Chocolate Caramel Espresso Muffins

As I stood over the counter impatiently ripping off the liner and biting into these still-warm Chocolate Caramel Espresso Muffins, I made a mental note to myself: Make more muffins.

For some reason, the humble muffin always seems to slip off my radar, only to be replaced by pancake stacks and french toast casseroles. But the muffin has a lot going for it. It’s portable, portion-controlled, and pretty cute, too. Not to mention, muffins are downright easy to make. It must have been only 20 minutes from the time I started whisking together flour and cocoa powder to the time I was sliding a tray of impossibly dark, espresso spiked muffins into the oven.

The Mr. happened to leave the house to run a quick errand while I was making these, and when he returned just 40 minutes later, he was shocked to discover the house smelled like the inside of a caramel mocha latte, the muffins were cooling on the counter, and the dishes were already drip drying on the rack.

We’ve never been good at waiting for baked goods to cool before eating them. We both stood anxiously over the muffins, picking at the edges, trying to get just a taste of that chocolatey goodness. We lasted about 10 minutes before we finally popped them from the tray and took a bite.

What waited for us inside that flimsy paper wrapper was far better than I could have imagined. These muffins are rich, dark, and intensely chocolatey. The espresso powder is subtle, but it helps accentuate the deep chocolate flavor. But that’s not even the best part. Studded throughout these tempting muffins is–wait for it–caramel filled chocolate chips.

That’s right, move over plain old chocolate chips, because Nestlé® Toll House® is now filling your favorite chocolate morsels with flavors like caramel, mint, and peanut butter. Their new caramel DelightFulls™ Filled Baking Morsels take this muffin from good to abandon-all-dignity-and-eat-the-muffin-whilst-standing-over-the-sink-like-Gollum great.

After I took my first bite of these, I decided I wasn’t even going to try to masquerade them as heathy breakfast fare. Instead, I went all out and finished them with a drizzle of my homemade salted caramel sauce and an extra sprinkle of salt. While these may not be considered year-round breakfast fare, it is the holidays, so I say anything goes. In fact, I can’t imagine a better way to start your Christmas morning than with a cup of coffee in one hand and a warm chocolate muffin in the other.

These muffins are great served at room temperature, but they’re wonderful served when still warm or after a quick turn in the microwave. There’s nothing better than biting into the muffin and being greeted by a melty chocolate caramel chip. If you’re looking to add a little extra sumpin’ sumpin to your holiday baking this year, be sure to grab a bag of DelightFulls Filled Baking Morsels. And if you’re in need of more holiday inspiration, check out their recipe page!

Recipe by NeighborFood

The same NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® chocolate you know and love now filled with rich caramel, peanut butter, mint, and cherry flavored filling. Add these new filled baking morsels to your favorite recipes for a special twist on the classic, or try experimenting with them in a recipe you’ve never tried before!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE®. The opinions and text are all mine.