These vegan banana muffins are soft, fluffy and perfectly moist with a gorgeous bakery-style domed top. Packed with banana flavor and ideal for breakfast or dessert.
These gorgeous vegan banana muffins are packed with banana flavor and have the perfect high domed top just like a bakery muffin.
With some chopped walnuts mixed into the batter and some more on top, these muffins look just as good as they taste.
And if you love bananas like we do, then check out our vegan banana bread, vegan banana cake and vegan banana pancakes!
How to make vegan banana muffins
Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is just a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add brown sugar, white sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon and nutmeg and mix together.
- Mash up some bananas and add that into the mixing bowl. Make up some vegan buttermilk by mixing lemon juice with soy milk and allowing it to curdle and then add that to the mixing bowl. Add in some melted coconut oil, applesauce and vanilla extract.
- Mix into a thick batter.
- Add in some chopped walnuts.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin partitions of a muffin tray and then add some more chopped walnuts to the tops of the muffins.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove the muffins from the muffin tray and transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool.
- And then eat one! Preferably while it’s still warm. Yum.
Recipe Tips
The best muffin recipes have a thick batter. There is just something about a thick batter that creates the best muffins and these are no exception.
The homemade vegan buttermilk and melted coconut oil along with the mashed banana and applesauce create a batter that is very thick and has to be spooned into the muffin partitions.
The thick batter also enables the chopped walnuts to be very evenly dispersed throughout the muffins which is super tasty.
The acid from the vegan buttermilk (lemon juice) is what reacts with the baking soda and causes them to rise very nicely with an awesome domed top.
The walnuts are a perfect match here. Of course they are optional and if you have a nut allergy don’t worry about it, you can easily omit them, but if walnuts are something you can eat, then they make a delicious addition here.
Ripe bananas are absolutely crucial. You can’t get delicious vegan banana muffins without using ripe bananas. Ripe bananas are more sugar than starch which is exactly what you want for both the taste and texture here. So make sure they are yellow and spotty.
We used coconut oil because it’s thick so it works great with muffins. But you can switch this for a different vegetable oil if you can’t use coconut oil.
We used applesauce for a bit of extra moisture in this recipe, but you can replace this with extra mashed banana if you can’t get applesauce. I do like the addition of applesauce here though so use it if you can.
Make Them Gluten-Free
You can try these with a gluten-free all purpose flour blend but don’t try them with a single type of flour such as almond or coconut. It has to be an all purpose blend.
You may need to increase the coconut oil a bit, but since these muffins already have so much banana in them, you may not need to. If you do make them gluten-free and they come out a little dry then you’ll know that a bit of extra oil is called for.
Storing and Freezing
Keep them covered at room temperature where they will stay fresh for a few days or covered in the fridge where they will stay fresh for up to a week.
They are also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. When you’re ready for them, thaw them in the fridge and then bring them up to room temperature on the countertop or warm them up in the microwave.
More Vegan Muffins!
- Vegan Blueberry Muffins
- Vegan Blackberry Muffins
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Vegan Chocolate Muffins!
- Vegan Zucchini Muffins
Vegan Banana Muffins
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These vegan banana muffins are soft, fluffy and perfectly moist with a gorgeous bakery-style domed top. Packed with banana flavor and ideal for breakfast or dessert.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) All Purpose Flour*
- 1/2 cup (100g) Light Brown Sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) White Granulated Sugar
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Ground Nutmeg
- 1 and 1/3 cups (300g) Mashed Banana (about 3 Medium Ripe Bananas)*
- 1/2 cup (120ml) Vegan Buttermilk (made with 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice plus soy milk up to the 1/2 cup line)*
- 1/4 cup (60ml) Coconut Oil (Melted)
- 2 Tbsp Applesauce*
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup (100g) Walnuts (Chopped), plus more to add on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and spray a muffin tray with non-stick spray. Set aside.
- Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the brown and white sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- Add the mashed banana to the mixing bowl.
