Banana Nut Muffins

These banana nut muffins are soft and moist! They are great to serve for a quick breakfast or a midday snack!

Finely chopped nuts are a great way to introduce more textures into your little one’s palate. These banana nut muffins have a nice slight sweetness and are packed with healthy fats!

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

Here is what you’ll need to make these banana nut muffins:

• Rolled Oats: I love baking with rolled oats as they are packed with nutrition! Gluten-free rolled oats make these muffins gluten-free.
• Baking Powder: Leavening agent to help these muffins rise.
• Cinnamon: Provides an extra warm spice.
• Vanilla: To enhance the natural sweetness of these muffins.
• Milk: I used whole milk in this recipe, but dairy-free alternatives work as well.
• Egg: Used as a binder to hold the muffins together.
• Bananas: The main source of sweetness for these muffins. Try to use bananas that are very ripe with several brown spots. The riper the bananas, the sweeter the muffins!
• Finely Chopped Nuts: Optional ingredient for added texture.

PROCESS

1. Mash the bananas in a bowl until smooth.
2. Add in the milk, vanilla, and egg and whisk until combined.
3. Blend the oats into a flour and add them to a bowl.
4. Add the baking powder, and cinnamon to the bowl with the ground oats and mix until combined.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Mix until combined.
6. Fold in the finely chopped nuts.
7. Pour the mixture into a mini muffin pan. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS

Let the muffins completely cool and store them in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge. To freeze, store in a freezer-safe Ziploc bag once cooled for up to 3 months. To reheat, simply microwave the muffins for 20-30 seconds, or until warmed through!

SUBSTITUTIONS

• Eggs: You may replace the egg with a flax egg. To make a flax egg, combine 3 tablespoons of water with 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed. Let the mixture sit in the fridge for about 15 minutes until it forms a gel-like texture.
• Milk: You may replace the milk with a dairy free alternative like coconut milk or oat milk.
• Nuts: I ususally finely chopped pecans or almonds in this recipe, but you may use any type of nuts. You may also omit the nuts to make plain banana muffins!

RECIPE NOTES

• This recipe makes 20 mini muffins. You may make regular-sized muffins by adding a few more minutes to the total bake time. You may also bake in a loaf pan to make banana bread.
• Be sure to use very ripe bananas with brown spots. The bananas provide the main sweetness in these muffins, so the ripper, the better.
• These muffins are not that sweet, so if you prefer a sweeter muffin, add 1-2 tablespoons of maple syrup.
• I like to use a silicone muffin pan to bake these muffins as they pop out easily without any sticking. If using a regular mini muffin pan, be sure to coat with a cooking spray beforehand. 

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• Spinach Banana Muffins
• Pumpkin Muffins
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffins