These blender Spinach Banana Muffins are an easy, healthy, freezer-friendly breakfast recipe full of fruit and veggies! They are gluten-free, dairy-free and have no refined sugar!
This post was originally posted on August 1st, 2016 but has been refreshed with new photos and a video!
You all know I have a thing for hiding vegetables in baked goods. Usually, my veggie of choice is zucchini, but today I’m mixing things up a bit! This recipe for Spinach Banana Muffins is healthy, delicious and easy! My kids love them because they’re green! We even call them “Hulk muffins,” which my son thinks is the coolest things ever. Because what kid wouldn’t want to eat a muffin named after a super cool super hero?
I love making these for my family because they’re a breakfast I feel great about serving them! These Spinach Banana Muffins are gluten-free, refined-sugar free, dairy-free and vegan-friendly! They taste like a green smoothie but in muffin form!
Parenting tangent:
I used to stress about feeding my kids veggies. I so desperately wanted them to beg me for giant plates of stir-fry and get excited over skewers full of colorful grilled vegetable-goodness. This is why my husband is so wonderful (well, one of the many reasons). He helps me see reality…that even though our kids don’t go gaga over a bowl full of roasted Brussels sprouts, the hard work has paid off and they really are great eaters.
They just know that lunch and dinner always include one fruit and one veggie. I ask them “what veggie do you want” (as opposed to, “do you want a vegetable?”) and they get to choose. It’s usually carrots or cucumbers (and always raw), but I am perfectly fine with that.
My goal is to teach my kids at a young age that healthy eating is important. I think they get the drift, and sometimes they even ask for a snack of carrots and hummus just because that’s what they’re craving! There is the occasion, when we’re out or at a friends’ house, when I give them a break from eating veggies, and they totally notice! A real conversation between my kids one night on vacation:
Gabe: “MOM! There is only pizza on my plate! No veggies?!”
Me: You’re right Gabe, you can have only pizza for dinner tonight. But I would be happy to get you some veggies if you’d like!
Gabe: No! I want to only eat pizza! BETHANY! We get to only eat pizza and no veggies!
LOL LOL! I love my kids! And I love that less-than nutritious eating is considered a special treat and not the norm for them! Plus, on days when I know we’re having a “pizza only” type of dinner, I can feed them Spinach Banana Muffins for breakfast! They get a healthy serving of fruits and veggies without even noticing! Zero stress! Total deliciousness! Complete win!
How to make Spinach Banana Muffins
The best way to make these Spinach Banana Muffins is to use a high-powered blender, like the Vitamix! Using a Vitamix to thoroughly blend the ingredients in these Spinach Banana Muffins results in a final product that has zero traces of spinach, well except for the awesome green color!
- Blend dry ingredients then set aside. To make these muffins…start by putting the oats into your clean, dry Vitamix and turn them into oat flour! Add the rest of the ingredients, blend and set aside.
- Blend wet ingredients. When blending anything in the Vitamix, always add the liquid first! In this recipe, start by adding the liquid ingredients, banana and spinach and blend until smooth before adding the dry mixture!
- Freeze. After baking, let the muffins cool and then freeze in an airtight container. To reheat, simply warm in the microwave for 30-60 seconds per muffin!
Spinach Muffins: Substitutions
These are extremely forgiving muffins and there are many acceptable substitutions (although I always recommend making the recipe exactly as written to achieve the best results)! Even at high altitude (I bake at 4800 ft. above sea level) they rise beautifully and have a wonderful texture! Some notes about substitutions:
- Ground Flaxseed: You may substitute equal amounts of almond meal or old-fashioned oats (ground into flour) for the flaxseed.
- Coconut Sugar: You may use any granulated sugar of your choice! I do not use sweeteners, but if you wanted to experiment with stevia (or a similar product) I recommend using a variety that is meant to be a 1:1 substitute for granulated sugar.
- Almond milk: you may use any non-dairy milk to keep the recipe dairy free. Or you may use regular milk!
- Coconut Oil: You may substitute vegan butter (like Earth Balance), regular butter, or ghee!
