Lightly toast the old-fashioned oats in a dry skillet for 2-3 minutes before mixing to deepen their nutty flavor and prevent the muffins from becoming dense or gummy.

Fold the chocolate chips and dry ingredients into the wet mixture gently until just combined—overmixing develops gluten and creates tough, chewy muffins instead of tender crumb.

Use buttermilk at room temperature and let eggs sit out for 30 minutes before baking to ensure even incorporation and a more uniform, moist crumb structure.

Mix your honey with the oil before adding other wet ingredients—this helps distribute the honey evenly and prevents it from sinking to the bottom of the muffins.

Let muffins rest in the pan for 5 minutes after baking before transferring to a cooling rack; this prevents them from crumbling while they firm up slightly.