Banana Spinach Muffins
Posted Feb 25, 2018, Updated May 31, 2024
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These blender banana spinach muffins are an easy, healthy, freezer-friendly breakfast recipe full of fruit and veggies.
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 their favorite 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!
How to Make Spinach 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!
Serve
Serve warm with a slather of homemade peanut butter or cinnamon honey butter.
Store/Freeze
Store these spinach banana muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Spinach muffins: Ingredients & 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 5,000 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.
- Granulated Sugar: organic cane sugar and coconut sugar are great substitutes.
- Whole milk: non-dairy and regular dairy milk both work well, especially almond milk.
- Salted Butter You may substitute vegan butter (like Earth Balance), coconut oil, or ghee.
- Eggs: For vegan version substitute the 2 eggs with 2 Tabblespoons ground chia seeds or ground flaxseed and 5 Tabblespoons water.
Spinach Muffins Recipe FAQs
No, I only recommend using a blender so that all of the spinach gets completely blended until smooth.
I often double this recipe to have enough in the freezer to last us a while.
I created these muffins for that exact purpose – to feed to my young babies/kids. Just make sure to cut them into very small pieces for babies and don’t ever leave a baby unattended while they are eating.
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Spinach Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups old-fashioned oats
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup granulated sugar (or coconut sugar)
- ½ cup whole milk (or almond milk)
- 2 cups spinach leaves (packed)
- ¼ cup salted butter (or coconut oil, melted)
- 2 extra-ripe large bananas
- 2 eggs*
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease or line a muffin tin.
- Blend 2 cups of old-fashioned oats in a high-powered blender until they 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 milk, bananas, melted butter, and spinach to the container of a high-powered blender 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). Alternately, you can add the dry ingredients to the blender and blend until combined.
- 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.
Video
Notes
- Ground Flaxseed: You may substitute equal amounts of almond meal or old-fashioned oats (ground into flour) for the flaxseed.
- Sugar: Use any granulated sugar you’d like.
- Milk: non-dairy and regular dairy milk both work well.
- Salted Butter: You may substitute vegan butter (like Earth Balance), coconut oil, or ghee.
- Eggs: For vegan version substitute the 2 eggs with 2 TBS ground chia seeds or ground flaxseed and 5 TBS water.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’ve never thought about adding spinach to my muffins – such an awesome way to sneak more greens into my diet!
Sneaky sneaky veggies are always a good idea! 🙂 <3
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!
Hey Nadine! I use the wet blade that came with the mixer to make these muffins! 🙂 So you’re good to go!
Just made these muffins! Delicious!
YAY! Maria I’m so SO glad you like them! 🙂 <3
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! 🙂
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! 😉
Now this is a nifty little way to get those greens in! You are clever, mama!
LOL Kristy! Thank you! 😉 #veggieninja
Love this! I’m always looking for ways to sneak in more veggies!
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! 😉
These are awesome! They look fabulous and I love all of the wonderful ingredients you packed in here!
Thank you Sonali! Hiding veggies in things is so fun! 🙂
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 😛
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!
What a delicious way to get some extra greens in! 🙂
Thank you Ilka! Anything to eat more veggies! 🙂
Frozen or fresh spinach?
I use fresh!
such a great way to get kiddos to eat veggies! your so slick 😉 pinned!
Mommas gonna do what a mommas gotta do.
Hi laura
Can I use all Almond flour instead of oat flour and flaxseed?