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Banana Nut Muffins

Banana Nut Muffins

If time and waistline permitted, I could wake up every morning to the smell of fresh muffins baking in the oven, especially these banana nut muffins. This recipe is based on our popular banana bread recipe, with a little less sugar, a cup of chopped walnuts, and a dash of espresso. Lest you be tempted to snatch the muffins pictured here right out of your computer screen, you should know that they've long since been consumed, minutes after the photo was taken. ;-)

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Banana Nut Muffins Recipe

Ingredients

3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tbsp espresso or strong coffee (optional)
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cup of flour
1 cup chopped walnuts (toasted or raw)

Method

No need for a mixer with this recipe.

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl.

2 Mix in the sugar, egg, espresso and vanilla.

3 Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in.

4 Add the flour, mix until it is just incorporated. Fold in the chopped walnuts.

5 Pour mixture into a prepared muffin tin. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Check for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin. If it comes out clean, it's done. Cool on a rack.

Makes 12 muffins.

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46 Comments

I made these yesterday, and they were fabulous!

Posted by: Ellie on January 2, 2007 3:47 AM

Neither my husband nor I drink coffee so we don't tend to keep in in the house - is this recipe okay without the coffee? How would hot chocolate work instead? We both love that and I think bananas & chocolate is a great combo.

Hi Liz, the recipe is fine without the coffee. If you like chocolate, you could add some of that, either cocoa powder, or even some chocolate chips. ~Elise

Posted by: Liz on January 2, 2007 10:43 AM

Hi Elise,

I can smell the aroma muffins now. Great recipe. I am wondering if the batter would keep in the fridge for a day or two.
Then one could have freshly baked muffins every day? Bake in batches of 4 to 6 muffins.
I have also top muffins with a crunchy topping but it adds more calories!

Linda

Posted by: Linda on January 2, 2007 12:16 PM

I was wondering, since I can't eat walnuts, what other nut would go good with this muffin?

Pecans would taste great. ~Elise

Posted by: Anonymous on January 2, 2007 10:41 PM

Liz- I made them without coffee- no other changes and they were great!

Posted by: Ellie on January 3, 2007 4:22 AM

Hi Elise,
First time commenter long time lurker :-D I'm looking forward to trying these. Do you have an idea of how long to bake these for muffin top pans? Thank you, Ande

Posted by: Ande Allen on January 3, 2007 4:36 PM

Hi Elise -
I made these yesterday minus the coffee, and subbed pecans for the walnuts - they were great! My husband said "Make these every day", my 11-year-old said "I love you", and my 16-year-old said "Wow".
Thanks for making my family happy!

Posted by: Vicki on January 4, 2007 3:17 PM

Ohhhhhhhhhhh those muffins are to die for. Thank you , thank you , thank you.

Posted by: Donna on January 6, 2007 1:44 PM

I followed this recipe to the letter, deciding to toast the walnuts. After a quick twenty minutes of baking time, I was rewarded with a delicious muffin. I rate this recipe four stars and highly recommend it for both taste and simplicity.

Posted by: Mary on January 7, 2007 8:29 AM

Just made the muffins and the banana bread - our house smells wonderful and they tasted just as good! Thank you :)

Posted by: shannon on January 14, 2007 2:01 PM

Made these last week and making more tonight. I had cranberries leftover from Christmas and added them too. Gave a nice tart flavour.

Posted by: Janet on January 21, 2007 3:43 PM

I just made these. Delicious! thanks so much.

Posted by: Erica on January 24, 2007 6:38 PM

These are awesome! I always add cinnamon to my banana nut muffins, regardless of recipe, and this was no exception. Added a lovely flavor on top of the coffee and bananas. We put apple cider jelly on top, fresh out of the oven - gorgeous!

Posted by: Amber on March 6, 2007 10:56 AM

AWESOME..thanks so much....yum

Posted by: Dee on May 29, 2007 6:19 AM

I've made these muffins a few times - always with great results (yum!). Recently I experimented a little with the flour, butter and sugar amounts to lessen my muffin-eating guilt (haha, who am I kidding?). They were still great with whole-wheat pastry flour, half the butter, and 1/4 cup of raw sugar (I just like the flavor of the raw sugar). Also, I baked the bananas for about 15-20 minutes in their peels before mashing them at the suggestion of another recipe. The banana flavor was supposed to be concentrated that way, but I didn't notice a significant difference.

Posted by: Heather on August 14, 2007 8:38 AM

Today I tried your banana nut muffin recipe with one minor change, I used 1 tablespoon of molasses in place of the coffee. I must tell you I love these muffins, they are so moist and filled with so much flavor. It is a recipe that I will use again and again.

Posted by: Winnie on September 9, 2007 10:56 AM

I was wondering... what are the actual measurements that we should use for this recipe? I mean, does 1 cup equal 250ml and so on? I'm Australian, I've no idea about imperial, metric and whatnot!

Confused... ((@_@))

Note from Elise: Hi Lauren, you might try using the measurement converter that is in the left sidebar of the page. We don't use metric here in America, so if you need metric measurements like ml or grams, you'll need to convert the measurements given.