- Eggs: For vegan version substitute the 2 eggs with 2 TBS ground chia seeds and 5 TBS water.
IF YOU MAKE SOMETHING FROM JOYFOODSUNSHINE I WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOUR CREATIONS! DON’T FORGET TO RATE THIS RECIPE AND LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW! ALSO, FOLLOW ALONG WITH ME ON INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST, FACEBOOK AND TWITTER FOR MORE RECIPE INSPIRATION AND A GLIMPSE INTO OUR EVERYDAY LIFE!
Spinach Banana Muffins
These blender Spinach Banana Muffins are an easy, healthy, freezer-friendly breakfast recipe full of fruit and veggies! We call them "hulk" muffins because of their fun, naturally green color! They are gluten-free, dairy-free and have no refined sugar!
Ingredients
- 2 cups old-fashioned oats
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ cup coconut sugar or your favorite granulated sugar
- ½ cup almond milk
- 2 cups packed spinach leaves
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- 2 extra-ripe large bananas
- 2 eggs**
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease or line a muffin tin.
- Put 2 cups of old-fashioned oats in your blender (Vitamix) and blend until the oats achieve the texture of flour. Transfer to a medium mixing bowl.
- Add the rest of the dry ingredients to the oat flour (ground flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and sugar). Set aside.
- Add almond milk to the blender followed by 2 cups of spinach. Blend together until completely smooth and homogenous.
- Add bananas and coconut oil and blend until smooth.
- Add vanilla and eggs and blend until just combined
- Pour wet ingredients to dry mixture and stir to combine (making sure there are no lumps)!
- Fill each well in your muffin tin with ¼ cup of batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean and the top springs back when touched.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
**for vegan version substitute 2 eggs with 2 TBS ground chia seeds and 5 TBS water.
These Spinach Banana Muffins are another healthy-eating staple in my house. Sometimes I get crazy and add chocolate chips (or cinnamon chips)! Serve them slathered with a healthy amount of almond butter and you have yourself the perfect breakfast!
What is your favorite healthy breakfast? What’s your favorite sneaky veggie recipe?
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase a product through a link you clicked on here, I receive a portion of the sale. Thank you for supporting JoyFoodSunshine!
Ilka
What a delicious way to get some extra greens in! 🙂
Laura
Thank you Ilka! Anything to eat more veggies! 🙂
Robin
Frozen or fresh spinach?
Laura
I use fresh!
rachel @ athleticavocado
such a great way to get kiddos to eat veggies! your so slick 😉 pinned!
Laura
Mommas gonna do what a mommas gotta do.
Sarvy
Hi laura
Can I use all Almond flour instead of oat flour and flaxseed?
Megan
These are so green! I would 100% freak my family out if I made these. They just can’t jump on the healthy food train quite yet (I’m working on them!)
On the other hand, I love sneaking veges into things 😛
Laura
Thank you Megan! LOL! There’s still hope for them…my hubby was all meat and potatoes (and cheese whiz) when we met. While he still loves those things he enjoys healthier fare too! 😉 HE even suggested we try eating vegan for two weeks a few years ago! LOL!
Sonali- The Foodie Physician
These are awesome! They look fabulous and I love all of the wonderful ingredients you packed in here!
Laura
Thank you Sonali! Hiding veggies in things is so fun! 🙂
Carly @ FitLiving Eats
Love this! I’m always looking for ways to sneak in more veggies!
Laura
Thank you Carly! I agree! I see it as a super fun challenge to try to put veggies in as many different foods as possible…without them being detectable! 😉
Kristy from Southern In Law
Now this is a nifty little way to get those greens in! You are clever, mama!
