These peanut butter banana muffins taste like a treat, but they’re made with whole wheat flour, Greek yogurt, and naturally sweet honey and bananas. Adding mini chocolate chips and drizzling with melted peanut butter is optional, but definitely recommended!
I originally published this recipe in 2013 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more helpful success tips. I also made a few small changes to the recipe, which are reflected in the printable recipe below.
I’m bringing back a favorite! Hard to believe these muffins have been a repeated staple in my kitchen for so long. I now exclude the added brown sugar and sweeten them exclusively with honey, which improves the taste and means there isn’t any added refined sugar. Except for those chocolate chips… a necessity! 😉
One reader, Sam, commented: “These muffins were DELICIOUS and SO EASY to make! I had all the ingredients already in my kitchen! They were so warm and best eaten right when you take them out of the oven! I melted peanut butter with some honey for added sweetness to add on top of the muffins! Everyone in my house loved them. ★★★★★“
Why You’ll Love These Healthier Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
- Made from basic ingredients
- Super moist with loads of peanut butter flavor
- Quick and easy, just like regular banana muffins
- Nutritional boost from whole wheat flour and Greek yogurt
- Naturally sweetened with bananas and honey
- Like banana bread, they’re a delicious way to use up your spotty bananas
Ingredients You Need & Why
- Bananas: Bananas naturally sweeten the muffins. Make sure you’re using super-brown-speckled bananas—the riper, the better. Same goes for regular banana muffins. You can use thawed frozen bananas in this recipe—read about how to freeze and thaw bananas for baking.
- Honey: I love honey and peanut butter together, and try to combine the two as often as possible. Feel free to swap maple syrup or agave in its place. Using liquid sweetener, as opposed to dry like granulated or brown sugar, also keeps the muffins extra moist and tender. And if you have any leftover, make a batch of homemade honey butter to enjoy with your muffins!
- Greek yogurt: I love to add protein-packed Greek yogurt to muffin recipes because it gives them a soft interior without all the fat from butter.
- Coconut Oil: Just a smidge! The muffins taste a little rubbery without *some* oil.
- Egg: An egg helps to bind the ingredients together. (Plus adds a little more protein!)
- Almond milk: Or any type of milk, dairy or nondairy, you prefer.
- Creamy peanut butter: You can use natural (with the oil stirred in) or processed peanut butter in these muffins, but stick to the smooth creamy kind. Crunchy peanut butter makes for crumbly baked goods.
- Cinnamon, vanilla extract, salt, baking powder, & baking soda: Flavor and rising essentials.
- Whole wheat flour: I like to use whole wheat flour when I can, particularly when I make healthier versions of my favorite treats, like this whole wheat banana bread. These muffins can also be made with all-purpose flour, or a mix of both. I usually make them with a mix of both, as pictured.
- Chocolate chips: Optional, but recommended! Grab a bag to make these muffins and then make a batch of Nutella swirl peanut butter banana bread to use up the rest.
Using Whole Wheat Flour Instead of All-Purpose
Whole wheat flour has a big nutritional advantage over refined white flour—it’s richer in protein, fiber, and minerals. It’s also heavier and heartier than white flour, so it works especially well in muffin recipes, which naturally have a denser texture than cake—take these morning glory muffins, bran muffins, or these applesauce muffins, for example.
Whole wheat flour absorbs a lot of liquid, so it can dry out your baked goods. But in this recipe we’re canceling that out with the super moist content of the mashed banana.
How to Mash Bananas
I started doing this a while ago and it’s been a total game changer whenever I make banana muffins, breakfast cookies, banana bread, or chocolate banana bread. Just use your mixer to mash bananas! Peel and break the bananas into chunks, place in your mixer, and beat until mashed. Beat the rest of the wet ingredients right into this bowl, then beat in the dry ingredients. So easy.
If you’d rather not use the mixer (it really isn’t necessary for this recipe), just mash the bananas in a big bowl with a fork or even a potato masher. You need 1 cup (230g) of mashed banana, which is about 3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas.
How to Make Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
The process is really easy. Whisk the wet ingredients and dry ingredients together in separate bowls, then combine it all. Fold in the chocolate chips, if using. The batter is pretty thick.
Success Tip: When you fill your muffin liners, make sure you fill the cups until practically full. They won’t overflow (like if you overfill the liners for vanilla cupcakes), because you’ll bake them at two different temperatures. This is my high-temperature trick for sky-scraping muffin tops. Start baking the muffins in an extra-hot oven; the initial burst of high heat raises the muffin tops straight up. After 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to cook the centers of the muffins for the remaining bake time. It’s such a simple trick that produces beautiful, bakery-display-case-worthy muffins.