Posted by: Lauren on November 4, 2007 1:21 PM

What type of flour should be used? All-purpose? Thanks in advance.

All purpose. ~Elise

Posted by: Lynette on December 23, 2007 8:28 PM

I was wondering whether the expresso's in liquid form or coffee granules? If the former, how much water must I add to coffee granules to make up the coffee mixture? Also, 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour would work for this recipe?

The espresso is in liquid form but you could use instant coffee granules if you want. Use half a teaspoon, or more or less to taste.

Regarding self rising flour, I only use all purpose flour which is not self rising. Baking soda is a leavener, so if I were to use a flour that already had leavener in it, I would leave out the baking soda. ~Elise

Posted by: b@ybee on January 13, 2008 9:37 PM

These muffins are fantastic. Easy to make, they come out perfect every time. (I've made them 4 times so far.) Perfect flavor and so simple. Thanks !

Posted by: mgotham on February 26, 2008 7:49 AM

Hi Elise,

I made these muffins (minus the nuts) twice already and looking forward to bake them again! Everybody loved them and keep asking for more. Thanks so much!

Posted by: Emer on March 17, 2008 9:53 PM

I just made these banana muffins and they are scrumptious and delectably moist. This recipe is a keeper! Thank you so much for sharing.

Posted by: Cindy on March 23, 2008 7:57 AM

Wonderful breakfast! I love the flavor of the muffins, you can taste the bananas. There isn't a bunch of sugar to where all you taste is sweet. After dieting for weeks this is a wonderful welcome treat! My oldest daughter loves these muffins without the coffee and nuts. My youngest daughter is begging for a chocolate muffin recipe. Have one?

Posted by: Adrianne on March 28, 2008 5:28 AM

Absolutely delicious muffins! I will make these again and again. My 9 yr old loves them...even with the bit of coffee.

Posted by: Kay on April 8, 2008 2:05 PM

The espresso is such a wonderful touch to this recipe! I love bananas but have always found banana bread/muffins to be a little bland and not much helped by the usual bakery spices. Not anymore. :)

However, am I just weird or is the quantity of sugar excessive? The first batch I made with 3/4 cup was cloying — and I'm someone who can't drink tea or coffee without sugar, so it's not that I don't like sweets. 1/8-1/4 cup (depending on how ripe the bananas are) seems to be a nice amount.

Posted by: dahlia on April 27, 2008 6:11 AM

I only recently started living on my own, and this was my first time baking something. I decided to try out this recipe because I had a bunch of overripe bananas that I didn't want to go to waste. The muffins turned out fabulously!!! I am so impressed with this recipe and with myself! ;) They are moist and full of flavor. I will definitely be making these again! Thanks!!!

Posted by: Diana on May 9, 2008 11:30 PM

These are delicious. I subbed half the all purpose flour for whole wheat pastry flour. It worked out well. This is a fast and easy recipe that got all smiles from my family.

I always have black bananas so this recipe will get lots of use.

Thank you.

Posted by: Sharon on May 20, 2008 6:15 PM

I use your blog constantly to feed my husband with a hollow leg. I love much fun your recipes are! Anyway-- I made these and the banana bread, but since I'm not such a fan of the texture of nuts, I put them in the food processor for a minute and then added them. It gives the flavor of the nuts but leaves the smooth texture of the muffin. This recipe is fabulous!

Great idea, thanks Amanda! ~Elise

Posted by: Amanda on May 21, 2008 11:45 AM

By far the best banana muffins I have ever baked- awesome recipe!

Posted by: nikki on May 26, 2008 4:36 PM

I made these banana muffins and they were fabulous!!!
Best banana muffins recipe, I surely will make these again. Thanks.

Posted by: France on June 6, 2008 12:06 PM

I just took these out of the oven, and wanted to report. They're an unqualified success, even "healthed up."

I used a mini muffin pan, so I'd have small muffins to pack in my daughter's bento box.

Instead of 1.5 cups white flour, I used 1/2 cup white flour, 7/8 cup whole wheat flour, 4 tsp. vital wheat gluten, and 1/4 cup flaxseed meal.

I just had one hot out of the oven, and it was great. Can't wait to see how they taste cooled! Plus that gives me an excuse to eat another one later. ;-)

Posted by: Belinda on September 25, 2008 10:12 PM

I'm a novice baker but your simple recipe inspired me to use my very ripe bananas since I rather not waste them. I also threw in a ripe persimmon. I didn't have coffee on hand so left that out without any problems. Yum! These are so easy to make and so delicious, I think I'll never buy another banana muffin again. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

Posted by: Faith on November 25, 2008 10:08 PM

I add chopped chocolate to this recipe. Absolutely OUTSTANDING!!

Posted by: Uschie on December 13, 2008 12:53 PM

I love them! This was the first time I baked at my new house in Savannah, GA. I was too lazy to brew coffee so used two teaspoons coffee grind. Also had no vanilla and used cinnamon and nutmeg. They taste yummy. Thank you!

