Maple-Sweetened Banana Muffins
These whole wheat, maple-sweetened banana muffins are the best! So fluffy and moist, I bet no one can guess they're healthy muffins. Easy to make, too.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 30, 2024
Meet the banana muffins of my dreams. Theyโre fluffy, whole grain, naturally sweetened, totally delicious banana muffins. Theyโre also about as healthy as muffins can be. The recipe calls for basic ingredients and you can mix them all together in one bowl. Too much to be true? Nope.
These muffins are a derivative of my super popular banana bread and pumpkin muffin recipes. If you love these, you certainly donโt miss the blueberry muffins in my cookbook.
Muffins aside, can I tell you what else is exciting? I got a new camera! Can you tell? Bueller? Bueller? Well, thatโs ok. I can, and Iโm thrilled about it. I bought my old camera during my last year of college and it was the best investment I ever made. Eight years and 88,000 (thatโs eighty-eight thousand) photographs later, it was time to upgrade.
My new camera and I are still getting acquainted. I havenโt found the best settings or figured out all the fancy-pants features just yet (anyone want video?). Weโll get there. Photographing these banana muffins was a learning experience. A very tasty learning experience.
The Best Banana Muffins
Here are a few reasons to love this banana muffin recipe (which happens to be more nutritionally redeeming than most):
- These muffins are easy to make with basic ingredients. Only one bowl required!
- Theyโre made with 100% whole grains, yet theyโre fluffy and delicious. No one will know the difference.
- Theyโre also naturally sweetened with maple syrup or honey, rather than loaded with refined sugar. The maple syrup (or honey) offers a touch of extra flavor, which I love.
- A touch of cinnamon offers some warming spice flavor. These muffins will make your house smell amazing!
- These muffins freeze well, too. Just defrost individual muffins in the microwave for 30 to 60 seconds, or until gently warmed through. You donโt want to overdo it.
Please let me know how your muffins turn out in the comments! I love hearing from you, and hope these banana muffins are your new favorite.
Craving more wholesome banana treats? Donโt miss myย banana oat pancakes, vegan banana scones,ย healthy banana breadย and banana cake with cream cheese frosting.
Watch How to Make Banana Muffins
Maple-Sweetened Banana Muffins
These whole wheat, maple-sweetened banana muffins are so fluffy and moist, I bet no one can guess theyโre healthy muffins. Theyโre easy to make, too, with basic ingredients and only one mixing bowl! Feel free to add mix-ins of your choice, like chocolate chips or toasted nuts. Recipe yields 12 muffins.
Ingredients
- โ cup melted coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil*
- ยฝ cup maple syrup or honey
- 2 eggs, preferably at room temperature
- 1 cup packed mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
- ยผ cup milk of choice or water (I used almond milk)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ยฝ teaspoon salt
- ยฝ teaspoon cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling on top
- 1 ยพ cups white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
- โ cup old-fashioned oats (optional), plus more for sprinkling on top
- 1 teaspoon turbinado (raw) sugar or other granulated sugar, for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (165 degrees Celsius). If necessary, grease all 12 cups of your muffin tin with butter or non-stick cooking spray (my pan is non-stick and didnโt require any grease).
- In a large bowl, beat the coconut oil and maple syrup together with a whisk. Add the eggs and beat well. Mix in the mashed bananas and milk, followed by the baking soda, vanilla extract, salt and cinnamon.
- Add the flour and oats to the bowl and mix with a large spoon, just until combined. If youโd like to add any additional mix-ins**, like nuts, chocolate or dried fruit, fold them in now.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups, filling each cup about two-thirds full. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with a small amount of oats (about 1 tablespoon in total), followed by a light sprinkling of sugar (about 1 teaspoon in total). Bake muffins for 22 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.
- Place the muffin tin on a cooling rack to cool. You might need to run a butter knife along the outer edge of the muffins to loosen them from the pan.ย These muffins will keep at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. They keep well in the freezer in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months (just defrost individual muffins as needed).
Notes
Recipe adapted from my healthy pumpkin muffins.
*Oil options: I love coconut oil here. I used unrefined coconut oil and can hardly taste it in the final product. Olive oil might lend an herbal note to the muffins, if youโre into that (although, I tested with California Olive Ranchโs โEverydayโ variety and couldnโt even taste it). Vegetable oil has a neutral flavor but the average vegetable/canola oil is highly processed, so I recommend using cold-pressed sunflower oil or grapeseed oil if possible.
**Change it up: You could really go crazy with add-ins here. Fold in up to ยพ cup chocolate chips, chopped dried cranberries or crystallized ginger and/or chopped nuts like pecans or walnuts. With add-ins, your muffins might require the full 25 minutes in the oven. Another idea? You could top your muffins with my maple glaze from my pumpkin scones recipeย to make them more decadent.
