These whole wheat banana walnut muffins are easy, wholesome, and satisfying. They’re just as moist and flavorful as classic banana muffins, but they’re made with whole wheat flour, pure maple syrup, coconut oil, and whole oats.
I originally published this recipe in 2018 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more success tips. I have also made a few improvements to the recipe which are reflected in the printable recipe below.
I have made these muffins dozens of times since I first published the recipe many years ago. I began adjusting the leaveners so the muffins rise a little taller, taste a little fluffier, and no longer have a chemical aftertaste from excess baking soda. I also slightly increased the milk so the muffins don’t taste as dense. I know you’ll love the muffins even more now!
One reader, Brittany, commented: “Such a great recipe! My husband couldn’t even tell these weren’t made with butter or sugar like a traditional banana bread recipe we usually use. They are so tasty and healthy! Win-win! ★★★★★”
Another reader, Jane, commented: “This is a go-to recipe for me. Great for those times (every time) I end up with brown bananas on the counter. Easy. Healthy. Delicious. Wonderful… ★★★★★”
Why You’ll Love These Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Muffins
- Wholesome, healthy, and satisfying
- 100% whole wheat
- Moist and delicious
- Not overly sweet so the banana flavor shines
- Oats add a delicious whole grain and chewy texture
- Flavored with cinnamon
- No refined sugar
- Dairy free if using a dairy free milk
Big sugar-filled muffins are great (looking at you, double chocolate muffins!) but a healthy muffin that’s also an easy and delicious muffin is wonderfully useful. Just like my healthy blueberry banana muffins and whole wheat banana bread, today’s muffins are moist, hearty, and flavorful. They’re also kid-friendly. In fact, whenever a reader asks me for kid-friendly recipes that are also a little healthy, I always suggest muffins. Muffins are quick, manageable, portable, acceptable for breakfast and snack time, and usually require very little clean-up. Today’s whole wheat banana walnut muffins are no exception!
Simple and healthful ingredients can produce delicious-tasting baked goods if we use them right. I used my morning glory muffins as the starting point for this whole wheat banana muffins recipe. I added some oats and mashed banana, as well as a few other small changes.
If you love chocolate you’ll also appreciate my healthier chocolate banana muffins. Peanut butter aficionado? Try my peanut butter banana muffins (also made with whole wheat flour). Or if you’re not into banana, you’ll love these similar applesauce muffins or healthy apple muffins instead.
Overview: Ingredients in Whole Wheat Banana Muffins
Here’s a run-down of the ingredients you need and why they’re important:
- Whole Wheat Flour: We use 2 cups of whole wheat flour as the base of these muffins. You can switch out with all-purpose or white whole wheat flour if needed. I have not tested this recipe with any gluten free flour alternatives.
- Oats: Oats are an add-in and leave a wonderful texture. I wouldn’t compare these to blueberry oatmeal muffins, though. In that recipe, oats are more like the base of the recipe as opposed to a small add-in.
- Cinnamon, Salt, & Vanilla Extract: All add flavor.
- Baking Powder + Soda: Help the muffins rise.
- Bananas: Use 1 and 1/3 cups of mashed banana, which is about 3 medium or 2 large size bananas. If you’re ever looking for an easy way to mash bananas, just use your mixer. It’s what I do whenever I make regular banana bread. Peel and break up the bananas, place in a large bowl, then use your mixer to blend them. You could also use a blender. If your bananas are soft enough, you could easily mash them with a fork.
- Eggs: Eggs add structure and help bind everything together.
- Oil: Oil replaces butter and adds moisture. I love using melted coconut oil like we do in bran muffins, but vegetable oil works if that’s all you have.
- Pure Maple Syrup: Maple syrup replaces refined sugar in this muffin recipe and pairs wonderfully with the sweet bananas! You can use honey instead of the maple syrup, but the flavor will be different.
- Milk: I typically use unsweetened vanilla almond milk in this recipe. The whole wheat banana muffins will be dairy free if you use dairy free milk.
- Nuts: Use any kind of chopped nuts in this recipe or leave them plain. I usually use chopped walnuts, but we also love them with chocolate chips if we’re craving a sweeter treat. Speaking of, if you love chocolate chips in your banana muffins, try banana chocolate chip streusel muffins or raspberry chocolate chip banana muffins next!
Optional Toppings
For some flair, top the muffins with oats and/or a sprinkle of coconut sugar. Both are optional, but I think you’ll enjoy the extra caramelized crunch from the coconut sugar on top. Instead of oats and coconut sugar, add some sprinkles on top of each before baking. Boom! A healthy muffin that seems *almost* like a sprinkle cupcake!
