These banana muffins are soft, buttery, and spiced with cinnamon. They’re wonderful plain, with chopped walnuts, or even chocolate chips. You need 3 large ripe bananas and a few basic kitchen ingredients to get started.
Banana bread is wonderful, but muffins are quicker, more convenient, easily portable, and taste just as good. I’ve been searching for the perfect EASY banana muffin recipe since my daughter began eating solids. We always have bananas in the house which means we eventually have spotty bananas ready for baking!
These quick and easy banana muffins bake in 30 minutes, so if you need to be in and out of the kitchen FAST (um, don’t we all?), this recipe is your savior.
Banana Muffin IngredientsโEach Is Important!
This banana muffin recipe requires a handful of basics like flour, sugar, and milk. That’s what I love about bakingโit’s the same base ingredients for basically everything.
- Flour: I tested the recipe with both all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour and LOVED both variations. See recipe Note below.
- Melted Butter: We’ll use melted butter as the fat, though melted coconut oil works too. I love using melted butter in baked goods, and though I was afraid these banana muffins would taste too dense without creaming softened butter (which incorporates air), that’s not the case at all.
- Bananas, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg: The flavor team.
- Egg: 1 egg gives the muffins structure.
- Milk: A common ingredient in some muffin recipes including pumpkin muffins, milk provides necessary moisture. Dry muffins… the worst.
- Sugar: Sweetens. When I make these for my daughter, I use half brown sugar and half coconut sugar. You can use all brown sugar, all coconut sugar, or a mixture of the two. Keep in mind that coconut sugar isn’t quite as sweet as brown sugar, so the flavor will change. See my recipe Note. ๐
Do these banana muffins taste like banana bread? Yes, totally! But they have a lighter, softer, and more buttery texture. You’ll love it.
How to Make Banana Muffins Moist
There’s a fine line between a moist banana muffin and a dry banana muffin, aka sandpaper in a cupcake wrapper. To make banana muffins moist, make sure you’re using a solid ratio of dry to wet ingredients. I found the muffins to be dry without the addition of liquid, but a couple Tablespoons of milk solved the problem. Use a little fat (butter), brown sugar, and plenty of bananas for lots of moisture and flavor.
How to Mash Bananas
So I started doing this last year and it’s been a total game changer whenever I make banana cake, these breakfast cookies, banana bread, or chocolate banana bread. Just use your mixer to mash bananas! Peel and break them into chunks, place in your mixer, and beat until mashed. Beat the rest of the wet ingredients right into this bowl, then beat in the dry ingredients. So easy.
Can I Use Frozen Bananas?
Yes and I do this often. Thaw the frozen bananas at room temperature. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe below. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking. Try not to mash too much or else youโll be left with 2 cups of banana-y liquid; some chunks are great.
This banana muffin recipe is perfect if you:
- Have 3 large spotty bananas
- Love banana bread
- Need a quick homemade breakfast, snack, etc.
- Don’t feel like creaming butter and sugar together
- Don’t feel like dirtying 100 pans
And, to turn these into a scrumptious treat, you could dip the tops of the cooled muffins into chocolate ganache and add sprinkles. (Affiliate link: I love these naturally colored sprinkles.) You can also add the streusel topping from these banana chocolate chip streusel muffins.
More Muffin Recipes
These easy banana muffins have been my default for awhile, though I usually switch between these and a couple other muffin recipes previously published. I consider these muffins on the healthier side and they’re each toddler & adult approved. ๐
- Baby Apple Oat Muffins
- Bran Muffins
- Mini Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Whole Wheat Banana Nut Muffins (these include oats)
- Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins
- Healthy Apple Muffins & Chocolate Banana Muffins
- Morning Glory Muffins
- Lemon Blueberry Muffins
- Zucchini Muffins
- Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
- Healthy Blueberry Banana Muffins
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Would love to know if you try any of them!