You are just going to love these muffins. They are PACKED with flavor, moisture, and warmth. Lightly sweetened, cinnamon-spiced, and enough peanut butter flavor to make a peanut butter cup jealous.
Are These Peanut Butter Banana Muffins Healthy?
I’d say these are a healthy-ish treat. Like my banana chocolate chip breakfast cookies, blueberry banana muffins, or these peanut buttery no-bake chocolate fudge oat bars, they are made with some healthier alternatives to traditional baking ingredients, but still include sugar. When it comes to labeling recipes as healthy, use the best judgment for YOU.
Print
Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 12 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These peanut butter banana muffins taste like a treat, but they’re made with whole wheat flour, Greek yogurt, and naturally sweet honey and bananas. Adding mini chocolate chips and drizzling with melted peanut butter is optional, but definitely recommended!
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (220g) whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), or a mix of both
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (230g) mashed bananas (about 3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas)
- 1/2 cup (170g) honey (or pure maple syrup)
- 1/2 cup (120g) plain Greek yogurt (or regular yogurt; any fat content)
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80ml) unsweetened almond milk (or your preferred type of milk, dairy or nondairy)
- 1/2 cup (125g) creamy peanut butter (non-oily natural style is OK)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- optional: 1/2 cup (113g) mini chocolate chips
- optional: 1/4 cup (63g) creamy peanut butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the mashed bananas, honey, yogurt, coconut oil, egg, and milk together until combined. Then whisk in the peanut butter and vanilla extract until smooth.
- Pour in the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined—you can start with a whisk and then switch to a spatula if it becomes too thick to whisk. Try not to over-stir the muffin batter or your muffins will have a tough (not soft) texture. Fold in the mini chocolate chips (if using). The batter will be thick.
- Spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling them to the top. Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20 minutes, give or take. Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, and then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
- Drizzle muffins with melted peanut butter, if desired.
- Muffins stay fresh covered at room temperature for a few days, then transfer to the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze baked & cooled muffins for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature before enjoying. Warm up in the microwave if desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Cupcake Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk
- Yogurt: You can use nonfat or low-fat plain yogurt, Greek or regular. You can also use sour cream.
- Milk: You can use any milk, dairy or nondairy.
- For a jumbo muffin pan: 425°F for 5 minutes, then reduce to 350°F for 22–25 minutes for a total of 27–30 minutes. Makes about 6. For mini muffins: 350°F (whole time) for 12–14 minutes. Makes about 36–40.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 muffin
- Calories: 225
- Sugar: 16.2 g
- Sodium: 214.7 mg
- Fat: 9.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 32.9 g
- Fiber: 3.2 g
- Protein: 6.3 g
- Cholesterol: 15.9 mg
Reader Comments and Reviews
This is an amazing recipe! Delicious, spongy and healthy! LOVE THIS!
I used Kirkland brand natural peanut butter (oil is stirred in). The muffins turned out soft and nice, but they are not sweet at all, even with the chocolate chips added. Next time I will use dates instead of choc chips to add some sweetness. Just FYI if you want to use natural p. butter.
Hi! I saved this recipe years ago to my email. I loved it! I do see the new changes and I miss the old recipe. Is there a way to see the old recipe so that I have that option to make it that way? Thanks so much!
Hi Rachel, this recipe has been slightly updated. For the older version, use 1/4 cup honey and 1/4 cup brown sugar instead of 1/2 cup honey. And leave out the coconut oil.
Hi Sally! Can’t wait to try this recipe! Do you think replacing half the chocolate chips with chopped nuts would compromise the muffins in any way? Thanks!
Shouldn’t be a problem, Caroline!
Hi Sally! I tried making the recipe with nuts and everyone loved it. I noticed, however, that the peanut butter in the muffins wasn’t very noticeable (except for the peanut butter topping). Is that the way it’s supposed to be or is there any way to make the peanut butter flavour stand out a bit more?
Hi Caroline, We’re so glad they were a hit! The peanut butter flavor should be noticeable but not overpowering. Perhaps you could try with a different brand of peanut butter to see if that helps? Peanut butter can be a tricky ingredient, so we don’t recommend increasing the amount at all since it could dry out at the muffins. Adding peanut butter chips would also be another option. Let us know if you try them again!
These muffins turned out great! I doubled the recipe and used whole wheat pastry flour, maple syrup and chopped up organic paleo dark chocolate chips into small pieces. Also used unlined silicon muffin tins. Made only 20 muffins instead of 24 but I think I overfilled them. Took an extra 10 minutes to be done but they were perfect!
