Bakery-Style Vegan Banana Muffins
Servings: 12
Vegan banana muffins are soft, fluffy, and naturally sweet, the kind of treat that feels like dessert but still makes sense for breakfast. They’re made with ripe bananas, plant-based ingredients, and no eggs or dairy, yet still bake up with that classic bakery-style rise and tender crumb.
Ingredients
- ½ cup oat milk
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup aquafaba
- 4 medium very ripe bananas about 2 cups mashed
- 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup coconut sugar
- ½ cup coconut oil melted
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup raw walnuts chopped
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cinnamon Streusel Topping
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease a standard 12-cup muffin tin on the bottoms and sides with oil or use a silicone muffin tray.
- Stir the lemon juice into the oat milk and set aside for 7 minutes to create “buttermilk.”.
- Shake the can of chickpeas to evenly distribute the starches. Measure the required amount of the aquafaba into a blender. Blend on medium speed for 1 minute until uniformly foamy.
- Once the oat milk and lemon juice has set, add it, vanilla extract, bananas, coconut sugar and coconut oil to the blender ingredients. Blend on medium speed until no banana lumps remain.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, walnuts, salt, baking soda and cinnamon. Mix well.
- Pour container of wet ingredients on top of dry ingredients. Gently stir until the ingredients are just barely combined. It’s okay if you can see a few traces of flour.
- Evenly divide the batter between the muffin tins, filling to the top.
- Once the muffin cups are filled, make the cinnamon streusel. In a small bowl, mix the streusel ingredients until well combined, then use your fingertips to crumble the topping evenly over each muffin, covering the batter completely.
- Bake at 425ºF for 5 minutes, or until muffins have risen nicely. Then, without opening the oven door, reduce the heat to 350ºF and bake for another 17 minutes (or 22 minutes if using silicone tray), or until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few crumbs.
- Set muffins tray on top of oven (or on a cooling rack) and allow to cool for 20 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Banana ripeness matters: Spotty, overripe bananas deliver the most sweetness and moisture.
- Aquafaba watch-out: If you’re using canned chickpea liquid, choose unsalted and lightly whisk it before adding.
- Don’t overmix: Stir the batter just until the flour disappears. Overmixing creates dense, gummy muffins instead of fluffy ones.
- Make ahead: You can mash the bananas and measure out dry ingredients the night before.
- Flavor boost: Fold in chopped dark chocolate, pecans, or a pinch of espresso powder for a bakery-style gourmet twist.
Nutrition
Calories: 351kcal, Carbohydrates: 57g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 13g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 251mg, Potassium: 219mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 20g, Vitamin A: 49IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 37mg, Iron: 2mg
