The Best Banana Muffin Recipe
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My well-loved Banana Muffin recipe makes incredibly soft, moist muffins with tall, bakery-style tops, sweet banana flavor, and an optional streusel topping. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Your New Favorite Breakfast Muffin
Today I’m re-sharing one of my favorite muffin recipes on the blog, and apparently, it’s one of your favorites too! With nearly 500 five-star ratings, this banana muffin recipe is so well-loved–and for good reason. These aren’t bland, boring, or basic banana muffins; they’re fluffy, moist, and loaded with banana flavor! And if that’s not enough, I recommend topping them with a crumbly, buttery streusel topping…yum.
It took a lot of tries and tweaks to get this recipe just perfect, but it was well worth the trial and error. This recipe makes the softest, most flavorful banana muffin I’ve ever tasted–with or without the streusel on top–and I’m so proud to share it with you!
What Makes My Banana Muffin Recipe the BEST:
- It produces big, beautiful muffin tops, thanks to a nifty oven trick.
- They truly taste like banana muffins, not banana bread in muffin form.
- No mixer needed–these come together easily by hand!
- They take just 30 minutes from start to finish.
What You Need
I found I needed several key ingredients for super flavorful banana muffins:
- Three ripe bananas. Ripe bananas mash easier and impart a stronger banana flavor, so save this recipe for those dark brown bananas lingering at the bottom of your fruit basket (unlike the ones pictured above!).
- Butter and oil. We’re using a blend of both for the best flavored and textured banana muffin (same reason I use a blend of the two in my vanilla cake!). Stick with a neutral oil like canola, vegetable, or grapeseed, and make sure your butter is unsalted.
- Sugar. Using some brown sugar gives the muffins a rich flavor that granulated alone wouldn’t provide.
- Buttermilk. This keeps the muffins nice and moist. If you’re low on buttermilk, give my easy buttermilk substitute a try!
SAM’S TIP: Overmixing your batter can lead to muffins that are too tough and dense. To avoid this, I strongly recommend stirring your banana muffin batter completely by hand. Luckily, we’re using melted butter in this recipe, so mixing by hand is a breeze!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Banana Muffins
- Mash your bananas, then add the oil and melted butter.
- Stir in the sugar, then add the eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk.
- Combine your dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then gently fold them into the wet ingredients.
- Portion the batter into a paper-lined muffin tin, filling each liner is ¾ of the way full.
- Prepare your streusel, if using, and portion over each muffin.
- Bake your muffins for 8 minutes, then reduce the temperature and bake for another 7-8 minutes until done.
SAM’S TIP: While I personally love and recommend the streusel topping, I know not everyone wants the extra sugar or dishes. As you can see, the “naked” banana muffin pictured below baked up beautifully with an even tidier, higher muffin top. So feel free to skip it!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, although I do have a separate banana nut muffin recipe you might want to try (it uses browned butter too 🤤). You can add between 1-1½ cups of add-ins (chocolate chips work well!) to this banana muffin recipe. I recommend adding them when you’re almost done incorporating the dry ingredients.
Yes! To do this, you’ll follow the same instructions I provide for my bakery-style chocolate chip muffins:
Bake at 425F for 8 minutes, then reduce the oven to 350F (don’t open the door!) and continue baking until the muffins begin to turn golden brown. This can take anywhere from 7-15 minutes, so keep an eye on them!
This banana muffin recipe freezes very well! In fact, I did this in preparation for Luke’s arrival so I always had a quick breakfast handy during his newborn phase.
If you want want to freeze yours, allow them to cool completely, wrap individually in plastic wrap, place in a Ziploc bag, and freeze. To thaw, either set your muffins out at room temperature or microwave them (just use the defrost setting or they’ll become hard).
So, do you agree? Is this the BEST banana muffin recipe? Let me know in the comments!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
The Best Banana Muffin Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (385 g) well-mashed ripe bananas, This is typically 3 large bananas for me
- ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil or vegetable oil or canola oil, (may substitute vegetable or avocado oil)
- ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled at least 5 minutes
- ½ cup (100 g) sugar
- ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar , tightly packed
- 2 large eggs, room temperature preferred
- ¼ cup (60 ml) buttermilk, room temperature preferred
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Streusel (optional)
- ½ cup (65 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (100 g) brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter, cold
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F (220C) and line a muffin tin with paper liners*
- Place peeled bananas in a large bowl and use a fork or a potato masher to mash them – bananas should be well-mashed.1 ½ cups (385 g) well-mashed ripe bananas
- Add oil and melted butter and stir well.¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil or vegetable oil or canola oil, ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter
- Stir in sugars until well-combined.½ cup (100 g) sugar, ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar
- Add eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract and stir well. Set aside.2 large eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract, ¼ cup (60 ml) buttermilk
- In a separate bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients — flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- Add dry ingredients to your wet batter and gently fold in until ingredients are just combined (don't over-mix the batter!).
- Portion batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each liner ¾ of the way full. Set aside and prepare your Streusel topping.
