Full of blueberries and packed with bananas, these easy gluten-free banana blueberry muffins are delicious for breakfast or snack time! Use those overripe bananas sitting on the counter to make these tasty muffins! Serve warm with butter and enjoy!
If you’re not a baker by nature, particularly a gluten-free baker, baking can feel a bit like a hit-or-miss science experiment. And if you are able to churn out gluten-free baked goods that beg the eater to question if it is truly gluten-free due to its light and tender crumb or ravenously decadent texture and flavor, please tell us your secret ways. Any gluten-free Facebook support group will quickly reveal how many of us become slightly unhinged when we discover a gluten-free baked good actually worth eating.
I am not a gluten-free baker by nature. I find the world of gluten-free baking to be frustrating at times, especially when navigating which gluten-free all-purpose flour blend to use. I’ve learned one too many times that even if a particular gluten-free flour says it’s cup-for-cup or 1-to-1 or can be perfectly substituted for regular wheat flour, such is rarely the case. Not all gluten-free flour blends are the same. And they can deliver some pretty funky results.
But even for the non-baker like myself, sometimes the stars align. This is not without multiple (failed) attempts, fiddling with ingredient weights and proportions, and even some slightly obsessive research on how different ingredients can have a positive or negative effect on gluten-free baking, but by golly folks…I’ve got a gluten-free blueberry banana muffin for you that is worth a few hallelujahs.
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🌟 Why you’ll love these gluten-free muffins
It’s all about that crumb. Tender, fluffy, and perfectly moist.
Unlike so many gluten-free baked goods, these muffins do not taste like someone snuck a cup of grit from your kid’s sandbox into the mixture. They also won’t give you visions of eating a dense brick. And you’re not going to need to choke them down with a glass of water because something sucked all the moisture from them.
These muffins are tasty. Like REALLY tasty.
🛒 Ingredients & suggestions
- Bananas: You know those slightly browned, spotted bananas that you forgot about on the counter for a little too long? Those are perfect for these muffins.
- Blueberries: Fresh or frozen, both work!
- Apple Cider Vinegar: Don’t skip this ingredient! It lightens up the muffin batter giving us that light and springy texture that we all love in a muffin.
- Coconut Oil: If you’re not a fan of the flavor of coconut, don’t worry. You won’t taste any coconut in your finished muffins.
- Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-To-1 Flour: DO NOT substitute a different all-purpose gluten-free flour blend. This muffin recipe was developed using this specific gluten-free flour. No two gluten-free flours blends are the same so if you do go rogue and use something different the odds of your muffins resulting in a swoonworthy baked good are a gamble.
For a full list of ingredients and quantities see the recipe card at the end of this post.
🔪 Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Mash those overripe bananas!
Step 2: Combine the smooshed bananas with eggs and sugar.
Step 3: Add melted coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla. Combine thoroughly.
Step 4: Mix the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
Step 5: Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture until just combined.
Step 6: Gently fold the blueberries into the batter. If you get too aggressive with this part you’ll have some funky, swirly colored muffins (but they’ll still be tasty 🙂).
Step 7: Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pan. I use this cookie scoop for a simple, mess-free way of getting the batter into those muffin liners. Top each muffin with a sprinkle of turbinado sugar for a little extra something special (totally optional though).
Step 8: Bake! Then eeeaat (with a schmear of butter on it).
👩🍳 Recipe tips for perfect muffins every time
- Use a scale to weigh your ingredients. You may see some websites suggesting to spoon flour into a measuring cup one spoonful at a time and leveling the top off while others simply dunk the measuring cup into the bag of flour and then level it off with the edge of a knife. No one will ever get the same amount two times in a row using either of these measuring methods. When baking, the most accurate method for measuring ingredients is to weigh the ingredients on a food scale. A food scale is a minimal investment for a guarantee that your gluten-free muffins will turn out delicious each and every time.
- Do NOT substitute the gluten-free flour recommended in this recipe for a different gluten-free flour. Not all gluten-free all-purpose flour blends are equal. There are dozens of gluten-free flour blends on the market and I have yet to see two gluten-free flour blends at the store or online that use the same ingredients and the same proportions of those ingredients. With this in mind, you are bound to get different results with your muffins if you are using a flour blend other than the one recommended in this recipe.
- Allow your oven to fully preheat prior to placing your muffins in the oven. The muffins may not rise or cook evenly if placed in the oven before it has been able to fully preheat.
- Use parchment paper muffin liners. Nobody loves it when their beautiful muffins stick to the muffin tin or to their paper liners. I love using these non-stick parchment liners. I ran out of muffin liners when I was photographing this recipe so I just cut out some 5″x5″ squares from a roll of parchment paper and used that instead! This works great if you don’t have store-bought muffin liners on hand.
- Muffins tend to get soggy on the bottom if left in their muffin pan for too long. Remove the muffins from the pan within 5 minutes from taking them out of the oven to avoid those soggy bottoms. Place on a wire rack to cool.