Laura
LOL Kristy! Thank you! 😉 #veggieninja
Emily
I really love this, and how you’ve learned to be so flexible. I think I’m learning to be more flexible too about making things that people really will love to eat. Incorporating spinach into muffins is a really good idea. I need to try it! 🙂
Laura
Emily, it wasn’t (and sometimes still isn’t) easy! I’m SO grateful I have a husband who (quite honestly) couldn’t care less about food! Really sometimes I marvel at him because he pretty much never has an opinion about what we eat! I love choosing my meals and look forward to every one, while he just sees eating as the next thing on his to-do list! Plus he reminds me over and over that food is NOT a battle we’re willing to fight with our kids! There will be many other things more important that we will hold our ground on, but just let them eat a carrot and move on! LOL! He balances me out extremely well! 😉 And even though food is a total afterthought for him, he always expresses sincere gratitude for the meals I make! God knew exactly what he was doing when he gave me Ritch! 😉
Maria
Just made these muffins! Delicious!
Laura
YAY! Maria I’m so SO glad you like them! 🙂 <3
Nadine
Did you use a wet and a dry blade to make these? All I have is the wet blade that came with the mixer. Thanks!
Laura
Hey Nadine! I use the wet blade that came with the mixer to make these muffins! 🙂 So you’re good to go!
Ellie | Hungry by Nature
I’ve never thought about adding spinach to my muffins – such an awesome way to sneak more greens into my diet!
Laura
Sneaky sneaky veggies are always a good idea! 🙂 <3
Annmarie
What a great way to give these muffins a boost! Looks delicious!
Laura
I’m always looking for ways to sneak veggies into foods my kids love! 🙂 <3
Sarah Grace Spann
Mmmm, I love this idea! So unique and fun with the color, and from knowing you can’t taste it in smoothies, I know it’s probably similar here too! I’ll have to try sometime!
Laura
Hey Sarah! You’re totally right! There’s not even a hint of spinach taste in these muffins! 🙂
Ali
These look great. Can you use honey instead of granulated sugar?
Laura
Hey Ali! I haven’t tried it but I think that it would totally work. You might need to decrease the other wet ingredients (like almond milk) but they should turn out great! They are very forgiving muffins! 🙂
Ali
Thanks. The honey worked out fine. I used a little less than 1/2 cup and still used 1/2 almond milk. Do they freeze well?
Laura
Hey Ali! I’m SO glad the honey worked well for you!! YAY! Yes! I always freeze them!! I just pop them into the microwave for about 30 seconds/muffin to reheat!
Miz Helen
What a great muffin, we will love this recipe! Thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday today. Have a great day and come back soon!
Miz Helen
Anni
The Hulk Muffins are in the oven right now and smell so amazingly delicious!!
I think they also will taste amazing, due to I nibbled the batter before which was great 😉
Thanks for such a healthy and easy recipe!
Sorry for any spelling mistakes…and best regards from Berlin, Germany 🙂
Anni
Soooo…, tried and approved!
They didn’t just smell amazing, they also taste anazing. Just a bit to sweet for me 🙂
Next time I’ll try them without sugar, due to the bananas might be sweet enough!
Laura
Hey Anni!! I’m so glad you like them! You absolutely can decrease the sugar (or omit entirely)! My kids are sweet monsters so they love the added sweetness! But if your bananas are ripe enough then they impart so much sweetness on their own! Have an amazing day!
Laura
Yay Anni!! I’m so glad you’re giving them a go! Isn’t it amazing the power in a name?! If I called them spinach muffins my son wouldn’t touch them with a 3 foot pole! But Hulk muffins…now that’s another story! 😉
Kristen
Baking these now, already used the hulk technique while my kids helped me bake them . They can’t wait to see how incredible these will make them hehee
Emmy
Hi! These sound amazing…thank you! Unfortunately I am allergic to oats – do you have any suggestions for any substitutions that might work? Should I try gluten free flour?
Laura
Hey Emmy! Gluten-free flour could definitely work, although I haven’t tried it! If you do give it a whirl let me know how it turns out!
Deann
Love these muffins! Second time making them today. The first time I followed the directions and then froze the leftovers. Today I added blueberries and used honey instead of coconut sugar because I was out. Fingers crossed that they turn out! Thanks for the recipe!
Reena
These were great! My son has an egg allergy so I did the chia egg from the note in the recipe. Instead of sugar I used 5 dates and instead of the coconut oil I used plain yogurt. Mine only made 12 muffins with just a little leftover batter which I made a couple mini pancakes with. They were yum!
