Hearty Whole Wheat Banana Zucchini Muffins
You’ll love these easy, one-bowl Banana Zucchini Muffins! They’re lightly spiced with cinnamon, made with whole wheat flour, oats, grated zucchini, mashed banana and optional walnuts and chocolate chips. Baked up in 22 minutes, they’re a great healthy breakfast muffin, or a wholesome mid-day snack.
Healthy Banana Zucchini Muffins
Kinda no surprise to my regular readers, but muffins are one of my favorite baked goods to have on hand. They are great for a lazy weekend breakfast. Or perfect for grabbing as you run out the door after hitting the snooze button one too many times on a Monday morning.
Plus, veggie-loaded muffins are fun in lunch boxes as a sandwich alternative, or as a quick snack between errands. Muffins are great and I bake them often and in many variations.
Zucchinis are one of my top vegetables to keep on hand for easy veggie-loading. I literally always have one in my fridge for tossing into pasta dishes, oatmeal, or (you guessed it) muffins! The zucchini almost melts into these healthy breakfast muffins. And combination of zucchini + banana + cinnamon will have you LOVING eating your veggies for breakfast.
Mixed in one bowl and perfect for stocking in your fridge and freezer (hello meal prep!), these healthy muffins are the perfect breakfast to make for your family. Made with whole grains and naturally sweetened with bananas and a little maple syrup or honey, they are done (start to finish) in 30 minutes.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need to peel zucchini for muffins?
The skin of the zucchini is thin, tender, and totally edible. So, peeling is optional and a step I often skip to save time. However, if you have a selective eater in the house that doesn’t love a little green in their banana muffins, peeling your zucchini will make it invisible in this recipe.
How do you squeeze zucchini dry?
- First, grate the zucchini.
- Then place it in the middle of a paper towel or a clean dish towel.
- Wrap up the zucchini in the towel and press down to draw out the water.
- Flip it and press down again. At this point, it should be good to go into the batter for these healthy breakfast muffins.
Tips for baking with whole wheat flour.
First, it is important to know that whole wheat flour is a much “thirstier” flour than AP flour. Meaning, it absorbs more liquid. If you are replacing APF with whole wheat flour in a recipe, know that your baked good might be a bit dryer or that you will need to add a touch more liquid to get the right consistency.
Whole wheat flour is much denser than APF as well. Because of this, it is VERY important NOT to over mix the batter for these banana muffins. Mixing activates the gluten in the flour. The more mixing you do, the denser these healthy Banana Zucchini Muffins will be. For the fluffiest muffins, be sure to mix until JUST combined.
Substitute for whole wheat flour in baking.
I find using cup-for-cup gluten free flour blends work perfectly as a replacement for whole wheat flour in most baking recipes! Plus, if you need these zucchini muffins to be gluten free…it is the perfect swap!
You can also swap out the whole wheat flour with APF, just know that the muffins might be a little extra moist and they also won’t be made with whole grains.
If you are low on whole wheat flour, you can make “white whole wheat flour” by combining half whole wheat flour + half APF.
While I haven’t tried it in this banana muffin recipe, you can sometimes replace whole wheat flour in baked goods with almond meal. This makes a Paleo + gluten free muffin as well.
How to store these banana muffins
I highly suggest storing these Banana Zucchini Muffins in an airtight container in your refrigerator. Because they are so moist, storing them in the refrigerator will keep them fresher longer and prevent molding.
Or, you can freeze these muffins. They freeze really well, so they are great for stocking up your freezer. I like to store them in a large freezer bag or freezer-safe large container.
To defrost, I like to take them out of the freezer and leave them on the counter to thaw overnight. Or if you want one NOW, you can warm a muffin in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds.
Suggested adaptations
- Make them gluten free by using a cup-for-cup flour blend (I like this one) in place of the whole wheat flour and make sure that the oats you are using are certified gluten free.
- Reduce the sweetener in these muffins to 1/4 cup. The bananas offer up a lot of sweetness on their own, so you might find you don’t need as much maple syrup or honey, depending on your taste preference.
- Make them dairy-free by using your favorite plant based milk.
- Replace the banana with applesauce. If you don’t have bananas on hand or just prefer applesauce, they can be swapped in this muffin recipe.
- Omit the chocolate chips. Or replace them with raisins!
- Skip the walnuts for a nut-free option.
- Make these Banana Zucchini Muffins egg free by using flax eggs.
