Deliciously soft and tender Small Batch Banana Muffins. This simple mix and stir recipe makes just six bakery-style banana muffins. Plus I’ll share my tips for making domed, high top muffins. No electric mixer needed.
Six perfect, bakery-style Banana Muffins 💙 Soft and tender on the inside, these Small Batch Banana Muffins feature sky-high muffin tops and fluffy centres.
They come together in minutes using just a bowl and a spoon – no electric mixer needed.
Filled with mashed banana and warm spices, they’re moist and sweet, with a crunchy muffin top. We can’t get enough!
Why you will love this recipe
- Quick and easy: These simple Banana Muffins are quick and easy to make.
- No mixer: You don’t need an electric mixer or any special equipment.
- Soft and tender texture: These Small Batch Muffins are super soft and fluffy inside.
- Bakery-style: Just look at those bakery-style muffin tops!
These are the absolute BEST banana muffins I’ve ever made! The dome was high, the crumb was light and fluffy, and it was delicious! Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
– Linda
Recipe testing
After receiving so much positive feedback from our Small Batch Chocolate Muffins, I couldn’t wait to share another scaled-down muffin recipe with you.
I absolutely love muffins, but for those of us with smaller households, six muffins is plenty. And unlike other baked goods which can keep well for days, muffins really are at their best on the day they are made.
So I knew Small Batch Banana Muffins would go down a treat. And seeing as I already had my tried and true Banana Nut Muffin recipe, I figured it wouldn’t be too tricky to replicate. But just like my Small Batch Brownies, this recipe was surprisingly hard to get just right.
What I wanted: I was looking for a domed muffin, with a crunchy top and a soft and moist centre bursting with banana flavour.
When recipe testing, the biggest problem I had was ensuring these muffins were soft and moist inside. Just like cake, we have a strict no dry muffin policy around here. After nine attempts (yes nine), I learnt a few important lessons.
First, I discovered just how crucial the ratio of dry ingredients to wet ingredients is when making muffins. Unlike cake, muffins typically have a high ratio of flour to wet ingredients like oil, milk and banana. It’s why muffins have a different structure (think tall, domed tops and a crunchy exterior) and why they can be tough if overmixed.
In my case, I noticed that too little banana, made the muffins dry and bland, and too much milk caused them to be too wet and cake-like – losing that crunchy muffin top. The ripeness of the bananas also really impacted the overall flavour (more on that below).
But once we got the ratio just right, along with the correct baking time and temperature, the results were PERFECT. Six soft and sweet Banana Muffins with crunchy bakery-style tops and tender banana-filled centres.
save this recipe
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
How do I make high top muffins
The two muffins above were baked using the SAME muffin batter. They were baked in the same pan for the same amount of time. But the one to the left spilled out to the sides, while the one to the right rose nice and tall. What was the difference?
The oven temperature. The muffin to the right was baked in a hot oven for the first five minutes, the temperature was then reduced. The muffin to the left was baked in a moderate oven for the entire time.
You can see the initial heat helped the muffin on the right to rise quickly, creating that domed top. You can also see it created a crisp, crunchy, golden exterior.
It goes to show the smallest things can make a big impact on the end result in baking.
Why do I need overripe bananas?
Have you ever wondered why many recipes for Banana Bread and Banana Cake call for overripe bananas? It’s because ripe bananas have much more flavour and can add more sweetness and moisture to your baked goods.
As bananas ripen, the starches break down and convert to sugar, causing the banana to be much sweeter and aromatic.
If you’ve ever had a tasteless banana cake or muffin, chances are your bananas weren’t ripe enough.
In short, the more spotty and smelly your bananas, the better!
Jess’s tips for perfect Banana Muffins
- Make sure your bananas are RIPE. Smelly, spotty, even black bananas will add lots of flavour, sweetness and moisture.
- Mash your bananas REALLY well. No one wants big chunks of smooshy banana in their muffins. Mash them very well with a fork.
- Don’t overmix your muffin batter. Use a spatula to gently fold your muffin batter until combined. Overmixing will result in tough, dry muffins.
- Fill your muffin pan right to the top. This will help you create high top, bakery-style muffins.
- Use a hot oven initially. An initial burst of heat will help your muffins quickly rise, creating domed muffin tops.
- Don’t overbake your muffins. Bake your muffins just until they spring back lightly to the touch.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! These muffins freeze well.
Not at all! You can leave them out completely. Or stir through a handful of pecans or walnuts instead.
I specially designed this recipe to make just six perfect muffins. If you want a full batch of 12, try my regular Banana Muffin recipe.
More small batch recipes
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Hungry for more? Join me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for more amazing recipe ideas.
Let’s Bake
Small Batch Banana Muffins
Six soft and tender Banana Muffins.
Ingredients
- 140 grams (1 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 60 grams (1/3 cup) brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- Pinch of salt
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) flavourless oil (see notes)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 30 ml (2 tablespoons) full fat or whole milk
- 180 grams (3/4 cup) mashed banana, (2–3 overripe bananas)
- Demerara sugar or turbinado sugar, to sprinkle, optional
- Chocolate chips, to sprinkle, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200 C (390 F) standard / 180 C (350 F) fan-forced. Grease six holes of a 6 or 12-hole muffin pan well with butter or spray lightly with oil.
- In a large mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and whisk gently.
- In a small mixing bowl, add oil, egg, vanilla and milk, and whisk briefly just to break up the egg yolk.
