait until they’re completely cool before you store them so they don’t become soggy.
- Freeze. Freeze the cooled muffins for up to 3 months. They thaw pretty quickly at room temperature.
