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Whole Wheat Banana Blueberry Muffins

Name: Whole Wheat Banana Blueberry Muffins
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 ¼ cups whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour; ¾ cup old-fashioned rolled oats; 1 teaspoon baking soda; ¼ teaspoon salt; ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg; ½ cup maple syrup; ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, melted; 3 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 ½ cups); 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries ((if using frozen blueberries, do not thaw them before adding to the batter))

Published: Jan 27, 2022 by Blair Lonergan

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With one taste of these nutritious whole wheat banana blueberry muffins, you'll never buy a boxed mix again! Combine the batter in about 10 minutes for a warm batch of tender, bakery-style muffins that are studded with sweet, juicy berries, oatmeal, warm spices, and a hint of maple syrup. This is truly the best blueberry muffin recipe that you will ever make!

Healthy Banana Blueberry Muffins

Everyone loves blueberry muffins for easy, grab-and-go breakfasts or snacks, and we often have over-ripe bananas hanging out on the counter. Combining the two different types of fruit, along with whole grains and natural sweeteners, makes these healthy banana blueberry muffins a more nutritious and satisfying option than their pre-packaged or bakery-style counterparts.

The recipe originally comes from The Black Dog Bakery Café on Martha's Vineyard -- one of my favorite childhood spots from annual summer vacations. The whole wheat banana muffins with blueberries are one of the The Black Dog's most popular recipes. Think of this treat as a perfect cross between banana bread and blueberry muffins. They're incredibly moist and rich from the banana in the batter, and they're bursting with pockets of juicy blueberries.

These are not the light and fluffy bakery-style muffins that taste more like cake (if that's your preference, try this recipe). Instead, these muffins are naturally sweet, incredibly moist from all of the fruit, have a slightly nutty flavor from the whole wheat flour and oatmeal, and a more dense, chewy texture. So satisfying and tasty!

Ingredients

This is just a quick overview of the ingredients that you'll need for a batch of homemade banana blueberry oatmeal muffins. As always, specific measurements and step-by-step cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.

Whole wheat flour: a great way to add more whole grains into your diet. Whole wheat pastry flour yields lighter, less-dense baked goods than regular whole wheat flour, so that's always my top choice for muffins. You can also substitute with all-purpose flour.
Oats: use old-fashioned "rolled" oats for great texture and nutty flavor.
Baking soda: the leavening agent that helps the muffins rise.
Salt: to enhance the other flavors in the muffins and balance the sweetness.
Ground nutmeg: for warm flavor that makes the muffins taste like they came straight from a bakery!
Maple syrup: a natural sweetener that keeps the muffins moist and also adds rich flavor.
Butter: melted butter adds fat, flavor, and moisture to the batter. Don't omit the butter, because the fat is imperative for light, fluffy muffins. Baked goods with too little fat come out gummy and dense.
Bananas: about 3 mashed, very ripe bananas contribute flavor, sweetness, and moisture.
Vanilla extract: for even more warm flavor.
Blueberries: I prefer fresh blueberries when available. You can substitute with frozen blueberries (do not thaw them first), but the frozen berries often turn the muffin batter an odd bluish-green color.

How many cups is 1 mashed banana?

This can be tricky! If a recipe calls for 3 bananas, how much is that? We all know that measurements are important in baking, so the difference between a very small banana and a very large banana can be significant when baking a batch of muffins.

My recipe calls for 1 ½ cups of mashed banana. One large banana yields about ½ cup mashed, so I used 3 large bananas for a total of about 1 ½ cups. If you're working with small bananas, you'll need at least 4 (and maybe even 5). Measuring is always the safest way to make sure that your banana bread turns out perfectly moist, sweet and delicious!

How to Ripen Bananas in the Oven

Want to make these muffins right away, but your bananas aren't ripe yet? You can ripen the bananas in the oven! To do so, preheat the oven to 300°F. Place bananas (in their peels) on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until mushy and sweet. The banana peels will turn a black, shiny color (and look really weird!), but don't worry -- the insides will be perfect. Just let the mashed banana cool completely before using in the recipe.

