Almond flour banana muffins are gluten-free, dairy-free, & healthy! Made in one bowl, they’re an easy & simple low carb breakfast everyone will love!
I’ve been wanting to create a healthy muffin recipe for a long time here on The Oregon Dietitian. My toddler loves them, they’re so easy to grab and go, and even freeze, and they are so yummy!
When I started testing this recipe, I wanted to do a completely gluten-free muffin because of so many people in my life who can’t have gluten. So I decided to bake with almond flour.
This is my first time ever baking with almond flour, and I can tell you, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it is!
This muffin recipe has quickly become my 1 year old’s favorite breakfast, and she loves them for snacks, too. Which is total mom-win for me, because it’s one less thing I have to cook in the mornings.
Almond flour banana muffins are sweet, healthy, non-crumbly, and they rise to a fluffy texture the way muffins should!
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What do they taste like?
These muffins are fluffy like muffins should be, and are naturally sweetened with banana and pure maple syrup. They also have hints of cinnamon, which goes really well with banana muffins.
In a nutshell, these almond flour breakfast muffins taste a lot like banana bread, just without all the added sugar and refined carbohydrates! They’re also completely oil-free!
Ingredients
Bananas – a natural and healthy way to sweeten baked goods, including muffins! The more ripe your banana, the better these muffins will taste!
Eggs – The main binding agent in these almond flour muffins. By using 3 eggs, you’ll ensure that your muffins stay together, rise well, and don’t get too crumbly after baking.
Pure maple syrup – A natural sweetener free of artificial ingredients and preservatives. Make sure to get 100% pure maple syrup and not the fake stuff. You won’t regret it!
Almond flour – A gluten-free baking flour that is low in carbohydrates and high in protein and fiber. It’s a little more coarse than regular flour, but can still be used in baked goods if combined with the right ingredients.
Baking powder – The main leavening agent, using baking powder will help your muffins rise well, and without flattening or getting too dense.
Baking soda – Also essential in making these gluten free muffins rise. Baking soda combines with the acid in the baking powder to create little gas bubbles that help the muffins rise in the oven.
Cinnamon – My favorite ingredient in this whole recipe. Cinnamon adds a nice flavor to the muffins, and goes so well with bananas!
Salt – Works to elevate the flavor and sweetness of the muffins without adding a ton of sodium. If you’re concerned about salt, leave the salt out.
Vanilla extract – Just like maple syrup, stick with the pure vanilla extract and skip the fake stuff. Imitation vanilla is full of artificial ingredients and preservatives, and just isn’t the same as the real stuff.
Where to buy almond flour
I buy my almond flour in the bulk section of the grocery store, but you can also buy it packaged off the shelf at most grocery stores, Costco, or online.
Here are some good quality almond flours on Amazon (affiliate links):
Instructions
To make these one bowl almond flour banana muffins:
1. Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, mash your bananas until fairly smooth.
2. Mix in your eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla until well combined.
3. Add almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Mix until well combined.
4. Line or grease your muffin tin. Fill each muffin cup 2/3 full with the muffin batter.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. For mini muffins, bake 15-16 minutes. Eat or freeze for later.
Tips & FAQ
Yes it is! Almond flour is made from grinding up almonds to a fine texture, similiar to regular flour. You can use it for gluten-free baking, but it does require more moisture, binding agents, and leavening agents to make it a fluffy texture.
Almond flour is higher in the protein than regular flour, but can easily be used in place of grains in baked goods.
Almond flour is gluten-free, so there is no gluten to hold the baked goods together. When baking with almond flour, you have to use more binding agents (like eggs or flaxseed) to keep your muffins from crumbling.
When you use enough binding agents like eggs or flaxseed, and leavening agents like baking powder and baking soda, almond flour will rise like regular flour.
To get these muffins fluffy like regular muffins, you need to use enough moisture, baking soda, and baking powder. Follow the recipe precisely, and you won’t end up with flat muffins. I promise!
If you don’t have almond flour, you can use another nut flour in its place. However, it’s not a straight substitution for other flours like coconut, whole wheat, or regular flour, and you may have to use more or less depending.
To use a different flour, start with 1 cup and gradually add more into the batter, until it reaches a muffin batter texture.
In order to make banana muffins rise, you really need a leavening agent like baking soda or baking powder. Without a leavening agent, your muffins will be hard as rocks and won’t rise or be fluffy at all.
