Whether you’re willing to call yourself “athletic” or not, there’s no denying the intense energy that comes with the Olympics. This year’s Paris Games are no exception: from gymnast Simone Biles’ impressive performance, who added three gold medals to her collection, to exciting new categories like breakdancing, to a renewed focus on mental health.
But outside of competition, an unexpected MVP has emerged in the Olympic Village: a chocolate chip muffin. Over the past week, we’ve seen countless videos of athletes drooling over the dining hall’s selection of pastries, including one distance swimmer who brought the dessert to our attention. And in the eyes of chronic online gourmands, this gooey treat is poised to win the gold medal.
What’s behind the hype surrounding chocolate muffins?
The world hadn’t heard of the “chocolate muffin” until July 25, when Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen shared his glowing rating (11 out of 10, by the way) in a TikTok video. From there, the prophetic treat took over, with the athlete posting increasingly wild (and shameless) videos centered around the chocolate muffin, which he ascribes to an almost godlike status.
No matter how good it is, one can’t help but admire his unwavering commitment to a little bit. (And as a reminder, Christiansen isn’t just here for the chocolate muffins—this is his third time at the Summer Games, having previously competed in Tokyo and Rio.) The Norwegian swimmer and self-proclaimed “muffin guy” apparently isn’t the only elite athlete obsessed with muffins, as a quick scroll through will yield countless TikTok videos of similar critiques from other Olympians and their families.
Online, recipe creators are competing to find the best version of the treat. Chef Danielle Sepsy, for example, believes that a packet of Jell-O pudding mix best matches the rich flavor of the Olympic muffin. Devoted Jordan Howlett (@Jordan_The_Stallion8), however, claims to have made four phone calls to track down the official recipe—which, as he explains, features a decadent ganache filling created with heavy cream. Conversely, Kassie of @ibakemistakes maintains that freezing the muffins is the key to getting the texture just right.
On Reddit, we see anonymous commenters coming up with their own muffins and recommending vegan substitutes. One user suggests Trader Joe’s muffins as an easy dupe in one thread, while another advocates for a San Francisco Bay Area version to satisfy his wife’s intense pregnancy cravings. Awesome.
The Basics of the Viral Olympic Chocolate Muffin
The Olympic Village meals are being handled by Sodexo Live!, a French event services company that offers catering services, and the highly anticipated muffins appear to be from a company called Coup de Pâtes. (They’re shipped frozen in batches of 24, FYI.)
It doesn’t appear that you’ll be able to purchase these giant chocolate muffins in the United States, and the company has unfortunately yet to share an official recipe online. PS reached out to Sodexo Live! for comment (and perhaps some sneaky hints about the recipe) but did not immediately hear back.
Still, here’s what we know for sure: This muffin features a rich chocolate batter, chocolate chunks, and a thick filling (which, by all accounts, remains gooey enough to make a mess in Christiansen’s TikTok videos). According to the Olympic swimmer’s videos, it’s also about double the size of a typical homemade muffin and comes wrapped in a matching colored wrapper.
We’re always up for a viral recipe, so PS dug through the recreations of internet sleuths to compile a unique take on this decadent muffin. We have to thank recipe developers and creators @Jordan_The_Stallion8, @ibakemistakes, Danielle Sepsy, and Rose Bakes for their recipes, all of which included varying degrees of difficulty and time commitment. Which brings us to our final revelation: While the process behind this delicious muffin is well worth it, you should get your top-notch cooking skills ready and block out some of your calories for this one.
Will this muffin make you laugh out loud on TikTok, like the Norwegian swimmer? You’ll have to tell us.
Nicolette Baker is a freelance writer based in Brooklyn, New York. Her expertise lies primarily in food, drink, and fashion media, but she enjoys covering all aspects of lifestyle with an accessible approach. She has written for Food & Wine, Byrdie, Business Insider, VinePair, and Flourish.