- Make a well in the middle of your dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients, along with the mashed banana. Fold until the mixture is just combined – be careful not to overmix or your muffins will be tough.
- Spoon out the mixture into your prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle each muffin with sugar and chocolate chips, if using.
- Bake muffins for 5 minutes before turning down the heat to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Bake muffins for a further 13-15 minutes or until golden on top.
Notes
Oil: I recommend using a flavourless oil or neutral-tasting oil like grapeseed oil, vegetable oil or a mild olive oil.
Bananas: You’ll need approximately 2 large bananas or 3 small ones. Make sure you have 3/4 cup mashed banana in total (any less and your muffins will be dry). The more overripe your bananas, the more flavour they will add to your muffins. Be sure to mash them really well so there’s no big chunks of banana.
Mix-ins: Feel free to add chocolate chips and/or chopped pecans or walnuts. Gently fold through 1/2 cup of mix-ins before spooning batter into muffin pan.
Nutrition Information
Lindsay says
I have made these several times now and they are so good! I add a little sprinkle of sugar on top and it is delicious! It is the perfect amount for my husband and I!
Jessica Holmes says
Thats wonderful to hear Lindsay!
Donna Bell says
Yummy, and easy! Came out perfect. I added 1/2 cup chocolate chips to batter and sprinkled more on top because, extra!
Jessica Holmes says
Sounds amazing! So glad you enjoyed them Donna!
Lin says
Really good. Nice crumb too
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Lin!
Terry C says
These muffins look so pretty. Was hoping for more of a nice dome. Did bake them in parchment paper liners in the pan. Would that maybe be the reason I didn’t get the higher effect or I filled them to the top of the liner…too much? But they smell really delicious and hoping they taste the same. But how could they not be? 😋. Just pulled them out of the oven. Next time I may set the oven to 400 degrees for the first 5 minutes instead of 390. Maybe the extra 10 degrees will help. Then it was 15 minutes at 350 and toothpick inserted came out clean. I let them rest in the muffin pan for 10 minutes before removing them.
Looking forward to trying your other small batch recipes. Nice not to have twice as many every time. Just me and my daughter here and she can pretty much eat anything and not gain an inch. Me on the other hand just can have a treat once in a while. So perfect amount.
Thank you for sharing your recipe👩🍳
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Terry, so pleased you enjoyed these. I find the dome is usually created filling the muffin holes to the top and by the initial burst of heat, but you could try a slightly higher temp next time. Is your muffin pan a standard size? You could try without the liners to see if that effects with height – but I wouldn’t have thought that would make a difference. Hopefully your baking powder wasn’t expired.
Melissa Laliberte says
So exited! First time I made muffins that actually had nice tall tops! Thanks for the recipe. I’ll be back to try some other ones! I also love the small batch idea because it is only my ui and and I.
Jessica Holmes says
Hooray! I’m so glad to hear that Melissa. Making tall muffins at home is so fun. And I love small batch recipes too – I’ll have to do some more soon!
Mano says
I made the muffins first time and it came out to be perfect like the ones in the bakery. My daughter loved it.!Thank you so much for the amazing recipe!
Jessica Holmes says
That makes me so happy!
Olga T. says
Wow!!! This was my first time making muffins and I am so glad I chose this recipe. My muffins came out so beautiful,they look the same as at the bakery(if not better lol). Thank you so much!
Jessica Holmes says
Aww that is so lovely to hear Olga! So pleased you enjoyed them!
Linda Chenard says
These are the absolute BEST banana muffins I’ve ever made! I used FairLife 2% milk (high protein) since that’s what I had. My oven temp is hard to control, even with an oven thermometer, it’s an old built-in. I put 10 chocolate chips on top of each one (yes I counted them) and followed the temp and time as best I could. The dome was high, the crumb was light and fluffy, and it was delicious! Thank you for a wonderful recipe!!
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad to hear that Linda! Sounds like you absolutely nailed the bake – delish!
shelly says
Tried this for the first time and they turned out great!! Will definitely be making another batch soon. Does anyone know how long I can store these for?
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad you enjoyed them Shelly! I actually prefer to freeze any leftover muffins on the day I’ve made them. They will keep for a couple of days at room temperature but muffins in general are best eaten on the day they are made. Freezing them helps to keep them super fresh and you can simply defrost at room temperature or even microwave for 10-15 seconds to serve.
Sam says
This is now my go-to muffin recipe. They come out perfectly every time. Well risen and moist. I usually add in some ground almonds and a drop of maple syrup. So delicious and easy.
Jessica Holmes says
That’s so lovely to hear Sam! I’ll have to try that next time too.
Cindy says
I just made these. They smell heavenly and rose to perfection…Can hardly wait for them to cool so I can try them.
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! So happy to hear that Cindy!
KimS says
Excellent recipe, I had 1.5 bananas and was looking for a small batch recipe. I only had 1% or spoilt halfnhalf so I used 2 tbl full fat Greek yogurt. I think next time, I’d actually stir some mini chocolate chips in to the batter.
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Kim – a few choc chips would be so good!
Jayla Armour says
My only issue is it took way longer to bake then 13-15 minutes but it was delicious
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Jayla! The total cook time should be 18-20 minutes. Step 6 states an extra 5 minutes of bake time at the start – I hope that helps!
CG says
This is so easy to make and very moist! One of the best muffin recipe. My kid love it!!
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad you loved them!