Posted by: Sharokin on December 26, 2008 8:50 PM

I've never made muffins with coffee before and I usually don't like nuts but have to say that I do think the coffee added flavor AND this is the first time I've toasted walnuts before using them in a recipe and it took the bitter taste out of the nuts and made them a great addition. THANK YOU for a recipe that I'll use again in the future. I also calculated the WW points (with walnuts)--5.5 per muffin. An "expensive" use of my points, BUT, I would say very worth it. In the future I'll bake using a mini size muffin pan and it'll reduce the points per muffin.

Posted by: Linda on January 11, 2009 12:32 PM

The banana bread recipe that this was adapted from was the first recipe I tried from your site. It turned out so deliciously good and exactly like your description: simple but perfect.

I've made it more times since then and I have tinkered with the recipe with a dash of almond extract, mixed in some chocolate chips and walnuts, added a half tablespoon of very strong instant coffee, and I have also used vegetable oil instead of butter. It always turns out great because the base recipe is already great.

There are hundreds of cooking blogs out there on the web that I wouldn't know which to turn to when looking for a good recipe but Simply Recipes has been my haven since I stumbled upon it. Now I know where to run to when I'm looking for a certain recipe, or whenever I get the whim to whip up something new: simply because I know I can trust you.

The other recipes that I have followed from here are Suzanne's brownies and chocolate cake, Garrett's red velvet cupcakes, your grandma's oatmeal cookies and the apple coffee cake. , These are always -ALWAYS!- crowd pleasers every time I make and serve them that everyone is in awe that I could bake such goods. I'm basking in my new found kitchen limelight and it's all thanks to you and your willingness to share all these recipes.

I'm looking forward to trying out more recipes from your bakery section. Next on my list is the carrot cake. I'm already drooling just thinking about it. :D

Keep up the wonderful work and may the heavens bless you with more recipes to share.

Posted by: liz on January 27, 2009 5:29 PM

Oh So Good! The perfect after school snack (right out of the oven) on a cold winter afternoon. I saved some strong coffee from this morning for that little extra flavor.

Your food blog is my favorite for recipes!! I discovered it a couple of months ago and just love referring to it often!

Posted by: Denise T. on February 3, 2009 2:11 PM

I am not usually mad on banana bread or muffins as I find them too sickly sweet, but had a surplus of bananas from an organic bag we get once a week. I made your recipe, substituted Bambu (a really good organic chicory coffee-substitute) for the espresso and also cut the sugar drasticly - by less than a third (I used 25 grams, roughly .13 of a cup), as I just don't need the sugar. I also cut the baking soda to 1/2 teaspoon, due to the salt content - then added just a pinch of natural baking powder. They turned out to be so lovely and perfect - just the right amount of natural sweetness from the bananas. My boyfriend says they are one of the best things I've ever made - and considering how much I bake, that says a lot. Good recipe, thank you!

Posted by: Louisa on March 1, 2009 10:36 AM

I used leftover baby bananas in these, and I think that made them a bit dry. But I like the fact that they are not overly-sweet. I would like to try these again with regular bananas, and also add some spices--maybe allspice. I also like the idea someone brought up of adding molasses! One of the best chocolate chip cookie recipes I've ever tried (for instance) uses molasses; it's like this magical ingredient. Anyway, I didn't have a lot of nuts on hand, so I sprinkled them on top instead of mixing them in. It gave them a nice toasted flavor.

Posted by: Purvis on March 23, 2009 7:50 PM

These are fantastic! I don't do so well with muffins, so I made it in a loaf pan and your recipe is incredible! Thanks!

Posted by: dishesdone on March 29, 2009 2:38 PM

My husband and I love this recipe and make it regularly (my husband prefers it without nuts).

A note of caution to anyone making it: I made it in my mixer one time (a Kitchenaid) and it ended up overbeaten and super dense. I recommend following Elise's instructions with the wooden spoon, OR mixing all ingredients with a mixer EXCEPT the flour which should be beaten in by hand. Delicious!

Posted by: Kelly on April 3, 2009 5:40 AM

The recipe was good, but I added a small banana strawberry yogurt to it, to make it more moist. And it was excellent! My friends said it's the best muffin they've had.

Posted by: Tiffany on April 28, 2009 11:14 AM

Wow! Such a simple recipe, and so yummy & moist!! This is the first recipe that I've tried on your site, and I'm definitely coming back for more. Very surprised that so little liquids can create such a moist muffin.

Made minor modifications - instead of coffee and nuts, I added cinnamon and choc chips instead. YUMS!

Posted by: HoneyBee on May 19, 2009 6:00 PM

Made these tonight-DELICIOUS!!! I added chocolate chips and they were even better. Thank you for the recipe Elise.

Posted by: Clara on May 23, 2009 7:58 PM

I love this recipe! Adding 1 cup of fresh blueberries or raisins make it extra delicious.

Thanks Elise!

Posted by: Kim on June 1, 2009 12:49 PM

These were delicious!! So easy to make and my family gobbled them up. I didn't have espresso so I used regular Folger's coffee grounds (fresh from the canister). I of course had to sample the batter - YUM. The coffee is a delicious secret addition! Thanks for the recipe!! :)

Posted by: Eden on June 28, 2009 9:17 PM

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