We took our all-time favorite easy banana bread and turned it into the best banana nut muffins. These are soft, fluffy, and moist banana nut muffins with a crackly-crunchy brown sugar topping that makes these muffins extra delicious! Try our blueberry banana muffins, too!

“These muffins were out of this world delicious!! My neighbor thought so too. Best we’ve ever had. Definitely won’t ever be using any other recipe besides this one. Thank you so much!”

★★★★★

– Kim

Banana nut muffin topped with brown sugar and nuts.

Jump to:

What sets this recipe apart
How to make banana nut muffins
My recipe testing tips
Optional ingredient swaps
More banana recipes
Recipe

What sets this recipe apart

BROWN SUGAR: Brown sugar is the only sugar used in this recipe. It makes the muffins moist and imparts a deep, caramel-like sweetness.

TOPPING: A sprinkle of brown sugar and nuts on top of each muffin creates a crackly-crunchy topping that can’t be beat!

NUTS: Think beyond the typical walnuts that you see on a banana nut muffin. Try macadamia nuts, pecans, or hazelnuts for something different!

5-STAR REVIEWS: This recipe is a reader favorite with hundreds of 5-star reviews.

Easy Banana Bread ingredients: butter, sugar, flour, bananas, eggs baking soda.

How to make banana nut muffins

*Full recipe below in recipe card*

Step 1

Whisk melted butter and brown sugar.

Banana nut muffin batter in a glass bowl.

Step 2

Add eggs, vanilla, and mashed banana.

Step 3

Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt. Followed by chopped nuts.

Unbaked banana nut muffin batter in a muffin pan topped with brown sugar and chopped nuts.

Step 4

Scoop the batter into a muffin pan and sprinkle the top of each muffin with brown sugar and chopped nuts.

Banana nut muffin in a muffin pan on a wire rack.

Step 5

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the top is golden brown.

My recipe testing tips

Use overripe (brown speckled) bananas, they’ll be extra sweet!

Mash the bananas on a paper plate then fold the plate to slide the mashed banana into the measuring cup.

Your brown sugar should be fresh and soft. Since this is a key ingredient (used in both the topping and the batter), make sure it is fresh and moist.

Use your favorite nuts (or even a combination of nuts). Walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, or macadamia nuts are all delicious.

Top these muffins with salted butter, honey butter or maple butter to make them extra tasty.

A banana nut muffin with a bite taken out of it stacked on top of another muffin.

Optional ingredient swaps

Prefer your muffins a bit more wholesome? You can make the following changes:

Reduce the brown sugar to ½ cup (in the batter). I still recommend sprinkling brown sugar on top.
Swap the melted butter for melted coconut oil or mild olive oil.
Reduce the melted butter/oil to 6 tablespoons.
Swap ¾ cup of the all purpose flour for white whole wheat flour.