These Banana Nut Muffins taste better than a bakery!  Super moist, tender, loaded with bananas, studded with chopped walnuts and topped with (MORE!) honey coated nuts, you will want to make this muffin recipe again and again!  Plus, these muffins are easy to prepare, made with basic kitchen ingredients (plus 3 ripe bananas) and freeze beautifully!

Updated:  This post was originally published in March 2019.  I updated the post below to include more information about banana muffins.  I also added step by step photos, plus a recipe video to show you how quick and easy these nut muffins are to make!

Hey, friends!

Welcome to the week of bananas!  While I swear this banana recipe overload was totally unplanned, I for one, am not mad about it.  I mean, gimme all the nutrients wrapped up in the form of a humble fruit (or berry if you want to get botanical with it)!

So, if you are like me and could eat bananas for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dessert and at every snack in between, I’ve totally got you covered!

But, regardless of whether you consider the Tally Man your BFF or not, I promise todays muffins will be a hit with everyone!

Banana Nut Muffins

Soft yet dense, moist, bakery-style muffins loaded with real bananas, spiced with warm cinnamon and studded with crunchy walnuts.  Topped with sticky, sweet honey drenched walnuts, these muffins are irresistibly delicious!!

But, if you want to take these banana nut muffins to the next level of yum – slather them with a sweet and savory homemade cinnamon honey butter.  Seriously, the combination of tender crumbed muffins with soft cinnamon butter is outrageously delish!

These muffins are perfect for breakfasts and snacks on the go, a wonderful addition to brunch spreads, and they are fabulous drizzled with honey for dessert!

While these banana muffins aren’t a one bowl situation, they are super quick and easy to throw together, plus they are made with basic kitchen ingredients (plus 3 ripe bananas)!  Besides, they are so moist and flavorful, they are worth the extra bowl!

What are banana nut muffins?

Banana nut muffins are soft and moist muffins loaded with real mashed ripe bananas and studded with chopped nuts.  They are a great way to use up bananas that are overly ripe and make a delicious breakfast, snack or dessert!

How to make banana nut muffins moist?

To ensure your banana muffins turn out moist, make sure you use overripe bananas!  The riper the banana the better (just make sure it isn’t rotten).

As well, using melted butter, eggs and brown sugar, plus a fourth of a cup of milk will give your muffins an incredibly soft, buttery and moist texture.

Also, to guarantee your muffins are tender, make sure you combine your wet and dry ingredients until they are just mixed.  The muffin batter should still be a little lumpy.  If you overmix your batter the muffins will turn out too dense and chewy.

Why are my banana muffins dense?

If your muffins come out dense, you overmixed the batter.  When you mix batter you are developing gluten and, the more you mix your muffin batter, the more gluten you are developing.  Overmixing will over-develop the gluten in the batter and cause the muffins to be very dense and slightly rubbery instead of light and tender.

Tips to prevent overmixing:

• Scrape down the sides of the bowl.  It is imperative you stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl between ingredient additions to ensure ingredients are incorporated.  This will also help you avoid overmixing at the end.
• Fold in the dry ingredients.  Make sure you use a rubber spatula to gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.  If you use a handheld or stand mixer, chances are you are going to overmix the batter.

How long to bake banana muffins?

The length of time banana bread muffins take to bake will depend on the temperature of your oven.  These banana honey muffins will take approximately 20-22 minutes to bake.  You should always bake your muffins until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean (a few moist crumbs is fine).

The secret to muffins with a high rise and gorgeous muffin top (the best part!) is baking the muffins initially at 425 degrees F for 5 minutes, and then reducing the oven temperature to 350 degrees F for the remainder of baking.  The initial burst of hot air allows the muffins to spring up and rise tall.  This genius secret muffin trick is from Sally’s Baking Addiction, and I absolutely swear by it!!!

How to store banana nut muffins?

Before storing muffins, make sure you allow the muffins to cool completely on a wire rack.  Store banana bread muffins in an airtight container lined with a sheet of paper towels.  Make sure you place the muffins in a single layer and cover the top of the muffins with another sheet of paper towels as well.

