Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins are super moist and full of rich, complex flavor. They’re our new favorite any-time-of-day treat
the ultimate chocolate chip banana muffin recipe
This recipe went through a lot of testing to come up with the perfect fluffy, banana-bread inspired morning treat. I skimped on nothing – there’s plenty of butter, plenty of vanilla, plenty of brown sugar, plenty of bananas, and plenty of rich chocolate chips so that there’s nothing disappointing about this recipe when you’ve got a hankering for banana muffins. There’s enough to make 12 large muffins or 14-16 smaller muffins, but I think you can guess what I recommend.
the secrets to a perfect chocolate chip banana muffin
We tested and retested this recipe (and ate a lot of banana muffins!) and here’s what we found:
- Using all brown sugar gives a super delicious and rich depth of flavor that plays really well with banana.
- Plenty of vanilla extract amps up all the other flavors. Most baked goods don’t use enough. Use vanilla paste for even better flavor.
- 3 whole mashed bananas means you won’t miss the banana in these muffins, which is why you’re here in the first place.
- Creaming the butter and brown sugar for a few minutes gives these muffins a classic light, fluffy, “cupcake” texture rather than a denser banana bread consistency.
- A little extra liquid in the form of milk keeps these muffins soft and moist.
- The perfect blend of rising agents (baking soda and baking powder) makes these muffins rise nicely without any awkward doming in the oven.
baking tips for the best chocolate chip banana muffins
- BLEND YOUR BATTER WELL Getting an evenly mixed batter can be a challenge when working with ingredients like mashed bananas, so take your time to scrape down the sides of your batter bowl as needed and get everything well incorporated before moving on to the next step. Making sure your ingredients are all at room temperature before you start will help!
- AVOID OVER MIXING ONCE YOU ADD FLOUR Once you add the flour, though, try not to over-mix the batter to avoid tough muffins. Mix just enough until you don’t see any streaks of white flour left.
- FILL THOSE MUFFIN CUPS FULL! This recipes makes a generous amount of batter – I like to fill my muffin tins all the way to the top, even mounding the batter a little bit over the top, for nice large muffins. You can also make more like 14-16 smaller muffins by filling your muffin tins about 2/3 full. I find that ovens and baking pans make a big difference with small bakes like muffins, so you might try a test muffin to see if you like the size/shape and how it rises in your oven.
- CUSTOMIZE THE RECIPE Chocolate and banana is a classic combination I love, but feel free to leave out the chips, or substitute with chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans for another delicious flavor profile.
- USE OIL INSTEAD OF BUTTER I tested this recipe using 2/3 cup vegetable oil in place of the butter, and they also came out great. They’ll have a slightly different texture that I liked just as much, so if you don’t have any butter, or want to make them dairy free by using oil and a dairy free milk, go right ahead! I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
there’s a banana bread for every occasion
- One Banana Banana Bread ~ when, you guessed it, you’ve only got that one lone banana!
- Bourbon Banana Bread ~ when you’re wishing it was five o’clock.
- Favorite Banana Blondies ~ when you’re craving frosting with your banana.
- Better than Starbucks Banana Walnut Bread ~ when you don’t want to get out of your pjs.
- Double Chocolate Banana Bread ~ when nothing but chocolate will do.
- Roasted Banana Bread with Walnuts ~ when you really want to impress your friends.
Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins
Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins are super moist and full of rich, complex flavor. They're our new favorite any-time-of-day treat
Servings: 12 large muffins
Ingredients
- 10 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 1/4 cup whole milk or buttermilk
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips, plus a few more for 'studding' the tops before baking, if you like.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, or with electric beaters, beat the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes.)
- Add the eggs, vanilla, and salt, and beat until well incorporated. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Blend in the mashed banana and mix well to completely incorporate it.
- Add the milk and mix briefly to combine.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Make sure to get it all evenly distributed.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix slowly until well combined and there are no dry streaks of flour left.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Divide the batter between the prepared muffin tin cups, filling them all the way up to the top. (you can also make more like 14-16 muffins by filling them about 2/3 full) Note: it's a blogger's tip to pop a few extra chocolate chips into the surface of your muffins before baking.
- Bake for about 25 minutes until risen and starting to turn golden brown on top. Remove from the oven and allow to cool briefly in the pan before transferring to a cooling rack.
Nutrition
Calories: 366 kcal · Carbohydrates: 56 g · Protein: 4 g · Fat: 14 g · Saturated Fat: 9 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 55 mg · Sodium: 223 mg · Potassium: 248 mg · Fiber: 2 g · Sugar: 36 g · Vitamin A: 392 IU · Vitamin C: 3 mg · Calcium: 84 mg · Iron: 2 mg
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
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This is a wonderful recipe! I ended up putting 2 scoops of Orgain vanilla protein powder in place of part of the flour (sifted it to get any clumps out). You couldn’t taste it at all. I used orange olive oil instead of butter. Delish!
This recipe made some absolutely gorgeous, delicious, moist cake like banana muffins I ever had. I followed recipe and I added m & m’s on top for color. They are disappearing fast. I wish I could share a picture of them.???