Tips and tricks
- Let muffins cool for at least 15 minutes. Muffins (and all baked goods) continue to bake even after they are removed from the oven and will firm up as they sit. Let the muffins sit in the muffin tin for 5 minutes before transferring them to the cooling rack. And then let them cool there for another 10 minutes before enjoying. TIP: If you are not using liners when baking your muffins, let them cool the full 15 minutes in the muffin tin….otherwise they might stick or fall apart.
- Use parchment paper muffin liners. I love this brand and find they are the best for easy peeling muffin liners. Another great (no waste) option is silicone muffin liners. Also a little oil in the muffin tin compartment works great for preventing these healthy zucchini muffins from sticking.
- Make sure the bananas are ripe. For best results in baked goods, bananas should be brown and spotty. As bananas ripen they get sweeter and softer. Ripe muffins also add moisture to these banana muffins. Using bananas that are green or just barely ripe in this recipe may lead to dry, less sweet muffins.
- Don’t over mix your batter! Mixing activates the gluten in the flour and can make for a really heavy, dense muffin. So mix your muffin batter until JUST combined. That is the key to fluffy muffins!
Other veggie-loaded muffin recipes you will love
- Healthy Chocolate Muffins (with veggies!)
- Oatmeal Green Smoothie Muffins
- Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins
- Healthy Zucchini Lemon Muffins
- Wholesome & Fluffy Banana Carrot Muffins
- Healthy Lunch Box Muffins
- Healthy Morning Glory Muffins
Did you try these Banana Zucchini Muffins and now you’re hungry for more?
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Hearty Whole Wheat Banana Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
- 1 cup grated zucchini, measure before squeezing moisture out
- ¼ cup avocado oil, or olive oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup honey or maple syrup
- ¼ cup milk of choice
- 1 ¼ cups whole wheat flour , or sub cup-for-cup gluten free flour blend
- ½ cup rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts, optional
- ¼ cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a muffin tin with liners or grease with a little extra oil.
- Take the grated zucchini and place it in the middle of a clean dish towel or large paper towel. Wrap the zucchini in the towel and squeeze out as much of the moisture as you can. Set aside.
- Place very ripe bananas in a medium bowl and mash until smooth.
- Add oil, eggs, vanilla extract, honey/maple syrup, and milk to the bowl with the banana. Mix.
- Add flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. DO NOT over mix or your muffins might lose their lovely fluffiness.
- Add zucchini, walnuts, and chocolate chips and fold them in, again being careful to not over mix.
- Portion batter into prepared muffin tin. Top with more walnuts and chocolate chips, if desired.
- Bake for 22-24 minutes, or until muffins are golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the middle of one muffin comes out clean. TIP: If you have a kitchen thermometer, bake until your muffins are 200℉ in the center. This will ensure they are cooked through but aren't over baked, which can result in a dry muffin. Allow them to cool in pan for 15 minutes before enjoying.
- Once cooled completely, store in fridge for 4-5 days or in freezer for up to a month.
Notes
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- 1 cup grated zucchini
- 1 cup mashed banana
- 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 Tablespoons oil
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
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Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a muffin tin with liners or grease with a little extra oil.
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Take the grated zucchini and place it in the middle of a clean dish towel or large paper towel. Wrap the zucchini in the towel and squeeze out as much of the moisture as you can. Set aside.
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In a large bowl, combine oil, eggs, vanilla extract, mashed banana, honey/maple syrup, and milk. Mix.
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Add remaining ingredients except zucchini to the bowl. Mix until JUST combined. The secret to fluffy muffins is to not over mix. The batter will be thicker than muffin recipes made with APF, but it should still be easily scoopable.
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Add drained zucchini to the batter. Fold it in.
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Portion batter into prepared muffin time and top with extra banana slices if desired.
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Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until muffins are golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the middle of one muffin comes out clean. Allow them to cool in pan for 5 minutes before enjoying.
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Once cool completely, store in fridge for 4-5 days or in freezer for up to a month.
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Hello! Can I replace the whole wheat flour with coconut or almond? Sounds delish, can’t wait to try them!
You might be able to do it with almond flour but I haven’t tried so I can’t say for sure how the end result will be. Coconut flour is a very “thirsty” flour and soaks up a lot more moisture vs other flours. I don’t typically suggest subbing in coconut flour in a recipe, but rather use a recipe that is created for coconut flour!