If you used enough leavening agent and your muffins still didn’t rise, try adding more batter to each muffin cup next time.
This muffin recipe does have 2 eggs, so if you want to make this recipe completely vegan, simply make flaxseed eggs instead!
To do this, simply mix together 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed with 4 tablespoons of cold water in a small bowl. Allow to sit for 5 minutes to “gel” up, then add to the batter instead of the 2 eggs!
Yes, babies love the banana flavor and the soft texture of these almond flour breakfast muffins. My 20 month old can handle taking bites off of the full muffins, but sometimes does prefer that I cut them up for her.
Depending on how old your baby is, you may need to cut the muffins into smaller pieces or break it up with your hands so they can chew it safely.
You can make 24 mini muffins with this recipe as well. Follow the instructions, but then only bake for 15-16 minutes instead of the full bake time for regular-sized muffins.
For more reference on feeding your baby safely, here’s a great resource.
RELATED: 30 Healthy Foods for Your 1 Year Old
If you store these banana muffins at room temperature, make sure to store them in an airtight container. They should last 3-4 days this way!
Most muffins, including these healthy muffins, freeze perfectly, if prepared for the freezer well.
To prepare the muffins for the freezer, wrap them tightly with plastic wrap, then again with aluminum foil. The more air you keep off the muffin in the freezer, the better and more fresh they’ll taste when you thaw them.
The night before you want to eat the muffins, take them out of the freezer and thaw in the fridge overnight.
Nutritional Info
Almond flour muffins are really healthy because they’re higher in protein and fiber, and lower in carbohydrates than regular muffins.
They’re also fairly low in sodium and calories, too! Plus, they’re gluten-free, dairy-free, and completely oil-free!
Total nutritional content per serving is:
- Calories: 183 calories
- Protein: 6 grams
- Sodium: 216 mg
- Carbohydrates: 14 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
Pricing Info
Each muffin comes out to be about $.49, or roughly $5.98 for the entire batch. Healthy muffins can be affordable if using minimum ingredients!
Other gluten-free baking recipes you might love:
Other breakfast ideas:
Tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comments below! I would really appreciate your feedback!
Recipe
Almond Flour Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup ripe banana (about 2 medium bananas), mashed
- 2 eggs see notes for vegan substitute
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 ½ cup almond flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, mash your bananas until fairly smooth.
- Add eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla to the bowl, and mix well until combined.
- Add almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Mix until well combined.
- Line or grease your muffin tin. Fill each muffin cup 2/3 full.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. For mini muffins, bake 15-16 minutes.
Video
Notes
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Almond flour banana muffins are healthy, easy, and affordable, too! These are great snacks and breakfast for your baby, and even the whole family!
xoxo Megan
Cissy says
I switched it up, used applecider instead of vanilla & added grated Apple & walnuts (I have a double chocolate banana bread recipe which is almost identical
To This recipe but I
Always make muffins instead,, being allergic to wheat & having T2D w/fattyl liver disease I’m always on The lookout for Healthier alternatives 😋🤗🧜🏽♀️
Megan Byrd, RD says
I’m glad you liked it and were able to modify it for yourself!
Oana Mariana Ene says
Thank you! It came out great. I made it in a rectangular form though.Also, I added lots of essential oil Doterra, vanilla, wild orange and lemon as the taste of soda came out strong in the batter. But once baked, it is really tasty and my 1 year-old daughter went enthusiastic!
Simone says
Amazing! Made these for my toddler. First time using almond flour and I was pleasantly surprised by how light and fluffy these were. Will be my go-to for a healthy snack to get some good fat into my little one. I will be checking out more of your recipes! Thank you!
Megan Byrd, RD says
Hi Simone! I’m so glad you and your toddler loved them! I should make a batch of these soon for my little one, too! 🙂
Chelsea says
Like Mackenzie, I just bought a bag of almond flour too but haven’t started experimenting with it yet! This recipe will be high on the list. 🙂 It looks so healthy and easy to make, too! Thanks so much for sharing this!
Megan Byrd says
Thanks so much Chelsea! 🙂
Mackenzie Burgess says
I just bought a bag of almond flour and have been looking for recipes to cook with. I’ll have to add this to the list because this banana muffin recipe looks delicious, thanks!
Megan Byrd, RD says
Yay! I can’t wait for you to try these 🙂