I’m back from Denver and not ready to come down from that vacation high. I realized after typing that last sentence that it was a fantastic pun. Hah.
In all seriousness, our trip to Utah and Denver was a raging success. Besides one near-death experience hiking and getting stuck at 10,000 feet in an outrageous ice/snow storm, things were incredibly awesome. There were so many places that I wanted to stop and eat at, or mountains I wanted to hike; I wish I was able to get all of it in. I do want to give a huge thanks for all of your fabulous recommendations over on Instagram. I’ll be definitely doing an AK guide to Denver SOON!
In other news, Tony and I are contemplating doing some sort of food challenge for the rest of November until Thanksgiving. I’m curious if we’ll be able to stick to a Paleo/Whole30 diet in anticipation of diving straight into pie in a few weeks. Who knows! If we end up trying it out, I’ll be sure to keep you posted. It’s really just for fun and a way to get us back to clean eating (or me back to clean eating).
In the meantime, I’ve got healthy pumpkin banana muffins for you! Wholesome, filling muffins with the best crunchy topping on the planet made with macadamia nuts. Please tell me you haven’t forgotten how buttery and lovely macadamia nuts taste? Now imagine it on top of fluffy and healthy pumpkin banana muffins. YES sir!
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Ingredients in pumpkin banana muffins
These healthy pumpkin banana muffins are naturally sweetened with banana and a hint of maple syrup. Both pumpkin and banana flavored shine through and are well balanced so it isn’t overpowering one way or the other. Here’s what you’ll need to make them:
- Bananas: be sure to use bananas that are nice and ripe to give these muffins sweetness.
- Pumpkin puree: feel free to use canned pumpkin puree or make your own with my tutorial here!
- Egg: you’ll just need 1 egg in this recipe. I think a flax egg would also work well to make these muffins vegan.
- Vanilla extract: for a little boost of flavor.
- Maple syrup: these healthy pumpkin banana muffins are naturally sweetened with a bit of pure maple syrup.
- Olive oil: a little olive oil adds the perfect amount of moisture to these muffins.
- Almond milk: I like to use an unsweetened almond milk, but feel free to use any milk you’d like.
- Whole wheat pastry flour: using whole wheat pastry flour makes these muffins super fluffy while adding a boost of whole grains. You can also use white whole wheat flour or a mix of 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup all purpose flour.
- Baking soda & salt: so that these muffins bake up properly.
- Pumpkin spices: we’re using the perfect combo of pumpkin spices — cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and a pinch of cloves.
- For the topping: to make the macadamia nut crunch topping you’ll need coconut sugar, whole wheat pastry flour, coconut oil & chopped macadamia nuts.
Tips for making healthy pumpkin banana muffins
- Follow the recipe. The best way to ensure the success of these easy pumpkin banana muffins is to follow the recipe and use the exact ingredients as written (unless I note specific substitutes).
- Make sure your egg is at room temperature. If your egg is too cold you risk the butter coagulating. To bring your egg to room temp, simply place it in a bowl of warm water for 3-5 minutes before you use it.
- Do not overmix the batter. If you overmix batter you’ll end up with muffins that are more dense and gummy instead of fluffy and soft.
- Use fresh baking soda. If your baking soda is older than 3 months, I suggest grabbing a new one for best baking results.
Customize your pumpkin banana muffins
- To make vegan: this recipe is dairy free and can easily be made vegan by using a flax egg, which is 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons water.
- To make gluten free: I haven’t tested this recipe as gluten free yet but I’d suggest trying a 1:1 gluten free flour or chickpea flour. You may need to add a splash or two more milk to the batter.
- Add chocolate chips: feel free to get a little wild with pumpkin banana chocolate chip muffins! Add 1/2 of dark chocolate chips (or your favorite chocolate chips).
Basically these glorious muffins are the perfect healthy snack or breakfast treat to bake; I love the vitamin A from the pumpkin, fiber from the whole wheat flour, and the combination of healthy fats from macadamia nuts and coconut oil.
Actually, I love EVERYTHING about these muffins.
Freezer-friendly pumpkin banana muffins
These healthy pumpkin banana muffins are freezer-friendly! Simply wrap muffins individually in freezer-safe bags or store them in a large freezer bag. When you’re ready to enjoy them, reheat for 30-45 seconds in the microwave or simply thaw them at room temperature.
More pumpkin recipes to try
Nourishing Almond Flour Pumpkin Bread
Brown Butter Orange Pumpkin Muffins with Orange Glaze
Healthy Marbled Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins
Healthy Pumpkin Bread with Maple Glaze
Healthy Soft Pumpkin Cookies with Salted Maple Frosting
I hope you love these easy, healthy pumpkin banana muffins! If you make them be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Healthy Pumpkin Banana Muffins with Macadamia Nut Crunch
Ingredients
- 2 medium bananas, mashed
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger
- pinch of cloves
- For the topping:
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
- 1/4 cup finely chopped macadamia nuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with muffin liners and spray the inside of them with nonstick cooking spray (DO NOT FORGET TO SPRAY THE INSIDE OF THE MUFFIN LINERS OR THEY WILL STICK.)