Serving suggestions: These muffins are great on their own, with a pat of butter, or spread with almond butter. They would also be fantastic with homemade pecan butter or coconut butter.
Make it egg free: Substitute flax eggs for the regular eggs.
Make it vegan: Substitute flax eggs for regular eggs, use dairy-free milk like almond milk and use maple syrup instead of honey.
Make it gluten free: Bobโs Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose blend works well instead of the whole wheat flour.
Make it nut free: Use a nut-free milk.
Make it oat free: Simply omit the oats.
Make it lower in fat:ย I would argue that this bread contains a healthy amount of fat, but you can replace the oil with applesauce if youโre following a low-fat diet.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionistโs advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This post contains affiliate links to Amazon, which means Iโll earn a small commission (at no cost to you) if you make a purchase through these links. Thank you for your support!
Beautiful, moist, nutty flavoured muffins. I used macadamia oil and replaced one third of the flour with sweet lupin flour. Used up some chocolate chips I had left over and making them again today to use up some walnuts. (I am on a binge to use up old ingredients in my kitchen!) Definitely five stars.
Can I sub oil with peanut butter if I want peanut butter banana muffins?
Hi Gemma, substituting peanut butter for oil would impact the texture, since it is changing the ratio of liquid in the recipe. It would also impact the leavening. I havenโt tried it, but if I was going to I would try Sallyโs Baking Banana Peanut Butter muffins. Her recipes are tested and always turn out well for me.
Iโve used this recipe so many times and it never fails me! Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!
These muffins were moist and fluffy with the perfect amount of sweetness! I used all purpose flour and extra virgin olive oil and they turned out great.
I wish I could leave a ten star rating ! These are the best ever banana muffins.
I can hardly wait to try the pumpkin ones. Thank you.
The best banana muffin recipe! Made it the first time according to recipe โ delicious! the second time added swirls of peanut butter โ also delicious!
I ended up with up with 16 muffins. I used 3 bananas and didnโt measure โ could that be why?
Hi Chelsie, what size is your muffin tin? How full did you fill them? That will make a difference. Iโm glad they still turned out.
I also got 16 muffins, using two bananas, and I had to fill them to the top too! Mine are the normal-sized silicon cases.
Hi can you add in frozen blueberries?
Hi Sheila, I recommend my blueberry muffin recipe.
I have jumbo muffin tins. Would I need to increase the recipe? How much longer to bake?
Hi Kristina, it depends on the size. If you have a 6 jumbo muffin tin, they are probably the same volume as a standard 12 muffin tin and you wouldnโt need to adjust the amount of batter. For baking time, Iโd bake until a toothpick comes out clean. Start checking after an extra 3-5 minutes.
If I am using all purpose flour, would it be the same amount (1 3/4 cups)?
Yes, you can substitute the same amount of all purpose flour.
Hi do u know if all purpose flour would work the same? I only have the king arthur all purpose flour. Thanks
Hi Danielle, yes all-purpose flour can be substituted.
Got a 5 star review from my church friends. Said โsuper moistโ
Thank you for your recipe.
Wonderful food.
Especially your cinnamon muffins. They are delicious โฆ. Almost addictive!
Best banana muffins recipe ever! I did change some things. I used 1 cup whole wheat flour and 3/4 cup of spelt flour. I used coconut oil and flaxseed eggs. Added walnuts. My husband loves them! This is a keeper Thank you very much
Most delicious banana muffin recipe ever! Delicious fusion of moist fluffy texture and flavour. Thank you so much for sharing
Iโd like to add dates, what should I change in the recipe? Thank you so much!
Hi Eve, you can simple add chopped dates to the finished batter.
These muffins are soo moist and fluffy! They did not last long in my household! I made a vegan version using flax in place of the egg. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Hi โ this recipe looks wonderful! Just wondering if you think it would be possible to substitute brown sugar for the honey/maple syrup, as I donโt usually have these sweetners at home?
Thanks!
Hi Laura, I recommend the recipe as written. Maple syrup is sweeter than sugar by volume, so you can substitute at a 1:1 ratio, and you may need to increase the liquid slightly.
There isnโt any rising agent like baking powder so how will these rise?! Iโm half way thetic making them and only just realisedโฆ what should I do?
Hi Tina, these rely on baking soda for the leavening agent.
These are by far the best muffins and a staple in our house! Iโm wondering how to convert this into a loaf because the kids are requesting a loaf.
Hi Megan, if you like the muffins you will like my banana bread recipe. It is made in a loaf pan.
