Banana Oatmeal Mini Muffins

One of the easiest breads to make is banana bread, and yet for some reason, I don’t make it often enough. These banana oatmeal mini muffins on the other hand, have been a frequent treat coming out of my oven since school started. They are perfect for a morning school snack, after school snack, or any time of the day if you ask my kids. You’re going to love these for two reasons.

First, even without the added sugar in the batter, my kids gobbled them up faster than these little treats could cool off!

Second, they are so easy to make! You’re not going to believe how easy they are.

If you know me, or at least have read a few of my dessert posts, you know baking desserts, breads, and pastries does not come easy for me. And to be honest, it’s my least favorite thing to cook. I’d rather buy my desserts.

When it comes to having to bake desserts and pastries at the request of my children, my “oh sh**” radar immediately goes up and I start to scan different recipes from cookbooks in search of the most fool-proof recipe. My kids are pretty good at following instructions, but not so good at precise measurements. And when there are two children involved, it sometimes becomes a battle of who can stir the fastest, which pretty much means nearly 1/5 of the batter ends up on the counter when we are done; or they won’t stop “taste testing.”

So whenever I want to learn on my own and try to come up with something that I can feel proud of sharing (like these homemade butter rolls), I don’t let my children help.

Cooking a meal is different because in most cases there is room for error. That’s the kind of baking I like. But first, I have to get it right for you.

Not only right, but easy as well!

If you’re letting your children help you with these banana oatmeal mini muffins, please be sure to always provide adequate supervision all the time, especially when they are using sharp tools. I’m all about giving children a chance to learn through hands-on experiences, but PLEASE also keep them safe in the kitchen.

My favorite part about this recipe is that the batter is made entirely in a food processor. You don’t need to use multiple bowls. Just measuring cups and spoons.

Start by combining the baking powder, baking soda, and quick oats in the food processor and pulse at least 10-15 seconds.

Add the oil and eggs. Pulse another 10 seconds or so.

Add the milk. Pulse again until well mixed.

Add half the bananas if they are on the larger side. I’ll admit I didn’t mash or measure the bananas because I just didn’t feel the need.

I made these with smaller bananas the first time, then large ones the second time. You want to know what happened? Nothing! The only difference I did notice was the first batch of these banana oatmeal mini muffins had less banana flavor than the second batch.

I also preferred the slightly overripe bananas with more yellow than black on the skin over the ones with more black on the skin than yellow.

Does that make sense?

Basically go with the bananas that have small brownish/blackish spots on them as opposed to the ones with large patches of dark spots.

With the larger bananas I had to add half the first round, then the rest a second round of pulsing because they were too big. You might be able to get away with adding all the banana at once if they are the right size, but that’s something you’ll have to decide based on how big your food processor is as well.

Once the batter is done, remove the blade and stir in the mini chocolate morsels if you are using them. You can omit the mini chocolate morsels if you like. Evenly distribute the batter into two 12-cup mini muffin pans that have been lightly greased.

As I mentioned above, when my children are adamant about helping me, they always want to make it their own by changing something in the recipe, which I’m usually okay with. My daughter requested some without the chocolate morsels, so we made some with and some without.

Personally I like the ones with chocolate. 😉

The muffins without chocolate got a sprinkle of powdered sugar for fun.

Every time I have made these banana oatmeal mini muffins, they never last more than two days.

I hope you give them a try. If you do, share your thoughts in the comments below or share a picture on Instagram and tag me in it @spanglishspoon.

Happy baking, friends!

5 from 1 vote

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Banana Oatmeal Mini Muffins

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 24

Author Stephanie Chavez

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups old fashion quick oats
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate morsels optional

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare two mini muffin pans with oil spray and place them on cookie sheets.
2. Pulse together the oats, baking powder, and baking soda in a food processor for 10-15 seconds.
3. Add eggs, milk, and vegetable oil. Pulse again another 10-15 seconds to combine well.
4. Add peeled bananas in chunks, pulse again until there are no more banana chunks left.
5. Remove blade, stir in chocolate morsels.
6. Fill muffin cups to the rim, bake in the oven 15-17 minutes. Allow them to cool completely.

Recipe Notes

If you want to add a little sweetness, you can add a tablespoon or two of honey or maple syrup. You can also substitute the milk for carnation milk, or coconut milk.