Butternut Squash Banana Muffins (Print Version)

Moist banana and roasted butternut squash muffins spiced with cinnamon; optional nuts or chocolate chips.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Produce

01 - 1 cup butternut squash puree (from roasted butternut squash)
02 - 2 ripe bananas, mashed

→ Dry Ingredients

03 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
04 - 1 teaspoon baking powder
05 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
06 - ½ teaspoon salt
07 - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
08 - ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

→ Wet Ingredients

09 - 2 large eggs
10 - ½ cup brown sugar, packed
11 - ¼ cup granulated sugar
12 - ⅓ cup vegetable oil (or melted coconut oil)
13 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

→ Optional Add-ins

14 - ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
15 - ½ cup chocolate chips

# Steps:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or lightly grease with baking spray.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until evenly distributed.
03 - In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until well combined. Stir in the oil, vanilla extract, mashed bananas, and butternut squash puree until smooth.
04 - Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and fold gently until just combined. Be careful not to overmix.
05 - Gently fold in chopped nuts or chocolate chips if desired.
06 - Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling each about three-quarters full.
07 - Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
08 - Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The banana keeps these muffins incredibly tender for days, and the squash adds a creamy sweetness that most people cannot quite identify but absolutely love.
  • They freeze beautifully, so you can make a double batch and have breakfast sorted for weeks without any extra effort.
02 -
  • Overmixing the batter is the fastest way to end up with tough, rubbery muffins, so treat the folding step like a gentle conversation rather than an aggressive stir.
  • Homemade squash puree from roasted butternut squash has much less water than boiled squash, which keeps your batter from turning too wet and sinking in the middle.
03 -
  • Let your bananas ripen until the skins are almost entirely black for the sweetest, most intensely flavored muffins you will ever taste.
  • Fill any empty muffin cups halfway with water before baking to help the heat circulate evenly and prevent warping your pan.