- In a large bowl, mix together mashed banana, pumpkin, egg, vanilla, maple syrup, oil and almond milk. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Do not overmix. Evenly divide batter between muffin cups, filling about 2/3 of the way full.
- Next add coconut sugar, flour, coconut oil and macadamia nuts to a small bowl. Mix together until it resembles wet sand. Evenly distribute topping over each muffin.
- Bake muffins for 18-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Makes 12 muffins.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
So good!
Glad you enjoyed!
So yummy and healthy! The topping is divine! I subbed some Greek yogurt instead of nut milk for a touch more protein… like you do in other muffin recipes. This recipe is a keeper for sure. Thanks for your whole grain healthy muffin recipes!
Perfect! So glad you loved them!
I made these and subbed the flour with Bob’s Red Mill all purpose gluten free flour and they came out PERFECT! Probably the best muffins I have ever made, just the absolute perfect texture. Will definitely be making them again! Also used a flax egg so they’re vegan.
Amazing! Glad those swaps worked out well!
Really yummy – I doubled the recipe because muffins freeze so well. I made some without the topping for the non-nut eaters and just added a tiny bit more maple syrup to increase the sweetness for those. I used sliced almonds on the ones with topping b/c I didn’t have macadamia nuts and they worked great.
Perfect! Glad they were a hit 🙂
These are so good!! I made them for my toddler so I used a little less flour and added some old fashioned oats, left off the macadamia crunch and added some finely chopped pecans directly to the batter, and made them as mini muffins (baked for about 20 minutes because of the flour/oat swap). He loves them and I do too!
Ahh amazing! So glad you’re loving this recipe and it turned out fabulous for you, Joy
hi Monique, was just wondering if I could make these oil free by using applesauce instead of the olive oil??
I haven’t tested this recipe without the oil. You could try applesauce or just add some additional pumpkin puree. Let me know how these turn out!
I used chickpea flour with this recipe and added a couple splashes extra of milk and they are (as my 7 year old says) BOMBDELICIOUS 😆
Hahhaa LOVE THAT! Glad you enjoyed these 🙂
Delicious!!! I made these without the toppings for my toddlers ages 2, 2, and 5. Made them into mini muffins for easier handling. It made 24 and at the end of the day there were literally 4 muffins left. Made them 2 more times and this time got smart and made a double batch! AK is seriously the muffin Queen!
Omg THANK YOU I’m so happy you all loved these!! Great call on turning them into mini muffins 🙂
Tried these amazing pumpkin and banana muffins and they were a MAJOR hit! Except instead of macadamia nuts, we did pecans. Also, for the icing, we did a condensed milk buttercream with a dash of cinnamon. The muffin itself would have also been enough though…🤪😋
That all sounds INCREDIBLE! So happy you loved them, Brenda!
Made these and they turned out great! Changes some things tho:
-Added 4 TBSP cocoa powder & 1/4 cup chocolate chips
– Added 1/4 cup walnuts
-Topped w a bit more salt
I think I cooked them a bit too long bc I lost track of time but even still they came out pretty tasty! The recipe says they make 12 but I used an ice cream scoop and got 8 large ones. Could have made 12 smaller ones if I really tried, tho. Overall great recipe!
I’m glad that worked out well! Perfect snack 🙂
These muffins are SO GOOD. I wanted a recipe low in added sugar to give to my baby/toddler so I made half the recipe as directed and half with choco chips. I left the topping off (sorry Monique!) To be baby friendly. I cooked them as mini muffins (12 minutes, made 38 of them) and they are delicious!! The best part is no melting butter or coconut oil – everything is measure & stir!! Timer saver!!!
Perfect! Still delicious without the topping 🙂 glad you enjoyed!
Love this recipe!! Just made them and they’re already almost gone. Whole family enjoyed!
Amazing! Glad they were a hit 🙂
I have now made this recipe twice and I absolutely love it! It’s a great way to use up overripe bananas, but also get in the fall spirit! It’s very easy to put together too. I have substituted peanut butter for the oil, because who doesn’t like peanut butter?! and it has turned out really well. I have also used AP flour when out of WF flour and it still turns out great. Highly recommend!
fluffy with beautiful tops, perfectly dense with delicious flavor – a new staple to my recipe book!
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed!
I love this recipe! I came across this and had almost everything so whipped them up same day. For the topping I substituted chopped almonds (what i had) and Dark Muscovado sugar and they were gobbled up! I did make them in jumbo cups (how I roll) so this made 8 jumbo muffins- same temp, just set a timer to bake longer at 2 minute intervals to check doneness. In all, 6 minutes longer. And I sprayed the liners & the muffins peeled away graciously so great tip!
Perfect! So happy you loved them!
These look amazing. 😍 I would like to make as mini muffins for my toddler to take to school. How much time would you suggest baking in “mini” muffin form? Thanks!!
I think 12-16 minutes would be perfect!
Is the ginger “fresh” ginger or “ground” ginger?
Ground 🙂
I have a question about the 1t baking soda. Is the pumpkin acidic enough to react with the soda as a leavener? I don’t see anything else acidic. Has everyone had these rise properly or did you add some yogurt or baking powder. Thanks!
