Easy Chocolate Chunk Banana Muffins
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These Chocolate Chunk Banana Muffins are bursting with banana flavor and melty chocolate chunks. Best of all, with this recipe they bake up with a nice dome and great texture.
In my training as a French pastry chef, banana muffins were not part of the curriculum. So when I went to develop this recipe, I started instead with an old Martha Stewart chocolate chip banana bread recipe that my teenagers have loved since they were toddlers.
At first, my muffins were coming out flat, though with good flavor and texture. After making some tweaks to the cooking temperature and rest time, along with adding some baking powder, I cracked the code. Tender muffins with big banana flavor and a perfect domed muffin top.
Jump to:
🥗 Key Ingredients
- Bananas: Overripe bananas are the best for banana bread and banana muffins because they add natural sweetness and moisture. In this case those brown spots on bananas are a good thing!
- Sugar: I use granulated sugar in this recipe, but you could use a combination of granulated sugar and brown sugar as well.
- Cinnamon: This adds some wintery spice to the mixture. Try cardamom, ginger, cloves, or allspice as substitutes (or combine multiple spices).
- Vegetable Oil: You can use any kind of neutral oil in this recipe. Just stay away from strong flavored oils like extra-virgin olive oil. Using oil keeps this recipe dairy-free.
- Chocolate Chunks: If you can’t find packaged dark chocolate chunks, chop up a bittersweet chocolate bar or use chocolate chips instead.
- Sparkling Sugar: This gives the muffins a lovely crunch and sparkle, but it is absolutely optional!
🥣 Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425° F.
2. Line a muffin pan with paper liners.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (195g), ¾ cup sugar (165g), 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon.
4. Next you will combine the wet ingredients. In a small bowl, mash 2 large ripe bananas until smooth (you should have about 1 cup). Add mashed bananas to large bowl, then crack 2 eggs into the smaller bowl and beat lightly with a fork. Pour eggs into large bowl. Pour in ¼ cup vegetable oil (55ml).
5. Stir gently until the dry ingredients are just moistened—don’t overmix. Stir in ¾ cup chocolate chunks (100g).
6. Put muffin batter into the refrigerator and let it rest for 20 minutes.
7. Then use an ice cream scoop or large spoon to divide batter into the lined muffin tin. Fill the cupcake liners close to the top. Sprinkle with sparkling sugar, if desired.
8. Bake at 425 °F for 5 minutes, then reduce oven to 350 °F and bake another 10–12 minutes, or until muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean (ignoring melted chocolate).
9. Let muffins cool for a few minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully (or enjoy warm).
Storage Tips
Store muffins in an airtight container at room temperature. They will stay fresh for three days, though if you use the sparkling sugar, the sugar will dissolve as time goes by. You can also freeze muffins in a freezer bag for up to 3 months, then thaw at room temperature.
🧐 Recipe FAQs for Chocolate Chunk Banana Muffins
Resting the batter helps the flour absorb moisture so that the muffins will rise higher.
Blasting the muffins at a high temperature to start causes them to puff up so you get a higher rise. Turning the heat down after 5 minutes ensures that the middle has time to bake through by the time the edges are browned.
If you rested the batter and started the baking at the higher temperature, then there’s a couple of other elements to consider. First, make sure your baking soda and baking powder are fresh. Next, make sure you don’t overmix the batter. You want to stir until just combined. Finally, make sure to really fill the cups with batter. If they are only half or ¾ filled, they will not rise as high.
👩🍳 Expert Tips for Banana Chocolate Muffins
As with all of my baking recipes, I strongly recommend weighing your ingredients using a kitchen scale. If you don’t have a scale, make sure to use the spoon and level technique when filling a measuring cup with flour or sugar.
Don’t overmix the batter, as that leads to dense muffins. Leaving a few little streaks of flour in there is fine.
If you like smaller muffins, fill the cupcake liners only ¾ of the way up. You’ll get 12 muffins out of this recipe, though they will not rise as high as muffin cups you have filled more.
You can use frozen bananas in this recipe, but thaw them before using and pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture before mashing.
Want to play with this recipe? Add in toasted chopped nuts if you like. Walnuts and pecans are both delicious. Stir in shredded coconut or some espresso powder. Change from cinnamon to another warming spice. Make these vegan by replacing the eggs with flax eggs and use vegan chocolate chunks. You can also use a mini muffin tin to make mini muffins, but note that these will cook a lot faster than regular sized muffins.
Other Banana Recipes
Love these delicious banana muffins but have even more ripe bananas around the house? Try one of these favorite next:
If you try this chocolate chunk banana muffin recipe, I would love to hear from you! Please rate this recipe and leave a comment below—your feedback is invaluable to me.
And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter. I’d love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!
📖 Recipe
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Chocolate Chunk Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 large ripe bananas
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cup bittersweet chocolate chunks
- 1 tablespoon sparkling sugar optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425° F.
- Line a muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a small bowl, mash the bananas until smooth (you should have about 1 cup).
- Add mashed bananas to large bowl, then crack eggs into the smaller bowl and beat lightly with a fork.
- Pour eggs into large bowl.
- Pour in vegetable oil.
- Stir gently until the dry ingredients are just moistened—don’t overmix.
- Stir in chocolate chunks.
- Put batter into the refrigerator and let it rest for 20 minutes.
- Then use an ice cream scoop or large spoon to divide batter into cupcake liners.
- Fill them close to the top.
- Sprinkle with sparkling sugar, if desired.
- Bake at 425 °F for 5 minutes, then reduce oven to 350 °F and bake another 10–12 minutes, or until muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean (ignoring melted chocolate).
- Let muffins cool for a few minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully (or enjoy warm).
Notes
Nutrition
Instagram Users: Now that you've made these chocolate banana muffins, tag me @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because I’d love to see your results!
More About Molly
Cooking healthy(ish) meals with seasonal ingredients is my passion. Trained as a French pastry chef, I spent over 10 years as a personal chef. Here you'll find well-tested recipes that you and your family will love!