I love when you put out a recipe that doesn’t require me to run to the store. I had a giant zucchini that needed to be used up and sad looking bananas. Made these up with my son and we both loved them. Delicious!
Yay! I am so glad! And I feel the same way. I feel like the warm weather has brought on all the zucchini and quick-to-ripen bananas!
Hi! Can I use half chickpea flour and whole wheat?? Or all chickpea?
I haven’t tried it with chickpea flour. If you try it, please let us know how it goes!
These muffins disappeared in 2 days. I used summer squash because it’s what I had and a mini muffin tray because it’s what was clean, and it worked great!
Summer squash is an awesome sub for zucchini in just about every recipe I’ve tried it in! So glad they were a hit!
Made these with my toddler, we all love them! Will definitely be making these a regular bake!
I am so glad they were a success! Rave reviews from toddlers is probably my favorite thing ever!
So moist and delicious; just sweet enough and I don’t feel guilty eating such a yummy treat. My son loves them too! This recipe will definitely go into the rotation!
I’m so glad you love them as much as we do!
They taste delicious! However, they turned out dense and somewhat gummy, which I’m sure is user error because your recipes always turn out fabulous for me. I used boxed coconut milk, coconut oil, and bananas that were barely yellow—could that have impacted the density? I followed everything else exactly.
Hi Sara! I am so glad that you find so many of recipes to be a success! Let’s see if I can help your troubleshoot this one!
The bananas could have been the issue. I suggest ripe bananas (meaning all yellow and and with some brown spots) and is sounds like yours were just starting to ripen up. They are very dense at that point and likely didn’t offer enough moisture for these.
Boxed coconut milk also could have done something, depending on the ingredients. Some of them have thickeners or other ingredients that might change the chemistry of this muffin batter. I usually use canned coconut milk.
These muffins are super hit.My 2 year old just loved them.I made them with flax egg and they came out so well.Thank you for sharing the recipes,love them.They are always a success
Yes, that should work okay.
I would add an extra 1/2 cup of flour, though. AP absorbs less moisture than whole wheat flour
As other readers have tried adding more APF with no success, I would say this recipe is best made with whole wheat flour.
If using whole wheat pastry flour (all I have at the moment), would you still recommend the 2 cups, or adding a little more? Also, what cook time do you think for mini muffins? PS, your recipes are absolutely amazing!!
Hi Courtney! So, I haven’t worked with pastry flour a ton, but from my experience and from a quick search on Google, it seems like you can do an even swap with the flour. If you do the swap and the batter looks thinner than the picture shown in the post, I’d add 1/4 cup more. I feel like pastry flour can get gummy easily if overmixed, so just be aware to stir until everything is combined and stop there.
As for mini muffins, I’d start by baking them for 11 minutes. If they are not done in the middle, add 2 more minutes!
And I am SO glad you enjoy my recipes! Hearing from my readers that they are helpful always makes my day!
Can’t wait to try these as I have some zucchini begging to be used. Gonna search the site to see what else I can do with them.
Well hey there, name twin! There are lots of zucchini-loaded recipes on the site! This one is a personal and reader favorite
https://thenaturalnurturer.com/zucchini-blueberry-baked-oatmeal/
These were warm Out of the oven so everyone had one for dessert tonight. Mine were a little flat, slightly dense, but I think it’s because I didn’t fill the muffin tin enough. Taste was still there, and the shock when my three littles learned this tasty new treat had zucchini in it…I couldn’t help but laugh!
Oh I love that! Surprise, look how delicious zucchini-loaded foods can be!
Also, is there a chance you over mixed the batter? I find these muffins (and many others) come out denser when I over mix them. Otherwise, they are nice and light!
Either way, so glad they were a success in your house!
Hmmmm. It should be more of a batter than a dough. You can see the process pictures in the post for reference. Other than the extra liquid added to thin it out, were there other changes made to the recipe? Also, is it possible you over mixed it? Over-mixing activates the gluten in the flour and can result in a very doughy texture and gummy muffin.
Hi again! I hadn’t made this recipe in a while, so I decided to make it again this morning just to make sure there wasn’t an ingredient or step missing from recent updates. The batter and muffins came out EXACTLY as I remember. But, I had a few thoughts for you besides what I mentioned in my last comment.
1) how ripe were your bananas? Greenish or just ripe bananas are much drier than super ripe bananas. I’ve updated the recipe to mention that!
