Here we go!!! I decided, after seeing my friend Caitlin Green lament the Marvellous Mmmuffins of her youth, to try to recreate them in my own kitchen. Mmmuffins kiosks brought mega muffins to the masses from 1979 until peoples’ tastes for muffins started to wane around the turn of the millennium – they were in their heydey in the eighties, when malls were also the place to be. The taste and texture of the chocolate chip, butterscotch-pecan and cheddar varieties are burned into my consciousness.

I started with chocolate chip. Peoples’ memories of these seem to differ – many recall them having a crunchy, sugary lid, and I remember them being pale-ish and sticky on top. My theory (and I don’t know this- I haven’t seen the actual formulation) is that a high fructose sweetener was used in the batter – fructose has humectant properties, and draws moisture from its surroundings. (It could also have been that they were a bit underbaked at the location I frequented.) If you want to recreate those massive Mmmmuffin tops that were often square because they kind of baked into each other and had to be cut apart, spray your muffin tin rather than lining it with paper liners – and fill the batter to heaping. Everyone loves a good muffin top. If you like, sprinkle the tops with some coarse sugar, like sugar in the raw, before baking if you want crunchy, sugary lids.

Another note: your sour cream (which I used) or yogurt is key here — they can range in texture from very thick to very liquidy, and you want something in between – even on the runny side. If you have very thick (like 14%) sour cream or Greek-style yogurt, thin it out with some milk, buttermilk or even water. And make sure it’s not low fat or fat free— the fat in yogurt will contribute to your muffins’ tender texture. When I tested using thick 14% sour cream, I filled the measuring cup about 2/3 full and topped it up with milk, then whisked into the egg-sugar-butter mixture.

And here’s something interesting: If you allow the dough to rest for even an hour or two, you’ll get a muffin with a more commercial texture—more lift and a finer crumb. I don’t think they taste any better, but they will have more dramatically peaked tops. This may explain why most commercial muffins have this look – at large chains they aren’t typically baked from scratch, but from large foodservice buckets of batter that ensure consistency across the chains. Worth a try if that’s the look/texture you’re after, or would like to mix up some batter but not bake it all at once.

By the way, I took that main photo before discovering that by not using paper liners at all, I can get a more dramatic spread on the muffin tops, in keeping with the actual Mmmuffins. You’ll see the difference here – not the best photo (it was early morning dark, and I whisked these away to the crew at CBC) but you can see the difference! And this batter was baked right away, it didn’t sit to rise for a bit.

Chocolate Chip Mmmuffins

AuthorJulie

Yields10 Servings

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt (not low-fat or fat free), thinned if needed

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup (about) mini chocolate chips, divided

If you want to bake your muffins right away, preheat the oven to 350F. Otherwise, wait until you’re ready to bake.

In a large bowl, whisk together the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Whisk in the sour cream or yogurt. In a smaller bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the wet mixture and stir with a spatula until almost combined; add about 1/2 cup of the mini chocolate chips and stir just until blended.

If you like, cover and let your batter sit on the countertop for about an hour, or refrigerate for longer—even overnight. This will give them a finer texture and a little added lift. Otherwise you can go ahead and bake them right away. Fill paper lined (or sprayed- this will produce even larger tops) muffin cups so that they’re heaping (above the top) and sprinkle with lots of mini chocolate chips.

Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until golden, domed and springy to the touch. Makes 8-12 mmmuffins.

Categorybread, breakfast, snacks

Ingredients