Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

These banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins are perfect and healthy treat during any time of the day. I have eaten them in breakfast, as a snack with cup of coffee or midnight cravings. Trust me, they are just the best. A sweet and healthy dessert!

Packed with banana, oats and chocolate chips will make these muffins as ideal to start your day and are ready in no time. You just have add dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, mix them together, bake and done.

Along with this, you do not require any fancy ingredients to make these muffins. I am sure all of the ingredients mentioned below are available in your pantry. I have made them many times for my toddler.

Muffins are my favorite dessert to make as they are light, fluffy, moist but filling too. If you want to make any other muffin recipe, I have a whole range of muffin recipes just for you :).

Are muffins same as cupcakes?

Although shape of Muffins and cupcakes is same, although it can be baked in similar pan, they are not same. they have following differences

1. Muffins are denser than cupcakes.
2. Less sweet than cupcakes. In fact, muffins can be savory too but cupcakes can not be.
3. Cupcakes are served with frosting but muffins are eaten as plain.
4. Muffins are usually served for breakfast and cupcakes are served as a dessert.
5. Preparation method for both is different. Muffins are made with muffin method, adding wet into dry and cupcakes are made with creaming method, creaming butter and sugar and then incorporating rest if the ingredients.

Why this is my favorite muffin?

1. Healthy and filling muffins.
2. Easy to make (just 3 steps).
3. Easily available ingredients.
4. Perfect for grab and go breakfast treat.
5. Soft, moist and fluffy.
6. No special muffin pan is required. These are made in regular cupcake pan.

How to make banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins?

Typically method for all muffins is almost same. It is adding dry and wet ingredients separately, mixing them together until it is just combined. Once done, bake at higher temperature for first 5 minutes, lower the temperature and bake until done. This is done to achieve perfectly dome shaped muffins.

Here it is in tabular format to quickly get the overview.

Sr. No.	Steps
1	Sift dry ingredients.
2	Add sugar and oats.
3	Mix all wet ingredients along with mashed banana.
4	Bake and enjoy.

Banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins ingredients

You will need following ingredients to make these muffins:

Muffin ingredients

Dry ingredients

1. All-purpose flour - Use any brands all-purpose flour, no specific mention here. I would not recommend to replace it with cake flour or whole wheat flour. Cake flour will make the muffins light, may fall apart and whole wheat flour will make them dense. Either way is not good for us.

2. Baking soda - This is used as leavening agent and is stronger than baking powder. Do not skip so that muffins will have perfect dome on top.

3. Baking powder - This is also used as leavening agent.

4. Ground cinnamon - This is the only and important spice to our muffins. Just a little bit, it won't be cinnamon muffins, I promise you :)

5. Salt - You know what I am to say here :). Do not skip salt as it enhances the flavor. You can skip only if you are using salted butter.

6. Old-fashioned rolled oats - As the name suggests, our recipe is incomplete without oats. This gives chewiness and a bite to muffins.

7. Chocolate chips - I am using semi-sweet chocolate chips here. You can also use dark or milk depending on your choice. Please note adding milk chocolate chips will sweeten the muffins a bit.

Wet ingredients

1. Unsalted butter - Use whichever is available in your pantry, no specific brand here. Make sure the butter is at room temperature so that it gets mixed with other ingredients. I would not recommend to replace with oil as this adds flavor to our muffins and is secret to our best banana oatmeal muffins.

2. Granulated sugar - This is also referred as caster sugar. Use any brand, whichever is available at home.

3. Eggs - Use large eggs at room temperature. If you forgot to take them out don't worry. Just keep them in a bowl of tapped hot water for 3 to 4 minutes and you can use them right away.

4. Pure vanilla extract - Just a little bit, for flavor. You can also use artificial vanilla if you just have that at home. Pure vanilla extract will add deep vanilla flavor but it is ok to replace with imitation if that is what is available.

