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Moist and warmly spiced, these bakery-style Sourdough Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins are made with sourdough discard, warm spices, and pumpkin puree, elevated with rich browned butter and mini chocolate chips. These are the perfect treat for pumpkin lovers on a cozy fall morning!
Sourdough discard muffins (like my sourdough blueberry muffins and sourdough chocolate chip muffins) are such a convenient, make-ahead breakfast—and a great way to use up extra starter. Plus I just love sourdough pumpkin recipes that are made with simple ingredients!
Fall time is the perfect season to rotate through some of my favorite sourdough pumpkin variations like sourdough pumpkin scones, sourdough pumpkin roll, and sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls.
Why You’ll Love Sourdough Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Uses up extra sourdough starter: A delicious way to keep your sourdough starter discard from going to waste.
- Perfect fall-inspired breakfast: Full of cozy spices, rich pumpkin flavor, and melty chocolate. Try my sourdough pumpkin bread and sourdough apple cinnamon scones for another delicious autumn treat.
- Make ahead and stash in the freezer: Great for batch baking and pulling out whenever you need a quick breakfast or snack.
Ingredients
Find the full list of ingredients, amounts, and instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Butter: Browning the butter adds rich, nutty flavor to the muffins—totally worth the extra step!
- Pumpkin puree: You can use canned or making your own homemade pumpkin puree isn’t hard!. If using homemade, blot any excess moisture with a paper towel so the batter isn’t too wet.
- Sourdough discard: Room temperature discard works best. It adds moisture and a subtle tang to balance the sweetness. Active sourdough starter works fine, too.
- Sugar: Granulated white sugar is used in this recipe, but you can also use half white and half brown sugar for a molasses flavor.
- Spices: A warm mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves brings out that classic fall flavor. You can also substitute with store-bought or homemade pumpkin pie spice.
- Chocolate chips: Mini or regular chips both work great. Use what you have on hand—or try dark chocolate for a richer taste.
- Turbinado sugar (optional): Sprinkling a little on top before baking gives these muffins a sparkly, bakery-style crunch.
Equipment
- Muffin Tin
- Muffin Liners
- Cookie Scoop (optional)
How to Make Sourdough Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Here are the step-by-step instructions for making sourdough pumpkin chocolate chip muffins.
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 425°F and line two 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners. Set aside.
Step 2: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until it foams and brown bits form on the bottom—about 5–7 minutes. Once melted butter turns brown and fragrant, immediately remove from heat and pour into a heat-safe bowl to cool slightly (Photo 1).
Step 3: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: pumpkin puree, sourdough discard, granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla, and browned butter until smooth and fully combined (Photos 2 and 3).
Step 4: Add the dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir until just combined—don’t overmix (Photo 4). Fold in the chocolate chips (Photo 5).
Step 5: Let the batter rest for 15 minutes to hydrate the flour. This helps give the muffins a better texture and rise.
Step 6: Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling each cup about 3/4 full. Top with a few extra chocolate chips and a sprinkle of turbinado sugar, if desired (Photo 6).
Step 7: Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F. Then, without opening the oven, reduce the temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 18–20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
Step 8: Cool in the pan for 5 minutes (Photo 7) before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely (Photo 8).
How to Store and Freeze
Let the muffins cool completely, then store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. To freeze, wrap each muffin tightly in plastic wrap or parchment and place them in a zip-top freezer bag or container for up to 3 months.
Tips
- If baking in batches, refrigerate the remaining batter while the first batch bakes. Don’t forget to get your oven temperature back to 425ºF for the second batch.
- Use any style of chocolate chips you prefer. This was tested with both mini and regular-sized chips, both semi-sweet and dark chocolate. Use what your tastes prefer (or what you have on hand). Even swap out for caramel or toffee bits for a tasty change. This recipe works beautifully with mini or regular chocolate chips but you can also use milk, semi-sweet, or dark chocolate chunks, or even toffee bits for variation.
- To get the best muffin rise, have all ingredients at room temperature, don’t overly mix the batter, and bake at 425º F for the first 5 minutes then reduce the temperature to 350º F for the remainder of the baking time.
- To make jumbo sourdough pumpkin muffins instead of standard ones, use a jumbo 6-cup muffin pan, fill each well ¾ full, and bake for 23–28 minutes. The recipe yields 10–12 jumbo muffins.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! If you don’t have sourdough discard on hand, you can substitute it with plain Greek yogurt or buttermilk in equal measure (1 cup). The flavor will be slightly different, but the muffins will still be moist and delicious.
Absolutely. Homemade pumpkin puree works well, just make sure it’s thick and not too watery. If it’s too loose, drain it slightly before using. Just like if you were making pumpkin pie filling.
Bake the muffins at a high temperature (425°F) for the first 5 minutes, then reduce to 350°F. This helps the tops rise quickly and hold their dome shape.
Sourdough discard adds a subtle tang and moisture, enhancing the depth of flavor while helping the texture stay tender and rich.
Yes! Pumpkin goes well with sourdough! I use pumpkin in sourdough pumpkin bread, my sourdough pumpkin roll, and sourdough pumpkin scones, to name a few.
More Sourdough Discard Recipes
- Sourdough Granola
- Sourdough Granola Bars
- Sourdough Blueberry Scones
- Sourdough Banana Bread
- Sourdough Cranberry Orange Scones
If you make this recipe and enjoy it, please leave a comment with a 5-star recipe rating and let me know! Thank you so much!
Sourdough Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, (113 grams)
- 2 cups pumpkin puree (canned or homemade), (456 grams)
- 1 cup sourdough discard (unfed, room temperature), (227 grams)
- 1 cup granulated sugar, (212 grams)
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, (284 grams)
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips, plus extra for topping, (170 grams)
- Turbinado sugar, for topping (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line two 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Continue cooking, stirring often, until it foams and brown bits form at the bottom (about 5–7 minutes). Once browned and fragrant, remove from heat immediately, pour into a heat safe dish (or a large mixing bowl) and let cool slightly.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, sourdough discard, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and browned butter until smooth and well combined.
- Add the flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir gently until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in the chocolate chips. Let the mixture rest for 15 minutes to hydrate the flour.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling each cup 3/4 full. Top with a few extra chocolate chips and a sprinkle of turbinado sugar, if you like.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425º F. After 5 minutes, without opening the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF and bake an additional 18-20 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Enjoy!
Notes
Storage
These muffins freeze well. Let them cool completely, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze in a zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or warm slightly before serving.Tips
- If baking in batches, refrigerate the remaining batter while the first batch bakes. Don’t forget to get your oven temperature back to 425ºF for the second batch.
- Use any style chocolate chips you prefer. This was tested with both mini and regular sized chips both semi-sweet and dark chocolate. Use what your tastes prefer (or what you have on hand). Swap out for caramel or toffee bits for a change. This recipe works beautifully with mini or regular chocolate chips but you can also use milk, semi-sweet, or dark chocolate chunks.
- To get the best muffin rise, have all ingredients at room temperature, don’t overly mix the batter, and bake at 425º F for the first 5 minutes then reduce the temperature to 350º F for the remainder of the baking time.
- To make jumbo sourdough pumpkin muffins instead of standard ones, use a jumbo 6-cup muffin pan, fill each well 3/4 full, and bake for 23–28 minutes. The recipe yields 10–12 jumbo muffins.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Moist, tender muffins burst with pumpkin flavor and pockets of rich chocolate chips, all elevated by a subtle tang from the sourdough base.