Owen's Double Chocolate Muffins

Name: Owen's Double Chocolate Muffins
Yield: 12 muffins
Ingredients: Dry:; 130 g all-purpose flour (~1 cup + 1 Tbsp leveled); 30 g unsweetened cocoa powder (~1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp); 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/4 teaspoon fine salt; Wet:; 142 g unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks), browned — measured after browning; 90 g allulose (~1/2 cup, slightly packed); 90-100 g Swerve Brown (~1/2 cup — if coarse, pulse 10-15 seconds or whisk hard into warm butter); 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 2 large whole eggs; 100 ml heavy cream (~1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp); Chocolate:; 140 g sugar-free chocolate chips (~3/4 cup) + extra for topping

Low(er) carb double chocolate muffins — adapted from Owen's Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins. Rich cocoa crumb with browned butter, sugar-free chocolate chips, and heavy cream. Deep chocolate flavor, tender moist texture.

Serves 12 muffins

Ingredients

Dry:
130 g all-purpose flour (~1 cup + 1 Tbsp leveled)
30 g unsweetened cocoa powder (~1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
Wet:
142 g unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks), browned — measured after browning
90 g allulose (~1/2 cup, slightly packed)
90-100 g Swerve Brown (~1/2 cup — if coarse, pulse 10-15 seconds or whisk hard into warm butter)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large whole eggs
100 ml heavy cream (~1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp)
Chocolate:
140 g sugar-free chocolate chips (~3/4 cup) + extra for topping

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease well. Do not use silicone liners — they trap steam and make soggy bottoms.
Brown the butter: melt 142g (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter over medium heat, stirring frequently. Let it foam, then watch for the milk solids to turn deep golden with a nutty, toasty smell. As soon as you see brown flecks and it smells like caramel, pull off heat. Scrape everything — liquid and browned bits — into a large mixing bowl. Cool 10-15 minutes until warm, not hot.
Whisk the allulose and Swerve Brown into the warm browned butter. Whisk 1-2 minutes until dissolved and syrupy. Then whisk in vanilla, both whole eggs, and heavy cream until smooth and glossy.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined. Make sure to break up any cocoa clumps — cocoa loves to clump.
Pour dry mix into wet. Stir with a spatula using as few strokes as possible — stop the instant you see no dry flour or cocoa streaks. Batter should be thick, dark, and lumpy. Do not beat it smooth. Fold in 140g chocolate chips with 2-3 more strokes.
Divide batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups — each should be about 3/4 full. Press 3-4 extra chocolate chips into the top of each muffin.
Bake at 375°F for 16-20 minutes. Muffins are done when tops are set and a toothpick in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs (not wet batter). These are harder to judge by color than the chocolate chip version since the batter is already dark — go by toothpick and touch. Start checking at 16 minutes.
Let muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. The allulose keeps them moist, so they're great at room temp for 2-3 days in an airtight container. Even better the next day.

Notes

**Use good cocoa.** Dutch-process gives a darker, smoother, more fudgy flavor. Natural cocoa is more acidic and sharper — either works but they taste noticeably different. If using Dutch-process, you could drop the baking soda to 1/4 tsp since Dutch-process is less acidic. **Don't overmix.** Same rule as the original muffins — stop stirring the moment dry flour/cocoa disappears. Lumpy is fine. **The extra cream matters.** Cocoa powder absorbs more liquid than flour. The bump from 80ml to 100ml compensates for this — don't skip it or the muffins will be dry. **Heavy cream for richness.** Since there's no acidic liquid like buttermilk, the baking powder does the heavy lifting for rise and the baking soda handles browning. **Leavening adjustment.** Without an acidic liquid, the baking soda has less to react with. The allulose and Swerve provide some acidity, but if you find the muffins taste slightly metallic or soapy, drop the baking soda to 1/4 teaspoon next time. **Top chips matter.** Press 3-4 chips into each muffin top before baking — they look better and give you chocolate in every bite from the top down. **Allulose keeps these moist.** These stay soft for 2-3 days stored in an airtight container at room temp. They also freeze well — thaw at room temp or 15 seconds in the microwave. **Even better the next day.** Like the chocolate chip version, allulose holds moisture overnight and the flavors meld. Day-two muffins are arguably the best.

BakingChocolateDessertLow CarbMuffins