“Muffins are just cupcakes for breakfast” …. I’m pretty sure I made this quote up but I can’t possibly be the only one who thinks this? If it was acceptable, wouldn’t you eat cupcakes for breakfast? Well, for those of you who share a love for sweet treats in the morning or as your afternoon snack, I can promise these Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins will deliver on flavor! And how cute do they look next to my favorite succulents? Talk about the perfect way to start your day 🙂
There are a few elements in this recipe that warrant the reputation for how tasty these banana muffins are. However, every dish is about the star, whatever that may be, and make no mistake, the banana delivers here. It creates the rich flavor but also helps to maintain a perfectly balanced, moist texture for these muffins.
How to choose the right banana:
I felt the need to dedicate a section of this blog to choosing the right banana because it really does affect the flavor. Bananas are a funny fruit. You go to the grocery store hoping to eat them the rest of the week and within two days they are covered in those little brown spots. I’m not a fan of brown bananas, so mine inevitably end up in the trash. If you are a banana snob like me, try putting them in the freezer over throwing them out. They can stay frozen until you feel the urge to whip up a batch, and you’ll always have bananas on hand! It will also help you save money because you are no longer throwing out 3 bananas a week. That sounds like a win-win to me!
Lets talk chocolate.
Everyone has their own preference when it comes to chocolate. The most common form of chocolate in baking is chocolate chips and they are traditionally semi-sweet. These would work just as well if you’re in a pinch and I’ve definitely used them and they taste great! If I have the chance to plan I always go for a milk chocolate baking bar. The mild flavor perfectly compliments the rich banana and cinnamon. By choosing the bar over chips you allow these big chunks of chocolate to deliver a robust combination of flavor with every bite. Feel free to experiment here and share your thoughts in the comments, I’m sure dark chocolate would be equally delicious!
If you’re coming across this recipe for the first time and haven’t started freezing your bananas, try using the ripest ones that you have on hand. The more ripe (or brown) the banana, the richer the flavor. These will make anywhere between 18 – 24 muffins depending on how high you fill up the muffin tins. I can’t wait for you to try these muffins and let me know what you think! If you’re looking to check out other sweet breakfast recipes, check out the recipes tab for more options!
Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature 1 stick
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 4 very ripe bananas see tips for using the best bananas
- 2 cups milk chocolate baking bar, roughly chopped 4 8oz baking bars
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Combine the stick of butter, brown and granulated sugar in a stand mixer. Beat for 5 minutes or until the mixture becomes light and creamy.
- Add in room temperature eggs, one at a time, and mix on a low speed after each addition until just combined.
- Sift flour, baking soda, and baking powder into a separate bowl. Add salt and sat aside.
- For this next step you will need your bananas! If you're able to use frozen bananas (as I prefer for this recipe) first defrost. Peel the bananas and add to the bowl. Then I like to scrape the inside of the peels to get any leftover banana flavor. Add milk, vanilla and cinnamon to the bananas and mash together using a fork.
- Alternate adding the banana and flour mixture to the stand mixer, and combine on the lowest speed until it all starts to come together and is evenly distributed. Remove the bowl from the stand and stir in about 1 cup of the chocolate chunks.
- Line your muffin pan with liners or spray with nonstick cooking spray and fill no more than ¾ full. Take remaining chocolate chunks and evenly distribute them on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean!
Did you make this recipe? Tag @mymessykitchenn on Instagram and hashtag it #mymessykitchen, or leave a comment on this page!
Abby
Really good! And a great way to use all the extra bananas I always have! I personally chose to use dark chocolate chips instead of chunks and the recipe still was great!
Coletta
I make these whenever I have company and have given out the recipe many times. The only thing that I changed was to bump up the vanilla a little, which I do as a general rule for most things that I bake (personal taste preference), other than that I followed recipe as written. Definitely a keeper!