Molten Chocolate Muffins
Rich, fudgy chocolate muffins with a molten ganache center that oozes when you bite in. Inspired by the viral Olympic muffins from Paris 2024, these are surprisingly simple to make at home. The secret is a chilled chocolate ganache piped into the batter before baking — no fancy technique required, just patience while the filling sets in the fridge.
Ingredients
- 1 all-purpose flour
- 1 light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tspbaking powder
- 1 tspbaking soda
- ½ tspsalt
- 1 whole milk
- ½ cup neutral oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tspinstant espresso powder
- 1 tspvanilla extract
- 170 gsemisweet chocolate chunks
- 113 gbittersweet chocolate
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tbspunsalted butter
Method
- Make the ganache filling first. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until it just begins to steam — don't let it boil. Pour the hot cream over the finely chopped bittersweet chocolate in a bowl, add the butter and a pinch of salt. Let it sit for 2 minutes, then stir gently until completely smooth and glossy. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for 30–60 minutes until thick enough to pipe but not solid. Transfer to a piping bag or a zip-lock bag with one corner snipped off.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined and lump-free.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the milk, oil, eggs, espresso powder, and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold with a spatula just until combined — the batter should still look slightly lumpy. Don't overmix or the muffins will turn tough. Fold in the chocolate chunks.
- Fill each muffin cup about two-thirds full with batter. Pipe 1–2 tablespoons of the chilled ganache into the center of each, then top with a small spoonful of batter to cover the filling completely.
- Bake for 18–22 minutes until the edges are set but the centers still feel slightly soft. A toothpick inserted near the edge (away from the ganache) should come out with moist crumbs. Don't overbake — these are meant to be fudgy.
- Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Best served warm when the center is still molten. To reheat, microwave for 10–15 seconds.
FAQ
The most common reason is overbaking. You need to pull the muffins out when the center still feels slightly soft and jiggles — a toothpick should come out with moist crumbs, not clean. The ideal baking time is 18–20 minutes at 375°F (190°C). Another factor is overmixing: work the batter with a spatula just until the flour disappears. Lumps are perfectly fine. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the texture tough and cakey rather than fudgy.
Rate this
Keep browsing
More dishes from the American archive — picked by overlap with what you're cooking now.
Join the conversation
Comments (1)
Oven thermometers don't lie — your oven dial probably does. I discovered my oven runs 15°C hot, which explained years of slightly overbaked results. For molten chocolate muffins, the actual 190°C matters more than the dial position.