These banana nut muffins are super moist, made with 5 extra-ripe bananas, and are better than boxed mix! This one-bowl recipe is easy to make and will become one of your favorite muffin recipes.
These soft banana muffins are a perfect healthier breakfast or snack to pair with a cup of coffee or tea. Healthy walnuts are mixed into the muffin batter and the muffins are topped with even more chopped walnuts and turbinado sugar for some added crunch!
These banana nut muffins are super flavorful and have a moist, fluffy texture. This recipe makes about 15 bakery-style banana muffins so you’ll have enough to share with your family and friends if you’d like!
This recipe was inspired by one of my all-time favorite banana muffin recipes, these maple bacon banana muffins! This was one of the earlier recipes I published and I think about them often. If you're looking for a decadent, almost dessert-like banana muffin, these are it.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This recipe will use up all of your old, brown bananas! Did you buy too many bananas or forgot about them? This banana muffin recipe calls for 5 ripe bananas or about 2 to 2 ¼ cups of mashed ripe bananas. This is what gives this recipe such a moist texture and loads of real banana flavor.
- This is a great option for breakfast! Homemade muffins are an easy breakfast to enjoy in the morning with your cup of coffee or tea. This is also a good option if you’re on the go or need to pack breakfast or lunch with you.
- These muffins are super moist and flavorful. As we mentioned earlier, this recipe calls for quite a bit of mashed banana. You’ll actually see flecks of ripe banana throughout these baked muffins just like you would with a boxed mix or a muffin from a bakery!
- This recipe is easy to make and can be made in one bowl.
- These muffins turn out amazing every time! I have made this recipe countless times and I always get the best banana muffins each time.
Ingredients
This recipe calls for pantry staple ingredients you should already have on hand! Plus, this muffin recipe will use up all of your over-ripe bananas. It's a win-win.
- Bananas
- Eggs
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Cinnamon
- Salt
- Walnuts
- Turbinado or coarse sugar
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Substitutions
Need to make a substitution or missing an ingredient? Here are some ways you can alter this recipe to fit your unique dietary needs.
- Gluten-free? I have not tested this recipe with other flour. I recommend trying a gluten-free 1:1 baking flour if you try to make this recipe gluten-free. Leave a comment and let me know how this goes!
- Don’t like or have walnuts? I would recommend using chopped pecans instead! This is another great nut to use in baked goods.
- Nut-free? Whether you are allergic to nuts or you’re simply not a fan of them, these banana muffins will turn out just as good without nuts! Feel free to add a different mix-in of your choice instead.
- Want to use less sugar? I would recommend using ½ cup of lightly packed brown sugar and ¼ cup of honey or pure maple syrup. You can also try using coconut sugar instead of brown sugar if you prefer to bake with coconut sugar.
Variations
Here are a few ideas for customizing this recipe and making different flavor variations:
- Use pecans instead of walnuts. This is another good option if you don’t want to use walnuts.
- Substitute the nuts for a different mix-in of your choosing like fruit or chocolate chips.
- Add chocolate! Some chocolate chips in these banana nut muffins would taste wonderful.
- Add a streusel topping. Take the topping mixture that you would normally use for streusel muffins and use that on top of these banana muffins for some added crunch and sweetness. If your streusel topping is too buttery, it may affect the rise of these muffins.
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how they turned out in the comments below!
How To Make Banana Muffins With Walnuts
Step 1: Beat melted butter and brown sugar together until combined.
Step 2: Peel bananas.
Step 3: Use a mixer to beat the bananas until mostly smooth, leaving some chunks of banana.
Step 4: Add mashed bananas to the butter and sugar mixture and beat to combine. Add eggs and beat to combine.
Step 5: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Don't over-mix.
Step 6: Fold in the walnuts until fully incorporated.
Step 7: Line your muffin tin with parchment paper liners and grease with non-stick cooking spray. Fill each muffin liner most of the way with batter. Top each muffin with extra chopped walnuts and a sprinkle of coarse sugar.
Step 8: Bake muffins according to the directions. Let cool and store covered at room temperature for 3 days.
Expert Baking Tips
- Use a muffin scoop to portion out the muffin batter. Fill each muffin cup almost to the top edge of the liner. If you only fill your muffin cups halfway, your baked muffins will not have that tall, bakery-style look.
- Use some non-stick cooking spray to lightly coat your parchment paper liners to prevent sticking.
- Use fresh walnuts for the best-tasting nut muffins.
- Bake your muffins in every other muffin cup to achieve a tall, bakery-style look. This allows more air to circulate around the sides of each muffin. (To do this, you would bake 6 muffins in a 12-muffin tin at a time so they are spaced out.)
- Let your muffins cool in the muffin tin before removing them.
- Store baked muffins in an airtight container or cover the cooled muffin tin with aluminum foil.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have a question about this recipe? Here are some additional tips and commonly asked questions:
Banana nut muffins are healthier than most muffin recipes because they are mostly sweetened with ripe bananas and walnuts which have many health benefits.