2) If you are used to baking with APF or a boxed muffin mix, the batter will be on the thicker side. Whole wheat flour soaks up a lot more liquid than white flour, but the muffins still bake up lovely. Again, I added this note to the recipe so hopefully it’ll help others know what to expect.
hi! that’s so sweet you did that.
so when i made the batter i used 1/3 AP and 1/3 whole wheat. and the batter was like a bread dough and so much dry flour. i used 4 super mushy bananas so i had more than 1 cup and one full cup of zucchini. in the end maybe i added too much liquid? it was basically still raw after 25 mins. i don’t think i overmixed it either bc i was careful to fold the liquid and not whip or stir it.
i should mention i used flax eggs — so maybe the combination of all of it just went bad vs one specific thing?
Hmmmm. Maybe it was a combo of everything. I have made these before with flax eggs and they turned out great (a bit less fluffy, but good just the same), but baking is such a funny science….you can make the same recipe so many times and one time it goes wrong for unknown reasons. Thanks for trouble shooting it with me.
likewise, (btw typo, i meant 1/3 Ap and 2/3 whole wheat)
i’ll try it again next week. btw have you ever tried with buttermilk? i wonder if that would make it fluff up more as well. baking chemistry is def very specific!
thank you again for troubleshooting this, really appreciate it!
Oh I haven’t but that sounds delicious and like a great way to get a little extra puff! And so happy to help. The quality of my recipes is wildly important to me. I value to trust people put in them!
I make this recipe so often I realized I should probably thank you for it. This is great and so easy! All of my appreciation for you.
I’m so glad you enjoy them as much as we do! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy them. Any feedback you can share?
I have two zucchinis and one smallish ripe banana – if I’m okay with a less-sweet muffin, could I substitute more zucchini to make up for less banana? This recipe looks great, but I’d love to be able to use up the things that I already have!
Thanks!
Hi Brook! Do you have applesauce? If so, I’d say try that first in place of the banana. I often use banana for applesauce and vice versa in baking with tons of success. If not, you can try to replace the banana with extra zucchini, but I haven’t tried it and am unsure how successful it will be.
If you do give it a try, please share how they turn out!
What is the best (healthiest) Oil to use in this recipe?
I personally use either avocado oil or olive oil
Hi Ashlee. I’m sorry to hear you didn’t love the flavor of these muffins. While they are lower in added sugar, I’m kinda surprised to hear that you found them bland considering the vanilla, banana, cinnamon and nutmeg. If you were looking for a considerably sweeter muffin, than I get why these didn’t hit for you. As far as the texture, AP is a much different flour than the whole wheat flour this recipe calls for. Whole wheat flour soaks up more moisture than AP, so I am betting your muffins were kinda mushy. If you did make these again, I’d suggest using 2.5 cups of AP flour instead of 2 cups to help balance out the wetness.
Thanks for the feedback. I will add a note to the recipe that these just simply do not seem to work with APF. They work beautifully with whole wheat flour, but not all purpose for some reason. I appreciate you sharing
Probably a stupid question.. but can I use regular flour?
Not a stupid question. Readers have tried and not had a lot of luck swapping the whole wheat for APF in these muffins.
I made these with 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 AP. Yes I read comments about there being a difference in texture. I added 2T ground flax seed. My bananas looked black but when I peeled them they weren’t gooey needed. I added 1/4 cup sugar. The results were tasty. The texture I prefer to call ‘ultra moist’ not gummy. Tongue in cheek. I’m trying the lentil recipe next
I’m glad you enjoyed them, Catherine! And thanks for sharing your successful adaptations. I’m sure others will find them helpful!
These are so delicious! I made this to my toddler as part of the milk reintroduction latter. His allergist suggested to start with step 1: 1/2 cup of milk for a 12 muffin recipe and then to ramp up to step 2: 1 cup of milk for a 12 muffin recipe if he tolerates step 1 well. My question is (hoping you could help me), what changes could I make in terms of the ratio of the dry vs wet ingredients to tolerate for 1 cup of milk for the same amount of batter (12 muffins)?
Hi Maggie. I always appreciate feedback. I’d love to find out what able them didn’t work for you. Were they not sweet enough for you? Or did you make any ingredient swaps? These a definitely lighter on the added sugar than other zucchini muffin recipes and made with heartier whole wheat flour (which can make for a dense muffin if over mixed), but this seems to be a recipe people either love or simple don’t depending on what they are looking for in a zucchini muffin.
How long should i bake these in a mini muffin pan?