Print
Healthy Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Muffins
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 12 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These whole wheat banana walnut muffins are easy, wholesome, and satisfying. They’re made with whole wheat flour, pure maple syrup, coconut oil, and whole oats.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (260g) whole wheat flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 cup (43g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/3 cups (306g) mashed banana (about 3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas)
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup (70g) coconut oil, melted (or vegetable oil or melted butter)
- 1/3 cup (80ml) pure maple syrup*
- 1/3 cup (80ml) milk (any kind)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped nuts (any kind—I use 120g walnuts)
- optional: 3 Tablespoons oats and/or coconut sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or use cupcake liners.
- Whisk the flour, oats, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl until combined. Set aside. In a medium bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, mash the bananas. Then whisk in the eggs, oil, maple syrup, milk, and vanilla together until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, stir a few times, then add the nuts. Fold everything together gently just until combined and no flour pockets remain.
- Spoon the batter into liners, filling them all the way to the top. Top with oats and a light sprinkle of coconut sugar, if desired. Bake for 5 minutes at 425 then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 15-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 20-21 minutes, give or take. (For mini muffins, bake 11-13 minutes at 350°F (177°C) the whole time.) Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to continue cooling.
- Muffins stay fresh covered at room temperature for a few days, then transfer to the fridge for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: For longer storage, freeze muffins for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or warm up in the microwave if desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) *optional | Cooling Rack
- Oats: This recipe uses whole rolled oats, but you can use the same amount of quick oats if needed. You can also skip the oats if desired, but I recommend adding a little more flour to help soak up some liquid, such as 3 Tablespoons (about 24g).
- Maple Syrup: You can use honey for the maple syrup, but the flavor will be different.
- Initial High Temperature: The hot burst of air will spring up the top of the muffin quickly, then the inside of the muffin can bake for the remainder of the time. This helps the muffins rise nice and tall.
- Nutrition Information: Using VeryWellFit calculator and calculated using coconut oil, skim milk, and walnuts, these muffins come out to 190 calories, 8.5g fat, 25g carbs, 2g fiber, 5g sugar, and 4g protein each.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Very good whole wheat recipe and I’ve tried many. The high to low heat is a great tip. Used sprouted rolled oats, sunflower/coconut oil blend, honey because was without maple syrup (likely tasted less sweet), 1t of cinnamon plus 1/2 t nutmeg, and pecans. Also put straight into muffin tins without liners. Will make again with salted butter because kosher salt wasn’t quite salty enough for my taste. Finally found the best base for experimentation – Thank you!
I was surprised at how light and fluffy these muffins turned out. Very nice texture, just enough sweetness. I got 16 muffins from the recipe. No papers and came out of tins perfectly. Next time I’ll be adding raisins, or craisins, or pineapple. It’s a keeper for me.
I purchased whole wheat flour for the first time and was searching for muffin recipes using it. I found this one and just finished making the muffins. Even though I have never had a whole wheat muffin before, I really like the taste and the texture. I also like how simple they were to make. I added a few blueberries to my last 6 muffins. They turned out amazing. The blueberries added the little extra sweet that my “sweet tooth” craves.
Super good!
Delicious!! Even my teen daughter who’s absolutely “hates any healthier version” of what so ever, loved them.
Thank you.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. The muffins are perfect. I made them with olive oil and raisins . They were moist and tasty. I have tried several wheat flour recipes but the muffins always turn our dry and smaller in size…the rise in these muffins made me so happy.
Great moist flavorful muffins
I just made these and ate one, they’re so good ! The only change I made was I added raisins to the mix and left out the nuts. I didn’t use any toppings but I did use melted butter. These are great! Thank you for these delicious recipes!
Love these muffins,they moist, tasty and healthy. We make them every couple of weeks for our morning snack
Made them and they are flavorful, moist and delicious!!!
Makes perfect muffins every time . I just add 2 tablespoons of almond milk to mine . Thanks !!!
This was great. I got 18 muffins in my tins. I didn’t use paper cups and the came out fine. I added 2 Tblsps ground flax to add to the heart healthy feature. I immediately turned the temp to 335degrees because I have a convection oven and it runs hot. I will cook a little less time on my next round since they are smaller.
The flavor and sweetness level was perfect as I don’t have a huge sweet tooth, muffins turned out gorgeous but a little dry. Do you have any reccomendations on how to introduce a bit more moisture for next time? I think I will try using butter instead of coconut oil and maybe some honey in my next batch.
