Easy healthy chocolate chip banana oat muffins
These easy healthy banana oat muffins are a fantastic breakfast or snack and are perfect for lunchboxes. They’re a hit with kids and adults alike.
Ok, I have to confess something: I have made these banana oat muffins every week, twice a week for the last 3 weeks. Not only are these the easiest banana muffins I have ever made, they are so absolutely delicious and my family and I can’t get enough.
If you love banana bread, you will LOVE these healthy banana muffins. The added chocolate chips take these muffins to a whole new level. They add lush pops of sweetness. Use cinnamon, espresso powder and vanilla to further flavor these baked beauties or add pecans for a crunchy bite. The muffins are perfect as a healthy breakfast and are perfect as snacks or in lunch boxes.
How do you make banana muffins easy?
Making the batter in a blender is the easiest way to make banana muffins. This recipe requires a strong blender as you want to blend the rolled oats until they are very fine in texture. Because there is no flour in this recipe, you can blend everything together to make the muffin batter or blend the oats first into a flour and then add the remaining ingredients. You can also substitute oat flour for rolled oats, but make sure it’s gluten free.
Which oats are better in baking?
Old fashioned or rolled oats are best used in baking. They break down into a fine flour when blended. Quick-cooking or steel-cut oats won’t have the same end result as rolled oats.
How do you make banana oatmeal muffins?
- Make the batter: In a blender, combine rolled oats, eggs, bananas, baking powder, salt, sweetener of your choice, cinnamon, milk and oil. You can use maple syrup, unrefined brown sugar, coconut sugar or Xylitol in these muffins. Honey or maple syrup can result in the muffin batter being a little sticky so be sure to spray your muffin papers with a little non-stick cooking spray. Blend the batter until smooth then stir in the chocolate chips.
- Bake: Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF and line 12-hole muffin pan with muffin liners or muffin cups. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups and place in the oven. Allow to bake for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Because there is so little sugar in this recipe, the muffins won’t brown a lot. To combat this, I give them a quick blast under a hot broiler but this is purely for aesthetic value.
- Cool and serve: Remove the muffins from the oven and allow to cool completely before serving. The muffins will last for up to 5 days in an airtight container and they can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Healthy breakfast recipes
- Easy breakfast yogurt fruit cups
- Breakfast egg crêpes
- Tropical smoothie breakfast popsicles
- Low carb berry breakfast parfaits
- Creamy pineapple and strawberry breakfast smoothies
Healthy muffin recipes:
Ingredients
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 3 eggs
- 3 large bananas
- 2 tsp baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp sweetener of your choice
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¾ cup milk almond/coconut milk can be substituted
- 2 tbsp oil canola/vegetable/coconut
- 1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF and line a muffin pan with muffin cases.
- Combine all the ingredients (except for the chocolate chips) in the jug of a powerful blender, starting with the liquids to ensure easier blending.
- Blend until smooth. For a smoother result, first blend/process the oats to a flour before blending with the remaining ingredients.
- Stir the chocolate chips into the batter then transfer to muffin cases.
- Place the muffin trays into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Because the sugar content is so low, the muffins won't brown much so I gave them a quick blast under the pre-heated grill/top element until they were golden brown but this is optional.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and allow to cool completely before serving.
- COOKS NOTE: These muffins will last for 3-5 days if kept in an airtight container at room temperature.
Hiya!
Can I just double check – do you need to use overripe bananas for this recipe?
Thanks
They need to be more ripe than not but don’t have to be mushy.
Brilliant recipe! My son claims not to like bananas but guzzled these in record time. I added 50g of maple syrup and a little vanilla essence but otherwise stuck to the recipe.
Hi these were So Good! However had to sub the choc chips with blueberries as I didn’t have any – wondering do you use the “usual” choc chips or something else please? And Thank you! ??
Just usual chocolate chips. 🙂
Can you put the oats in a blender and whizz into oat flour? Kathy
Yup!
Made these according to the recipe and they were great! Definitely a good breakfast without too much sugar that uses up ripe bananas and avoids flour. Oatmeal muffins are dense by nature – these are like your morning oatmeal, can have 2 and be fueled for a good while. I did half chocolate chips and half pecans this time and would like to try with just nuts and pumpkin seeds for more protein. Thank you for the yummy recipe, we’ll be making it again! PS bonus points for being able to chuck it all in the blender.
Sooo. I’m a pretty decent baker and I followed the recipe exactly. I ended up with enough batter for about 20 muffins. The flavor and texture were less than thrilling. The oats were a little choppy despite a very blended/smooth batter, and while they’re not terrible, they’re also not great. Ok if you’re really craving a muffin and looking for something lower in calories.
Update I refrigerated them and tried another and it was better the second go around. Maybe I just needed to get used to how different they are from a standard muffin.
Delicious and so easy to make
Hi, the recipe says to use 12 muffin cups but the nutrition info says it makes 15 servings. How many muffin cups do you recommend using? My last attempt at my own oatmeal banana muffins recipe flopped magnificently, so I want to do it right this time.
I’ve amended the recipe, it makes 12 muffins. 🙂
Thank you!! Now I just have to buy bananas and wait for them to ripen. The hardest part! 😉
I’m making them for someone on a low calorie diet so I’m going to try subbing applesauce for the oil and sweetener
Hi! Is this 150 calories per serving or for the whole recipe?
Per serving.
Juat made this and turned half the batch in to pancakes!!! THE BEST PANCAKES EVER!!!!!!! <3
Fantastic! 🙂 So happy to hear that.
Amazing Recipe – comes out so nicely! I used Almond Milk and Coconut Oil and Cocunut Sugar as my choices. Kids love it!!
Going to try Coconut Milk next time as a variation ?
The kids love them!
Thank you for sharing the recipe!!!
Love your substitutions!
They are so yummy!! But i have trouble with them that they stick to paper and don’t come so easy off. Do is way how get them out nicely?
You could give the papers a quick spray with cooking spray to prevent them from sticking or you can bake the muffins directly in a non-stick muffin pan.
Great recipe and so much better (and easier) than other gluten free muffins I’ve tried.
That’s great to hear. Thanks Lara! 🙂
Second batch in 2 weeks, by the time the last tray comes out the oven – a bunch have been eaten already! Thank you for this recipe, I struggle with tummy issues and it helps having a recipe that’s gluten freebAND YUM!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that you love this recipe so much.
I made these muffins and my husband ate one and asked “what did you do to your banana bread recipe? This is the best ever!” I then told him its healthy too and he promptly told me to please make them every week because he could eat 2 just as a snack! I’m making them this week for my son’s bake sale too. They’re going to be a hit!
Hahaha! I love that! And I hope the kids love them.
Best healthy muffins I’ve ever tried. They tasted great and you would never say they are so low calorie.
Thanks so much for your comment Grace. I’m so happy you liked them.
Bet these disappear fast Alida! They’d be a hit here!
Totally. I swear Aidan inhales them, don’t know what I’m going to do with him when he’s a teenager.
Oh yes ! Simple and delicious !
Keeping it on brand. 😉