Laura
I’m SO glad you enjoyed them Reena! And I love all your substitutions that made them perfect for you and your family! YUM!
Betsy
I just baked these muffins, and I am so excited about them. They are delicious, and were a complete breeze to make with a nutribullet. Thank you for this awesome recipe, I am super thrilled I found your blog through Pinterest! <3 <3
Betsy
PS: I substituted ground chia for the flaxseed, and I was out of coconut oil, so canola still did the trick.
Laura
I’m so glad you enjoyed them and your substitutions worked well!! YAY!
Natalie
How come mine didnt rise like yours. ? I used food processor could that have made a difference? Can i use ninja blender instead of vitamix?
Laura
Hey Natalie! Using a food processor would definitely make the batter a touch heavier because the spinach wouldn’t be completely liquified, which could cause the muffins not to rise as much. Also something as simple as expired or close to it baking soda or baking powder could cause that problem as well! Did you make any substitutions?
Danisa
H Natalie I just used my ninja to make these and they turned out great!:)
Sarvy
Hi laura 🙂 Wondering if I can substitute all the oat flour w Almond flour? Thanks
Laura
Hey Sarvy! I would not recommend substituting all the oat flour with almond flour, as oat flour is lighter and more closely resembles regular flour than almond flour does. What are your specific dietary needs? If you avoid oats you could potentially try using 1 1/2 cups almond flour and 1/2 cup tapioca flour in place of the oat flour, however I have not tried this and therefore cannot guarantee it will work super well. You could use an all-purpose gluten-free flour in place of the oat flour.
Caroline
I gave these to my sister, who usually hates alternative desserts, and she asked me to make them again! About ready to pop’em out of the oven!
Luana
Any way to sub out the bananas? I’m sick of baking with bananas.
Laura
LOL Luana….I understand that sentiment! Sometimes we go banana crazy around here! You could try substituting 1 cup of applesauce…but I haven’t tried it so I cannot ensure excellent results! You could also try pumpkin or sweet potatoes, although the color of the muffins would be a little less appealing if you did! 😉
SKM
Soooo good! I made the vegan version with Chia and water (instead of egg) and added a teaspoon of Spiruliina to the spinach. The result was so delicious. Thanks for the inspiration to use some super greens in muffins!
Laura
Hi laura! I made these and they are super delicious! I left them out at room temp and noticed they got a funky taste after about a day, so I was wondering how to store them? In the fridge? Do they freeze well?
Laura
Hey Laura! I always freeze them the day I make them actually! Then I just reheat them in the microwave when I’m ready to eat (for 30-60 seconds depending on how strong your microwave is)! I will make a note of that in the recipe!
Sam
Hi I am really looking forward to trying this recipe. I’m not sure of the qty of spinach. How much is 2 cups, please can you give me I grams as I have store bought already chopped so not sure how much is 2 cups?
JamIE
My kids absolutely love these. They’re so easy to make and I love that they’l have tons of healthy stuff in them. This is definitely my most successful Pinterest pin ever!!
Eli
I tried making these, but not only did they not rise, they were salty and wet despite me baking them for an extra 12 mins. I had to throw them out 🙁 I’m Paleo so I substituted the oatmeal and flaxseed for almond flour. I didn’t add in the sugar because the banana was sweet enough. I left out the cinnamon powder too because I ran out of them. Could any of these be the problem? I really love this combi and would love to be able to succeed in them!
Laura
Hey Eli! I’m sorry they didn’t turn out for you! Yes almond flour is definitely the culprit for your mushy flat donuts! If you are looking for a paleo muffin check out my Paleo Zucchini Banana Muffins (they are an absolute staple in my house and I make them all the time). I’m thinking you could substitute the zucchini for spinach buttt I haven’t tried it so I can’t guarantee they’d turn out. You could also make the Paleo Spinach Donuts and bake them in muffin form instead of donut form, but they do not have bananas! Baking time would be a touch longer if you made them into muffins!
Eli
thank you for replying! the donut was in my to-try list too! i’m definitely going to make it into muffin form to try! however i do have a question about the sugar! i shall head over there to ask you instead! thank you!
