Brunch/ RECIPES

Banana Pumpkin Muffins

Like I mentioned in this post, we are having an ‘eat from the pantry’ week to save some $.  I like the challenge of only buying the basics-bread, milk, peanut butter–and using as much as possible from what we already have in our cupboards, pantry and freezer.

I think muffins are great to have sitting around.  They make a great after school snack, or are a nice addition to a green smoothie for breakfast.  They keep my girls from saying the most dreaded “Mom, I can’t find anything to eat.”

I made Brownie Bites which uses pumpkin as a secret ingredient that helps keep the muffins moist.  The problem was it only used 1/2 a can of pumpkin, and since I am in a ‘use-what-we-have’ mindset this week, I went on a search for another muffin that uses pumpkin.

I didn’t have to search very long.  One of my favorite sites, Happy Herbivore, had an awesome looking recipe for Banana-Pumpkin Muffins.  I knew I had a freezer full of frozen bananas, a jar of unsweetened applesauce in the pantry, and of course, my 1/2 can of pumpkin.  I was set!

I was surprised my girls preferred these Banana-Pumpkin Muffins over the Chocolate Bites.  Well, surprised until I tasted one.  They are YUMMY!  They are moist, have just the right amount of cinnamon spice, and the chocolate chips I added made me very happy.  I did have one daughter ask if I could leave the chocolate chips out next time.  I had to agree with her, they would be just as good without them!

I made these the same time I whipped up Brownie Bites.  Brownie Bites cook at 330 degrees, and when I put both types of muffins in the pan, I was a little nervous that they would not get done at the same time, but they did just fine.

I don’t have a finished muffin photo for you, but take my word for it, they are pretty and super yummy!

Banana-Pumpkin Muffins
11/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (I just used plain whole wheat flour)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 whole bananas
1 cup pumpkin ( I was not exact, I used whatever was left in the can after making Brownie Bites)
3/4 cup brown sugar (I used 1/2 cup pure cane sugar, it was all I had on hand)
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup non-dairy milk (or dairy, whatever you prefer)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease muffin tins to prevent sticking.  In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice together.  Then whisk in sugar and set aside.

In a bowl, mash bananas, ripe ones are best.  Add applesauce and pumpkin & milk. Stir.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients.  Stir just until combined.  If you want to add chocolate chips or nuts (1/2 cup) add after a few strokes.

Spoon into muffin tins, 3/4 full and bake until a toothpick comes out clean.  I used mini muffin pans, so mine took about 8-10 minutes.  Regular size muffins will take about 18-25 minutes.

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  • Kathy
    October 22, 2015 at 9:40 pm

    I just made a dozen of these for the weekend but my family ate every last one! Healthy and tastes great. Thanks for sharing.

  • Alishia
    February 1, 2015 at 2:56 pm

    Great recipe! I made a few changes (took out the sugar, subbed some rolled oats for some flour, shredded a small zucchini in place of the applesauce, added in chia seed and had to increase the amount of milk a bit) for my toddler to make them a little healthier. They were a hit

    • AmyNewNostalgia
      February 2, 2015 at 2:31 pm

      great changes! Seems like a pretty versatile recipe.

  • Laura
    October 31, 2014 at 12:00 pm

    Oh wow! Just made these and they were fantastic. I did have a few tweaks b/c I never have all the ingredients I need on hand, in this case it was the applesauce, so I threw in an extra banana. I also used homemade pumpkin pie spice. These are definitely going into my files! Thank you!

    • AmyNewNostalgia
      November 3, 2014 at 9:49 pm

      So glad you liked them! Your tweaks sound great. Thanks for sharing!

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    September 18, 2014 at 2:31 pm

    […] Banana Pumpkin Muffins | New Nostalgia […]

  • A
    September 14, 2014 at 3:55 pm

    Just made this recipe for the first time. It would be helpful to know how many mini-muffins it is supposed to make. 1 pan of 24 or 2 of 48? Thank you.

  • Anonymous
    October 16, 2013 at 4:25 pm

    Made these this morning, they were SO good! I’m usually pretty cautious with ‘healthy’ recipes, but these are delicious! My kids LOVE them too! Thank you thank you thank you!

  • Mere
    November 2, 2012 at 7:48 pm

    Thanks for sharing your recipe. I doubled it to make 24 regular-sized muffins, and I baked them at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. I also used plain whole wheat flour, and I cut the brown sugar down to 1 cup (for the doubled recipe). I also added a handful of pecan pieces and a handful of chocolate chips. Yum!

  • Erin
    May 25, 2012 at 11:32 am

    I have made this recipe several times since you posted it. My kids love it! I am making it this morning to take to a friends house for coffee. Thank you for sharing! I love your site! Your recipes are wonderful!

  • Jenna
    April 20, 2012 at 6:31 am

    How do you freeze your bananas? Do you keep the skins on or peel them first and store them in a container??

    • Cheree Harp
      October 20, 2013 at 2:52 pm

      I just throw them into the freezer as is. When I need them for a recipe, I pull them out as I start to get ingredients out. By the time I need to add them, they’re usually thawed enough that I can peel them and squeeze them out. If not, run some warm water over the outside and they come right out of the peel.

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