Since muffins release moisture as they are stored, it is important to line both the bottom of the container and the top of the muffins with paper towels.  The paper towels will absorb the excess moisture from the muffins and allow them to stay fresher for longer.

How long do banana nut muffins last?

Muffins always taste best the day they are made.  However, properly stored muffins will last up to 4 days.  Alternatively, muffins can be frozen (directions below).

Can you freeze banana muffins?

Banana muffins freeze beautifully.  To freeze, allow the muffins to cool completely on a wire rack before wrapping them individually in plastic wrap and then transferring them to a freezer-safe zip-closure bag.  Muffins will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.

When ready to eat, you can allow the muffins to thaw at room temperature on the counter, or you can gently warm them in the oven.  You can also microwave them at 50% power until slightly defrosted, but make sure you do not over-microwave the muffins or they will become extremely hard!

How do I make bananas ripen faster for muffins?

Dying to make these banana bread muffins but you don’t have any overly ripe bananas?  No worries!  Below are a few different ways to quickly ripen bananas.

1. To ripen bananas in 24 hours – Place the bananas in a brown paper bag and loosely fold the top. Make sure you check the bag occasionally to see if they are at desired ripeness.
2. To ripen bananas in 12-18 hours – Place the bananas in a brown paper bag and add a ripe apple or tomato to the bag.  Loosely fold the top.  Make sure you check the bag occasionally to see if they are at desired ripeness.
3. To ripen bananas in 15-30 minutes – Preheat oven to 300ºF.  Place unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet and place in the oven.  Check on the bananas frequently.  Bananas are ripened when the peels are shiny and black.  (Note: The bananas may leak a little bit, but don’t worry about it.)

How to make banana muffins from scratch?

These nut muffins are easy to prepare and made with basic kitchen ingredients (plus 3 ripe bananas)!  They are the perfect way to use up overripe bananas you have hanging around your kitchen!

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or use muffin liners.
2. Prepare the dry ingredients:  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ¾ teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.
3. Prepare the wet ingredients:  In a large bowl with a handheld mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with wire whisk, beat the bananas with the sugar on medium speed until well whipped, about 2 minutes. Add in the melted butter, eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Beat well, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet batter and use a rubber spatula to gently fold until everything is mostly combined. Add in the remaining ¾ cup walnuts and fold until all the ingredient are just combined – take care not to over-mix or the muffins will come out dry and dense.
5. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins, filling each tin ¾ of the way full.
6. Prepare the honey walnut topping:  In a small bowl, toss ½ cup of walnuts with ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon and all the honey until well combined and walnuts are evenly coated.  Sprinkle the honey coated walnuts (and coarse sugar if using) evenly on top.
7. Bake:  Transfer the muffins to the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Keeping the muffins in the oven, and without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Continue baking for an additional 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (a few moist crumbs is fine).
8. Allow the muffins to cool in the muffin pan for 5 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
9. Serve and enjoy!

How to make banana nut muffins step by step photos:

Tips for the best banana muffins:

1. You can use either all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour in this muffin recipe.
2. Make sure you properly measure your flour!  To do so, use a spoon to scoop the flour into measuring cup.  Do not pack the flour down!  Use a knife to gently level the flour.
3. To ensure your banana muffins turn out moist, make sure you use overripe bananas!  The riper the banana the better (just make sure it isn’t rotten).
4. Want to make these muffins but don’t have ripe bananas?  No worries!  I’ve included a few different methods for how to quickly over-ripen bananas in the notes section of the recipe below.
5. You can mash the bananas with a potato masher or a fork.  You will be whipping them with sugar using a mixer, so don’t worry too much about mashing them up really well.
6. These muffins are outrageously delicious slathered with Homemade cinnamon honey butter!  I’ve included a super simple recipe for the butter in the notes section of the recipe below. is delicious with these muffins!

Soft, buttery, loaded with flavor and topped with sticky honey coated walnuts, these banana bread nut muffins are delicious plain or slathered with warm homemade cinnamon butter!  Easy to prepare and made with basic kitchen ingredients (plus 3 ripe bananas), this muffin recipe is guaranteed to become a go-to in your house!

Until next week, friends, cheers – to the humble banana!

