This small-batch recipe makes five of the best Chocolate Banana Muffins you’ll ever eat. You just need one ripe banana and one bowl, and you can be pulling these out of your oven in less than half an hour.
A little over a year ago, I posted these One-banana One-bowl Small-batch Banana Muffins to the blog. I sold them with the pitch: Hey, have a bowl? Have a banana? Make some Banana Muffins!
And they’ve been incredibly popular. Next to my Small-batch Chocolate Chip Cookies, they’re one of the posts I get the most happy messages about. Clearly, you guys love banana muffins and hate doing dishes and having a lone piece of fruit rotting on your counter. (Same.)
So today, in the hope of giving you another recipe you’ll write me lots of happy emails and comments about, I have another pitch for you:
Hey, have a bowl? Have a banana? AND love chocolate? Make some Chocolate Banana Muffins!
Guys.
Guuuuuuys.
These muffins. I love them so much.
I love how easy they are to make. I love the way banana and chocolate are a perfect pair. And most of all, I love their texture.
That might sound odd, but the thing about banana muffins is that because bananas are so moist, if you’re not careful you can end up with muffins that are very heavy and almost gummy.
These muffins are NOT that. They are moist and decadent to be sure, but with a fantastic tender crumb that’s almost like biting into a cupcake. Get one warm out of the oven, with the chocolate chunks still melty and molten, and you’ll be pretty sure you’ve died and gone to banana muffin heaven.
I shared the first test batch with taste testers and they got a, “Wow, that’s just incredible.” (Mumbled out around a mouthful of muffin).
A “This is the best chocolate muffin I’ve ever had.”
And a “Damn you, I wasn’t eating sugar this week…are there any more?”
So you know it’s not just me who’s a fan of the things.
What I’m saying is that if you feel like your day could use some chocolate (really, what day couldn’t?), and there’s a shabby looking banana sitting on your counter right now or maybe in the office fruit bowl, you should probably do yourself a favor and take half an hour today to make yourself a batch.
To make this little batch of five chocolate banana muffins, you’ll just need one bowl (that’s right, these are one-bowl muffins) and a couple minutes to chop some chocolate, mash a banana, and mix some ingredients. If it’s before noon, brew yourself a pot of coffee while your muffins bake. If it’s after noon, maybe opt for some tea.
And once they are done baking, eat one warm out of the oven while you decide how many of these perfect little muffins you feel like sharing and how many you’re going to keep for yourself…
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission if you make a purchase using them. There is absolutely no additional cost to you.
Small-batch Chocolate Banana Muffins Recipe Tips
- This recipe calls for your dry ingredients to be sifted using a fine-mesh strainer. It helps to aerate the flour and gets rid of any lumps in your cocoa powder. If you don’t own a fine-mesh strainer, they are cheap on Amazon and available in the baking aisle at most stores. You can also combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl and whisk them together, making sure to smash any large cocoa powder lumps. It doesn’t work quite as well but will do in a pinch.
- The baking temperature for these muffins starts at 425°F before being dropped to 350°F about halfway through cooking. The initial burst of higher heat helps give them bigger, fluffier muffin tops, but if you don’t want to mess with your oven in the middle of cooking, you can just bake them at 350°F for about 19 minutes.
- Looking for more Small-batch Muffin recipes? Try these small-batch Orange Muffins, Blueberry Muffins, and Chocolate Chocolate Muffins.
Small-batch Chocolate Banana Muffins (One-banana, One-bowl)
Ingredients
Special Tools
Chocolate Banana Muffins
- 1 medium-to-large over-ripe banana
- 3 tablespoons (1.5oz) unsalted butter melted
- 1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar
- 1 large egg white
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (40g) all-purpose flour measured by weight or using the spoon and sweep method*
- 3 tablespoons (15g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chopped or 1/3 cup chocolate chips, plus more for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425°F and line a muffin tin with 5 liners.
- Place peeled banana in a medium bowl and mash it well with a fork or potato masher. Add melted butter and whisk until well combined. Add brown sugar, egg white, and vanilla. Mix well.
- Place a fine-mesh strainer over the bowl and add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt to the strainer. Sift dry ingredients into the wet and use a spoon to mix until just combined. Stir in chopped chocolate or chocolate chips. Divide batter between prepared muffin cups, filling about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake for 8 minutes at 425°F before turning the oven temperature down to 350°F. Bake for an additional 6 to 9 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out with just a few crumbs.
