Sweet and moist banana chocolate chunk muffins are studded with big bites of semisweet chocolate for a decadent morning treat or afternoon snack! Serve these for brunch or enjoy them with a cup of tea.
Always-tender, oh so fluffy banana chocolate chunk muffins are one of the easiest, quickest, and yummiest recipes to come out of my kitchen. Like my oat flour banana muffins but absolutely crammed with chopped chocolate, these little beauties are amazing nibbled alongside a cup of morning coffee, added to a lunchbox, or warmed up and smeared with butter for an afternoon snack.
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Why You'll Love These Banana Muffins
It's no secret that I love banana muffins (gluten free banana blueberry muffins, gluten free strawberry banana muffins, and mini banana muffins are all in heavy rotation around here). One of my favorite variations is banana chocolate chunk muffins because they are just walloped with chocolate. These muffins are amazing when eaten warm - the chocolate pools into the soft muffin surrounding it - but they're also delicious straight from the fridge when the chocolate is cold and crunchy. You'll love these no matter what!
- So easy. One bowl is all you need to make banana chocolate chunk muffins!
- Anyone can make them. Did I mention the one-bowl thing? Yep, you need just one bowl and a spoon and/or whisk, which means basically anyone can whip up the batter in no time.
- The best ever banana muffins. This recipe is simple, but it delivers big on flavor, from the ripe, sweet bananas, touch of cinnamon, and glorious chocolate chunks in every bite.
What You'll Need
- All-purpose flour - Use the spoon and level method for the best accuracy in measuring your flour!
- Rising agents - Baking powder and baking soda.
- Salt - I use fine sea salt and table salt will also work.
- Cinnamon
- Granulated sugar - For a slightly different flavor, substitute light or dark brown sugar, or try coconut sugar.
- Vegetable oil - You can substitute any type of oil you like here, including olive oil.
- Eggs - Large eggs brought to room temperature will easily blend into the batter.
- Bananas - Use ripe bananas for these muffins (I've included a few notes below on how ripe they should be!) for the most flavorful, sweet results. You'll need about 2 large or 3 medium bananas for this recipe.
- Chocolate - I used a dark chocolate bar and chopped it into chunks, but you can use any chocolate bar you like! Semisweet, milk chocolate, or even chocolate chips work great.
Scroll down to my recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full ingredient amounts and instructions!
A Few Variations ...
Banana chocolate chunk muffins are, well, banana-y and chocolatey. I don't like to mess with a good thing, but you can totally make a few changes to the base recipe if you like (hint: add nuts or coconut!).
- Nuts - We always love nuts in our banana muffins! My favorite nut to add is chopped walnuts; chopped almonds or pecans are also very nice.
- Chocolate chips - Keep things easy and use 1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips instead of the chopped chocolate.
- Whole wheat flour - Substitute ½ cup of all-purpose flour with whole wheat or whole wheat pastry flour, or use all whole wheat flour in place of the all-purpose flour for whole grain goodness.
- Coconut - Coconut flakes or shredded coconut adds natural sweetness and texture. Try 1 cup stirred into the batter.
- Ginger - Add ½ teaspoon of ground ginger or 1 teaspoon of grated fresh ginger to the batter for a little kick.
How to Make Chocolate Chunk Banana Muffins
Here's an overview in photos of how to make these easy muffins!
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 375°F and grease a muffin tin.
- Make the wet mix: Stir together the wet ingredients including the bananas.
- Combine: Mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Fold in the chocolate.
- Add batter to pan: Divide the muffin batter between the muffin cups.
- Bake: Bake the muffins for about 20-25 minutes, then cool in the pan.
Baking Tip - Ripe Bananas
What are the best bananas for baking? They tend to be the ones left on the counter that everyone avoids: very yellow with brown spots and streaks. Despite their appearance, this means the bananas are very ripe and perfect to tuck into a batter! In fact, the darker the banana the better, because as the fruit ripens it becomes sweeter and more flavorful.
Substitution Suggestions & Tips
- Fill the muffin cups ⅔ full for this recipe – While some muffin recipes advise filling the muffin cups to the brim, I’ve found that about ⅔ full is the sweet spot so that they rise nicely but don’t overflow the cups.
- Adjust the sweetness - Bananas are very sweet on their own, and the riper they are the sweeter they'll be. You can reduce the sugar if you like to ½ cup.
- Refined sugar-free - Add honey to the batter instead of the sugar, or use coconut sugar (the muffins will be a bit darker if you use coconut sugar).
- Add poppy seeds - For a little crunch, stir in 3 tablespoons of poppy seeds to the batter.
- Make 'em into applesauce muffins - Swap 1 cup of applesauce for the mashed bananas.
- Egg-free - Omit the egg to make these muffins vegan. They will be denser but the bananas will work as a nice binder even without eggs.
Serving Options
Serve banana chocolate chunk muffins warm or at room temperature. I like a muffin spread with
- salted or unsalted butter
- a little Nutella
- peanut butter
- almond butter
- softened cream cheese
Proper Storage
- Counter - Place the cooled banana chocolate chunk muffins in an airtight container and store them at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Fridge - Transfer the muffins in their container to the fridge store them for up to 5 days.
- Freezer - Add the muffins to a freezer-safe bag or container and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost the muffins in the fridge before eating.
More Banana Muffins Recipes
If you tried my Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins or any other recipe on my website, please let me know how it went in the comments below! And I always appreciate a star rating if you loved it ❤️
Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups mashed ripe bananas (340 grams)
- 1 ½ cups flour (210 grams)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup chopped chocolate, I used a semisweet/dark chocolate bar, you can use your favorite chocolate bar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan.
- In a large bowl, stir together the oil, eggs, and mashed bananas. Stir in the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until combined.
- Fold in the chopped chocolate, then divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups, filling each one about ⅔ full.
- Bake the muffins for 20 to 24 minutes, until the middle of a muffin springs back when lightly touched and a tester comes out mostly clean. (A few moist crumbs are OK.)
- Remove the pan from the oven, let the muffins rest for 5 minutes in the pan, then turn them out onto a rack to cool completely. Muffins are great warm or at room temperature.
Notes
- Fill the muffin cups ⅔ full for this recipe – While some muffin recipes advise filling the muffin cups to the brim, I’ve found that about ⅔ full is the sweet spot so that they rise nicely but don’t overflow the cups.
- Adjust the sweetness - Bananas are very sweet on their own, and the riper they are the sweeter they'll be. You can reduce the sugar if you like to ½ cup.
- Refined sugar-free - Add honey to the batter instead of the sugar, or use coconut sugar (the muffins will be a bit darker if you use coconut sugar).
- Add poppy seeds - For a little crunch, stir in 3 tablespoons of poppy seeds to the batter.
- Make 'em into applesauce muffins - Swap 1 cup of applesauce for the mashed bananas.
- Egg-free - Omit the egg to make these muffins vegan. They will be denser but the bananas will work as a nice binder even without eggs.
I'd love to hear from you! Please leave me a note.