5. Milk - Use any milk which has 3.25% as a fat percentage. You can replace with 2% but for that rich flavor I would recommend full fat milk. Just make sure that it is at room temperature.

6. Bananas- This is our star ingredient. Please make sure bananas are ripened enough as they are more flavorful when ripened. Bananas add moisture, sweetness, flavor and acts as a binding agent.

7. Vegetable oil - Use canola oil or vegetable oil, whichever is available. This adds moisture and makes our muffins moist.

Topping ingredients

1. Old-fashioned rolled oats - Although oats are mixed in muffin batter, I would highly recommend using these on top to have that oatmeal muffin look :) It also adds little crunchiness to muffin.

2. Chocolate chips - This is completely optional but who does not like muffins topped with sweet chocolate chips? Just few, not much :).

Any substitution?

Old-fashioned rolled oats - You can replace this oats with regular steel-cut oats or quick oats, whichever is available to you.

Tools you will need

1. Mixing bowls
2. Weighing scale
3. Measuring spoon
4. Measuring cups
5. Hand beater or stand mixer
6. Cupcake pan
7. Rubber spatula
8. Ice cream scoop (optional)8. Fill in muffin pan

Banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins (step-by-step instructions with images)

Just 4 steps, mix dry, mix wet, mix wet with dry, bake and done. Let's see how it is done in detail.

1. Before starting the recipe, make sure to prepare your pan and preheat the oven at 425F (218C).

Step 1 : Mix dry ingredients

2. Sift all dry ingredients (all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt). This incorporate air and also leavening agents are distributed evenly.

3. Add in granulated sugar and oats and mix it well. Keep it aside.

Step 2 : Mix wet ingredients

4. In another bowl, add wet ingredients (milk, oil, eggs) and mix it until combined.

5. Now add mashed banana to it and whisk until it is mixed.

Step 3 : Mix wet with dry

6. Add these wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix it until it is just combined.

7. Finally add semi-sweet chocolate chips and fold them with rubber spatula gently.

Step 4 : Bake and enjoy!

8. Divide the batter equally in 12 cupcake liner. Ice cream scoop will ease this for you :).

9. Sprinkle few oats on top of each muffin.

10. Bake the muffins at 425F (218 C) for first 5 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350F (180 C) and bake again for 14 minutes or until the toothpick inserted comes out clean. DO NOT OPEN the oven. Just reduce the temperature.

11. Take it out of the oven and keep on wire rack for at least 20 minutes.

PS : Make sure to keep the muffins on wire rack for at least 20 minutes or until it is ok touch the pan with hand. Once it is cooled down, remove from pan and store at room temperature or in refrigerator or just freeze them. Please follow my detailed instructions on storing these muffins.

12. Enjoy!

Want to see how I made these banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins(video tutorial)?

https://youtu.be/nJQcPVgD3-Q

How to serve Banana oatmeal muffins?

You can serve them at breakfast time or as evening snack. Just reheat them in microwave just for 10 to 15 seconds for best result.

Have you tried serving them differently? Please let me know in the comments below :) I would like to give it a try as well.

Banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins - variations

You can also convert these muffins in to mini banana muffins. Just use mini cupcake pan and reduce the baking time by half. Again each oven is different so adjust the bake time based on your oven.

You can add some add-ins and make different varieties as mentioned below:

Nuts: Add any nuts of your choice for a lovely crunch, extra nutrients, and healthy fats. I usually avoid it as my son is allergic to nuts. You can add in muffin batter or on top, whichever you like. Just add 2 to 3 teaspoons.

Seeds: You can also add pumpkin seeds. These will provide a delicious crunch and healthy fats which makes it a more nutritious and healthier option. Just 1 to 2 teaspoons, if using on top reduce it to 1 teaspoon.

Berries: Any berries would be ok just make sure you are using frozen ones and they are covered with regular flour. If you add regular fresh berries in this recipe it will release moisture and will make the muffins soggy. Add 4 to 5 small pieces in each muffin so calculate based on which berry you are using.

