These applesauce banana oatmeal muffins are moist, hearty, and irresistibly delicious. An easy, fuss-free recipe that only calls for simple ingredients and is ready in an hour!
I have been making these applesauce banana oatmeal muffins on repeat lately! They are easy to whip up, filling, and freezable too. Hence, I often make a batch during the weekends to be enjoyed throughout the week.
Although these muffins are pretty satisfying on their own, I usually serve them with my protein iced coffee or peanut butter powder smoothie to make a high-protein breakfast.
💚Why you will love this recipe
- Muffins that are moist and decadent without being overly sweet
- Wholesome, high in fiber, and made without butter
- Great to have on hand as a quick breakfast or snack
- Freezable, making them great for meal prep!
🍌What you will need
📃Ingredients notes/substitutions
- Oats - Both quick or rolled oats can be used in place. Use a certified gluten-free brand if needed. You can also use oat flour; you will need about 270g or 3 cups.
- Banana - Make sure to use bananas that are brown and spotty! As they are the main sweetener in the recipe, you will want them to be ripe and sweet.
- Applesauce - Works both as a substitute for eggs and for butter. Unsweetened applesauce is preferable to avoid muffins from turning out to be too sweet.
- Cashew butter - You can use other seed butter like almond or peanut butter in place. For those who can't have nuts, simply substitute with seed butter like tahini or sunflower seed butter.
- Maple syrup - Can be substituted with another liquid sweetener, like agave syrup, honey, or sugar-free syrup, to keep this recipe low sugar.
- Baking soda and baking powder - Combining both will give muffins the most lift without affecting their taste.
🔪How to make
Place oats in a blender and blend until they are finely ground.
Pour oat flour into a large mixing bowl along with the rest of the dry ingredients. Mix well.
In the blender, place in banana, applesauce, cashew butter, and maple syrup. Blend until smooth.
Pour wet ingredients into dry and stir until everything is just combined.
Fill muffin tin with batter about ¾ way full. Optionally, sprinkle on some oats before baking.
Bake for 8 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350F/180C and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Allow muffins to cool slightly before enjoying them!
✔Helpful tips
- Using frozen bananas - Frozen bananas can be used in place of fresh ones. Allow them to thaw completely beforehand and drain off excess liquid before use.
- Weigh out ingredients if possible -A weighing scale will provide a more precise measurement, ensuring success in making these muffins. However, if you choose to use measuring cups instead, I highly recommend checking out this post, ‘How to measure flour correctly.’
- Grease or line muffin holes - To ensure that muffins can be easily removed from the pan.
- Avoid overbaking -To avoid dry and crumbly muffins, make sure not to overbake them. If you're trying this recipe for the first time, check on the muffins after 18 minutes by inserting a toothpick down the center. The muffins are done baking if the toothpick comes out fairly clean with a few moist crumbs.
- Cooling muffins - After taking muffins out of the oven, let them rest for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack. This will prevent the bottoms from becoming soggy.
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✨Variations and add-ins
Chopped nuts - Adding a handful of nuts, like pistachios, pecans, or walnuts, gives muffins a delightful crunch and nutty flavor. Stir them in towards the end of mixing batter.
Chocolate chips - A classic muffin add-in. I prefer dark chocolate chips, but you can add any chocolate chip you like! A chopped chocolate bar will work, too.
Blueberries - Both frozen and fresh blueberries can be mixed into the muffin batter to make blueberry muffins. I recommend adding ⅓ - ½ cup.
Spices - Warm spices like pumpkin spice, nutmeg, or cardamom add flavor, depth, and richness to these applesauce banana oatmeal muffins.
Dried fruits - To naturally enhance the sweetness of these muffins, add some chopped dates, raisins, or sultanas!
☕How to serve
To serve for breakfast, try pairing applesauce banana oatmeal muffins with drinks like soy milk latte, protein hot chocolate, or smoothies like my silken tofu smoothie.
Spread regular or plant-based butter or nut butter (such as coconut almond or peanut butter) on warmed muffins for added richness. Jam is another great option if you prefer sweeter muffins.
❄️Storing suggestions
Storing - Muffins can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 4-5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months in a freezer bag or storage container.
Reheating - If reheating from frozen, let them thaw slightly first, about 30 minutes outside, or using the microwave "thaw" function. Then, you can either toast them for 5-10 minutes or heat them in the microwave at 15-second intervals until thoroughly warmed.
❔Commonly asked questions
If your applesauce muffins turn out to be chewy and rubbery, it could be due to stale baking powder or soda. To test this, simply place a small amount of either one in some hot water. If bubbles form immediately and vigorously, they are good to use. If there is little to no reaction, it's time to replace them.