I’ve never had an issue with them rising!
Hi Monique
How many does will these muffins keep and what’s the best way to store them?
I have all these ingredients at home and they look delicious!
Oops I mean how many days will these muffins last?
These muffins were SO yummy! Easy to make, easy to follow instructions, and all the flavors tasted so good together. The muffin queen does it again with another great recipe!!
So happy you loved these!! Just trying to keep my muffin queen status 😉 Enjoy!
Ambitious kitchen is my go to site for healthy muffin recipes! These pumpkin muffins have texture and flavor just like the unhealthy variety and the nut topping, well, its just delicious. Thanks for another great recipe!
I’m so glad! Love these ones 🙂 If you haven’t yet you’ll have to check out my round up of muffin recipes here!
So I just made these into muffin toppers, and did a few substitutions with molasses and almonds. They’re amazing!
Delicious! Glad you enjoyed!
I made bread instead but it didnt cook up right….does this recipe only work for muffins. Minr is dense bread. Thanks
Made these today exactly as written and they turned out fabulously! Another winning recipe from AK–this one’s going in my regular fall rotation. 🙂
Perfect! It’s a great fall baking staple 🙂
This looks delicious! I’m not a big baker and I was wondering If it’s okay to substitute the pastry flour with regular whole wheat flour?
Yes it should be just fine. I would add a few tablespoons more of oil OR milk to the recipe though. Whole wheat flour is more dense then pastry flour — but they still should be delicious!!
So excited to try these! Would it be possible to substitute honey or maple syrup for the coconut sugar topping?
Finally just made these! Substituted chopped pecans for the macadamia nuts. Enjoying one for breakfast with peanut butter….Yum!!!!! Thanks for another great good-for-us sweet!
Do you know if any carb friendly flours (almond coconut etc.) would work? I’m a type 1 diabetic and most flours are rough with my blood sugar! Thanks!
I made these with almond crunch instead of macadamia. Super good! I also had to use gluten free coconut blend flour for about half of the flour in the recipe because I ran out of whole wheat. They still turned out a great consistency, so I’m guessing that they could be adapted to be gluten free! Thanks for the recipe!!!
This may be a stupid question, but what’s the difference between whole wheat flour and pastry flour? Where do you find it?
Whole wheat pastry flour is a finer version of regular whole wheat flour. It has a nice consistency and allows for less dense baked goods, while still keeping the nutritional benefits of whole wheat flour. Bob’s red mill whole wheat pastry flour is my go-to!
I’m such a fruit cake I thought Denver it’s own state and not in Colorado. I use my Aussie trump card. Hope you do recap it- I’d love to see what it offers.
These muffins sound delicious and macadamias (Esp with white chocolate) are amazing.
Love the idea of adding two amazing quick breads in one recipe! And that crunchy topping makes it out of this world!
Oh my, that sounds like such a great trip to Denver! My aunt lives there, but we rarely do anything besides spend time at her house and watch her kids play soccer. (They are pretty darn good!) I can’t wait to see your guide to Denver! And as for these muffins… That’s exactly the reason I can’t keep macadamia nuts in the house. I’d eat them all because of that irresistible texture. And therefore, I’d want to eat as many of these muffins as my tummy would let me!
gimme! I need these. Love the macadamia nut, pumpkin combo!
Mmm I love a good muffin!
Can’t wait to try these with a flax egg! I’m a sucker for a good crunchy topping!
these sound amazing! especially that macadamia crunch- what a perfect decadent but healthy way to indulge! so glad you guys made it out of that storm; it sounds like an intense… adventure. and am i going crazy, or is there an egg missing from the recipe? can’t wait to make these!
Yes it was missing. Goodness thank you for mentioning it – I just fixed the recipe so should be all good now 🙂
Hi there. Any suggestions for making this gluten free? I don’t do much gluten free baking wondering if this recipe will work by just replacing the wheat flour with a gluten free flour? Thanks!
A good option here might be oat flour and quinoa flour. I haven’t tested them with any type of gluten free flour so I’m not certain it would work. Let me know if you try it.
Made these today and used oat flour and quinoa flour…absolutely delicious!!! Thank you !!
Made these today and subbed the whole wheat flour with oat flour ( whole gf oats that I ground up) and quinoa flour…absolutely delicious!!! Thank you so much!!
Perfect! Glad you loved them!
that ice/snow storm sounds awfully scary. glad you’re home safe.
When will you be posting your Denver guide? I’m going this weekend and would LOVE to hear your recommendations. Snooze is already on the must eat at list! 🙂
Hi Morgan! Probably not for a few weeks. Try Jelly for brunch too!
I’m doing whole30 in January – eek!! Do it with me 😉
One of my favorites from this time around. So glad you enjoyed Denver, and so good to see you :*
These are right up my alley. Is there a way to save my favorite recipes on your website. I have so many and it would be great to corral them together. I don’t always have access to a printer. Thanks!
Currently there is not. Another option would be to bookmark them or use BlogLovin’ to favorite the recipes for easy access!
These look so gorgeous! I need some muffins in my life. Crumbles really take muffins to the next level!