Print
Quick & Easy Banana Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 10-12 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These banana muffins are soft, buttery, and spiced with cinnamon. They’re wonderful plain, but taste fantastic with 1 cup chopped walnuts or chocolate chips. You need 3 ripe bananas and a handful of basic kitchen ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 and 1/2 cups (345g) mashed bananas (about 4 medium or 3 large ripe bananas)
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, melted (or melted coconut oil)
- 2/3 cup (135g) packed light or dark brown sugar (or coconut sugar)*
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk*
- optional: 1 cup chopped walnuts, pecans, or chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ยฐF (218ยฐC). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or use cupcake liners.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, mash the bananas. On medium speed, beat or whisk in the melted butter, brown sugar, egg, vanilla extract, and milk. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, then beat or whisk until combined. If adding nuts or chocolate chips, fold them in now. Batter will be thick.
- Spoon the batter into liners, filling them all the way to the top. Bake for 5 minutes at 425ยฐF, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Bake for an additional 16โ18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 21โ23 minutes, give or take. (For mini muffins, bake 12โ14 total minutes at 350ยฐF (177ยฐC).) Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to continue cooling.
- Muffins stay fresh covered at room temperature for a few days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions:ย For longer storage, freeze muffins for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or warm up in the microwave if desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links):ย 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Why the initial high temperature?ย The hot burst of air will spring up the top of the muffin quickly, then the inside of the muffin can bake for the remainder of the time. This helps the muffins rise nice and tall.
- Whole Wheat Flour: Feel free to substitute whole wheat flour for all-purpose flour or use a mix of both as long as you use 1 and 1/2 cups total. If using all whole wheat flour, add another Tablespoon (15ml) of milk.
- Frozen Bananas:ย You can use frozen bananas here. Thaw the frozen bananas. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe. Seeย How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking.
- Sugar: You can use 2/3 cup of packed brown sugar or coconut sugar. Or a mixture of these to yield 2/3 cup. If using 2/3 cup coconut sugar, the muffins won’t be as sweet. I find they taste best with 2/3 cup brown sugar or 1/3 cup of each. 2/3 cup of honey or pure maple syrup works too, though the muffins will taste a little more moist in the centers. I’m unsure about sugar substitutes, but let me know if you try any.
- Milk: Use your favorite variety of dairy or nondairy milk.
- Banana Bread: Here’s my favorite banana bread recipe. ๐
Reader Comments and Reviews
Easy and delicious! Thank you.
This is a fantastic recipe! Super easy, I just mixed by hand rather than using an electric mixer. They turned out perfect.
My husband loooooves this recipe, how would I double it to make more?!
Hi Katie, for best results, we recommend making 2 separate batches rather than doubling. So glad your husband enjoyed them!
Some of the best muffins Iโve made! They are buttery, soft and so delicious. I only had two bananas so I used about a third cup of unsweetened apple sauce too. Maybe thatโs why the banana flavour doesnโt come through too strong? Either way, so so good! Another hit from Sally!
* in mu previous comment, I said 450ยฐ while trying to comment from memory. I mean 425ยฐ. Point is, the first 5 minutes at a higher temp still worked even when making muffin tops. ๐คฃ
I’ve made these several times, and no matter how I mess things around, the end result is either delicious or the problems can be directly blamed on my own work.
Some notes:
– ALWAYS make sure your bananas are ripe! Don’t be impatient! If your bananas aren’t ripe enough, this recipe just tastes bland. I only made that mistake once, and now I stalk the stores for ripe bananas.
– If you want to make them in muffin top tins, I’ve found that following the 450ยฐ/5min then 350ยฐstill work, I just cook them at 350ยฐ for closer to 10 minutes.