Streusel Topping (optional)
- Combine flour, brown sugar, and salt in a medium-sized bowl and use a fork to stir the ingredients together.½ cup (65 g) all-purpose flour, ½ cup (100 g) brown sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Using a pastry cutter, cut in your cold butter until the butter is well-worked in and your mixture resembles coarse crumbs.¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter, cold
- Sprinkle streusel topping evenly over each muffin.
- Bake muffins on 425F (218C) for 8 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350 (175C) (do not open the oven door or remove the muffins, just leave them in and reduce the temperature) and bake another 7-8 minutes on 350F (177C). A toothpick inserted in the center of the largest muffin should come out clean or with few moist crumbs (no wet batter) to test for doneness.
- Allow muffins to cool before enjoying.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
This recipe was originally published 01/05/2018. Updated with more information and better photos 10/17/2019.
This recipe is delicious! Made it multiple times and it’s always a hit. I used 1/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup yogurt since I don’t have any buttermilk. At first, I thought I messed up the streusel but it’s what makes this recipe stand out. Love that you also added your video making it as I watched it in times I doubted myself. Also made it in a loaf pan as banana bread and it was equally divine.
We appreciate the review, Kriz! So glad the muffins are such a hit for you 🩷
Just wanted to say thanks Sam for this amazing recipe! I’m a terrible baker but these banana muffins turned out so good. They were so soft and moist! My son and I had fun making them. Easy steps without the need for a cake mixer too. We thoroughly enjoyed them from sunny Perth, Western Australia!
You’re very welcome, May! Thank you for tyring my recipe. I’m so glad you enjoyed the muffins so much! 🙂
Can I use whole milk with vinegar for the buttermilk, or a buttermilk powder?
Definitely! Enjoy 😊
Well they are gorgeous and smell scrumptious! Instructions very clear. Turned out a perfect golden fluffy caramel brown! Crumble on top was perfect! (Unfortunately I can’t taste them as I’m on a carnivore diet) Everybody seems to adore them! This is a keeper without a doubt (especially as my husband always buys bananas, then promptly ignores them leaving them in the fruit basket to turn black!) But he loves the cupcakes!
Hahaha, 🤣 I couldn’t help but to laugh. Because, same same. My husband buys the bananas and promptly ignores them. This recipe is INCREDIBLE. They come out perfect EVERY time. And I mean, TO the T. Thanks for such a great recipe. Lots of love from the Garden State New Jersey. 😋😘
These are excellent! Just enough banana flavor, so light and the crumb topping takes them next level. Will definitely make again.
These muffins are truly amazing. We have stopped using most oils, I made these withe olive oil and everyone loved them! You don’t need banana bread recipes when you can make these! 🥰
We are so happy everyone enjoyed them so much, Sue!
Can I convert this recipe to a loaf?
Hi Charlotte! We actually recommend making our banana bread instead 🙂
These are amazing and so easy. I used half-and-half because I was too lazy to go to the store for buttermilk and I added about a half a teaspoon of cinnamon. I just made them yesterday and I’ve already eaten six!
They turned out good; except for the strussel topping. It just melted into a mess.
Hi Melissa! I’m glad you ultimately enjoyed them. I’m a little bummed to hear about the streusel topping though. 🙁 Did it look like mine in the video? Did you make any substitutions when making the topping? I have never encountered this issue. 🙁
Hi Melissa,
This happened to me the first time I made them, I found that switching to softened butter and a little toss with the hand made a big difference. I haven’t had a problem since 😊
Put the fact it makes 15 rather than 12 at the top of the instructions instead of the bottom when it’s too late
This information is provided directly above the video. It tells you it makes 15 muffins. 🙂
Seriously? That’s your comment on a great recipe? “Please” and “thank you for the recipe” btw. Imagine if everyone could be polite and kind.
So yummy! I just made these and we’re already down 3. Haha! I only had 2 ripe bananas on hand and they still came out great. Very moist! The streusel was the perfect topping. I didn’t even have the required amount of brown sugar on hand but it still worked out just fine. Definitely saving and making again for when I have bananas that are a little past their prime. Thanks!
Hi Sam! These are my go-to banana muffins, with or without the streusel. So good! I got a question though. I have some leftover cake flour from when I made your Lofthouse copycat cookies. Could I use that here? If so, what would you expect the result to be like? Thanks!
I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying them, Kelsey! I haven’t personally used cake flour, but it could potentially work here if substituted properly. You do run the risk of making the muffins too delicate with the cake flour though.
Not being one to closely follow directions, I under took to make these with care and was rewarded with my favorite muffins ever, Your directions are very specific and the reward at the end is so worth it. Thanks, now I have to try lots of other recipes of yours.
The best and beautiful banana muffins that I have ever made.
We are so happy to hear that, Karen! Thanks for trying our recipe 💕
Delicious! I made it in the kitchenaid because I was too lazy to mix by hand and I cut down the sugars as well and didnt bother with the streusel and they still were so good! Definately will be my go to recipe