Good afternoon, thank you for the Muffin recipe, I made them a few weeks ago and everyone myself included liked them to the point friends asked for the recipe. Made them again today and they have hardly risen and quite dense, tried one and they taste like the previous batch.
I used plain flour ( last time I used plain flour and the remainders of some chestnut flour I had to use up).
Any idea where I went wrong please
Hi Jenny, it sounds like you forgot to add the baking soda.
Hi! this happened to me recently too and I realized i used baking powder instead of baking soda- maybe that was also what happened for yours?
Amazing! These are SO delicious. Absolutely perfect. We used olive oil and soy milk. So moist! We make them for our toddler and she LOVES them. Thank you!
Hi! I love your banana bread recipe but wanted to make muffins for a brunch birthday party and that recipe led me here. Just wanted to say that I made a triple batch and they turned out great! I had multiple people complimenting them + asking for the recipe.
They turned out more dense โ likely from me over-mixing the large volume of dough I was working with โ but a few people specifically liked that, so it was a win :) Thanks for a great recipe and Iโll be making this again soon!
(P.S. Part of this x3 recipe was made into mini muffins and those turned out great too โ baked for ~13/14 min. Kids loved them!)
Found this recipe after realizing I had 3 bananas that had ripened much faster than anticipated. This is the best banana muffin I have ever had! My toddler is obsessed and so is my husband.
Iโve made this multiple times now, and my favorite is to swirl peanut butter just before baking
These are possibly the best banana muffins I have made to date. They are so well balanced. I added chocolate chips because thatโs how we prefer them in our house. My son also loved them and immediately asked for a second when he finished his first!!!
These muffins came out great!! We love the flavor with the maple syrup, much better than the previous recipe Iโve used. Delicious!
I did not rate these yet, as I havenโt tried your recipe, but Iโm wondering if I used a silicone muffin tray, would it impact the duration of time or temperature itโs baked at?
Hi Roksana, you should bake for the same amount of time.
I have used this recipe for YEARS and it is the best! I love all of your baked goods and feel good giving them to my kids.
Can I use whole milk yogurt in this vs the milk?
Hi Jen, I recommend the recipe as written. If you do try the substitution, please share how it turns out.
Excellent recipe! Quick, easy, and delicious. Theyโre great to have in the freezer for a quick snack or for packing lunches. I substituted plain greek yogurt for milk, because thatโs what I had on hand, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly and the muffins turned out great.
perfectโฆ added the oats and walnutsโฆthis one is a keeper
These came out great! I make your blueberry muffins all the time so when I had overripe bananas I knew where to look for a recipe. I used white flour and about 1/3c honey but otherwise followed the recipe. They came out great! I only had 2 bananas so it made 10 muffins instead of 12.
Tried & these are delicious! Kids love them! And easy to make. Thank you for a great recipe!
These were a hit !
I added
A 1/2 cup of bananas
1 additional tsp of vanilla extract
I Used pumpkin spice instead of cinnamon
And 1 additional tsp of pumpkin spice
Add chocolate chips to some of them !!!
They were a hit . They are so fluffy and yummy. Great recipe !
Delicious, awesome recipe I added walnuts and dark chocolate!!!
I made these for my daughterโs 4th grade โBreakfast and a Bookโ morning, and she came home with rave reviews from everyone (kids and teachers!) She said that one several of the teachers said it was the best banana muffin theyโd ever had. Thanks for the great recipe! This one will be on repeat!
Hi Anna, first off, I love the idea of a fourth grade โbreakfast and a bookโ morning. Glad these muffins were a hit!
First time making this recipe and the muffins are delicious. No you can tell itโs whole wheat.
Thank you so much for this recipe. It will be my forever go to for banana muffins. It is so easy and they turned out perfect.
Itโs like eating sandpaperโฆ.never again
I made these for my one-year and 7-month-old grandson. He loved them so much that he asked for more. I used baking powder as a substitute for baking soda; they came out tasty, not too sweet, moist, and fluffy. Thank you for sharing!
I love all C&K healthy muffin recipes. I think there may be an error with the oven temperature for the banana muffins (325) My muffins were not done after 25 minutes and other muffins recipes typically bake at 375 or higher.
Hi Mary, I recommend the recipes as written.
Made these muffinsโฆโฆand they are delicious !
Do you offer this recipe in metric measurements? We love it so much, make it every week!
Hi Sarah, I have started including weights for some ingredients in new baking recipes, but I donโt currently have the capacity to update each recipe that has been previously published.
Amazing recipe. Itโs so versatile that whatever add-ins I try, it turns out great everytime. This time I added 2tbsp chocolate powder and 1/2 cup almond slices. My son loves these muffins despite not being a fan of wholewheat flour!
Wonderful and easy. Canโt wait to try her other recipes!!!