So here’s an unexpected bonus from that whole celiac thing running in families. My daughter has decided she’s going to be a master gluten-free baker/bakstress. So we had a rollicking weekend filled with experimental gluten-free baking, mixing, and general “adding pink food coloring to milkshakes” in hope of finding her signature baked good.
These gluten-free chocolate chip muffins are not it.
They are, however, super easy to make and she learned the importance of reading through a recipe.
Yep, that’s a Thomas Train tattoo. She’s a lil’ bad ass.
Still, these muffins were great right out of the oven, but they suffered that gluten-free fate that so many gf baked goods do: a day later they’re bleh. These banana chocolate chip muffins had a much longer shelf life. As did this gluten-free mix of chocolate chocolate chip muffins.
So if you need a quick muffin fix, you can take this recipe and add in the fruits, nuts, and sweets of your choice. Or if you need a basic recipe to practice on if you’re a 7-year-old celiac, this is your go-to.
Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Muffins
adapted from Living Without
prep time: 10 minutes cook time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
3/4 cup canola oil
2 large eggs
1 cup chocolate chips
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put cupcake liners in muffin tin.
2. Sift gf flour, sugar, gf baking powder, xanthan gum (unless it’s already in your gf flour mix), and salt into a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, oil and eggs.
4. Mix wet ingredients into dry, mixing only just combined. Do not overmix.
5. Add chocolate chips and combine well.
6. Scoop batter into muffin tins so batter is mounded slightly above the muffin tin.
7. Bake muffins for 40 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
Makes: 12 muffins
Gluten is my Bitch 
Your little mini chef is so cute, love the sassy side pony!
What is up with the day old gf meh?! I hate that. Though it does encourage eating multiple muffins in one sitting, which is not entirely a bad thing.
-Dana
I know! It’s hard to find a good gf treat that is still good later. Oh, the sadness. The muffin sadness.
Hmmm. For some next-day non-meh, I found that my Bob’s Red Mill brownies (with chocolate frosting from a tub, oh my) were actually even better after a night in the fridge. Even denser and gooier that way.
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What about baking them in a muffin-top or whoopie pie pan? I find a big problem with GF baked goods is getting the middle cooked before the outside becomes drier than the Sahara, so maybe the solution is changing up the surface-to-mass ratio (that is, make more outsides than insides). It worked well for me when making my last batch of GF bread – I baked it in a 9″ x 13″ slab, cut it into 6 squarish pieces, then cut it into 2 layered slices to make a sammich. As an added bonus, there was more delicious crusty outsides to enjoy, and to add structural integrity. With muffins, cupcakes or brownies, this would translate into more deliciously browned outside stuffs, and possibly less overbaking.
Have you found a solution to this drying out of the tops of muffins? I keep trying gluten free in my bakery but always find my muffin tops start drying out before the insides are baked. Thanks ahead of time! Trial & error for me, everyone helps.
I feel like this is a “day old muffin” problem, rather than an “I just ate all of these at once” problem. Is that what you mean?
Thus far, I’ve found that GF batters need to be wetter to begin with than their gluten-y counterparts. This helps with leavening, and also staves off overly gooey/raw middles, but there’s a bit of trial and error involved. Also, GF versions of baked goods can take 1.5 – 2x the baking time at the same temperature – just keep an eye out for burning, and rely more on a thermometer than a clean toothpick.
What kind of GF flour do you recommend? I always feel like the ones I use don’t work out for my baking recipes!
Depending on how “sensitive” the recipe is I either use King Arthur’s (not at all sensitive) or Cup4Cup or Better Batter. Muffins I can go with KA, but if I’m doing cookies I always use Cup4Cup or BB. They just turn out better, I find. Good luck!
My preferred off-the-shelf blend is Bob’s Red Mill. At first, I thought it was very ‘beany’ tasting, but I’ve gotten used to it. It’s also pretty easy to whip up a blend at home, big batch style, using 2 parts grain flour (like rice, buckwheat or quinoa) to 1/2 part each arrowroot (or potato) and tapioca. Mix ’em all together, and measure as you would all-purpose. Adding a gum, like xanthan or guar, will provide structural support to any blend, which can be critical for leavening, as well as texture.
I’m starting to lean more towards making my own mix as well. Even though I’m hella’ lazy.
The mix I make is especially great for pie crust. Many who have tried it exclaim that they would not have known it was GF without being told.
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Made this with coconut flour, coconut milk, coconut sugar and dairy-free chocolate chips. My mix ended up dry, so I added a ton of rice drink. They turned out great. Kiddo is happy. Momma is happy.
That’s awesome. Great substitutions, Betsy.