Another reason for chewy muffins could be inaccurate ingredient measurements, leading to a batter that is too wet. To avoid this, using a kitchen scale to measure ingredients is highly recommended instead of measuring cups.
You can test the doneness of your muffins by inserting a toothpick into the center. If the toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs sticking to it, your banana applesauce muffins are finished baking!
These banana oatmeal muffins are naturally gluten-free, as oats are used instead of wheat flour. If you have a gluten intolerance, purchase certified gluten-free oats, as cross-contamination might occur during processing.
📖 Recipe
Banana Applesauce Oatmeal Muffins
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 3 cups oats use gluten-free if needed*
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
Wet ingredients
- 3 medium banana ripe and spotty (about 10.6oz/300g)
- ½ cup applesauce
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup cashew butter or other nut/seed butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F/220C. Grease a 12-hole muffin pan or line them with muffin liners.
- Place oats in a blender and blend until they are finely ground. Pour oat flour into a large mixing bowl along with rest of the dry ingredients. Mix well.3 cups oats, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon baking soda
- In the blender, place in all wet ingredients. Blend until smooth.3 medium banana, ½ cup applesauce, ⅓ cup maple syrup, ¼ cup cashew butter
- Pour wet ingredients into dry and stir until everything is just combined.
- Fill muffin tin with batter about ¾ way full. Optionally, sprinkle on some oats before baking.
- Bake for 8 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350F/180C and bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Once they are done baking, let them rest in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool down further. Enjoy while warm!
Notes
- Using frozen bananas - Frozen bananas can be used in place of fresh ones. Allow them to thaw completely beforehand and drain off excess liquid before use.
- Weigh out ingredients if possible -A weighing scale will provide a more precise measurement, ensuring success in making these muffins. However, if you choose to use measuring cups instead, I highly recommend checking out this post, ‘How to measure flour correctly.
- Avoid overbaking -To avoid dry and crumbly muffins, make sure not to overbake them. If you're trying this recipe for the first time, check on the muffins after 18 minutes by inserting a toothpick down the center. The muffins are done baking if the toothpick comes out fairly clean with a few moist crumbs.
Save this recipe!
Email yourself a link to this page and come back later.
Also get a FREE high-protein vegan recipe eBook + weekly new recipes! Unsubscribe anytime.
Nutrition
Nutrition info calculated is just a rough estimate and is provided as a courtesy. Bear in mind that value will vary based on variables like specific brand or type of product used. To obtain the most accurate representation, it is highly recommended that you calculate it on your own with the actual amount and type of ingredient used.
Maz says
Is the maple syrup (or alternative) absolutely necessary? The bananas provide enough sweetness, and either additional applesauce or perhaps oat milk could substitute for any moisture the maple syrup would provide.
Jim Mee Sha says
You can omit it and add more applesauce, but the muffins will be less sweet.
Lisa H says
Came out great! But I got an extra 3 muffins somehow - I did sub in some vanilla oat milk yogurt since oddly I had no applesauce in the house - which is also odd for me lol. I did use metric to weight etc so still not sure why I got more but nice to have more than too little cause I do like to share my baked goods with friends. Enjoying your site very much - thanks for all you do.
Jim Mee Sha says
Thanks for your kind comment and am really happy you like it!
Stacey says
Loved these! My coworkers liked them too
Karen says
These were excellent! I loved the denser texture and while delicious after a few minutes out of the oven, they get even better each day after they were baked. Thanks for the recipe, these will be a staple going forward!
Jim Mee Sha says
I am so happy to hear that! Thanks for your kind comment. 😁
Linda says
I made these this morning and I love them!! Perfect to go along with my morning coffee. Definitely a keeper!
Jim Mee Sha says
Thanks for your kind comment!
Aarkay says
Hi,
I just tried this recipe of yours. It came out so well !!
(I made a few substitutions- used vanilla for cinnamon, pepita butter for cashew butter and light brown sugar for maple syrup. Also, threw in a few choco chips).
Thank you!
Meesha says
I am very happy to hear that!😄
Judith says
Love to try these! But my daughter hates bananas. Can I replace it with something? Thinking of flax egg maybe?
Meesha says
You can try substituting it with the same amount of pumpkin puree or sweet potato puree. 😁
Jenna says
Made these today and they turned out really nicely. Love the texture and flavor while feeling great about the ingredients. Excellent way to use up bananas that were about to go bad with other pantry staples. Added a few chocolate chips on top of the ones my husband would be eating. Thanks for sharing!
Meesha says
I am really glad to hear that!
Shraddha says
Any replacement of applesauce
Meesha says
You can try substituting with equal amounts of mashed bananas! I have yet to try this substitution out, though. Or, you could check out this banana dates muffins recipe instead - https://www.myplantifulcooking.com/healthy-banana-oatmeal-muffins/