Moon Muffins // The Out of This World Treat I’m Living On

I’ve got a lot of food memories. That’s what happens when you’ve got a mom like mine that loves to bake (not to mention aunts that are super bakers as well). From very young, I remember making our family’s classic recipes—the one’s my mom and grandma made for ages.

But once in a while I new recipe would come on the scene. And I remember when these muffins first appeared. My mom’s best friend brought them over for a Super Bowl Party. “They’re moon muffins,” she said.

What kind of muffins? And she explained the cream cheese-chocolate chip mix made the top of these black-bottom cupcakes look like the craters of the moon. And that makes total sense. So my fam never once called these treats black-bottom cupcakes; they’ve always been moon muffins.

And they are a bake I’ve been craving a lot lately, so I figure I may as well share.

How to Make Moon Muffins

Ingredients-wise, this looks like a long list, but I guarantee you that the only thing you might not have at the ready is cream cheese.

Step 1: Make the Cream Cheese Filling

First up, grab a mixing bowl and combine the cream cheese, egg, sugar and a dash of salt. Beat that together until nice and smooth. Once really creamy and fluffy, stir in a handful of chocolate chips. I usually use minis but any kind will work.

Step 2: Make the Chocolate Cupcake Batter

Now onto the cupcake portion. This is really such an easy batter to make. It requires absolutely no finesse. You could really just chuck it all in a mixer and call it good.

But if you want to go step-by-step, I recommend mixing together the sugar, egg, oil and vanilla. Then add in the rest and beat until just combined.

Step 3: Fill ‘er Up

Next, grab your muffin pan and fill it with paper liners. Fill each about half to two-thirds full with the chocolate batter. In my kitchen, I use this OXO scoop for all cupcakes and muffins and it works like a dream.

Then top each cupcake off with a tablespoon of the cream cheese mix. I use this KitchenAid cookie scoop. Combined with the other scoop, it fills up the pans just right without them overflowing while baking

Step 4: Bake

All that’s left is to bake! Pop these in the oven for 15 to 18 minutes at 350ºF.

Once cooled, eat them! And keep any leftovers in the fridge (they’ll last about a week). Honestly, I prefer them chilled, so I usually enjoy the next day.