Spinach Banana Muffins

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Healthy, vegan, and ready in 25 minutes, my spinach banana muffins are a hearty and wholesome snack that even picky eaters love! I make them with nutritious and gluten-friendly ingredients, such as spinach, honey, whole grain flour, and mashed banana that come out of the oven light and fluffy.

Whenever I get my kids to eat spinach, I consider it a major win. They’re usually fussy when it comes to eating healthy greens, but since they enjoy this spinach and banana smoothie, I thought, why not make a muffin recipe combining both ingredients and keep it healthy for snacking during the day.

They call them Hulk muffins due to their bright green color, and they’re so moist and fluffy, and made with gluten-free flours, similar to my gluten-free banana chocolate chip muffins. They’re perfect for quick breakfasts, school lunches, Halloween parties or afternoon snacks.

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🥘 Ingredients

My eggless spinach muffins require only simple ingredients. Here is the list of what I use and some substitutions:

Bananas: For sweetness and flavor, I use ripe bananas. It is so important to use ripe bananas for their natural sweetness! The ones that you think you should throw away are the best.

Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds a bit of oomph! It accentuates the sweetness and nuttiness of the muffins.

Baby Spinach Leaves: I use fresh baby spinach because the leaves are softer and blend more easily.

Ground Flax Seeds: Ground flax seeds are what I use instead of eggs to keep the recipe vegan. They have a similar stability and structure to eggs and add healthy fats!

Almond Milk: To keep it plant-based, I use almond milk, but soy, chestnut, and coconut are great options, and even whole milk, if you don’t need the recipe vegan.

Honey: The natural sweetness of honey works great in muffin recipes for satisfying the sweet tooth! Maple syrup or agave syrup are great vegan alternatives.

Coconut Oil: I use coconut oil to keep the muffins tender yet moist! Vegetable, olive oil, and canola oil also work.

Whole Wheat Flour: To give the muffins a nutty taste, I use whole wheat flour. For a less intense wheat flavor, use white whole wheat flour or a gluten-free variant if you’re gluten intolerant. I recommend Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour for its gluten-like taste and texture.

Oat Flour: For a boost of healthy nutrients, I mix oat flour with whole wheat flour. It tastes delicious in cakes, muffins, and cookies! If you can’t find it in the grocery store, you can make your own. Pulse rolled oats (not quick oats) in a food processor until a fine powder.

Baking Powder and Baking Soda: These 2 ingredients are what make baked goods rise.

Cinnamon and Salt: I love the warmth of cinnamon! If you don’t, simply leave it out. A small amount of salt accentuates the sweetness in this healthy recipe!

🔪 How To Make

To make this easy, healthy spinach muffin recipe, follow my simple directions for stress-free baking.

Preheat Oven: I start preheating the oven to 330 degrees F / 170 C. Line a muffin tray with muffin cups. A greased muffin tin also works.

Process Ingredients: I combine bananas, vanilla, fresh spinach, ground flax seeds, almond milk, honey, and coconut oil in a food processor and pulse until smooth, then set aside.

Whisk Dry Ingredients: Then, I whisk together the remaining ingredients in a separate bowl.

Combine Wet and Dry: I pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until a smooth batter forms.

Scoop and Bake: Next, I scoop the batter into the muffin liners and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Let Cool: Finally, I let the muffins cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack before enjoying.

📖 Variations

There are so many different ways to customize this easy recipe! I’ve tried and tested many, but these three are my favorites:

Chocolate lovers: For a chocolatey twist, I add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips to the batter. This one is my favorite!

Blueberry add-in: I add 1 cup of fresh blueberries to the batter. I don’t recommend frozen blueberries because they will release water and weigh down the muffins.

Extra protein: For a boost of protein, I mix in 1 scoop of vanilla protein powder to the flour mixture.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

These green Hulk muffins are a delightful treat on Halloween, paired with other spooky recipes, or simply paired with delicious recipes for breakfast or brunch. Here are some of our house favorites to pair with these spinach and banana muffins:

Halloween: Though I didn’t create these fluffy spinach muffins for Halloween initially, they turned out to be eye-catching during the festive season because of their bright green color, and was a perfect pairing for my witches brew cocktail. I decided to make a bunch of delicious Halloween monster cookies and funny face apples so the kids could have options at the buffet table. The recipes are great fun to make with the kids.

Breakfast or brunch: When the weekend comes around, I love pancakes and waffles for breakfast. One of my favorite pancake recipes that is perfect for these muffins and uses up leftover spinach is this spinach pancake recipe. It takes half an hour to whip up a batch of both muffins and pancakes, which is perfect. If you have more ripe bananas, give this pumpkin banana bread recipe a try. It’s moist, toastable, and so yummy with chocolate spread or peanut butter!

🧊 Storage Directions

Refrigeration: I let the muffins come to room temperature, then place them into an airtight container. Since these muffins have a lot of moisture in them, it’s best to keep them refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Freezing: I place the leftover muffins into a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 months.

Reheating: To reheat, I microwave the muffins in 15-second intervals until warm.

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