A Norwegian swimmer has made a splash on social media with his Paris Olympics content. However, it's not the marathon swimmer's freestyle taking the internet by storm, but rather the food -- a gooey chocolate muffin to be specific -- that's fueled Henrik Christiansen's rise to fame at the 2024 Summer Games.
The self-declared "muffin man" does not live on Drury Lane, but while he's been staying in the Olympic Village, Christiansen has repeatedly posted about his love of the sweet treat, which he rated in one of his videos as and 11 out of 10.
From strolling the village with four muffins in hand ahead of his first 800-meter heat of the Games to enjoying stunning Parisian sunsets with romantic piano music and a muffin by his side, Christiansen has made a dozen original videos dedicated to the pastry.
"I HEREBY DECLARE MYSELF AS THE OLYMPIC MUFFIN MAN," he wrote in the caption of a video of himself lip-syncing the famous "Do you know the muffin man?" dialogue from "Shrek" -- all while holding one of the chocolate muffins with crumbs and melted chocolate all over his mouth, no less.
The three-time Olympian's most successful TikTok mimicked a moment from the hit reality show "Love Island" as he ate the gooey muffin in the dining hall, reaching 13.7 million views and thousands of comments.
As Christiansen continues to fuel up in the Olympic Village, he is slated to compete in the 1500-meter freestyle on Saturday at Paris La Défense Arena.
The now-famous muffins, meanwhile, have amassed over 48 million posts on TikTok alone from the search term "Olympic chocolate muffin," inspiring home cooks and food creators alike.
Chef Danielle Sepsy shared her copycat recipe for the "warm, decadent double chocolate muffin filled with a rich chocolate ganache" exclusively with "Good Morning America."
Check out her full recipe below to get a recreated taste of the now-iconic Olympic bite.
Servings: About 9 jumbo muffins (Be sure to get a jumbo pan for the best results)
Ingredients
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 packet (3.9-ounce box) instant chocolate pudding mix (Jell-O brand preferred)
1 1/2 cups cake flour (NOT self-rising)
1/2 cup dark cocoa powder (such as Dutch-processed)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon fine table salt
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chunks
Ganache:
14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/4 cups bittersweet chocolate chips (Ghirardelli is my favorite)
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 400 F.
Line jumbo, 6-ounce muffin cups with paper muffin liners.
In the large bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar and canola oil until light and creamy. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
Add the eggs one at a time and beat just until combined.
Beat in the dry chocolate pudding mix until blended.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder to ensure there are no lumps.
On low speed, add the dry ingredients into the butter mixture in two installments, alternating with the sour cream. Beat just until combined and no flour streaks are visible. Next, beat in the buttermilk until just combined. Fold in the 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chunks.
Scoop the batter into the lined muffin cups. You want them pretty full and a nice dome shape. I like to add a few more chocolate chunks on the top before baking.
Place the muffins in the oven on 400 F for 5 minutes, then leave the muffins in the oven and lower the temperature to 325 F for approximately 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.
Enjoy as is or add the ganache. See below.
Fudge Ganache Core:
In a small saucepan, add the bittersweet chocolate and condensed milk. Head over medium heat, stirring constantly until the chips are melted. Whisk in the vanilla extract and then pour the ganache into a pastry bag.
Using a paring knife, remove about a 1 inch round section of the center of each muffin. Pipe some of the ganache into each muffin hole and enjoy!
Recipe reprinted with permission courtesy of Danielle Sepsy.