Hi Ray, thanks so much for trying these muffins! How did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure that the flour isn’t over measured, which can dry them out. It’s possible they were slightly over baked, too, if they seem a bit dry. Hope these tips help for next time!
Made it today. The only. Hanger I made is using vegetable oil instead of coconut oil. I also baked it only for 12 min once I lowered the temp to 350 as I have a convection oven. They are moist but not too sweet. Not sure if my husband will like it as he likes everything too sweet. Maybe next time I will just add a little bit more maple syrup. Thanks for the recipe.
The muffins are great. The only changes I made was I used half maple syrup and half honey because I didn’t have enough maple syrup. I used hickory nuts that were in the freezer since 2013, they tasted awesome and I accidentally forgot the salt. It wasn’t much salt anyway but it didn’t seem to change the flavor of the muffins. Oh and I used 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup of white flour. I trust Sally’s recipes to be the best.
Looked tall and gorgeous, good banana/walnut flavour. I found they are sweet enough (I used maple syrup). My only issue is I found them a little dry. I used vegetable oil as I’m not a fan of coconut oil. I was maybe a smidge short of the required amount of bananas. My only other thought is they could have come out of the oven a minute sooner. I set the timer for 14 minutes after I turned down the temperature, but I should have checked on them sooner.
I love these muffins. I always make banana muffins, however, they’re much more sweeter. These baked beautifully. Thank you for your recipe and good tips, e.g. the range of oven temps.
Awesome! I make your healthier chocolate banana muffins at least once every week, and everyone in my family loves them! I used whole pecans(forgot to chop ’em….. oops), maple syrup, and white whole wheat flour which I love to use because it has all the nutrients of ww flour! Thanks for this amazing recipe! (P.S. I made a half batch because I only had my 6-cup muffin tin, still awesome)
This Is a healthy, very walnutty muffin, which I appreciate. I found it to be not sweet enough though,and I don’t have the biggest sweet tooth in the world. Maybe more maple syrup would help or an addition of some honey?
Totally agree with everything you said. Even with 3 ripe bananas, this was hardly sweet at all. That being said, it was a great way to use up bananas without feeling guilty about creating excess junky baked goods. I did half of mine with walnuts and half without by mixing in 1/2 cup of chopped nuts after filling 6 muffin cups with nut-free batter. I like walnuts but my family doesn’t. Win win.
I just made these muffins. They are excellent! Thank you!
Excellent!
This recipe came together quick and easy! They are moist and delicious and approved by my husband who is a banana bread/muffin aficionado. I used a bourbon barrel infused pure maple syrup and pecans and topped with oats. They looked so pretty! Thanks Sally!!!
I just made these to use some overripe bananas and they’re so delicious! I did make a couple substitutions – brown sugar instead of maple syrup because who can afford luxuries like maple syrup these days? And I used chocolate chips instead of nuts so they’re school safe for my daughter. I’ll definitely make them again!
Another muffin winner! Mine turned out perfectly, even though I forgot to add the oats. I’ve been on a healthy muffin kick this week (this was my fourth batch in 3 days). Whenever I make any kind of muffin, I use the baking method from this recipe – high heat for 5 minutes, then decrease to 350. I love the height this produces.
These are excellent!
I made these today, and traded raisins for the nuts, and they are fantastic. So moist! This recipe is a keeper.
Great recipe. Used 2% Greek yogurt for the milk, added cocoa powder, chocolate chips and diced dried apricots. Have one with a fresh cup of coffee, nothing better to start you day.
These are great! My partner was put on a low sugar and low carb diet by his doctor, so I cannot make normal banana muffins right now. I used about 2/3 King Arthur keto flour and 1/3 all purpose. I did not include any extra sugar on top, just the maple syrup in the batter. These are really great, despite being less sweet than I would prefer. I’m not a huge fan of maple, so I was pleasantly surprised that they don’t really taste very maple-y. I am definitely going to make these again.
Can this recipe be made into a loaf?
Hi Heather, this muffin batter can be baked in a loaf pan, yes. We’re unsure of the exact bake time, but we would bake it at 350°F (177°C).
Can these be made into mini muffins?
Hi Thea, you sure can! For mini muffins, bake 11-13 minutes at 350°F.
Very popular recipe in our house from the grandson right up to the grandpa!
I’d like to comment on these again just to say how moist they still are, even after having them in the fridge for almost 2 weeks! And they’re still super flavorful too. I’m definitely making these again.