Make breakfast a little sweeter with these sky-high banana nut muffins. They’re tender, perfectly spiced, and loaded with chopped nuts.
Simple ingredients combine to make an extra special bite. The smell of baking banana muffins will have your mouth watering in no time! For more ways to use those ripe bananas try Banana Oatmeal Muffins, Banana Pudding Cheesecake, or Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Nutty Banana Muffins
If you’re on the hunt for a crowd pleasing 5-star banana muffin recipe, this is it! If nuts aren’t your thing, simply swap them out for something that is, or leave them plain. You can’t go wrong.
I have quite a few banana recipes here on Life Made Simple, but this one… It may top them all. These glorious banana nut muffins have made an appearance in our kitchen THREE times now in the past two weeks… and I’m still not tired of them! They’re soft and tender with hints of vanilla and cinnamon.
Not to mention, they are easy to make! They can even be made ahead of time, frozen, or stored for an easy grab and go breakfast or snack. Grab those neglected bananas and let’s get baking!
How to Make Banana Nut Muffins
First things first. You don’t need to use a stand mixer (or hand mixer) for this recipe, in fact, I prefer not to. There isn’t any creaming involved like there is in cupcakes, everything can be done in two bowls (or one if you’re feeling lazy ?).
MASH: You will need three large, overly ripe bananas for this recipe. They should have an intensely sweet smell to them. Just remember, we’re looking for overly ripe, not rotten! I like to grab my large glass mixing bowl and mash my bananas right in it, using a pastry blender. If you don’t have one, you can just use a fork on a plate.
MIX: To the bananas you’ll add oil, melted butter, granulated AND brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, and milk OR sour cream. Gently mix the wet ingredients together just until combined.
WHISK: Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate mixing bowl. Why do we do this? To evenly distribute the ingredients, specifically the leavening agents. Again, if you want a shortcut, you can definitely do it all in the same bowl, but your results may not be quite the same.
COMBINE: Gently fold the dry ingredients in along with the chopped nuts into the banana mixture. Pecans or walnuts work best. Take care not to over-mix the batter. Over-mixing creates a tough, dense crumb, something we are trying our best to avoid! Let Dough rest 20 minutes.
DIVIDE: Divide the batter between 18 muffin liners. You will want to fill them 1/8-inch below the edge of the liner. They should be VERY full. Sprinkle the tops with the reserved nuts.
BAKE: Now comes the important part: Bake the muffins at 425 degrees for 7 minutes, then lower the temperature to 375 degrees (with the muffins still in) and continue baking for an additional 12 minutes or until golden brown on top. Both the high heat and the oil will give these muffins a beautiful crusty top.
SERVE & ENJOY!! Enjoy these muffin while warm, because let’s be honest, they taste best when they’re fresh from oven!
Ingredient Tips & FAQ
Bananas: You’ll need 1 ¼ cups of mashed banana, which is equivalent to about 3 large bananas. Remember, we’re looking for overly ripe, not rotten!
Milk or sour cream? You can use one, or the other, or some of each! I’ve done all three, and I’ve made them with almond milk (and a little more oil instead of the butter) and they turned out just as delicious.
1 TABLESPOON of baking powder?? It sounds like a lot, but it’s no mistake! These muffins get their sky-high domes from the high quantity of leavening. I promise you can’t taste it.
Tips for Perfect Muffins
Let the batter sit for 20 minutes before baking. In most cases, when double acting baking powder is involved, it’s best to let the batter rest to activate it.
Just like the name implies, baking powder reacts twice. First to moisture and second to heat. I’ve played around with this several times and there’s definitely a noticeable difference. Can you tell which muffin came from batter that rested? Yep, it would be the one on the right! That dome is ?
Filling muffin liners: The perfect amount of batter should hit about 1/8-inch below the edge of the liner. They should be VERY full. I like to use a #20 scoop for portioning out the batter—it’s the perfect amount!
Storing, Freezing, & Reheating
Storing/Freezing: Store the muffins at room temperature in an airtight bag for 3-5 days. These freeze great! Store the muffins in an airtight bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and then bring to room temperature before eating.
Reheat: If you would like to reheat them you can do so in the oven. You can place them on a baking sheet and reheat them at 350 until warmed through, about 5-8 minutes.
For more banana recipes, try:
- Best Ever Banana Bundt Cake
- Triple Chocolate Banana Muffins
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
- Banana Cookies with Chocolate Hazelnut Frosting
For more muffin recipes, check out:
- Banana oatmeal muffins
- Double chocolate muffins
- Whole wheat pumpkin muffins
- Perfect lemon poppyseed muffins
- Blueberry crumble muffins
Banana Nut Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup mashed banana - overly ripe, (about 3 large bananas)
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp melted butter
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar - packed
- 2 large eggs
- 2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup milk - or sour cream*
- 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup chopped pecans - or walnuts, divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners, set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the banana, oil, butter, white sugar, brown sugar, eggs, milk (or sour cream), vanilla and bananas.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, gently fold everything together, along with 1 cup of nuts. Let the batter rest for 20 minutes.
- Fill liners about 1/8-inch below the rim. They should be VERY full. Sprinkle tops with remaining nuts.
- Bake for 7 minutes at 425. Reduce the heat to 375 and continue baking for another 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let cool in pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
NOTES
- *You can do either or, or ½ cup milk + ¼ cup sour cream, or ½ cup sour cream + ¼ cup milk.
- Don't want to use nuts? Try adding chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, raisins, or chopped fruit.
I made these and they were so good!
These were the best muffins I’ve ever made! SO delicious, my husband can’t get enough!
One of my favorite recipes to make with leftover bananas!! Love the crunch from the nuts!
My kids LOVED these! These are perfect for a quick snack or breakfast!
I never knew about the tip to let the batter activate- thanks!