I usually do about 13 minutes.
Dear Tasha,
Thank you for the recipe! I was looking forward to trying this version w the maple syrup WW organic flour and I added some choc chip on top for the all the kids {including me}. I used frozen zucchini. I was delighted to see the water come out easily when I squeeze the ziplock bag. My bananas were beautifully black.
Disappointed they didn’t turn out, the top half is cooked and bottom gewwy…. All double batches top and bottom were not edible. I did mix zucchini after all the wet ingredients and not at the end. Not sure what happen… my human error? They do look amazing and I don’t doubt this recipe is outstanding. Thank you for the experience!
Have a magical night!
Steph ❤️😊🧚🏼♂️
PS wish you had a picture option!
Hi Steph!
Its funny that you mention that you were struggling with this recipe because I just gave it a FULL makeover. I’m totally in love with the new and improved version. I hope you give it a go!
Doubling baked goods can be super tricky. Baking is such a science and when you double things like baking powder and wet ingredients, things get funny. I’m removing the option for people to double baking recipes on my site, to hopefully avoid future confession! The fact that your muffins baked on top but not on the bottom makes me wonder if your batter was too wet or your oven was too hot. You said the water squeezed off easily from the zucchini after thawing, but did you wrap it in a paper towel to try and draw out more??
I’d love to help you troubleshoot and, as I said, I hope you try the new version. Thanks for your feedback!
These were so good and so light and fluffy!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these as much as I do! I do love the fluff factor of these muffins and they just get gobbled up so fast. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, Kelly!
This is one of my go to recipes for hiding veggies for my extremely picky toddler. I have never baked with whole wheat flour before but now I do it all the time! I make these into mini muffins because he loves the Entemann’s Little Bites. I make this recipe with zucchini and carrots. Both work well. I leave out the nuts and also the chocolate chips because it honestly doesn’t even need it! They also freeze nicely so I bag them in 3’s and freeze, then just take one out every night for the following morning. He has a bag every morning! His first words in the morning are “muffin please”.
I’m so delighted to hear that, Lauren! What a win! Thanks for sharing.
I always bake muffins at a high temp for five minutes (425f) then drop it down (375f) for about ten minutes then watch them. I also always double the raising agent. Doing this yielded incredibly soft, light, sky-high muffins. We are cinnaholics, so I doubled that too. Best banana muffins I’ve ever made and we couldn’t taste the zucchini at all. Oh, we used maple syrup, soy milk, and pecans. These would be perfect for fall.
I’m so glad you enjoyed these, Monica, and I love hearing about your modifications! I need to try!
Perfection! Made a double batch, one for now and one for the freezer. Thank you so much for creating such wholesome and delicious recipes. These came out moist and flavorful. This recipe will definitely be on repeat!
I’m so glad you loved these as much as we do! Love stocking the freezer with muffins for those busy weeks. Cook-once-eat-twice is my love language and sanity saver!
Hey Taesha,
We loved these muffins. Super easy to make with my boys and sooo yummy!
Thank you for the recipe!
Have you ever made this as a bread loaf rather than muffins by any chance? If so, what would you recommend for the baking time? Excited to try this recipe – it looks delicious! 🙂
I have not tried it as a loaf but I bet it would work! I’d probably bake it for about 45 minutes at the same temperature or until the loaf has an internal temperature of 200F
Flavour was good, but the texture was a total fail for me. The batter was way too wet and the muffin was a mushy mess.
Sorry to hear these were a bust for you. Did you squeeze out the zucchini before after measuring it? Or perhaps use a different flour? I ask because these both can have a big impact on the texture of these muffins.
I did squeeze out the zucchini, and used WW pastry flour.
Well then, I’m baffled. I know these muffins have been a success for many other readers and myself, but I appreciate your honest feedback.
Thanks Taesha – I appreciate your reply. I may give them another shot. Who knows what could’ve gone wrong!
Pretty good. Especially warm. My Zucchini was small so it wasn’t soaked with moisture. No need to drain excess liquid out of it. I love chocolate chips so that is a nice bonus. I forgot the nutmeg but did add a little extra cinnamon. These are great.
So glad you enjoyed these, Michelle! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review.
This recipe is AMAZING! I made these gluten free with mini chocolate chips and craisins and they were so delicious. You can’t stop at just one!
SO happy to hear you loved these muffins as much as I do. Adore the idea of the craisins + chocolate chips! I bet that was so delicious