- Prepare the vegan buttermilk by adding 1/2 Tbsp of lemon juice to a measuring cup and then adding in soy milk up to the 1/2 cup (120ml) line. Let it curdle. Add into the mixing bowl.
- Add the melted coconut oil, applesauce and vanilla extract and mix into a thick batter.
- Add in the chopped walnuts and stir in.
- Divide the batter evenly between the muffin partitions and add some more chopped walnuts on top.
- Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean.
- Transfer the muffins to a wire cooling rack to cool and then enjoy!
Notes
*Measure the flour correctly using the spoon and level method, spoon it into your measuring cup and then level off the top with a knife. Don’t scoop the flour and don’t pack it into the cup.
*You can also make vegan buttermilk with almond milk, though the result isn’t as thick as with soy milk. It has differing results with other plant milks, but even if it doesn’t curdle into buttermilk, you can still use another milk if that’s what you have on hand.
*You can use a different oil such as vegetable oil if you can’t use coconut oil.
*If you don’t have any applesauce on hand, then just use 2 Tbsp of extra mashed banana.
*This recipe was first published in February 2019.
- Category: Breakfast, Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Vegan
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Muffin (of 12)
- Calories: 275
- Sugar: 20g
- Sodium: 209mg
- Fat: 11.5g
- Saturated Fat: 4.4g
- Carbohydrates: 40.4g
- Fiber: 2.1g
- Protein: 4.2g
Keywords: vegan banana muffins
literally the best recipe online. so fluffy, so flavorful! crisp and golden on the outside but lighter than air on the inside ! they didnt even last 12 hours on the countertop … thank you alison i love your blog
★★★★★
Thanks so much Anastasia!
Hi Alison, I made these banana muffins today and they turned out beautifully. Thank you for sharing your recipe!
★★★★★
Wonderful! Thanks Debbie!
I have tried a lot of vegan muffins. These are by far the best ones that I have made. I used a little less sugar and substituted half of the all purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour. Perfect! 5 stars plus! I am checking out your other recipes.😀
Thanks Doris!
Thank you so much for this healthier version of banana muffins. They are loved by my friends and family!
★★★★★
So happy to hear that Donna! Thanks so much! 🙂
made these tonight, they were amazing, did it exactly as per the recipe, even used 3 frozen bananas that I had in the freezer waiting to be used. Thanks for the recipe, we LOVED it
Fantastic! Thanks Irene!
This is absolutely the best vegan banana muffin I’ve ever made. I wish I could post my pictures. They were domed and crispy outside. Not dense at all. I put a little turbinado sugar and nutmeg on top before baking. I was tempted to try a different flour but I’m glad I followed the recipe exactly. I used local apple bananas and weighed everything. Although the brown sugar seemed to take much more than 1/2 cup, it worked out perfectly. I’ll be trying some more of your muffin recipes for sure. Thanks!!
★★★★★
Awesome! Thanks for sharing Cheryl!
This recipe looks amazing, can’t wait to make it this coming weekend. My only question is can I use applesauce instead of a flax egg? — As the only vegan in my house, my family is very skeptical about vegan egg replacements.
Hi Jazmin, yes you can! Or you can also just use extra mashed banana (3 Tbsp to replace 1 flax egg).
Good morning! Your recipe now says apple sauce and does not mention a flax egg… If I were to use a flax egg to substitute for the apple sauce, what would be the measurements?
Blessings 🙂
Hi Jordyn, this recipe has not been changed, you might be thinking of our banana bread muffins. For these banana muffins if you don’t have applesauce you can use extra mashed banana in the same quantity.
1 tablespoon flax + 3 tablespoons of water
Thank you for this recipe. This is for the keeps. The taste is so amazing. I had made mine crispy on the top… my husband love it so much… I baked two batches of these for my husband’s former coworkers.