– I usually don’t have milk on hand as I’m lactose intolerant. I’m also picky about my non-dairy milks, so I’ve been playing with substitutions & this recipe is very forgiving. Yes, I know this is r/IdidntHaveEggs material, (and if anyone sees this and wants to post…… yeah, fair.), but I’m having a blast! Given that the recipe calls for 30 mL of milk, and the approx density of milk at 1.03 g/mL, I’ve instead been using 31g of whatever dairy product I do happen to have on hand. This has included: spray whip cream, (I know), vanilla ice cream, (I KNOW), the liquid you have left over after making butter, (and using the homemade butter), and sour cream. It’s worked every time, and I love that.
Hi, Sally! Just took these scrumptious banana muffins out of the oven. They couldn’t be better, your recipe was spot on. Thank you for making my baking a success! Mary Kay
Just signed into get recipes from Sally, looking forward to using my new oven..
Can you make the batter the night before, and bake them up in the morning?
Hi Donna, we don’t recommend that, no. The leavening agents are activated once they combine with the wet ingredients, so it’s best to bake the batter right away.
These muffins are such a lifesaver on busy mornings โ just 30 minutes start to finish, and they use up the spotty bananas I always seem to have. I love that they are soft and buttery with cinnamon and nutmeg, and the tip about mashing the bananas in the mixer was a real time-saver. I made a batch with chopped walnuts, and they stayed moist for days. They are portable, quick, and perfect for a grab-and-go breakfast. Thank you for a reliable recipe I will keep coming back to!
These were amazing! I added mini chocolate chips and sugar sprinkles on top. I just bought two of your books and wanted to know if substituting sunflower oil for coconut oil will change the flavor? Im allergic to coconut.
Hi Cherise, you can use sunflower oil in a pinch. The flavor may change slightly. Enjoy!
These banana muffins are so moist and flavorful! They seem to be a little lighter in texture than a banana bread, but just as tasty. I added a little course sugar on top after baking to give them a little crunch. Yummy! You’ll definitely want more than one!
I made these and forgot the milk and they still came out good!
I only had 2 bananas so that was about a cup mashed I used 1/2 cup fresh applesauce. I used coconut sugar and they still came out sweet. So fluffy and light. What a great recipe!
What a great idea to use applesauce in a pinch! My bananas are small and only coming out to 1 cup so will try the applesauce trick! Thanks!
The best moistest muffins I have ever enjoyed!
This may seem dramatic, but these are the best banana bread *anythinggg* Iโve ever made before.
I made these the other day and everyone said how good they were.
I finally broke down and tried one…everyone was right! Thanks, Sally for another keeper.
My husband of 70 years will not eat anything with cooked bananas in it. I told him I was going to make choc chip muffins. Made them, put them in a Tupperware container , left them on the counter with a post it note saying โmuffinsโ. He couldnโt leave them alone, when we finished off the batch I found a post it note on the container saying โMTโ. Enough said. Make them all the time.
My muffins came out over baked and I took them out early. I’ll save the Yorkshire pudding temp changes for Yorkies, my oven doesn’t cool quickly enough. Light and taste good tho! Convection oven with self clean, so highly insulated.
Hi Shawna, thanks for giving these muffins a try! We always recommend conventional settings for baking (not convection/fan). The flow of air from convection heat can cause baked goods to rise and bake unevenly and it also pulls moisture out of the oven. If you do use convection/fan settings for baking, lower your temperature by 25 degrees F and keep in mind that things may still take less time to bake.
Wonderful recipe, as always for this site! I subbed the AP flour for Bread Flour for a higher protein content, used half and half instead of milk, and added a wee bit of banana and almond extract along with the vanilla (1/4 tsp or so of each). The muffins were so bouncy and moist!
Great recipe — the muffins turned out delicious. I opted to use half the sugar and coconut oil listed and honestly, could’ve done with even less of both. The bake temps and times produced a light, well cooked muffin.
These turned out amazing! Super quick and easy to make, but still moist and delicious. I was worried these would be dryer than banana bread but needed something with a shorter bake time, and these tasted better than any banana bread Iโve ever made. Great recipe!