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Home Recipes Course Snacks Muffins & Breads Healthy Banana Nut Muffins

Healthy Banana Nut Muffins

Jump to Recipe Rate Recipe
Posted:2/23/23
Updated:2/27/23
banana nut muffins images with text

These Healthy Banana Nut Muffins are moist, fluffy and speckled with walnuts for extra crunch. Sweetened with maple syrup and moistened with yogurt, serve warm for breakfast, brunch or meal prep for a grab-and-go snack!

Extra bananas on hand? Be sure to make Double Chocolate Banana Bread, Blueberry Banana Oatmeal and Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie.

healthy banana nut muffins on two plates

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • Perfect way to use up those over ripe bananas hanging about in your kitchen!
  • Yogurt is the secret ingredient to moist banana muffins.
  • Made with pantry ingredients you probably already have on hand.
  • Ready in 30 minutes – start to finish!

Recipe Ingredients

Most, if not all, of the ingredients for these banana walnuts muffins can be found in my healthy baking pantry recommendations. We will need:

  • whole wheat pastry flour – whole wheat pastry flour keeps these muffins tender, light and fluffy. Sub it out for half all purpose flour, half whole wheat flour if that is all you have on hand. Or, try a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend.
  • ground cinnamon – for a hint of warming spice. You could also add 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg if you like a little extra hint of flavor.
  • baking soda – for lift and to help aid in browning.
  • fine sea salt – to enhance all those banana nut flavors!
  • extra ripe bananas – we want super brown speckled bananas for the best texture and flavor. We need 1 cup mashed banana, which is about 2-3 bananas, depending on size.
  • maple syrup – for natural sweetness and rich flavor.
  • granulated sugar – the granulated sugar is optional, and I only recommend it if your bananas are not ripe enough or if you prefer a sweeter muffin. I recommend ¼ cup or ⅓ cup depending on how ripe your bananas are and how sweet your sweet tooth is.
  • yogurt – I tested these muffins with both plain Greek yogurt or Skyr yogurt, and they both were delicious. I suppose you could also swap it out for a dairy free yogurt like coconut or cashew, but I have not tested this myself. Let me know if you do!
  • eggs – to bind the batter and lift those muffin tops to new heights.
  • oil – I used avocado oil, but you could also use a light olive oil or melted and cooled coconut oil if you like a slight coconut flavor.
  • vanilla extract – for floral sweetness.
  • milk – use any milk you have on hand, such as almond milk, cashew milk, coconut milk or dairy milk.
  • walnuts – for buttery goodness and crunch. Have some extra chopped walnuts on hand to sprinkle on top before baking.

Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below, at the end of this post.

healthy banana nut muffins ingredients on board

Recommended Tools

  • 12-cup muffin pan – Use a light colored pan for even baking and prevent overly browned bottoms!
  • Paper liners – I swear by these ones, they never stick!
  • Mixing bowls
  • Measuring cups & spoons

Step-by-Step Guide

Banana and walnut muffins couldn’t be any easier than mixing the dry ingredients into the wet mixture. Here’s how I do it in just a few easy steps:

Prepare Muffin Pan

Preheat oven to 425ºF and line your muffin pan with paper liners, or coat with cooking spray. You can also use silicone liners.

Mix Dry Ingredients

In a medium bowl, whisk together whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

Whisk Wet Ingredients

In large bowl combine the well-mashed banana with maple syrup and granulated sugar, if using extra sugar. Then whisk in the yogurt, add eggs, oil and vanilla, whisking until smooth.

mashed banana, maple syrup and yogurt in glass bowl for healthy banana nut muffins
whisk, wet ingredients and eggs in glass bowl for healthy banana nut muffins

Make Muffin Batter

Slowly add in half of the flour, gently stir a few times then add milk, remaining flour and fold in walnuts. Careful not to over-mix or you’ll end up with tough muffins.

Evenly distribute batter into the prepared muffin tin, filling about 2/3 way full. Top with more walnuts if you want some to show in the muffin tops.

Muffin Baking Tip: Use a medium cookie scoop for easy batter distribution!

batter being mixed for banana nut muffins
healthy banana nut muffin batter in muffin pan and glass bowl

Bake

Bake muffins at 425ºF for 5 minutes. Then drop oven temp down to 350ºF and continue baking for 10-15 minutes.

Check muffins at 10 minutes with inserted toothpick. Muffins are done when the toothpick comes out clean.

Cool & Enjoy!

Allow muffins to cool in pan for a few minutes before transferring to rack to cool completely. Enjoy warm!

healthy banana nut muffins on parchment paper

Serving Suggestions

Warm banana muffins deserve nothing more than a hot cup of coffee or tea. A few more inspiring serving ideas include:

  • Breakfast: Whip these together when you have some extra time in the morning and wake your family up to fresh banana muffins!
  • Brunch: Bring these to any and all brunch gatherings with friends.
  • Meal Prep: Make a batch at the beginning of the week to enjoy as a snack or grab-and-go treat. Kids love them in school lunch boxes, too!
sliced open healthy banana nut muffins on plate

How to Store & Freeze

Leftover banana muffins will keep in a paper-towel lined airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. I do not recommend storing these in the fridge, since the cold temperature will draw out moisture.