To cut down on the sugar in this recipe and make these muffins even healthier, use ½ cup brown sugar and ¼ cup honey or pure maple syrup. You can also try using coconut sugar instead of brown sugar if you prefer to bake with coconut sugar.
Yes, you can freeze banana nut muffins. Wrap cooled muffins in plastic wrap and place them in an airtight container or freezer bag. Freeze muffins for up to 2 months and thaw to enjoy. Muffins are best enjoyed when freshly baked and freezing may alter the texture and taste.
Baking time may vary based on the recipe and your oven. However, this banana nut muffin recipe calls for a baking time of 20 to 25 minutes.
Equipment
You’ll need standard baking equipment to make these muffins. You will use a mixing bowl, a stand mixer or electric hand mixer, measuring cups and spoons, a large muffin scoop, a muffin tin, parchment paper liners, and a rubber spatula to make this recipe.
Storage
Room Temperature
Store freshly baked muffins at room temperature for up to 3 to 4 days. To extend their shelf life, store covered muffins in the fridge for up to a week. Muffins are best enjoyed warm, so if stored in the fridge, microwave them for about 10 seconds before enjoying.
Freezing Instructions
Wrap cooled muffins tightly in plastic and place them in a freezer bag or airtight container. Freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to enjoy, remove the muffins from the freezer and let them thaw at room temperature.
Keep in mind that muffins that were frozen may have a different texture and appearance than freshly baked muffins.
More Recipes You'll Love
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Recipe
Banana Nut Muffins
These banana nut muffins are super moist, made with 5 extra-ripe bananas, and are better than boxed mix! This one-bowl recipe is easy to make and will become one of your favorite muffin recipes. Healthy walnuts are mixed into the muffin batter and the muffins are topped with even more chopped walnuts and turbinado sugar for some added crunch!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20-25
- Total Time: 35
- Yield: 15 1x
- Category: Muffins, Breakfast
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 5 medium ripe bananas (about 2 to 2 ¼ cups mashed banana)
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup salted butter, melted
- ¾ cup brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- Walnuts for topping
- Turbinado sugar for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C). Line a muffin tin with muffin liners and grease the cups with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a large glass mixing bowl, add a stick of butter and heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Once butter is melted, add brown sugar and whisk or beat to combine.
- Peel the ripe bananas and add them to the bowl with the butter and sugar. Beat until mostly smooth, leaving some chunks of banana is okay.
- Add in the eggs and beat together until fully combined.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Be careful not to overmix as this can result in tough muffins.
- Fold in the chopped walnuts using a rubber spatula and stir gently until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Line a 12-cup muffin tin with 6 muffin liners. Baking a muffin in every other space creates a taller, domed muffin. Fill each muffin liner almost to the top with batter. Sprinkle some extra chopped walnuts and turbinado sugar on top.
- Bake the muffins in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with little crumbs. The muffins should look golden brown when baked.
- Take the muffins from the oven and let them cool in the muffin tin completely before removing them from the tin. Store covered at room temperature for a few days or in the fridge for up to a week.
Notes
- See the blog post for more baking tips and details on how to customize this recipe.
LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!
Did you try these banana walnut muffins? Leave a five ⭐️ review below and tag @bakedabundance on Instagram & Facebook!
Megan
These banana walnut muffins are incredible! They are really moist and flavorful. I didn't measure out the mashed bananas and instead just added the 5 bananas to my mixing bowl. I made the batter in one bowl and they turned out perfect. I will be making these again to take into my office. Thanks!
Marley Braunlich
Hey Megan, I'm so glad you enjoyed these easy banana nut muffins! I normally don't measure out the mashed banana either when I'm just baking for fun. This is a great recipe to make for a crowd and I hope your coworkers enjoy these muffins next time. Thanks for the review!
Jenna
These banana muffins are delicious!! I used 1/2 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts in the batter instead of 1 cup walnuts. They turned out amazing and really moist. This recipe is a keeper. Thank you!
Marley Braunlich
Hi Jenna! Thanks for sharing how you customized this recipe. Using half chocolate chips and half walnuts in the batter sounds perfect to me! Glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for leaving a review! 🙂
Sam
These muffins are incredible!! I love that they use 5 bananas since I always have way too many overripe ones at home. They are so delicious with the walnuts crunch!! Yum!
Marley Braunlich
Hey Sam! Thanks for making my banana muffins with walnuts. They are one of my favorite breakfasts! So glad you loved this recipe. Thanks for leaving a review. Enjoy!
Phyllis Ann Billips
I normally don’t like banana bread or banana muffins. But I usually have a number of bananas that go to Waste so I decided I would try this recipe. I added raisins along with the walnuts. I made muffins in a small pan of banana bread. It was absolutely delicious now I look forward to my bananas going brown. I’m getting ready to make my second batch my friend love them so thank you for this recipe. I appreciate it now I like banana bread. I also used gluten free flour. Came out perfectly.
Marley Braunlich
Hi Phyllis! Wow. I am honored that my banana nut muffin recipe has turned you on to banana bread and banana muffins! My family loves these banana muffins. Thank you for leaving this awesome review 🙂