It’s my first time ,I made this recipe and it turn out really really good.I thought it makes 12 muffins but it turned 15 muffins.Absolutely keep this recipe.Thanks a lot
This recipe looks great. I don’t have coconut oil on hand- can i substitute?
Hi AH, you can use another neutral tasting oil like vegetable oil or canola oil.
We LOVED these, especially my two-year-old! I’m wondering if I can sub applesauce for the Greek yogurt? My son doesn’t do well with dairy and now he’s sick so I want to avoid it at all costs!
Hi Kelly, plain yogurt or sour cream are best here. The taste and texture will be compromised with applesauce. That said, some readers have reported success with using dairy-free yogurt!
Absolutely love this recipe have made them so many times! Can I substitute all purpose flour for almond flour?
Hi Ashley, We don’t recommend it unless you adjust the wet ingredients. If you’re looking for muffins made with almond flour, these blueberry almond flour muffins are a favorite.
I love these muffins! Would it be possible to sub zucchini or pumpkin for the banana?
Hi Heather, for best results, it’s best to stick with bananas in these muffins. Applesauce should work in a pinch. If you’re looking for a versatile muffin recipe to put your own spin on the muffins, you might like this base muffin recipe! Let us know what you try.
I justed made these using ricotta cheese instead of Greek yogurt. It worked beautifully and was a lovely way to use up some whole wheat flour and ripe bananas. Yum!!!
I can’t wait to try these! I have vanilla Greek yogurt. Do you think it would work instead of plain?
Hi Valerie, that should be fine here!
Big top muffins! Love how high they are, how moist, and so delicious!
Thank you for sharing the two temperature baking tip and recipe.
Thanks, it worked well, I wasn’t even expecting this, as I’m that person who fails in cooking even when following step-by-step instructions.
Yeah – I did a search for peanut butter banana muffins and this came up. I had all the required ingredients so I made it. So YUM!
We love these muffins! I have made them a few times (only substitute was sour cream instead of Greek yogurt, since that is what I had) and they are amazing. So spongey, not too sweet, easy recipe. Definitely saving it in my favorites.
I have some peanut butter power. Do you think it would work to use it in this recipe?
Hi Lorina, we haven’t tested the recipe with peanut butter powder, so are unsure of the result, along with the amount and whether any other ingredients would need to be adjusted as well. Best to stick with regular peanut butter here.
I’ve used peanut butter flour in place of some of the regular flour and it’s worked well (but kept the regular peanut butter)
Can I use chopped peanuts instead of mini chocolate chips? Thank you!
Hi Cella, we haven’t tried it but can’t see why it wouldn’t work. Let us know how they turn out if you give it a try!
I’ve made this recipe a half dozen times now, and every time they are excellent! Substitutions (2% milk for almond because it’s in the fridge, maple syrup for honey, etc.) always turn out.
Is there something that can be substituted for the bananas?
Hi Stephanie, for best results, it’s best to stick with bananas in these muffins. Applesauce should work in a pinch. If you’re looking for a versatile muffin recipe to put your own spin on the muffins, you might like this base muffin recipe! Let us know what you try.
These are very good! Mine took about 40 minutes to bake but they were still very moist. I added chocolate chips and they added a nice sweetness. The peanut butter flavor is subtle.
This was delicious! I already bookmarked it to make again.
Good morning! What can I use in place of the coconut oil? Thanks!
Hi Samantha, you can use another neutral tasting oil like vegetable oil or canola oil.
I am very happy with the recipe and they puffed up really well. I used half the the amount of maple syrup than the recipe called for because I like things less sweet. I will make these again! Thank you.
Sooo good and moist!
These muffins are amazing. Light and fluffy with the perfect amount of peanut butter for us nut lovers. This is the second time I baked these using maple syrup instead of honey this time – which worked out perfect. Love your muffins Sally – don’t think I’ve ever had one I did not love. Thanks.
These muffins turned out AMAZING. I appreciated the healthier ingredients but they still taste buttery and decadent.
This is a delicious muffin recipe. I follow the recipe exactly as printed. Next time, I’m only going to use half of the amount of chocolate chips. I would prefer a slightly less chocolate flavor.
I SO appreciate your effort to make healthier recipes! I made these, changed out the flour with KA GF flour, Simply Harvest dairy free yogurt for the greek yogurt, and a flax egg for the egg — they came out delicious. Thank you!!
Absolutely delicious! I used half wheat half AP flour. I thought I had some plain greek yogurt in the fridge but in fact did not…I used strawberry greek yogurt and it still came out super yummy! You can just barelllly taste the tang of the strawberry and it goes nicely with both the peanut butter and banana. I would still use plain, but am happy it worked out just fine in a pinch.