Rewarm in a 350 degree F toaster oven or oven for 5 minutes, or pop one in the microwave for 15-20 seconds.

Freezing Instructions: Seal tight in a plastic freezer storage bag or freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw to room temperature or reheat in the microwave for 30-45 seconds when ready to enjoy.

Recipe Tips & Notes:

Speed up the ripening process. If your bananas are not ripe enough, seal them in a brown paper bag with an apple or avocado. The bananas should be ripe within 1-2 days.

Do not overmix the batter. Or you will end up with dense, rubbery muffins.

Crush the walnuts with your hands. If you only have whole walnut halves, crush gently with your hands.

Start at a higher oven temperature. This gives you bakery-style banana muffins, with higher and more pronounced muffin tops. Feel free to bake them straight at 350ºF for 15-20 minutes if you prefer.

More Muffin Recipes You’ll Love:

  • Strawberry Muffins
  • Banana Oatmeal Muffins
  • Healthy Carrot Muffins
  • Zucchini Muffins
  • Apple Cinnamon Muffins

If you make this Healthy Banana Nut Muffins recipe, be sure to leave a comment and review on the blog! I love hearing from you, and it helps others learn more about the recipe too! Xx Ashley

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Banana Nut Muffins

healthy banana nut muffins on two plates
Print Recipe
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★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

These Healthy Banana Nut Muffins are moist, fluffy and speckled with walnuts for extra crunch. Sweetened with maple syrup and moistened with yogurt, serve warm for breakfast, brunch or meal prep for a grab-and-go snack!

  • Author: Ashley
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 12 muffins 1x
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

Scale

Dry Ingredients

  • 1 2/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour (see notes)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (or add more)
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

Wet Ingredients

  • 1 cup well-mashed, extra-ripe bananas (about 2 medium-large bananas)
  • 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar (optional, if you want a sweeter muffin)
  • 2/3 cup plain greek yogurt or skyr (dairy free works too)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/3 cup avocado oil (or light olive oil, see notes)
  • 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons milk of choice
  • 1/2 cup crushed walnuts

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425ºF and line muffin pan with paper liners, or spray with oil; set aside.
  2. Mix dry ingredients: In a medium bowl whisk together dry ingredients; set aside.
  3. Mix wet ingredients: In large bowl combine well-mashed banana with maple syrup and granulated sugar, if using. Whisk in yogurt, then add eggs, oil and vanilla, whisking until smooth.
  4. Combine: Slowly add in half of the flour, gently stir a few times then add milk, remaining flour and fold in walnuts. Careful not to over-mix or you’ll end up with tough muffins.
  5. Bake: Evenly distribute batter into prepared pan, filling about 2/3 way full. Top with more walnuts if you want some to show in the muffin tops. Bake muffins at 425ºF for 5 minutes. Then drop oven temp down to 350ºF and continue baking for 10-12 minutes, or until tops are lightly golden and inserted toothpick comes out clean. Check muffins at 10 minutes with inserted toothpick. Muffins are done when no wet batter is present on the toothpick.
  6. Cool: Allow muffins to cool in pan for a few minutes before transferring to rack to cool completely. Best served warm.

Notes

FLOUR – Feel free to sub half all purpose flour, half whole wheat flour. A gluten-free 1:1 Baking Flour will also work. 

OIL – If you would like to reduce the oil in this recipe, you could add in an equal amount of mashed banana, applesauce or yogurt. I would still keep at least 3 tablespoons for softness.

STORAGE – Store extra banana muffins in a paper-towel lined airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

FREEZE – Freeze in a zip top freezer bag or freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw to room temperature or rewarm in the microwave for 30-45 seconds.

Keywords: banana nut muffins, healthy banana nut muffins, healthy banana muffins with yogurt

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @fitmittenkitchen on Instagram and hashtag it #fitmittenkitchen

About Ashley

"Ashley Walterhouse is the founder of Fit Mitten Kitchen, based in the Greater Lansing Area of Michigan, AKA “the Mitten.” Ashley grew up as a picky eater but later discovered that eating healthy was actually easy and fun. She started FMK in 2015 as a way to share her newfound love of developing healthier recipes for all to enjoy."

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Reader Interactions

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Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

  1. Monique Sainz says

    3/9/2023 at 4:28 am

    Not sure where to start. These muffins are outrageous. Seriously WOW. Thank you a million times for these

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Ashley says

      3/11/2023 at 10:41 am

      So glad you love them! Thanks so much for sharing and leaving a review!

      Reply
  2. Jaclyn says

    3/11/2023 at 9:39 am

    These muffins were delicious! My kids usually complain about “healthy muffins” but they devoured these! I had never used the oven drop temp method for muffins and it was a game changer!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Ashley says

      3/11/2023 at 10:41 am

      So glad everyone enjoyed them! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a review 🙂

      Reply

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