Banana oatmeal chocolate chip muffins storage and freezing instructions

Storing instructions

You can easily keep the muffins at room temperature up to 5 days, in refrigerator up to couple of weeks and in freezer up to 3 months. Use air tight container or ziploc bag to do so.

I would prefer to reheat the muffins for 10 to 15 seconds but this is completely optional.

Freezing instructions

These muffins can be made in advance and can freeze up to 3 months. Make sure to label them.

You can store then in an air tight container or ziploc bag or wrap them individually and freeze. I personally like to wrap them individually as you can just remove one muffin instead of the whole muffin batch.

To wrap the muffins individually wait for them to cool it down completely and then cover with plastic wrap followed by aluminum foil.

I have never removed the cupcake liners from muffin as I always prefer to remove it just before eating them. So, I would recommend to store them with paper liners.

I have done these muffins many times and so is the freezing and I will assure you that it will not affect your taste at all.

I have always freeze the baked muffins and not the muffin batter and I would recommend the same. Usually any recipe that contains leavening agent should go to oven immediately after mixing them.

Thawing instructions

To thaw the muffins, just keep them overnight in refrigerator and microwave them just for 10 to 15 seconds depending on your microwave. Try keeping with 10 seconds first. If it is still cold then keep few seconds more.

I would not recommend to freeze them again after thawing as it may loose it's texture because of changes in temperatures. This is the reason I prefer to wrap them individually and freeze.

To summarize,

Sr. No.	Storing Type	Days/Weeks/Months
1	Room temperature	4-5 days
2	Refrigerator	up to 2 weeks
3	Freezer	up to 3months

Banana oatmeal muffins - FAQ’s

Why are my muffins dense? Overmixing and using more flour will make the muffins dense so make you you are using right amount of flour and mixing the muffin batter until it is just combined. When you see few strikes of flour, stop and use weighing scale to measure the flour.

Why are my muffins soggy? Did you cooled them enough before storing? Main reason behind soggy muffins is storing the muffins when they are hot, warm and just out of oven. Always cool it down on wire rack.

Can I freeze these muffins? Absolutely! You can make them ahead of time and store in freezer up to 3 months. You can either wrap them individually or store all in freezer-safe bag to retain moisture. Please follow my freezing instructions for details.

How do I store muffins? You can store the muffins at room temperature or in refrigerator or in freezer. Please follow my instructions for storing, freezing and thawing.

Pro tips to make best muffins

I have made these healthy banana chocolate chip oatmeal muffins at least 25 to 30 times and i will share you my secret to make the moist muffins today.

• Use ripened bananas - The riper the bananas, more flavorful muffins you will have. The ripened bananas is sweeter and more flavorful and this is what we need in our muffins :)

• Don't overmix - Overmixing will form the gluten and make the muffins dense. When you are combining wet and dry ingredients, I would recommend doing it with spatula as it will avoid the overmixing.

• Measure ingredients - Flour measures differently with cup and weighing scale. Although there is a way to perfectly measure the flour with cup, I prefer to do it with weighing scale as that will not give you wrong results. Why I am saying this? Because, more flour will add more gluten and in turn makes the dense muffins.

• Distribute evenly - Use ice cream scoop to evenly distribute muffin batter in 12 cupcake liners. This make sures the even distribution and even baking too.

• Use cupcake or muffin liners - For easy removal and from storage point of view, always use cupcake liners. You can also butter and flour the pan but I have always seen buying muffins with liners so I prefer to make that way.

Did you make it?

Did you these healthy oatmeal muffins yet? Please let me know in the comments section below. I really love hearing from you, and your feedback is very much important to me.

If you post on Instagram, do not forget to Tag @DessertKatta or Hashtag it #DessertKatta

More muffins recipes

If you are looking for some muffin ideas try my lemon blueberry muffins or chocolate chip muffins. Let me know which one is your favorite amongst all these?

Recipe Card