Banana coconut muffins bring a bright, tropical flavor to breakfast time! These flavorful, healthy muffins are ready in less than 45 minutes and will be your new favorite breakfast or lunchbox snack.
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Coconut lovers, this recipe is for you!
These muffins taste like classic banana bread with a tropical twist thanks to the coconut flakes and coconut oil.
They’re tender, fluffy, deliciously addictive, and so easy to make. Just whisk together a few ingredients, pour them into a muffin pan (affiliate link), and bake!
These muffins would be perfect in a lunch box or as an after school snack. I’ve also enjoyed them as a grab-and-go breakfast, brunch, or dessert.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Coconut oil
- Egg
- Milk
- Vanilla extract
- Mashed ripe banana
- Chopped walnuts
- Chipped unsweetened coconut
How to make coconut banana muffins
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Add the coconut oil and mix.
- Add the egg, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas to the mixture and mix well.
- Gently fold in walnuts and coconut.
- Divide the batter evenly amongst the muffin cups. Top with extra coconut if desired. Bake 24-26 minutes. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Top tips
How to mash bananas
This recipe is best with very ripe bananas (the bananas should have dark spots, not be green). Ripe bananas are easy to mash and are sweeter than under ripe ones.
I always peel my bananas and mash them with a fork on a plate before measuring them in a glass measuring cup. You could also mash them in a bowl, or even use a stand mixer to get the job done.
One banana will yield about ½ cup mashed. It’s important to measure the mashed bananas since bananas can vary so widely in size.
Don’t overmix
As with all quick breads and muffins, you’ll want to mix your batter just until combined. It might still have a few small lumps, but if you overmix the batter the muffins will come out tough and dry.
How to transfer muffin batter to muffin cups
There are a lot of ways you can easily transfer muffin batter to muffin cups. My favorite way is to take one of the measuring cups I used for the sugar and use it to portion out the batter.
Scoop some batter into the measuring cup, then use a spoon or spatula to scrape it out into the muffin tin. After dividing the batter you can see if any of the muffins need a little more batter to keep them even.
Alternatively, you could use a cookie scoop or pour the batter into a large glass measuring cup and use that to pour the batter into the muffin tins.
How to store coconut banana muffins
Coconut and banana muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Tips for customizing banana muffins
- Fold in half a cup of mini chocolate chips to the batter before baking
- Swap the coconut oil for melted, cooled butter
- Top muffins with the vanilla icing from my banana bundt cake
- Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour mix to make these gluten-free
- For a healthier muffin, use half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour
- Top with coarse sugar before baking for extra sweetness and crunch
FAQ
There is a fair amount of sugar in these muffins, but I’d say these muffins are healthy-ish, or maybe even healthier than what you’d find in a bakery or made from a box mix.
If a healthy banana muffin is what you’re after, consider this one by Cookie + Kate.
Yes, you can freeze banana muffins. Place muffins in a zip top freezer bag or other airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw let sit at room temperature for a few minutes or microwave for about 30 seconds.
More muffin recipes
- Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Apple Spice Muffins
- Vegan Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Pistachio Rose Muffins
- Healthier Double Chocolate Mini Muffins
- Zucchini Muffins
- Carrot Muffins
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
- Mini Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Double Chocolate Banana Muffins
- Banana Oat Muffins with Ultimate Crumble Topping
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- Crumb Top Blueberry Muffins
If you make this recipe, be sure to rate it, leave a comment, or tag #theliveinkitchen on Instagram!
Recipe
Banana Coconut Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup coconut oil or butter, melted
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup mashed ripe banana, (about 2-3 large bananas)
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- ½ cup chipped unsweetened coconut, plus extra for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Add the coconut oil and mix.
- Add the egg, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas to the mixture and mix well.
- Gently fold in walnuts and coconut.
- Divide the batter evenly amongst the muffin cups. Top with extra coconut if desired. Bake 24-26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Mimi @ Culinary Couture says
Totally loving the photography in these post! I’ve been looking for more ways to use coconut oil- these look great!
Dina says
they look yummy!
aishahias says
I baked half of the recipe; using vegetable oil, one small egg, almost 2 large bananas and dessicated coconuts. Yum!
D Rich says
Add choc chips or chunks for a bit of decadence! Great yet quick recipe. Thank you!