Awesome! So glad they were good! Thanks for posting. 🙂
These are definitely the very best muffins I have yet made NO baking soda/powder after taste and they are light I reduce the sugar to 1/3 rd cup but my bananas were also extremely ripe
I added mini choc chips in half the batch too Delicious and used canola not coconut oil somewhat less than the 1/4 cup
★★★★★
Awesome! Thanks Robyn! 🙂
Excellent! I used 125g whole wheat pastry flour and 125g all purpose flour. Also, cut the sugars but mixing them to 150g instead of the 200g. Best banana muffins I’ve made. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
★★★★★
Wonderful! Thanks so much for the amazing review Nancy. 🙂
I was tempted to alter the flours. Thanks for doing that for me. I’ll try that next time.
First time I’ve made these, will definitely be making them again, lovely and moist and tasted really good, thank you.
★★★★★
So happy to hear that Jayne! Thanks for the wonderful review. 🙂
I have made these countless times, they’ve become a staple in our household! I use just 1/2 cup brown sugar. And I add pumpkin and flax seeds into the batter with 1/2 cup walnuts, tastes absolutely amazing.
★★★★★
Thanks for sharing Kemi, sounds awesome! And thanks for the wonderful rating! xo
Do you use sweetened or unsweetened applesauce / does it matter?
I usually use unsweetened, but it also doesn’t matter. 🙂
Thanks! Will be making this weekend 🙂
Made these for mothers day dinner and they were delicious! Everyone enjoyed them Thank you
★★★★★
Fantastic! So glad they were good. Thanks for updating us and the wonderful review. 🙂
Great recipe. I adjusted it a bit by lessoning the sugar and added 1 flax egg. Sooo moist and good and doesn’t taste vegan at all. Delicious!
★★★★★
Hi Lorrie, so glad to hear it worked out great, thanks for the awesome review. 🙂
Best banana muffin I have ever had. So moist and soft inside, simply amazing!!!
★★★★★
I have made your vegan zucchini muffins and now the Vegan Banana Muffins. I must say the Vegan Banana Muffins win hands down. I used whole wheat flower, 3/4 cup sugar 1/2 tsp baking powder and i left the nuts out. These muffins came out fluffy and very tasty with just a hint of sweetness.
I have so much fun trying out your recipes. Is there anyway i can replace the flax egg in the zucchini muffins i find that the flax egg give the muffins a bread texture. Thanks again.
★★★★★
Hi Geraldine! So glad you like the banana muffins! Thanks for the awesome review. For the zucchini muffins, you can replace the flax egg with 3 Tbsp applesauce. 🙂
I made the other day and it turned out amazing. Thank you for the great recipe. I used 1/4 tsp baking soda and 1/4 vinegar, also I use self raising flour. Definitely make it again. Thank you!
I want to upload the picture but couldnt figure it out. :))
★★★★★
Hi Vicky! So awesome to hear that. If you’re on instagram we’d love to see the pic on there! Just tag us @lovingitvegan and #lovingitvegan. Unfortunately the comment section doesn’t allow for photo uploads. So happy you enjoyed the recipe and thanks for the amazing review. 🙂
Great recipe, we enjoyed them so quickly!!! Thank you!
★★★★★
Fantastic! Thanks for the review Simona! 🙂
H! So excited to try this! I don’t have soy milk or a lemon 🙁 how much vinegar should I use instead? Thank you!
What plant milk are you planning to use instead? Almond milk also makes buttermilk and yes you can use vinegar to curdle the milk instead of lemon juice, in the same quantity. 🙂
Perfect!!!! I only have almond milk. So glad to know I can use vinegar in place of the lemon juice. Thank you!
Aloha! I made these muffins today. I left out all the sugar because my bananas were very ripe. The muffins turned out GREAT! Thanks for sharing!
★★★★★
Wonderful! So happy to hear that! Thanks so much for the great review. 🙂
Hello, coconut oil is equal to virgin coconut oil?? Thank you.
Yes, virgin coconut oil is totally fine!