How to Make Banana Blueberry Muffins

My blueberry banana muffins are made with whole wheat flour, rolled oats, plenty of delicious salted butter -- and no eggs (making them perfect for anyone with egg allergies)! They're sweetened only with fruit and maple syrup. No fake ingredients, nothing weird, and nothing that's hard to pronounce! Just wholesome, nourishing, and delicious -- proving that we can still treat our families without compromising quality.

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Stir together the wet ingredients (maple syrup, melted butter, mashed bananas, and vanilla extract) in a separate medium bowl.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined (be careful not to over-mix the batter). The batter will be slightly lumpy, which is fine!
Fold in the blueberries.
Divide the batter evenly between 12 paper-lined muffin cups in a standard-size muffin pan.
Bake in a 350°F oven for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Serving Suggestions

Blueberry muffins are such a versatile little treat. You can offer them for a quick grab-and-go breakfast on busy mornings (just pull one from the freezer and reheat it in seconds); pile some in a basket as a part of a special brunch buffet; set out a few with a glass of lemonade or iced tea for an afternoon snack; or even add them to your bread basket as a side dish with dinner.

We love the variety of a bread basket that includes some homemade bread, a few warm muffins, and a couple wedges of cornbread. It turns an ordinary weeknight meal into a special restaurant-worthy occasion -- and you can pull each of these items from your freezer with almost zero effort! Enjoy the banana blueberry muffins at room temperature or serve them warm. They're best with a smear of soft butter or a dollop of homemade jam!

How to Store Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

Allow the muffins to cool completely on a wire rack at room temperature. Store in a large Ziploc freezer bag or other airtight container. The muffins will last for 2-3 days at room temperature, a week in the refrigerator, or you can freeze the muffins for up to 3 months.

How to Reheat

If the muffins are frozen, allow to sit on the counter for a few minutes while you preheat the oven to 350°F. Frozen muffins will require about 10-12 minutes in the oven; room temperature muffins will only need about 5 minutes to warm through. Alternatively, you can microwave one muffin at a time for 15-30 seconds or just until warm.

Recipe Variations

Use all-purpose flour, white whole-wheat flour, or whole wheat pastry flour instead of regular whole wheat flour.
For less-sweet muffins, some readers have successfully cut the maple syrup in half.
Substitute frozen blueberries for fresh blueberries. If using frozen blueberries, do not thaw them before stirring them into the batter.
Give the muffins crisp tops by sprinkling coarse sugar on the batter before baking.
Add the zest from 1 lemon to your batter to make lemon blueberry muffins.
Make triple berry muffins by using a combination of blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries to equal 1 cup of berries total.
Add ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon to the batter for even more warm, cozy vibes!
This recipe yields 12 standard-size muffins. You can bake the batter in jumbo muffin tins for giant bakery-size treats. You'll need to increase the total baking time to 45-50 minutes for the jumbo muffins. Similarly, you can bake the batter in mini muffin tins. The mini muffins will bake much faster, so they will only need a total of about 12-15 minutes in the oven.

Tips for the Best Banana Blueberry Muffin Recipe

The key to a perfect muffin is just barely mixing the ingredients. You want them to come together, but a few lumps are fine. This way they’ll stay moist and tender! Over-mixing activates the gluten in the flour, which can yield dense, dry muffins.
Fresh blueberries are my preference, when available. Frozen berries tend to bleed into the batter, which can turn the muffins an odd blue-green color.
Whole wheat pastry flour yields lighter, less-dense baked goods than regular whole wheat flour. You can also use all purpose flour.
Let the batter rest for 5-10 minutes before baking, if you have the time. This allows the baking soda to activate and incorporate more air.
To check if the muffins are done, insert a toothpick into the center and make sure it comes out clean. Don't cook them for too long, or they can dry out.

More Muffin Recipes to Try

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