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
Jump to:
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.
Visual recipe overview
*Full recipe below in recipe card*
Step 1
Whisk melted butter and brown sugar.
Step 2
Add eggs, vanilla, and mashed banana.
Step 3
Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt. Followed by chopped nuts.
Step 4
Scoop the batter into a muffin pan and sprinkle the top of each muffin with brown sugar and chopped nuts.
Step 5
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the top is golden brown.
Banana nut muffin ingredient swaps
Less sugar: Reduce the brown sugar to ½ cup (in the batter). I still recommend sprinkling brown sugar on top.
No butter: Swap the melted butter for melted coconut oil or mild olive oil.
Gluten free: Swap the all purpose flour for a 1:1 gluten free baking blend.
Whole grain: Swap ¾ cup of the all purpose flour for white whole wheat flour.
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.
Want a high dome? Check your oven temp! More on this below.
Technique: how to get a high dome on muffins
Oven temp
In order to get a nice dome on your muffins it is important that your oven is all the way up to temperature before adding the pan of muffins. The high heat activates the leavening agents leading to a better rise.
IMPORTANT: When your oven beeps that is preheated, it’s highly likely that it is NOT actually all the way up to temperature. I use an oven thermometer and wait until that indicates the temperature I’m looking for. Note: in my oven that often takes an additional 8 minutes or so.
Recipe
Banana Nut Muffins
Ingredients
Muffins:
- ½ cup unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly
- ⅔ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed, make sure it is fresh and soft
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups mashed very ripe bananas , about 3-4 bananas
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour, fluff the flour, lightly scoop and level
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
- ½ cup chopped walnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, or hazelnuts
Topping:
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons chopped walnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, or hazelnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (see note).
- In a large bowl, whisk melted butter and ⅔ cup brown sugar until well combined, about 1 full minute. Add eggs, mashed banana, and vanilla, whisking until combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula to lightly stir the batter until almost combined. Add ½ cup chopped nuts and stir until no streaks of flour remain. Be careful not to over-mix.
- Grease or line 15 standard-sized muffin cups and divide the batter evenly among the cups. Sprinkle the top of the each cup with brown sugar and chopped walnuts (topping). Bake for 14-17 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool.
Video
Notes
Oven temp:
Make sure your oven is fully up to 350°F before adding the muffins (this helps with the rise). I use an oven thermometer and bake based on that temp, not the temp displayed on the oven itself.Serving and storage:
These muffins are best the day they are made; however, leftovers can be stored tightly-covered at room temperature for up to 2 days, or refrigerated for several days longer. Serve warm, reheated in the microwave or toaster oven.Ingredient swaps:
See full post for several ingredient swaps including gluten free and reduced sugar.Half recipe:
Recipe can be halved. You’ll get 7-8 muffins, bake time will be about the same.Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Andrea says
When I made these I made 3 batches for a group hang out and everyone loved them. The first were with walnuts without cinnamon, second without walnuts and we put extra cinnamon, and my third and favorite we added a half cup of chocolate chips and they were perfect warm out of the oven or even just a few seconds in the microwave
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Louise Jung says
Anyone tried freezing these individually? Wonder how they are a week or so later?
Allison says
Hi, Louise. I have frozen them before. The brown sugar topping tends to soften, but other than that they are fine. Enjoy!
Cyndy says
I was looking for a good basic banana nut muffin recipe I could modify to make a little healthier and this recipe was perfect. I especially loved the topping! I used plain Greek yogurt instead of the butter, and changed the flour to 1 cup regular white flour and 3/4 cup whole wheat. I also added 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg. Best banana nut muffins ever!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Stephanie says
Did you use non-fat Greek yogurt? Just curious
M says
Added shredded zuchinni, nutmeg and sub apple sauce for half the butter. Amazing Yum!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! 🙂
Ruth says
These turned out looking like the picture. BUT, WOW, sorry they tasted like a diet muffin. No flavor, definitely needed more sugar. I like to enjoy my food.
Allison says
Sorry to hear that. That’s not a complaint I’ve heard before. Did you use the correct amount of butter and sugar?
Kendle Stevens says
It could have been the ripeness of your bananas. I have a couple recipes that use exclusively bananas for sweetener and they don’t work unless the bananas are overripe.
PAMELA HETZEL says
Can I half the recipe? There is only 2 of us.
Allison says
Sure, that should be fine.
Tana says
I thought the muffins were perfect. Beautiful. Looking and the taste was amazing
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Cristen says
Super good basic recipe. you could do a lot of different things with these. I love the idea to throw chocolate chips in there… I doubled the walnuts and doubled the topping. And I wanted to make the cleanup easier so I did everything in one bowl and it worked out fine.
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Martha says
My son, who has autism, is the pickiest eater ever. We tried these muffins together and agreed: each mouthful is simply a mouthful of happiness. Thanks for sharing this recipe. It’s going into my book of standards.
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Arta says
I have been baking these muffins for a year now and I absolutely love them. I like to add in some chocolate chips to add a hint of sweetness! The only thing I do differently is that I cook for at least 30 mins because when I did it for 15 the first few times, I felt that it was too raw and my family didn’t like that. I make sure they look golden brown before I take them out! Thank you for sharing!!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