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Best Brown Butter Zucchini Muffins (Perfect & Easy)

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Moist, tender zucchini muffins with nutty brown butter and melty chocolate chips. Quick and easy one-bowl recipe that’s perfect for breakfast, snacks, or using up garden zucchini.

Ingredients

Scale
  • ½ cup (1 stick or 113g) unsalted butter
  • 1¾ cups (220g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature
  • ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • ½ cup (100g) light brown sugar, packed
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup (60ml) whole milk or buttermilk
  • 1½ cups (about 1 medium zucchini) shredded zucchini, lightly packed
  • 1 cup (175g) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Position the rack in the center of the oven. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease the cups thoroughly. Set aside while you prepare the batter.
  2. Brown the butter. Place the ½ cup of unsalted butter in a light-colored saucepan or skillet over medium heat. Let it melt completely, swirling the pan occasionally. The butter will start to foam and crackle—that’s the water evaporating. Keep a close eye on it. After about 4-5 minutes, the foam will subside, and you’ll see golden brown specks forming at the bottom. The butter will smell nutty and amazing. As soon as it turns a deep amber color (think the color of a penny), remove it from the heat…
  3. Grate the zucchini. Wash your zucchini and trim off the stem end. Using the large holes of a box grater, shred the zucchini until you have about 1½ cups lightly packed. Do NOT squeeze out the liquid! That moisture is what makes these muffins incredibly tender. Set aside.
  4. Whisk the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, combine 1¾ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Whisk until everything is evenly distributed. This ensures your muffins rise evenly and have consistent flavor throughout.
  5. Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together 2 large room-temperature eggs, ½ cup granulated sugar, and ½ cup packed light brown sugar until thick and pale, about 1 minute. The mixture should look lighter in color and slightly thickened. Add the cooled brown butter (it should be warm but not hot), 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, and ¼ cup milk or buttermilk. Whisk until smooth and well combined.
  6. Fold in the zucchini. Add the shredded zucchini (with all its liquid) to the wet mixture. Fold gently with a rubber spatula until incorporated. The batter will look a bit loose—that’s exactly what you want.
  7. Combine wet and dry. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the wet ingredients. Fold gently with the rubber spatula using a swooping motion—cut through the center, scrape along the bottom, and fold over the top. Stop folding as soon as you no longer see streaks of flour. A few small lumps are perfectly fine. Overmixing develops gluten and makes tough muffins, so be gentle here.
  8. Add the chocolate chips. Fold in ¾ cup of the chocolate chips (reserve the remaining ¼ cup for topping). Just a few folds to distribute them evenly. The batter will be thick and slightly sticky.
  9. Fill the muffin cups. Using an ice cream scoop or ⅓ cup measuring cup, divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. They should be filled almost to the top—these muffins rise beautifully, so don’t worry about overflow. Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup chocolate chips over the tops of the muffins, pressing them in lightly so they stick.
  10. Bake the muffins. Place the muffin tin in the preheated oven and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. If the toothpick has wet batter, bake for another 2-3 minutes and test again. The muffins should spring back lightly when touched.
  11. Cool properly. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes. This allows them to set and prevents them from falling apart when you remove them. After 5 minutes, transfer the muffins to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Don’t leave them in the pan too long, or the bottoms will get soggy from trapped steam.

Notes

Don’t squeeze the liquid from the shredded zucchini—it keeps the muffins moist. Brown the butter until deep amber but not burnt. For best results, use room temperature eggs. Muffins taste even better on day two as flavors meld.

Nutrition

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