- Sprinkle extra chocolate over the top if desired. Cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes, and enjoy.
Notes
Recipe Adapted From Smitten Kitchen
Karly says
Love the small batch thing! If not I would probably eat them all!
Tracy says
Hehe, a very real danger. 😉
Caitlin says
These look so dreamy! Those melty chocolate chips Totally craving banana bread now.
Tracy says
Thanks, Caitlin!!
The Better Baker says
Yummmmm! Printing to bake this morning. Thanks for sharing a ‘small batch’ recipe…love it. And I love chocolate and banana together too. Have a wonderful week!
Tracy says
I hope you enjoyed them!
Deepika|TheLoveOfCakes says
I love moist chocolatey muffins for breakfast! These are perfect..adding banana makes them apt for brekkie :).
Tracy says
Exactly! 😉
Jessica says
Trying these tonight! Can’t wait 😀
Tracy says
Yay!! I hope you love them!!!
Jeanette says
Lovely muffins 🙂 They looks so yummy!
Tracy says
Thanks, Jeanette!
Allison - Celebrating Sweets says
I love small batch recipes – automatic portion control! Ha! These look great!
Tracy says
Exactly. Some days you just need that portion control. Especially with recipes involving chocolate. 😉
Emily says
I’m drooling over these chocolate banana muffins! They look so amazing and I’m tempted to make a giant batch and freeze some for my kids lunches!
Tracy says
You should! I bet they’d love them! 😉
Kim Beaulieu says
I love happy emails from readers too. These muffins look seriously delicious. I’m a sucker for a great muffin.
Tracy says
Thanks, Kim! Agreed, a great muffin = the best!
Valentina says
Oh my gosh, these look so scrumptious! Love the small batch plan — this way I’d only eat five in a row. LOL!
Tracy says
Exactly! 😉 Thanks, Valentina!
Jacque Hastert says
I wouldn’t be able to make a small batch. I would have to double or triple this.
Tracy says
LOL, I mean, doubling or tripling is always an excellent option. 😉
Jean Ferrario says
Hi Tracy: I make muffins a lot but I always make jumbo muffins, about half cup of batter each, which I take to work for lunch with a piece of fruit. So I doubled your banana chocolate recipe, swapped out the butter for vegetable oil, and used one whole egg instead of the white. They muffins are fabulous, I got four jumbos which I baked for 23 minutes at 350. So thanks for another great recipe. I haven’t yet tried your method of starting the muffins out at a higher temperature, these came out great, nice high domes. Also I always warm the muffins for 20 seconds in the microwave so they taste freshly baked when they are not. Can’t wait for lunch tomorrow!! Thanks again, Jean Ferrario
Tracy says
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Jean! And thanks for the detailed comment. That’s so helpful for people who want to make their muffins jumbo!! 🙂
Allison says
These got better on the second day, OMG the decadence. I doubled the batch for my daughter to take back to college with her, her and her roommates are going to devour them. So unbelievably good.
Tracy says
Honestly, I’ve never eaten these on the second day since they’re always gone on the first. 😉 So that’s good to know! So glad you enjoyed them and hope your daughter and her roommates did too. Thanks, Allison!
Rez says
Hi,
Making these amazing looking muffins now. Just want to confirm 1/4 cup of usually 32 gms and not 50gms…so the brown sugar is more than the flour?
Tracy says
Hi, Rez. An American cup of brown sugar weighs a little over 200g (https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/ingredient-weight-chart.html#ingredients) so yes, there are 50g brown sugar in the recipe. Hope you enjoy the muffins! 🙂
Reezelle Dsilva says
Oh it turned out quite well! Moist and scrumptious…up on Instagram. Thank you! Will be baking more of it since its a bit!!!
Tracy says
Yay! So glad you enjoyed them!!
Padmini says
Hi Tracy!
I’ve made these about 4 times the last 3 months and they’ve turned out perfect every single time!
Thank you for this kickass recipe! It’s a no fail recipe that’s just the perfect amount of sweet!. 🙂
Tracy says
Yay!! This makes me so happy to hear. Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed them!
Hemal says
Hi.. Would like to know what substitute I can use instead of the egg. Please do let me know. The recipe looks super… Can’t wait to try it
Tracy says
I’ve never made these without eggs, so I can’t recommend one particular egg substitute over another. Banana muffins are pretty forgiving, so your favorite egg substitute should work just fine here.
Annie says
Made these last night, and they were so delicious! My whole family loved them. Can’t wait to make them again!
