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
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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!
Brianna says
Oh I love these!! The brown sugar and walnut topping gives a slight crunch and as my 8 year old says “has great texture”. Definitely keeping this recipe for future muffins! I might add nutmeg and a bit more brown sugar in the topping next time. Great recipe overall! Very moist and fluffy!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Norma says
Dear Allison, l am an experienced baker and since this recipe was similar to one of my own, l printed it to give to my neighbor. Please try to do this yourself and you will be shocked at how the amount assigned to ingredients is changed. (Eg. 0.8 eggs, 0.27 cup of sugar) l have no idea what kind of numeric system is being used, but to a beginner it could mean a disaster and enormous waste.
I corrected the print, going back to the original display.
Thank you
Allison says
Hi, Norma. When you click on the “print recipe” button there is an option to change the serving size, which will alter the quantity of ingredients. You might have inadvertently clicked that and changed it to an “odd” size which is why it displayed different measurements.
Deborah Canady says
Absolutely delicious. I added blueberries, chia, and flaxseeds, and altered the spice and I’m one happy lady.
Allison says
Thanks for the kind review. I’m glad you enjoyed them! 🙂
Shelly says
These were absolutely amazing! Excellent recipe, thank you for sharing. This one is being saved. I look forward to trying some of the other recipes you have posted.
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. ?
Kristi says
Simple ingredients, easy instructions, and packed with flavor!! These were soooooo delicious?
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Chris says
Very easy to make, and so very tasty!
Entire family enjoyed, and completely devoured them!
Back to the kitchen!!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Mike Cornelius says
I just made these, they turned out OK, but it could be user error. I didn’t have baking SODA so I used baking powder and also didn’t have brown sugar and swapped with an equal portion of raw sugar. I found I needed at least 7 mins added to the cooking time, but for some reason still seem a bit undercooked?!? They don’t peel nicely from the cupcake cups? Was that another mistake I made? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Allison says
Hi, Mike. Several things:
1) The sugar swap that you made will change the final product. The moisture (and sweetness) from brown sugar is what makes this recipe so good. Raw sugar is dry and coarse compared to brown sugar which is moist and soft.
2) Regarding the bake time: did you divide the batter into 15 muffin cups (as stated in the recipe) or did you squeeze the batter into 12 cups?
3) I don’t use cupcake/muffin liners for this recipe. I just put the batter directly into a greased pan (step 4 in the instructions).
Dawn says
These are fabulous! I don’t bake often, and when I do, things do not generally come out well. However, this recipe is easy to follow, and the muffins came out perfect. I’ll definitely be making these again. Thank you!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Megan says
I just made these and my husband, who is the chef in the family, rated them a 9.5 out of 10!!! They were amazing and I will be making them again!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them. 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Colleen says
Loved this recipe!!! Thank you for sharing!!!
Allison says
You’re welcome! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Karla says
I’m a terrible baker, I have a short attention span and this is my first repeatable success!! Simple, easy to follow and DELICIOUS!! My husband usually doesn’t like bananas, now he eyes them waiting for them to get too ripe for me to eat because he LOVES these muffins! Thank you, I will be trying more recipes of yours!
Allison says
Yay! I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. 🙂