I’ve tried dozens of gluten-free banana muffin recipes over the years and this is our very favorite!
These banana muffins are easy-to-make and bake up soft and fluffy. Plus, they only take 30 minutes to make!
It’s hard to beat a simple, delicious, easy-to-make banana muffin. They’re a favorite for all ages and make overripe bananas a welcome site!
This is my best recipe for gluten-free banana muffins. They bake up moist, fluffy and soft and never last long at my house. They’re delicious with any of your favorite mix-ins and make the perfect breakfast, snack or treat!
You also might like my tried-and-true, fan-favorite recipe for gluten-free banana bread.
If you love gluten-free muffins, you might also like my gluten-free zucchini muffins, gluten-free apple muffins, gluten-free chocolate chip muffins and gluten-free blueberry muffins.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Dry Ingredients
Here are a few notes on the key ingredients for these banana muffins:
- Gluten-Free Flour: I recommend using a high-quality gluten-free 1:1 baking flour that contains xanthan gum. This is my favorite brand.
- Almond Flour: I love adding almond flour to my gluten-free baked goods! It helps with texture and browning. See the recipe card for nut-free instructions.
- Baking Powder/Soda: A combination of baking powder and baking soda helps the batter rise and create a light, fluffy texture.
- Salt: Fine sea salt adds depth of flavor and balances the sweetness of the muffins.
Wet Ingredients
- Milk: You can use any type of milk for this recipe: whole milk, skim milk, or dairy-free milk such as almond milk or soy milk.
- Overripe Bananas: You’ll need 2 cups total of mashed banana, which is about 4 bananas. Be sure to measure out the amount of mashed bananas to get the accurate texture in these muffins. Do not use yellow or slightly green bananas for this recipe — bananas with brown speckles work best!
- Brown Sugar and white sugar: I like to use a combination of brown and white sugar to create a deeper flavor and delicious texture.
- Sour Cream: Adds moisture and richness. You could use yogurt or non-dairy sour cream/yogurt instead.
- Eggs: I use two large, room-temperature eggs for this recipe.
- Oil: I love the taste of butter, but these muffins have better texture when you use a neutral-flavored oil. I like avocado or vegetable oil.
If you love banana you also might like these recipes for oat flour banana muffins, gluten-free banana cake, oat flour banana bread.
You also might like this article on are oats gluten-free and oat flour recipes.
How to Make Gluten-Free Banana Muffins
- Preheat the oven and line a muffin tin with paper liners.
- Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Mix wet ingredients separately in a medium bowl.
- Mash up some very ripe bananas and measure out 1 1/2 cups, then add to the wet ingredients. It’s important to use exactly 1 1/2 cups of mashed bananas for the right texture.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a rubber spatula until just combined and no dry streaks remain. If adding any chocolate chips or nuts, fold them in when the batter is just about mixed to avoid over-mixing
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tin. Fill the tins all the way up! Refrigerate the muffins for 20 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350F and bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean and the muffins spring back when touched on top.
- Let cool for 3-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Storage/Freezing Instructions
To store: Save any leftover muffins by letting them fully cool on a wire wrack. Then store in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature. They will keep for up to 2 days.
To freeze: You can freeze muffins in a ziploc bag. Thaw the banana bread to room temperature before serving.
FAQs
Gluten-free muffins will rise better if you raise the oven temperature for the first 10 minutes of baking. This creates a rapid rise that will make perfectly domed muffins, every time!
Many gluten-free muffins are dry because they use poor quality gluten flour. Choose a high-quality gluten-free flour to produce a more tender crumb. My favorite way to make these muffins is with my own gluten-free flour blend (I add some almond flour), which creates a better texture.
I love butter, but the best way to bake light, fluffy gluten-free muffins is by using vegetable or avocado oil.
Expert Tips & Tricks
- Adding mix-ins: You can 100% add your favorite mix-ins to these gluten-free banana muffins! I’m a big fan of mini chocolate chips to make gluten-free banana chocolate chip muffins. Walnuts or pecans also make a delicious addition. But if you prefer no mix-ins, these muffins are absolutely delicious on their own. My kids love them warm and spread with a little butter!
