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With a sweet, crunchy candied walnut-date topping and high and rounded tops, these one-bowl Candied Walnut Date Banana Muffins are easy, decently healthy and ALWAYS a hit!
"Too dense", "too flat", "too soggy", "too dry", "too bland", "too ugly", too muffin-toppy" - these were some of the descriptions for my first, second, third and, yes, fourth attempts at these banana muffins. But I think they're just right now and hope you will too!
Sometimes I get an idea in my brain (some might call it an obsession) and I can't be satisfied until I conquer it. This time it was for banana muffins with dates and walnuts. It sounded hearty and "fall-ish" to me and I didn't waste any time getting to work.
Banana Muffins 101
My first attempt was a super healthy version with no fat, just Greek yogurt, and bananas for moistness. They weren't too bad when served warm - but after they cooled, not so much. The muffins were dense and dry, even the grandchildren pushed them away at the breakfast table. A good description might have been "banana-flavored soggy cardboard".
Second round
The second time around, the muffins were delicious but so unattractive; like flat little hockey pucks. My son and daughter-in-law had been staying with us when I made the first batch and had agreed that I needed to go back to the drawing board with the recipe. When I shared over the phone, that the new muffins were wonderful - but ugly, my daughter-in-law said: "They can't look that bad". Then she saw them and agreed that they would never make it to a photoshoot.
This testing and rejecting went on for several more batches. With the first few batches, I added the dates to the batter but, in the end, decided the muffins came out lighter and rose better when the dates were combined with chopped walnuts, a pinch of sea salt and a splash of maple syrup and sprinkled over the tops just before baking.
The fifth time, the winner!
I peeked in the oven, after 15 minutes of baking time on round five, and saw exactly what I was hoping for. Beautiful, round-topped, golden muffins with a shiny, candied walnut-date topping. And when I took the first bite, I knew we finally had a winner! I think they'll be a keeper recipe for you too!
How to make these Candied Walnut Banana Muffins
Our favorite type of recipes are the EASY ones that only require a bowl and a wooden spoon or spatula. As much as I love to cook, I'm as busy these days as everyone else, so when I can make something super delicious with minimal effort, I'm all in!
That's why this Candied Walnut Banana Muffin recipe is one that I go to again and again. It's perfect for a quick delicious breakfast for guests and a great choice for the brunch table. These are the easy steps:
- Combine the maple syrup, butter, walnuts and dates in a small bowl and set aside for the topping.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients and stir until incorporated.
- Divide the batter into a prepared cupcake pan.
- Sprinkle each with the walnut topping.
- Bake and remark how EASY they were to make. Then pull out a plate and enjoy a tasty banana muffin!
Have some overripe bananas? Don't toss them! Make a batch of these delicious banana muffins and you will see lots of smiling faces around the breakfast table. They'll also elicit compliments from the lunch box gang and will make great after-school snacks with a glass of cold milk! Enjoy!
Café Tips for making these Walnut Date Banana Muffins
- Be sure to use really ripe, even over-ripe bananas for these banana muffins. As bananas ripen, their starch is converted to sugar, giving a natural sweetness to baked products. If your bananas are not ripe with lots of brown sugar spots, you can speed up the process a bit by placing them in a brown paper bag with an apple or one ripe banana. You can also ripen peeled bananas by placing them in the microwave for 30-40 seconds, or until you hear a slight sizzle.
- I find that it's better to bake these banana muffins without muffin liners (or cupcake papers). This particular batter seems to stick to the paper and you lose some of the muffins when unwrapping them. I spray the muffin pan generously with non-stick spray. For a pretty presentation when serving, I simply slip them into their paper liner (tuxedos!) after baking and cooling.
- Did you know that you can mash ripe bananas right in their own skins? Just gently squeeze them, working your way up and down the length of the banana. Don't squeeze too hard or you'll split the skin.
- Another trick for mashing is to slip peeled, ripe bananas in a ziplock bag. Seal the top, then squeeze until well mashed. Cut a corner off of the bag and squeeze the mashed bananas into your mixing bowl.
- You can chop your own dates for this banana muffin recipe, but I like to use the dates that come already chopped as they don't stick together as much as when you chop whole dates.
- Use a good quality, heavy gauge muffin pan for best results. Heavy-gauge pans are good conductors of heat and will help your muffins bake more evenly. This OXO Good Grips Non-Stick Pro Muffin Pan was rated the best muffin pan by America's Test Kitchen. It's a beauty of a pan with a non-stick coating and a textured surface that gives a good airflow around the edges of the muffins as they bake.
- These muffins freeze well. I like to freeze them on a plate or pan, uncovered for about an hour. Once they are fairly well frozen, I toss them in a ziplock bag or airtight storage container and pull out one, two (or more) when we want to enjoy them.
- If you're looking for a healthy banana muffin, with no refined sugar, these Healthy Banana Bran Muffins are also fabulous.
Thought for the day:
For the message of the cross
is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to those who are being saved
it is the power of God.
1 Corinthians 1:18
What we're listening to for inspiration:
If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear your results, adaptations and ideas for variations.
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 medium-size ripe bananas 1¼- 1½ cups
- 1 large egg
- 5 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- ½ cup chopped dates
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Preheat oven to 425˚F. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray - set aside.
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Combine maple syrup and butter. Stir to combine. Add the walnuts and dates, stir together until well combined. Set aside
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Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl and stir well with a fork to combine.
