Healthy Banana Muffins
Healthy Banana Muffins never tasted so good! These sweet, moist muffins are made with wholesome ingredients including whole wheat flour, yogurt, and naturally sweetened with honey.
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There aren't many things quicker and easier for breakfast-on-the-go than good, old-fashioned muffins. They are also great as an after school snack or post-dinner treat. But let's face it...not all muffins are created equal, and not every muffin is inherently wholesome. In fact, some are actually more akin to cupcakes masquerading under the good name of 'muffin.' Lucky for us, these Healthy Banana Muffins are a step above the rest!
Ingredients
That's right, friends. These muffins are actually wholesome...and they're totally tasty, to boot!
- They are soft and moist, thanks to coconut oil and yogurt.
- They are naturally sweet, compliments of bananas and honey.
- And they trade nutrient-deficient white flour for wholesome whole wheat pastry flour.
Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
I've talked a little bit about this before, but aside from grinding your own fresh flour, I've found two varieties of store bought whole wheat flour that make baked goods taste less whole wheat-ish. White whole wheat flour is 100% whole wheat flour (that happens to come from white wheat instead of the more commonly used red wheat) that has a lighter taste and texture than regular whole wheat flour. It's my favorite type of flour for bread baking.
However, in non-yeast baked goods such as pancakes, waffles, quick breads, and these muffins, I love to use whole wheat pastry flour. Once again, it is 100% whole wheat flour, but it is softer, finer, and has lower protein, yielding baked goods with a texture that is closer to that of white flour than regular whole wheat flour. Despite tasting lighter, whole wheat pastry flour still retains the nutritional benefits of 100% whole wheat.
Why Make Healthy Banana Muffins?
Now when I have a bunch of browning bananas, sometimes I go in a decadent direction with them. But more often than not, I bake up a big batch of these muffins. And the reasons are aplenty!
- I know that they will give me a head start on breakfast over the next few busy mornings.
- I know that they will be requested at snack time.
- I know that they will taste delicious warm out of the oven or briefly reheated...with or without a pat of butter. 😉
- And I know that I will feel good about feeding them to my family.
All of the above makes these Healthy Banana Muffins winners in my book! I hope you try them and love them, too.
Healthy Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups mashed banana, from approximately 4 to 6 overripe bananas, depending on size
- ⅔ cup honey
- ½ cup coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ½ cup yogurt, at room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Prepare muffin pans by lining 24 muffin cups with paper liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, mix together mashed banana, honey, coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla. Add half of flour mixture; stir. Add yogurt; stir. Add remaining flour mixture; stir until just blended.
- Divide batter between muffin pans by filling each muffin cup approximately ⅔ full with batter. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean. Cool in pans for a few minutes before turning out onto wire rack to cool completely.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- Make sure your ingredients are at room temperature or else your melted coconut oil will resolidify as soon as the cold ingredients touch it. You can quickly warm up cold eggs by putting them in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes.
- All-purpose white flour may be substituted for the whole wheat pastry flour, if you wish.
- You may use anywhere from ½ to ¾ cup of honey, depending on how ripe/sweet your bananas are and how sweet you prefer your muffins to turn out.
- Maple syrup may be substituted for the honey.
- Any neutral-flavored oil may be substituted for the coconut oil. I sometimes make these muffins with avocado oil instead.
Nutrition
Hello there. I'm super excited to try this recipe but I was curious if you had tried making these banana muffins without the honey? I'm 6 1/2 months pregnant and was just recently diagnosed with gestational diabetes and the dietary restrictions can make baking difficult. No refined sugar and since most artificial sugars aren't all that great for you either I'm kind of at a loss what to try for added sweetness. I'm considering adding some strawberries to this in the hopes the natural sugars may help.
Hi Kayla! If your bananas are nice and ripe, I think these muffins would actually taste lightly sweet even without the honey. You could maybe even add a little extra mashed banana to make up for the lack of honey. Hope that helps!
I made these muffins and they are absolutely amazing. Delicious and moist like a cupcake. They are perfect in every way nutrition-wise; high protein, low calorie, and no added artificial sugars or alcohol sugars. Was wondering if you think you could substitute the bananas for unsweetened applesauce/cinnamon or canned pumpkin/nutmeg/cloves? I haven't found a better healthy muffin recipe out there and it would be great to have some variety other than banana.
I'm glad these were such a hit, Amanda! I actually already shared a version of these same muffins using applesauce (https://www.fivehearthome.com/healthy-whole-wheat-honey-applesauce-muffins-recipe/), and I see no reason why the recipe wouldn't work with pumpkin as well. Enjoy!
If I can't find the pastry flour, can I use WHITE whole wheat flour instead? Or does that have the same probably as regular whole wheat flour?