- To make dairy-free: You can make these muffins dairy-free with a few simple swaps. Use almond milk in place of regular milk and dairy-free sour cream or yogurt in place of the sour cream. I like to use the brand Forager sour cream for dairy-free!
- To prevent sticking: Good quality muffin cups prevent the muffins from sticking.
- For mini muffins: These muffins can also be turned into mini muffins by using a mini muffin pan. Just be sure to shorten the baking time if you opt for this size!
- For tall muffins: Cook at a high temperature for TALL muffins. By starting with a high oven temperature and then reducing the heat, you’ll help these muffins get a much better rise!
- For moist muffins: Let the batter sit for 20 minutes for MOIST muffins. Your muffins will rise higher and be light and fluffy if you let the muffins sit in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before baking. This also gives the flour time to hydrate and chills the batter.
- Baking time: Gluten-free muffins typically take longer to bake than regular muffins. Just until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs is perfect.
- For best results: Be sure to measure the amount of mashed bananas in the muffins to get the right texture and best results!
MORE FAVORITE GLUTEN-FREE RECIPES
I hope you love this simple, tasty gluten-free banana muffin recipe as much as we do! If you try this delicious snack, please leave me a comment/rating below. I’d love to hear from you!
Easy, Gluten-Free Banana Muffins
Video
Ingredients
DRY INGREDIENTS:
- 1 2/3 cups (250g) gluten-free 1:1 baking flour
- 1/2 cup (50g) almond flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
WET INGREDIENTS:
- 1 1/2 cups (345g) mashed bananas 3-4 bananas
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (75g) neutral-flavored oil I use avocado or vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup (60g) sour cream (dairy-free sour cream works!)
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 2 eggs
OPTIONAL:
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips or 1 cup larger mix-ins like nuts
Instructions
- Line one 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners or lightly grease with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. In another bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a rubber spatula until just combined and no dry streaks remain. If adding any chocolate chips or nuts, fold them in when the batter is just about mixed to avoid over-mixing.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tin. Fill the tins all the way up! Refrigerate the muffins for 20 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 425F.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350F and bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean and the muffins spring back when touched on top.
- Let cool for 3-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use a high-quality 1:1 gluten-free baking flour as well as a little almond flour for great texture and flavor.
- I love the taste of butter, but these muffins have better texture when you use a neutral-flavored oil. I like avocado or vegetable oil
- A good quality paper liner prevents the muffins from sticking. I like these ones!
- Gluten-free muffins typically take longer to bake than regular muffins. Just until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs is perfect.
These turned out so well and the best thing about them is that they keep their soft fluffy texture for days without any warming up, like most gluten free breads require. Thanks for the awesome recipe!
This was the first time I was successful with full, tall, fluffy, fully-cooked muffins! It was also the first time I weighed the flours. Putting them in the fridge prior to baking and then cooking them at a higher temperature first must have been the key tips! I tested them at 10 minutes (after the initial 10 minutes at the higher temp) and they were at 198 degrees; stuck them back in for 2-3 minutes more and they reached 200 degrees (the ideal temp from what I’ve heard). They are perfect. Also, thanks for not having us put the oven on as step 1.
Made these muffins…amazing!!
My kiddos school is nut free. What could you use instead of almond flour?
Yay! Glad they turned out for you. You can use more gluten-free measure-for-measure baking flour in place of the almond flour!
I made these last night, they are so delicious and so puffy. I was so worried because I accidentally put in too much oil and couldn’t get it back. They are so soft, I used bobs red mill gf flour and I added full sized chips since it’s what I had. My only complain is that I only have a few left. Should double the recipe for sure.
These muffins are the best way to use up overripe bananas! They turned out perfectly moist and fluffy, and were super easy to make!
Guilt-free muffins are the best! I could eat them all day! I just saved this recipe, thanks Erin!
Your recipe is so good – I’ve made it multiple times and its turned out great everytime.