- The chocolate muffins went viral after Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christians posted about them on TikTok.
- Other athletes have left raving reviews about the muffin on social media.
If the Olympic dining hall food could participate in a competition, the chocolate muffin would be a sure winner.
The pastry went viral when Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen posted videos of himself devouring the dining hall snack.
"Guys, I think I have a problem," he captioned a TikTok video that showed his drawer full of muffins.
@henrikchristians1 Guys, I think I have a problem.. #fyp #olympics #paris2024 #olympictiktok #olympicvillage #muffins @Olympics @paris2024
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In another video, Christiansen, who declared himself the "Olympic muffin man," is seen walking while grabbing two muffins in each hand.
Last Thursday, Business Insider reported that athletes had called the food in Paris a "disaster." Team Great Britain even flew in a private chef.
However, the dining hall seems to have redeemed itself with the chocolate muffin.
Athletes are raving over the muffin
American volleyball player Erik Shoji posted a TikTok of himself trying the baked good and described it as "the best thing I've eaten in the dining hall."
"It's soft and moist and gooey," he said between bites. "I could eat this whole thing, but I probably shouldn't," he said, adding that he gave the muffin a "10 out of 10."
Other athletes, such as Singaporean swimmer Quah Jing Wen, joked about being scared to try the muffins — lest she "steals" from Christiansen.
How to bake the viral muffin at home
Danielle Sepsy, a professional baker who creates baking content on TikTok, told BI that she received several texts from friends and messages from followers to recreate the muffin.
Sepsy, who owns The Hungry Gnome in New York, developed a copycat recipe and posted it on TikTok. At the time of writing, her video had garnered more than 300,000 views.
She said the muffins are simple and take less than an hour to create. Her secret to making the fudgiest chocolate muffins? Jell-O chocolate pudding.
"The pudding mix adds moistness and gives the muffins a denser and fudgier texture," she said.
Thessa Sombilon, a baking content creator, told BI that she noticed a recent spike in views on a chocolate muffin video she made last year. Inspired by the "Olympic muffin man," she decided to post a new version of the recipe.
She advises not overmixing the batter to ensure that the muffins are tender and moist. "Use high-quality chocolate," she added. It makes a big difference in the flavor."