If you’re looking for a perfect banana muffin or cupcake recipe, this is it. I promise. I’ve made it more times than I can count. I’ve overcooked it, undercooked it, frozen and defrosted it, frosted it for cupcakes, and left it plain for over-sized muffins. It’s good every time.

I’ll show you how to make it as muffins or cupcakes. Sorry, the photos are dark as it was evening when we made them. The coconut, granola and chopped bananas are key to the success of this recipe.

Ina Garten’s Banana Crunch Muffin Recipe

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 extra-large eggs
3/4 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 bananas)
1 cup medium-diced ripe bananas (1 banana)
1 cup small-diced walnuts (optional)
1 cup granola (I once used a granola w/dried strawberries – yum!)
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
Dried banana chips, granola, or shredded coconut (optional)


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin cups with paper liners. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the melted butter and blend. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas, and add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend well. Don’t over mix.

Fold the diced bananas, walnuts, granola, and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each 1 to the top.

For cupcakes: Use a 1 3/4″ ice cream scoop which will fill a muffin cup roughly 2/3 of the way. This will cause the cupcake to bake to just slightly over the wrapper, which is perfect when you’re going to decorate a cupcake. Bake 15-20 minutes until top just starts to brown.

I say if it’s a bit gooey on the top, let it be, but I like that. Let cool completely to frost. I like a generous heap of buttercream frosting on these cupcakes. I’ve made this recipe as mini cupcakes, but you need to reduce the baking time and be very careful not to over-bake, otherwise they’ll be dry.

For muffins: Fill cups completely for a big, delicious muffin top. Top each muffin with dried banana chips, granola, or coconut, if desired. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly, remove from the pan and serve.

I must tell you that if the batter cooperates like this one does, the ice cream scoop method saves so much time and mess. Another tip: I always mention to people that these have coconut in them just in case they don’t like it. If you leave out the coconut though, the recipe just won’t be the same.

See also: Recipe: Spiced Roasted Figs with Hazelnuts and Vanilla Ice Cream

Katie Dillon is the managing editor of La Jolla Mom. She helps readers plan San Diego vacations through her hotel expertise (that stems from living in a Four Seasons hotel) and local connections. Readers have access to exclusive discounts on theme park tickets (like Disneyland and San Diego Zoo) and perks at luxury hotels worldwide through her. She also shares insider tips for visiting major cities worldwide, like Hong Kong, London, Paris, and Shanghai, that her family has either lived in or visits regularly (or both).

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8 Comments

  1. Eager to try this recipe since we often want to use up bananas that are starting to over ripe. Mini cupcake’s would be perfect for daughters school events.

    1. I specifically did not show you the state of my mashed bananas as they were black and a bit gross looking. This is a great way to get rid of them. I store them up in the fridge for this purpose!

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  3. This looks amazing. Actually it will be my first time to try banana for my cupcakes and muffins. Thanks for sharing this. I think chocolate syrup will be a great addition for the flavor too.

  4. First off, I love Ina, just absolutely adore her and can never ever go wrong with a recipe that is tied to her apron strings 🙂 I just made these cupcakes and have my final batch in the oven as we speak, and HOLY COW, they are fabulous!!! I ran one out to my hubby who’s working and I can’t wait to hear his reaction…..but man oh man, they are scrump!!! I agree, the coconut makes a nice difference and they are moist and just mmmmm. I know my kids will enjoy them once they get out of school today. I figured with having 3 very ripe bananas let me make something warm and sweet, and wow, this recipe is surely wonderful and hit the spot. Good luck! Oh, and just bake them till you see that little bit of golden brown around the outer rim, they’ll be perfectly moist and delicious, no frosting is even needed. Ciao!

    1. YAY! It’s always a relief to hear that someone else likes a recipe. In fact, thanks for the comment as I have ripe bananas that need to be made into something and I think it’s these! Thanks for sharing.

  5. Hi! Looking forward to trying your recipe. Just wanted to know if I added mini chocolate chips instead of the granola or the coconuts, will that be ok? Want to make some for my children who love having chocolate chips in banana cupcakes.