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One of my grandmas always made banana bread. I mean always. One reason is that, like all of us, when Grandma had bananas that were beginning to ripen too quickly, banana bread was a way to use them. Also, Grandma loved to make anything that was tried and true. She knew exactly how to make banana bread, didn’t need a recipe, and it always turned out. And that’s exactly why I love these banana chocolate chunk muffins!
Let’s be honest: these muffins are really just banana bread in disguise. The batter is pretty much the exact same as my Grandma’s. Why mess with something so delicious?!
First up: bananas
To make the flavors shine, you’ll want to use ripe bananas. And when I say ripe, I mean those ones that you’re almost scared to eat. If the bananas are extremely brown, but not soft, they’ll have the most flavor.
As bananas become browner, they condense their sugars and subsequently become sweeter. That’s why we don’t like eating green bananas. They haven’t developed their sweetness yet. Late bloomers!
The best part: chocolate
To make these a little more grown up (and yet entirely kid-friendly), the addition of chocolate makes all the difference. Personally, I gravitate towards Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate bars. You could totally use chocolate chips, but here’s a little PSA on these little morsels. They’re often coated to preserve their shape and help them stay intact, which is precisely what we don’t want in these muffins!
In comparison, baking chocolate melts quicker. Plus, keeping it in larger pieces or chunks creates pockets of gooey melted chocolate within the muffin.
After chopping the chocolate with a sharp knife, it’s crucial to avoid adding the fine bits and pieces left on your cutting board. If added to the batter, the dust-like chocolate would discolor the muffins and make them “dirty” looking.
Being the good Midwesterner that I am, I take the small bits, melt them in the microwave, and drizzle them on top. Grandma would be so proud of my “nothing wasted” approach!
Together, these upgrades create a delicious banana muffin that’s perfect for brunch, breakfast, dessert, or anytime. These are definitely Grandma approved.
Year of Brunch Recipes
Watch how to make these banana chocolate chunk muffins
Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins
Ingredients
- 8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter room temperature
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
- 1 cup mashed banana (about 3 ripe bananas)
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate roughly cut into ¼- to ½-inch pieces
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Spray 15 muffin cups with nonstick baking spray and set aside.
- In a stand mixer, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, 3 minutes.8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, ¾ cup light brown sugar, ¼ cup granulated sugar
- With the mixer on low, add the eggs one at a time, mixing for 30 seconds after each addition. Add vanilla extract, and mix to incorporate. Mix in the Greek yogurt and mashed banana for 30 seconds.2 large eggs, 1 tsp vanilla extract, ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt (or sour cream), 1 cup mashed banana (about 3 ripe bananas)
- With the mixer off, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just incorporated, about 1 minute. There may be a few small lumps.2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp baking powder, ½ tsp baking soda, 1 tsp kosher salt
- Chop the chocolate into pieces. Leave the fine crumbs on the cutting board and add only the pieces. Fold with a spatula.8 oz semi-sweet chocolate
- Portion the batter evenly into the 15 prepared muffin cups. Bake in the preheated oven until domed and a skewer inserted into a muffin comes out clean, about 24-28 minutes.
- Remove from oven and cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on a rack.
- To garnish, drizzle melted chocolate on top.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment below!
The banana muffin batter even with two bananas (3/4 cup instead of one cup) plus 2 tbs of hemp seeds – makes the most beautiful bake ever !!!!! I split the batter into half chocolate and half dried wild blueberries- and they still came out perfect 🤩! Thank you 🙏 thank you 🙏
I love me some banana bread, but my husband typically doesn’t. He tried these muffins and loved them! They are so yummy with the chocolate chunks and they are also surprisingly light and fluffy (all my other banana bread recipes are a little more dense). This is a keeper recipe for sure! Thanks Kaleb!
How long will these last? Should I store them just in an air tight container on the countertop?
OMG!
Im a test baker..and was studying up on “brown butter”.I then
found you Wyse . This banana muffin and bread is delicious and baked beautifully with golden domes.
Wish I could have added my photo!
Elizabeth Glen,Los Angeles,CA
That’s so wonderful to hear!!! Glad they turned out well and now you will use brown butter in everything ?