Sara
These muffins are so easy and delicious! They are perfect for my 2 year that won’t touch a veggie and also a good healthy adult snack. Will be putting this recipe in our rotation!
Stefanie
My kids love these – thank you! I make them monthly and they freeze well!
Lindsey
Mine turned out just as pictured!! Blended with a Vitamix. I used yellow bananas; they were still tasty as can be 🙂 my 2 year old loved them as well. Excellent recipe. I will definitely be making these again & again + sharing with others 🙂 Thank you for the recipe!!
Leslie Gottfried
So good! Any idea how many calories per muffin?
Laura
I’m working on refreshing this post with some new pictures, a video and nutritional information! So that’ll be coming soon!
Leslie Gottfried
Thank you!
Jessica
This looks great! Can you use honey instead of sugar?
lIZ
I have left the sugar out and used dates instead. It turned out great! My 2 year old and hubby gobbled them up.
Juli
I made these without sugar or sweetener of any kind and they came out great! They are so moist and delicious. Thanks for the recipe!
Julia
Omg just made these and they are amazing!!
Mariane
Can i use normal flour instead of oat flour and omit flaxseed??
Kimberly Baxter
The recipe is super easy to make. My daughter just asked for more. Thanks so much for sharing!
Erin
Has anyone tried making these with Almond flour instead of oat flour????
kendra
hi, I’ve made green muffins before but with without the coconut oil. Does this help keep them moist? Mine were a little dry. The recipe I followed also used whole wheat flour and honey. Could I substitute the oat / coconut sugar with these?
I’m going to try your version next!
Laura
Hey Kendra! I always recommend trying the recipe as written! The coconut oil definitely makes them moist and tasty! I cannot guarantee the results if you use different flour and a liquid sweetener…however if you experiment please report the results!
Maggie
I made these tonight. Did the chia eggs and used the costco power green mix (kale, spinach and charge). It was delicious. Loved it.
Tabitha
Hi!
Just wondering if I could use regular flour instead of oats? And any substitutions for the flax seed? These look delicious!
Thanks!
Tabitha
Jo
These were brilliant! Wanted to use up spinach and bananas but didn’t know where to start. I love that you’ve taken the time to carefully address substitutions. The muffins have turned out great both times I’ve made them. Praised by fussy junk-food loving teenagers, husband and eaten enthusiastically by baby. I’ll be checking out your other recipes. Thank you!
Chelsie
Made these today. So delicious! These will be a regular item in my house! Thanks for the great recipe.
Laura
YAY! So glad you enjoyed them Chelsie!
Ana
Hi Laura, I attempted baking this muffins today. I found the recipe very easy however they did not turn good. The batter did not cook through. Instead of 2 cups rolled oats I used 1.5 cups oat flour. Maybe it was that or the fact that I used a little bit too much spinach. I will attempt this recipes on Wednesday one more time and will let you know! Greetings from Bolivia.
Laura
Hey Anna! A couple things to ensure your success next time! 2 cups of oats yields 2 cups of oat flour (believe it or not, I have measured many times)! So Definitely use 2 cups of oat flour. And stick with the amount of spinach the recipe calls for, otherwise the texture will definitely be off! I wish you better luck next time!
Rose
Hello
If I use butter , does it have to be melted ?
Laura
Yes! I recommend melting the butter!
ronke
this looks yum and i’m sure tastes yummy. I try to make my kids eat healthy from a young age so I can relate with snacking on carrots because my kids do the same.
Andrea
These are delicious! Thanks for the recipe! I used almond flour instead of the flax and, subbed kale for spinach (since I had it on hand), and used 3 pitted dates instead of the sugar. Still turned out great!
Rachel
I just made these and they were good! They weren’t that sweet at all but still tasty. My 1.5 year old loved them! I used cashew milk instead of almond milk. I made the oat flour in my nutri bullet. I will make these again for sure!
Laura
I’m so glad you and your 1.5 year old loved them! I prefer a less sweet muffin for my kids (and myself)! My theory is that you can always add some nut butter or a drizzle of honey to serve if you have a child with a huge sweet tooth (like my oldest lol)!