Hi Jessica! I typically use white whole wheat flour when I bake bread. I think it might be kind of heavy in muffins, so if that's the only type of whole wheat flour that you have, I would probably use it 50/50 with regular white flour. 🙂 As far as finding the pastry flour, it's getting more common, so hopefully you can find it in your regular grocery store. But even if you can't, these muffins should turn out tasty with half white/half (regular or white) whole wheat flour. 🙂 Hope that helps...enjoy!
Thanks, that's what I did!
I made some revisions because I didn't have the whole wheat bakers flour or baking powder. Used white flour and they were so good and rose well. I will def use the whole wheat flour next time but hands down the best banana muffin recipe without sugar I have tried!!
So happy to hear that your substitutions worked out and that you enjoyed these muffins, Katie! I love that they're sweetened with honey, too. 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment...hope you're having a wonderful week!
Hi Samantha,
These muffins look so moist and yummy! There are so many fabulous recipes calling for pastry flour but unfortunately as far as I know Australia does not stock pastry flour and all substitutes I have tried have not worked as yet. Hopefully pastry flour will be available here one day so I can make these delicious muffins 🙂
I love pastry flour and use it all the time, Bec, but if you can't find it in Australia, don't let that stop you from making these muffins! 🙂 You can use half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose white flour in this recipe (instead of whole wheat pastry flour), OR they would work using all white flour as well. But hopefully one day you'll get to try whole wheat pastry flour! 😉 Thanks for the comment and have a great weekend!
Fabulous, thanks. I will try this one!
Enjoy, Bec! This is my go-to recipe for using up overripe bananas and it's definitely a family favorite! 🙂
These sound great but I can't have gluten. Do you think coconut or almond flour would be a good sub?
Hi Melanie! I'm so sorry, but I really don't have any experience using coconut or almond flour. I just did a quick Google search and it sounds like you really can't substitute coconut or almond flour for ALL of the all-purpose flour in a recipe:
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2014/01/almond-flour-faqs-almond-meal/
http://www.freecoconutrecipes.com/index.cfm/2013/10/23/how-to-use-coconut-flour-2
Have you worked with gluten-free flour before? That would be my guess for a better substitute, but again, I don't have much experience adapting recipes to be gluten-free. I hope you find a substitute that works so that you can try these muffins, and if you do, please come back and share! I'm sure others have the same question. 🙂
Hope you have a great week (and sorry for my delayed reply...I've been out of town)!
I just made these this morning and they are so delightfully soft and yummy! I only used 1/2 cup of honey, but it was still plenty. Thank you for sharing your recipe!
I'm so happy to hear that they were a hit, Kathy! And I totally agree that 1/2 cup of honey is plenty when you're bananas are ripe and sweet. 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment...happy Friday!
Yum! I want to try all of your muffin recipes!
I came home from the store to realize I had bought plain whole wheat flour... Think they would turn out okay?
Hi Michaela! I'm afraid the muffins might turn out rather heavy using only regular whole wheat flour. If you want to more closely mimic the texture of whole wheat pastry flour, you can mix half white flour with half regular whole wheat flour. That way, you'll still incorporate some whole wheat in there but the outcome won't be quite so dense and whole wheat-y. Hope that helps!
These look fantastic! I've never seen a healthy muffin look so decadent! I'm going to buy a bunch of bananas tomorrow, I think these would be a great pre-run snack 🙂 thanks for the recipe! Xo Lindsay
Thanks, Lindsay! I think they make a nice, guilt-free snack. 🙂 Hope you enjoy them!
Samantha - Can these magically appear on my kitchen table for breakfast tomorrow?!
Ha ha, Beth! If so, let's arrange for them to appear on my kitchen table, too...because we've polished off this batch! 😉 Hope you have a great week!
These muffins were so moist...it must be the yogurt! And I love the addition of honey, too!
You're right about these muffins...they are incredibly moist between the yogurt and the coconut oil. 🙂
These look amazing! What kind of yogurt did you use?
Hi Michaela! Specifically, I used White Mountain organic whole milk yogurt. But I think any plain yogurt would work, made with whole milk or even low-fat. Hope you get to try these! Thanks for the question. 🙂
These look like a great option to make to start the week and have some to freeze for another day. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Thanks, Becky! And yes, I'm sure these would freeze beautifully. They don't last long enough at my house for me to have ever tried that, but maybe I need to make a double batch to fix that problem!
I could totally go for a muffin right now with my coffee. Great job, these sound delicious 🙂
Thanks so much! These are pretty tasty with coffee...hope you get to try them! 🙂
Hi Samantha - honestly, I've never tried whole wheat pastry flour but I definitely need to get some now! It's funny, my daughter was just talking about making banana muffins, so soon I will have to surprise her with these. They look and sound amazing!
I think you will love whole wheat pastry flour, Cindy...it was a big revelation for me when I discovered it! And I hope your daughter enjoys these muffins! You are a sweet mama to surprise her with treats. 🙂 Happy Friday!