Banana Protein Muffins

Name: Banana Protein Muffins
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 cups almond flour; 1/2 cup quick cooking oats; 1/2 cup protein powder; 1 tsp baking soda; pinch sea salt; 3 eggs; 2 ripe bananas ((1 cup mashed bananas)); 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter; 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup; 1/2 cup chocolate chips

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These are the best banana protein muffins! These muffins are so easy to make and have 12 grams of protein per muffin. Made with protein powder, almond flour, bananas, peanut butter, oatmeal, and chocolate chips, the ingredients blend perfectly to give these muffins the perfect flavour and light, fluffy texture.

Two banana protein muffins stacked on top of each other with a bite out of the top one.

Why you will love this recipe:

These protein powder banana muffins are packed with protein! They're made with protein powder, almond flour and peanut butter to make them a high protein muffin recipe with 12 grams of protein per muffin.
Even though these muffins are made from scratch they are so quick and easy to make and only take 20 minutes to cook.
The flavour! The combination of the vanilla protein powder, oats, ripe bananas, chocolate chips, and peanut butter blend perfectly to give these muffins the most delicious taste and the best light and fluffy texture.
These homemade muffins are made in one bowl so the clean up is so simple.
They make great leftovers and store really well in the freezer so they are a great meal prep option.
They are a healthy breakfast or snack.
Besides being high in protein they are also gluten free, dairy free and refined sugar free and I've included instructions for making them vegan too.
These high protein banana muffins are made with no greek yogurt, no butter and no wheat flour.
These muffins are a fun twist on a classic banana bread recipe.
This is a kid approved muffin recipe!

If you love muffins you will also love my chocolate pumpkin muffins and banana pecan muffins.

Taste and texture:

These muffins are light, fluffy and full of flavour. They have a slight vanilla flavour from the vanilla protein powder that blends perfectly with the flavour of peanut butter. They are slightly sweet and loaded with chocolate!

Key ingredients and substitutions:

Ripe bananas - bananas add a delicious natural sweetness to this recipe. Be sure to use ripe and not green bananas.
Protein powder - the key ingredient for these protein muffins - I recommend using a vanilla or unflavoured protein powder for this recipe - this is the protein powder I use and love which is both vegan and gluten free.
Almond flour - I love baking with almond flour as it helps add more protein and healthy fats to baked goods. Be sure to use almond flour and not almond meal to make these muffins. I don't recommend swapping the flours for this recipe. You can find almond flour in the gluten free or organic sections of most grocery stores now.
Peanut butter - to help give these muffins a delicious flavour and add even more protein and moisture - be sure to use natural, smooth, unsweetened peanut butter. You could swap this for another smooth, unsweetened nut butter such as almond butter or cashew butter.
Quick cooking oats - oats help give these muffins a light and fluffy texture - these are the sprouted oats I use. I don't recommend using rolled oats or steel cut oats for this recipe.
Honey or maple syrup - to give these muffins the perfect amounts of sweetness, while keeping them refined sugar free and naturally sweetened.
Dark chocolate chips - because chocolate just makes everything better!

The best protein powders for making these muffins:

Nuzest vanilla protein powder - this is both vegan and gluten free and is the protein powder I personally use.
Organika Collagen Peptides
Ancient Nutrition Keto Collagen Vanilla Flavour

Note that I have not tried making these muffins with whey protein powder and I am not sure how they would turn out with whey protein. Whey protein powder might make these muffins too dry and grainy so I do not recommend using it.

How to make this recipe:

Step one:

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step two:

While the oven is preheating, add all the ingredients, except the chocolate chips, to the bowl of your standing mixer and blend them well until smooth. Then stir the chocolate chips into the batter by hand.

Eggs, peanut butter, bananas and oats in a large bowl.

Step three:

Using parchment paper muffin cups, line a muffin tray, and then transfer the batter to the muffin cups.

Banana protein muffin batter in muffin cups in a muffin tray.

Step four:

Lastly, put the tray in the oven and bake the muffins for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted inside comes out clean. Then let the muffins cool and enjoy!

Chocolate chip muffins cooling on a baking rack.

Chef's tips:

Be sure to use smooth, natural peanut butter rather than sweetened peanut butter for these muffins.
I recommend using a vanilla protein powder, or an unflavoured protein powder for these muffins.
Use room temperature eggs for best results.
Be sure to use ripe or over-ripe bananas to make these muffins. They won't work out if your bananas are still green.

Variations and add ins:

If you can't have almond flour I would use cashew flour instead.
To make these muffins gluten free: use gluten free oatmeal and gluten free protein powder.
To make these muffins dairy free: use a dairy free protein powder.
To keep these muffins refined sugar free be sure to use chocolate chips or chocolate chunks sweetened with coconut sugar.
To make these muffins lower in sugar: you can omit the chocolate chips.
To add some crunch to these muffins feel free to add some chopped nuts such as pecans or walnuts.
You can substitute the peanut butter with another nut butter or seed butter such as cashew butter, hazelnut butter, macadamia nut butter or almond butter.
Instead of protein powder you can use collagen peptides (either unflavoured or vanilla).

How to make these muffins vegan:

Use a vegan protein powder and instead of using eggs, use chia seed or flax seed eggs instead. Just note that they will likely not rise as much. You will also need to use maple syrup instead of honey.

How to serve:

These oatmeal banana protein muffins are delicious served as is as a healthy breakfast, snack or sweet treat warmed up or at room temperature. You can serve them on their own or top them with some peanut butter or almond butter for some extra healthy fats and flavour.

How to store:

Store these muffins in an air tight container on the counter for 3 days, or in the fridge for a week.

These muffins also freeze really well for up to 3 months.

Frequently asked questions:

Can you add whey protein to muffin mix?

You can easily add whey protein or other protein powders to muffin mix to give the muffins more protein. You can also add whey protein to other baked goods such as pancakes, waffles, cakes or donuts.

Does heat destroy whey protein?

Heating or baking whey protein or other protein powders will cause the proteins to denature, but this does not destroy the protein powder and it is still safe to ingest, and has the same nutritional value once denatured.

How can I add more protein to baked goods?

A few easy ways to add more protein to baked goods include adding protein powder, using nut flours such as almond flour or cashew flour, baking with eggs, adding beans, adding nuts or seeds, adding greek yogurt, or using nutritional yeast.

Can I use wheat flour to make these protein muffins?

I have not tried making these banana oat protein muffins with wheat flour and would not recommend it.

Do these muffins taste like banana bread?

While these muffins are made with ripe, mash bananas, they do taste differently than banana bread because the protein powder adds a unique flavour that is different than the typical banana bread taste.

Are these muffins keto?

No, these muffins are not low carb or keto.

Other muffin recipes you will love:

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Comments

D. Cain

May 09, 2023 at 4:28 pm

What would you recommend to replace the almond flour? I really like this recipe and would like to try it...with a different flour...would all oat work? I have allergies to all nuts, and will use Sunflower butter instead of peanut butter.

- Erin Carter
  
  May 30, 2023 at 7:04 pm
  
  I normally recommend cashew flour instead of almond flour but in your case I realize that won't work. I don't have any other suggestions. I don't think oat will work sadly.

Easy Banana Protein Muffins