XOXO

Cheyanne

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The best Banana Nut Muffins recipe plus step by step video👇

5 from 9 votes

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Banana Nut Muffins

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

22 mins

Total Time

37 mins

 

These banana nut muffins taste better than a bakery! Super moist, tender, loaded with bananas, studded with chopped walnuts and topped with (MORE!) honey coated walnuts, you will want to make this recipe again and again!

Course: Bread, Breakfast, Brunch, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: banana, honey, muffins, nut, walnuts

Servings: 12

Calories: 359 kcal

Author: Cheyanne Holzworth

Ingredients

• 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour - spooned & leveled (SEE NOTES)
• 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon - divided
• ½ tsp Baking Soda
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ¼ tsp Ground Nutmeg
• 1 ¼ Cups Walnuts – chopped & divided
• ¼ Cup Honey
• 3 Overripe Bananas – peeled and mashed (SEE NOTES)
• 1 Cup Brown Sugar – packed
• 8 TBS Unsalted Butter – melted & cooled
• 2 Large Eggs – at room temperature
• ¼ Cup Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Optional: Coarse Sugar

Optional for Serving: Cinnamon Sugar, Honey Butter (recipe below)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or use muffin liners.

2. Prepare the honey walnut topping: In a small bowl, toss ½ cup of walnuts with ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon and all the honey until well combined and walnuts are evenly coated. Set aside.

3. Prepare the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ¾ teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

4. Prepare the wet ingredients: In a large bowl with a handheld mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with wire whisk, beat the bananas with the sugar on medium speed until well whipped, about 2 minutes. Add in the melted butter, eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Beat well, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet batter and use a rubber spatula to gently fold until everything is mostly combined. Add in the remaining ¾ cup walnuts and fold until all the ingredient are just combined – take care not to over-mix or the muffins will come out dry and dense.
6. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins, filling each tin ¾ of the way full. Sprinkle the honey coated walnuts (and coarse sugar if using) evenly on top.

7. Bake:  Transfer the muffins to the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Keeping the muffins in the oven, and without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Continue baking for an additional 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (a few moist crumbs is fine).

8. Allow the muffins to cool in the muffin pan for 5 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
9. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

1. You can substitute whole wheat flour if desired.
2. Make sure you properly measure your flour!  To do so, use a spoon to scoop the flour into measuring cup.  Do not pack the flour down!  Use a knife to gently level the flour.
3. To ensure your banana muffins turn out moist, make sure you use overripe bananas!  The riper the banana the better (just make sure it isn’t rotten).
4. To quickly over-ripen bananas:
   1. To ripen bananas in 24 hours - Place the bananas in a brown paper bag and loosely fold the top. Make sure you check the bag occasionally to see if they are at desired ripeness.
   2. To ripen bananas in 12-18 hours - Place the bananas in a brown paper bag and add a ripe apple or tomato to the bag.  Loosely fold the top.  Make sure you check the bag occasionally to see if they are at desired ripeness.
   3. To ripen bananas in 15-30 minutes - Preheat oven to 300ºF.  Place unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet and place in the oven.  Check on the bananas frequently.  Bananas are ripened when the peels are shiny and black.  (Note: The bananas may leak a little bit, but don't worry about it.)

5. To mash bananas you can use a potato masher or a fork.  You will be whipping them with sugar using a mixer, so don’t worry too much about mashing them up really well.

6. These muffins are outrageously delicious slathered with Homemade cinnamon honey butter!!  Recipe as follows:

1 Stick Unsalted Butter – at room temperature

3 TBS Honey

½ tsp Ground Cinnamon

1/8 tsp Kosher Salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl with a handheld mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment.  Serve at room temperature.

Nutrition Facts

Banana Nut Muffins

Amount Per Serving

Calories 359 Calories from Fat 144

% Daily Value*

Fat 16g25%

Saturated Fat 6g38%

Cholesterol 55mg18%

Sodium 172mg7%

Potassium 292mg8%

Carbohydrates 48g16%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 27g30%

Protein 5g10%

Vitamin A 315IU6%

Vitamin C 2.7mg3%

Calcium 74mg7%

Iron 1.8mg10%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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