Chocolate Ricotta Muffins

Total Time: 40 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• nonstick cooking spray, for the pan
• 2 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 6 -8 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup ricotta cheese (best with whole milk ricotta, but works with lowfat variety to further reduce fat content)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cups milk or 1 1/3 cups 2% low-fat milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (canola oil can be substituted for all or part of the butter)

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 350°f.
• 2 lightly spray 12 standard-sized (2 1/2-inch-diameter) muffin cups with nonstick spray.
• 3 combine the flour, salt, baking powder, cocoa, and sugar in a medium-sized bowl.
• 4 place the ricotta in a second medium-sized bowl, and add the eggs one at a time, beating well with a medium-sized whisk after each addition.
• 5 add the milk and vanilla, and whisk until thoroughly blended.
• 6 pour the ricotta mixture, along with the melted butter, into the dry ingredients.
• 7 using a spoon or a rubber spatula, stir from the bottom of the bowl until the dry ingredients are all moistened.
• 8 fold in the chips, but don't overmix; a few lumps are okay.
• 9 spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
• 10 for smaller muffins, fill the cups about 4/5 of the way.
• 11 for larger muffins, fill them even with the top of the pan.
• 12 if you have extra batter, spray one or two additional muffin cups with nonstick spray and put in as much batter as you have.
• 13 bake in the middle of the oven for to 20 to 25 minutes, or until lightly browned on top, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
• 14 remove the pan from the oven, then remove the muffins from the pan and place them on a rack to cool.
• 15 wait at least 30 minutes before serving.