Tracy says
So happy to hear that, Annie! Thanks for taking the time to let me know!
SF says
I have made these twice – once for friends about a month ago and once for co-workers last week, and gotten rave reviews both times! I don’t usually like banana bread (I don’t like bananas – only get them to stick in smoothies so I can get the nutrients), but I love these muffins! Very chocolate-y, and there’s a hint of banana flavor, but not overwhelmingly so. Have gotten nothing but positive feedback, and now this is my go-to recipe when I don’t want to waste leftover bananas!
Tracy says
I’m so glad everyone’s been enjoying them! I’m with you on bananas–they’re not usually my favorite, but I love these muffins, so I’m always so happy when other people feel the same way!
Ellen says
I Love the small batch idea as my husband and I are empty nesters.
I followed recipe as it reads except I used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa.
I ate one muffin and am in love! My husband ate the other 4, guess he liked them too!
I’m a dark chocoholic and am thrilled with this recipe
Tracy says
Thanks, Ellen! So glad you and your husband enjoyed them!
Cinara says
LOVE this recipe! Have made them a couple of times now and they always come out perfect! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Tracy says
Thanks for reporting back, Cinara! So glad to hear you enjoyed them!!
Carolyn says
Love these. So easy to make and very delicious. I love that it wasn’t a very dense muffin. Will definitely make these again.
Tracy says
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed them, Carolyn!
Laynie says
Hi Tracy! I’ve been stalking your blog for a while now, and I haven’t tried a recipe yet that hasn’t turned out amazing! I love the smaller batches too (it helps me from overindulging). Haha! I absolutely love these Chocolate Banana Muffins! They rival those I’ve had from the bakery, and I now use the two baking temperatures anytime I make muffins! Plus, they are so quick and easy! Great recipe!
Tracy says
I’m so glad you enjoy them, Laynie!! These are some of my favorite muffins, so I’m always so happy when people make them!! 🙂
Jenn says
Delicious! A nice treat with a bit less guilt.
I didn’t have chocolate chips so I used chopped pecans instead and the muffins were still glorious.
Fearing having to fight over the 5th muffin I just split the batter into 4 tins instead.
Tracy says
Thrilled you enjoyed them, Jenn, and cracking up imagining the averted banana muffin battle. 😉
Laura says
I’m so glad this recipe popped up in my email this morning. I had actually gone looking for your banana muffin recipe last night so I could use my lone ugly banana. I decided to go with the chocolate and sprinkled a bit of cinnamon in too. Delicious! Thanks for sending!
Tracy says
Thanks, Laura! So glad the recipe made it to you at the right time! 🙂
Kim says
Dessert for breakfast? Yes, please! These were perfect on a drizzly Sunday. We washed down the fudgy treats with hot tea and tucked the rest away for another morning. I love your small-batch recipes!
Tracy says
LOL Thank you, Kim!! And you just described my perfect Sunday morning! 😉
Brittany says
I cannot get over how LIGHT and FLUFFY these muffins were! I followed this recipe to a T and they came out absolutely perfect! This is my new favourite baking recipe and I am going to be making these over and over again! I have never had a muffin this light and fluffy it literally melts in your mouth I love it!
Thank you Tracy!
Tracy says
SO happy to hear you enjoyed these, Brittany!!
RC says
Found this recipe when googling what to make with 1 overripe banana, and glad I did. I followed the recipe except used a whole egg instead of just the egg white, and dark choc chips instead semi-sweet. I thought the chocolate would overpower the banana but both flavors came through. Will definitely make this again, thanks!
Tracy says
So happy to hear you enjoyed them!!
Alaf says
Took up baking with a vengeance and these are hands down one of the best things I baked. I may or may not purposely neglect 1 or 2 bananas to have an excuse to make these.
Tracy says
Lol so glad you’ve been enjoying the recipe!!
Priyanka Gotika says
Everything you said about going to banana muffin heaven to deciding to keep all to myself to eating one warm fresh out of the oven. OMG!!!! At first I thought you were exaggerating when I read but after eating it.,,… no words. Kudos and thanks for saving that bananas life. This is going to be my Christmas ritual going forward.
Tracy says
Lol! So thrilled to hear it, Priyanka!!
Lori says
Wonderful muffins. Everyone loved them.
Tracy says
Thank you! So glad to hear it!!
Coleen says
Sooo good! Thought it was even better the second day. 🙂
Tracy says
So glad you enjoyed them!!