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Make a deep well in the center of the dry ingredients. Add mashed bananas, egg, butter and vanilla to the well and stir with a fork in the center of the bowl, breaking up the egg yolk and mixing the wet ingredients.
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Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon stir wet and dry ingredients together until the flour mixture is incorporated. Don’t overmix.
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Divide batter into prepared pan. Muffin cups should be about ⅔ full. Sprinkle topping mixture over the batter in the muffin pans, dividing evenly.
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Bake muffins for 5 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350˚F. and continue baking for another 12-15 minutes or until tops are golden and muffin tops spring back when touched lightly on the top.
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Cool muffins for 5 minutes in the pan then transfer to a cooling rack.
See Café Tips for more detailed instructions and tips.
Jennie says
Made these today for our family and my older daughters are sending me texts tonight to say how they love these muffins. They are as tasty as they are pretty. I can’t decide which is better…the moist but light banana muffin or the delicious walnut and date topping. I’m sure I will be making again soon. Thank you for creating this divine recipe.
Chris Scheuer says
I'm so glad, Jennie! Thank you for letting us know!
Briana says
I was in the mood to bake muffins today and thought, a banana-walnut-date muffin sounds like it would hit the spot. Thankfully I googled and found your recipe instead of trying to come up with it on my own. I just finished a batch and enjoyed one (or two) warm from the oven. They are so, so good! I’m really kicking myself for not making a double batch. I’m sure I will be making these again soon - thank you so much!!
Chris Scheuer says
Yay! Thanks so much, Briana!
Cyd says
I make these regularly using gluten-free flour for my mom who has Celiac. I’ve tried a LOT of muffin recipes for her and these are her absolute favourite!! The flour is the only change I make.
Chris Scheuer says
Awesome! Thanks so much for letting us know, Cyd. I'm sure other readers will find that helpful!
Stephanie says
No question the best muffin I’ve ever made. Wonderful recipe, thank you!!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks so much, Stephanie! I'm so happy you enjoyed them! 💕
andy guthrie says
You advise not using muffin liners but show them in the picture. I’ve used parchment muffin liners with muffins and cupcakes with great success. How bout those?
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Andy, I like the look of muffin liners but bake my muffins without a liner and then I slip them into liners for serving if I have guests. It's fine to use the parchment muffin liners if you prefer.
Mary Ann says
Hi -
I made the recipe - they're in the oven now - but I didn't see where to add the vanilla. Is it added to the muffins or the topping?
Also, if your chopped dates stick together, you can toss them with a little flour and remove the excess.
Can't wait to try them!
Thanks,
Mary Ann
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Mary Ann - for the tip! The vanilla is added to the muffins. I will update the recipe.
Otilia says
Really delicious!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Otilia, we love them too!
Viren says
I enjoy cooking but when it comes to baking sweet desserts, I am a novice baker. My go-to-strategy is relying on tried out recipes. I have been itching to make Banana-Walnut-Date muffins for a while and prepared bananas to ripe for this endeavor.
I followed this recipe exactly, except I added 1/4 cup of wheat germ to it. The results were perfect moist muffins, well balanced sweetness and tasty. The candied fruit and nut on the top was a good touch.
Thanks for this wonderful recipe. Now I feel confident to try some more recipe on your blog.
I also want to try reducing sugar and butter just for my diet ( the recipe is perfect as it is for normal diet)
I have few beautiful pictures of the baking results but there is no option to add pics.
Chris Scheuer says
Bravo Viren! Thanks for sharing your results!
Dan Chamandy says
Just decided to try these out instead of the traditional banana Muffins. Wonderful!! Couldn't be happier! As a Canadian I am proud to use maple syrup in the recipe, and although I live and work as an opera singer in Vienna, Austria, I still have the taste from home. Thank-you. :-))
Chris Scheuer says
That's so awesome, Dan! Thanks for sharing your results. Wow, an opera singer in Austria, that's so exciting. I love Austria, such a beautiful country!
Susan says
Almost missed this one! I'm so glad I didn't because this looks like a delicious combination, Chris. I love dates and walnuts together and those close-ups are making my mouth water 😉
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says
Looks like you got them just right Chris! They're beauties! Nothing beats a banana muffin for breakfast with my morning coffee!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
I am a big date lover, so these muffins are definitely calling my name 🙂 So great with the banana and nuts, too!
Christine says
I had three bananas that were desperate! Just wanted to let you know that Sugar and Cinnamon were not mentioned in the step by step instructions. We figured out when to add them. Kids can't wait to try them! Thank you!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks so much, Christine, I really appreciate you letting me know. It's fixed now! Hope you enjoyed the muffins 🙂
sue | the view from great island says
These muffins look so satisfyingly CHUNKY ~ just the way I love them! Pinning and sharing 🙂
Marlene says
Can one use this recipe for 6 Texas size muffins instead of 12 regular size?
Chris Scheuer says
Yes, I think that should work fine. You probably do have to bake them a little longer though.
angiesrecipes says
I love to add dried dates to the banana bread! Can't wait to try your muffin!
Liz says
Thanks for doing all the leg work. Adding dates to banana muffins was a terrific idea! I need a stash in my freezer for my afternoon treat!
Tricia says
Oh yes! I understand about recipe obsession - I just can't quit until I get it right. And it looks to me like you got it more than right. These are lovely muffins Chris - you did it again and gave us a well tested, beautiful and delicious recipe. Can't wait to give these a try.