Healthy, moist chocolate banana muffins are made with whole wheat flour, Greek yogurt, and uses no butter or oil! Use up those ripe bananas for a sweet, indulgent breakfast or on the go snack!
I love the combination of chocolate and banana. I had a few sad bananas on the counter and I knew I wanted to make something chocolatey with them. Growing up I would eat those big chocolate muffins, the ones with the chocolate chips on top. You know the ones I’m talking about, right? I wanted to recreate them, but with bananas.
These muffins have the perfect balance between banana and chocolate. Don’t expect a dry muffin here! Yes, we are using whole wheat flour, but the Greek yogurt and applesauce help keep it super moist. Use your favorite mix-ins, whether it’s chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, nuts… whatever you love! I like mixing in cacao nibs because once bake the cacao nibs texture is very similar to nuts, which I love! Plus, they are perfect for your kids to take to school if it’s a nut free facility.
I was jealous of how bakery muffins always have the high domes and when I make muffins at home they never rise above the liner. My muffins always looked so sad and unlike cupcakes you can’t hide the lack of dome with frosting. So I was on a mission to find out the high dome secret. Guess what??!! High heat, that’s the secret. Cooking the muffin batter at a high heat for the first 5 minutes creates a burst of steam that lifts the batter. No more sad, dome-less muffins here!
They pair perfectly with your morning coffee or serve them as an afternoon snack that your kiddos will love! Go use those very ripe bananas on your counter and win some cool mom points 🙂
Chocolate Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 medium very ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 egg large
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup or honey
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder unsweetened
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup mix-ins chocolate chips, nuts, cacao nibs, etc. (reserving some for topping)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F. Line 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners or spray with nonstick spray. This recipe usually makes 10 muffins, so you will have 2 empty.
- In a medium bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Make sure that there are no large chunks left. Add the yogurt, applesauce, egg, maple syrup/honey, coconut sugar, and vanilla. Mix until it is completely combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until fully combined.
- Pour the wet ingredients in the dry ingredients. Gently mix until combined. Be careful not to overmix the batter.
- Fold in your desired mix-ins, saving some for the top of your muffins.
- Spoon batter into liner. Filling each all the way to the top. Top each with a few chocolate chips or nuts.
- Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425F. Then reduce oven temperature to 350F and continue to bake for an additional 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. *Do not open the oven while the oven is reducing in temperature.
- Allow muffins to cool in the muffin pan for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.