Chocolate Cottage Cheese Muffins

Healthy and gluten-free muffins made in your blender! These chocolate cottage cheese muffins make the perfect balanced snack or dessert.

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You’d never guess these delicious muffins contain an entire cup of cottage cheese.

In fact, these double chocolate cottage cheese muffins are one of the best recipes I’ve ever created. They’re perfectly moist, deliciously sweet, and much more balanced and healthy than what you’ll find at the store.

And because this gluten-free chocolate muffin recipe is made with oats and cottage cheese, each muffin contains protein and fiber, too. They’re also made in a blender with gluten-free oats instead of flour, so they’re easy and super versatile!

Why you’ll love these cottage cheese muffins

• 6 grams of protein
• 3 grams of fiber
• Gluten-free
• Made in the blender
• Taste actually incredible

Why cottage cheese?

Cottage cheese helps make these gluten-free chocolate muffins moist and delicious.

But unlike other wet ingredients, it adds a lot of protein. A cup of milk has 8 grams of protein, whereas a cup of cottage cheese has 28 grams of protein. That’s a huge difference!

As a dietitian, it’s one of my favorite baking ingredients for its versatility and nutrition.

The great thing about using cottage cheese in baking is that you don’t taste it at all. And if you don’t like it because of its texture, it gets blended and totally smooth. You won’t notice a thing.

What else makes these muffins healthy?

No flour: There’s nothing inherently wrong with all purpose flour, but it doesn’t offer too much nutritionally. Instead, I used large flake oats for a high fiber boost that happens to be gluten-free.

Gluten-free: Gluten isn’t bad for everyone. But if you have Celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity, it’s something you want to avoid! Just make sure you use certified gluten-free oats in this recipe if needed.

Low sugar: This cottage cheese muffin recipe only uses 1/2 cup of sugar, but it tastes super sweet and decadent.

Lower fat (and healthier fat): I used 1/3 cup of avocado oil for healthy fats, instead of the usual heaps of butter that goes into muffins. That means less fat, less unhealthy fat, and fewer calories.

Ingredients in gluten-free cottage cheese muffins

• Old fashioned oats — Also known as large flake oats or rolled oats. Be careful not to over-pack your measuring cup or your muffins may be dry. I wouldn’t recommend substituting these for quick oats or steel cut oats.
• Sugar — Regular granulated sugar for this recipe! No swaps for this.
• Cocoa powder — Use regular cocoa powder and not Dutch process for this recipe.
• Baking powder and baking soda — These two ingredients work together to help these cottage cheese muffins rise and be fluffy.
• Espresso powder — This is optional, but delicious! A touch of espresso powder helps to bring out the chocolatey flavor in these muffins.
• Salt — Don’t worry, these muffins won’t taste salty. A pinch of salt helps bring all the flavors together.

• Cottage cheese — I recommending using 2% or other low fat cottage cheese because that’s how this recipe was tested.
• Milk — This recipe was tested with 2% cow’s milk. You can likely use other fat percentages or lactose-free if needed.
• Eggs — Two large eggs to give these chocolate cottage cheese muffins structure. For an egg-free recipe, use flax eggs instead.
• Vanilla extract — You could also use vanilla paste. I’d recommend using real and not artificial vanilla if possible, but either will work.
• Oil — I used avocado oil when developing this recipe, but vegetable oil, canola oil, and olive oil work too. You could substitute for melted unsalted butter.
• Mini chocolate chips — I highly recommend using mini chocolate chips because they distribute better throughout the muffins. I used semi-sweet, but you could swap for dark or milk if desired. I think white chocolate chips would be delicious, too!

How to make cottage cheese muffins

Prepare a 12-cup muffin pan with paper or silicone liners and set aside.

Position your oven rack to the middle and pre-heat to 350 F.

Add all ingredients to your blender except chocolate chips. Blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. This may take 45-60 seconds.

Stir chocolate chips into the batter until evenly distributed.

Immediately transfer batter into prepared muffin pan, distributing the batter evenly. Don’t let the batter sit for too long before baking. Sprinkle each muffin with extra chocolate chips if desired.

Bake for 17-22 minutes or until muffins are cooked through. A toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins should come out clean with just a few crumbs.

Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10-minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Storage instructions

Counter: If you plan to eat your cottage cheese chocolate muffins within three days, store in an airtight container at room temperature. Let them cool before transferring to the container.

Freezer: If you will take longer than three days to eat your muffins, store them in the freezer. Let them cool to room temperature and transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container. Freeze for up to three months. De-frost on the counter overnight or re-heat on low in the microwave.

Do not refrigerate your muffins or the texture will change.

Tips for delicious cottage cheese muffins

• Don’t over-pack your oats or cocoa powder when measuring! Using too many dry ingredients might make your muffins dry and tough.
• Blend your batter until completely smooth. This helps make a moist and soft muffin.
• Use mini chocolate chips instead of regular. They will distribute better throughout your muffins.
• Use an ice cream scoop to transfer your batter to the muffin pan without a mess.

How to serve cottage cheese chocolate muffins

These muffins make a delicious balanced snack or dessert.

For extra protein, crumble on top of greek yogurt or serve with a glass of milk. You could also enjoy with a protein shake!

For more fiber, serve your cottage cheese chocolate muffin with berries or apple slices.

You could also top your muffin with a scoop of peanut butter or almond butter. This will add some healthy fats and calories, and it’s absolutely delicious!

Shop this post

• 12-cup muffin pan
• Blender
• Paper muffin liners
• Silicone muffin liners
• Ice cream scoop (to fill muffin pan)

Frequently asked questions

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