💭 Frequently asked questions
In my experience blueberry bleed tends to happen when using store-bought frozen blueberries versus fresh blueberries or even fresh blueberries that I have frozen myself. For blueberries that I have frozen myself a quick toss in a portion of the flour reserved from the recipe seems to do the trick. If using store-bought frozen blueberries, the flour toss method doesn’t work quite as well to prevent bleed. Instead, gently rinse the frozen blueberries in cold water until the water runs fairly clear when draining. Then gently pat the wet blueberries dry. If blueberry bleed is happening with fresh blueberries it’s most likely because the blueberries are being folded into the batter a little too aggressively. 😉
Before adding the blueberries into the batter, add a small scoop of plain batter to each muffin cup. Then fold in the blueberries to the remaining batter and portion out into each muffin cup. There is a theory that if you toss the blueberries in flour before adding them to the batter this will prevent them from sinking, but I personally have not found this method to be very reliable.
Tender with a chewy crumb and just the right amount of blueberries. These gluten-free blueberry banana muffins are going to disappear fast. ♡
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📖 Recipe
Gluten-Free Blueberry Banana Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 28 minutes
- Total Time: 38 minutes
- Yield: 12 muffins 1x
Description
Full of blueberries and packed with bananas, these easy Gluten-Free Banana Blueberry Muffins are delicious for breakfast or snack time! Use those overripe bananas sitting on the counter to make these tasty muffins!
Ingredients
- 4 (362g) ripe bananas, peeled
- ½ cups (110g) granulated cane sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup (114g) coconut oil, melted
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups (296g) Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-To-1 Flour (do not substitute for another gluten-free flour blend)
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cup (175g) fresh or frozen blueberries
- turbinado sugar for sprinkling on top of muffins (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Prepare a muffin tin with non-stick spray or 12 parchment paper muffin liners.
- In a medium bowl, mash the bananas and mix together with eggs and sugar.
- Add melted coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla, and mix thoroughly.
- In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Slowly add to the wet mixture until just combined.
- Gently fold in the blueberries with a spatula.
- Pour the batter into prepared muffin tin (see notes) and sprinkle tops with turbinado sugar if desired.
- Bake for 25-28 minutes, until lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan before carefully transferring to a wire rack to cool until ready to serve.
Notes
The equipment section above contains affiliate links to products I use or recommend.
Use a food scale to accurately measure the ingredients with provided weight measurements. A food scale is a minimal investment for a guarantee that your gluten-free muffins will turn out delicious each and every time.
If you’re concerned about the blueberries sinking to the bottom of the muffins or juice from the blueberries bleeding into the muffins please see my suggested solutions in the ‘Recipe frequently asked questions’ within the post.
- Category: Snack
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
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Joan says
WAS WONDERING IF I CAN USE THIS RECIPE IN A LOAF PAN OR CAKE PAN? THESE MUFFINS ARE SO DELICIOUS! I HAVE MADE THEM NUMEROUS TIMES. I ADD WALNUTS AND BROWN SUGAR AS A TOPPING. I WRAP THEM INDIVIDUALLY IN PLASTIC WRAP AND STORE THEM IN A ZIP LOCK FREEZER BAG IN THE FREEZER. THANKS FOR SHARING THIS!
Shannon Emery says
That’s a great question Joan! I haven’t tried baking this recipe in a loaf pan or cake pan so I can’t give you a well-tested response. However, since a loaf contains a higher volume and weight of batter compared to individual muffins I think the best way to go about it would be to reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you give it a try I’d love to hear how it goes! And I love the walnut brown sugar topping you added. That sounds extra dreamy!
Lili says
Thank you so much! These were the best gluten free muffins I’ve ever had! They were so moist. I did use 1 cup of 1 to 1 bob’s red mill flour blend with 1 cup of bob’s red mill regular baking flour and it turned out just fine. My oven preheated oven needed 35 min exactly for perfectly baked muffins. They seemed a bit undercooked after coming out but after resting time they are just fine and so moist! I will try those again with other berries or chocolate chips.
Shannon Emery says
That’s awesome to hear Lili! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed them and that they still turned out well with your flour modifications. Thanks so much for sharing!
Lucky Woman says
Wonderful muffins! Sugar is a bit misleading. 110 grams is only 1/2 cup.
Shannon Emery says
Thanks so much for catching that error with the sugar! When I tested this recipe I tested varying quantities of sugar. Looking back at my notes (which clearly I need to be more organized with, lol) I see where my written paths mistakenly crossed with the grams and cups used. It should be 1/2 cup (110 grams). I’ll update this in the recipe card. So glad that you enjoyed them though!
Merryn says
Nice fluffy muffins and the tip about putting batter without blueberries in the bottom worked well however I found they tasted too much of baking powder/soda. I will try them again with less. The flour you recommended is not available in NZ but the flour I substituted worked perfectly.
Shannon Emery says
Glad to hear they worked out for you using a different flour! What is the brand of flour in NZ that you used? I’d love to hear!