A fabulously healthy treat: These delicious Keto Banana Muffins are gluten-free, sugar free and seriously nutrient-dense. No fake banana extracts here - my low carb banana muffins contain a real banana!
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Do you want peaceful silence and smiley faces all round? Plus that fabulous feeling when you've served up a bunch of healthy ingredients and everyone thinks it's a real treat?
Make these Low Carb Banana Muffins and enjoy them for breakfast or at snack time. They are true grain-free baking magic.
Because this recipe uses almond flour and ground flax seed, the texture is more rustic than that of a wheat muffin. My keto banana muffins are packed with fiber and won't make you feel bloated the way a wheat muffin does.
The banana flavor is just lovely and you can taste it with every bite - just like in my super moist keto banana bread or these Healthy Banana Cookies!
🍌 Real banana versus banana extract
Because of their high carb count, bananas are generally avoided on a low carb diet.
That's why most keto banana muffin recipes have a so called secret ingredient: they use banana extract instead of a real banana. This obviously keeps the carb count really low.
But I think you'll never get close to the taste of proper banana flavor with extracts, not to mention the same wonderful moist texture.
Bananas have a very intense flavour. This keto banana muffins recipe contains ½ cup of mashed banana (1 medium banana). That is ⅛ of a banana - I'd say that is about 1 bite - and 5.4 grams of net carbs per muffin.
Perfectly keto friendly!
🛒 Ingredients
Here are the ingredients we need for this recipe:
- Almond flour
- Flax meal
- Eggs - should be room temperature
- Unsweetened almond milk
- Coconut oil
- Sweetener - I used an erythritol monk fruit sweetener blend, but allulose, xylitol, Splenda or Boacha Sweet would also work.
- Baking powder
- Vanilla extract and cinnamon
- And a banana!
Top tip: Make sure the banana you use is VERY RIPE. The browner the peel the better. Ripe bananas have WAY more flavour than the ones with yellow or - God forbid - green peel.
👩🍳 Instructions
(This section contains step by step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. Find the recipe card with ingredient amounts and nutritional information at the bottom of the post.)
1.) Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit / 180 Celsius.
2.) Mix the wet ingredients - banana, eggs, almond milk, vanilla and oil in a food processor or with a blender using a large bowl. Take your time with this. About 2 minutes is perfect - by then you have plenty of air bubbles in the mix which makes the muffins lighter.
Tip: If you are using extra-fine almond flour, I recommend that you reduce the amount to 1 ¾ cups or 175 grams. Super-fine almond flour is more absorbent than regular almond flour or the ground almonds you can buy here in the UK.
3.) Add the dry ingredients: the ground almonds or almond flour, ground flaxseed, sweetener, baking powder and spices. Option to also add a pinch of salt. Blend until you have a smooth batter.
4.) Lastly, stir in the optional cacao nibs or dark chocolate chips. I would choose a variety that contains 85% or 90% cocoa solids. Lindt is one of my favourites, as is Montezuma's. Or go for sugar-free chocolate chips such as by Lily's.
5.) Fill into a muffin pan with paper liners. If you don't have any muffin cups to hand, make sure to spray the muffin tin with cooking spray. You don't want them to stick! My mix made 8 muffins, but I did "try" the dough quite a few times. Yours might yield 9!
6.) Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until browned on top. You can also test with a toothpick. If there's no dough sticking to it, the muffins are done.
🔄 Substitutions
It's always possible to tweak recipes to make them suit your taste and the ingredients you've got in your larder.
First of all, you can replace the coconut oil with butter if you like. I wanted to keep my muffins dairy free, but butter would taste great here, too!
Also, any type of milk works. I prefer nut milks such as almond milk or hazelnut milk because they are lower in carbs than dairy milk. Coconut milk would be a good option, too.
The flaxseed gives the recipe a rustic flavour. It is possible to use more almond flour instead. In this case though I recommend that you add another egg to the recipe. Flax helps to bind baked goods and without it your low carb banana muffins would be too brittle.
I don't recommend that you replace the almond flour with coconut flour. Coconut flour is a very different beast from any other grain free flours. You would have to use a lot less of it (I normally substitute with ⅓ the amount because it's much more absorbent). It is also more brittle and you would definitely need more eggs.
Keto banana nut muffins: Stir in a handful of chopped walnuts or pecans.
Storage
I always store my muffins in an airtight container on the kitchen counter for a couple of days. Normally they are all gone by then, but they would be absolutely fine in the fridge for about 5-6 days.
These muffins also freeze well, for up to 3 months. So, make a double batch and pack in a freezer bag. Simply defrost one in the microwave (30 seconds is perfect in mine) when you feel like a treat!
More muffin recipes
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Recipe
Low Carb Keto Banana Muffins
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary. ***As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Ingredients
- 200 g / 2 cups almond flour or ground almonds
- 30 g / ¼ cup flaxseed ground
- 120 g / ½ cup banana very ripe (1 medium banana)
- 2 eggs large
- 120 ml / 4 ounces almond milk ½ cup
- 60 ml / 2 ounces coconut oil ¼ cup
- 3-4 tablespoon granulated sweetener depending on your sweet tooth
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 40 g cacao nibs or sugar free chocolate chips (⅓ cup), optional
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius / 350 Fahrenheit.
- Mix the banana, eggs, almond milk, vanilla and oil in a food processor or with a blender.
- Add the dry ingredients: the ground almonds, ground flaxseed, erythritol, baking powder and spices. Blend until thoroughly combined
- Lastly, stir in the cacao nibs (or chopped dark chocolate)
- Fill into a muffin tin lined with paper cups. If you don't have any to hand, make sure the tin is really well greased. My mix made 8 muffins, but I did "try" the dough quite a few times. Yours might yield 9!
- Bake at 180 degrees 25-30 minutes or until browned on top. You can also test with a cocktail stick or a knife - if they come out dry, the muffins are done.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Marilee Dockery
I really enjoy the recipes from this site. They are delicious and easy to follow. Best if all there are not a lot of unusual ingredients. I really recommend this web site .
Claire Worrall
Oh Katrin, you've done it again! These muffins are gorgeous. I didn't have flax meal, so added the same amount of almond meal plus an extra egg as you suggested. I was worried that the batter was too moist, but I was wrong. They came out absolutely perfectly. Thank you again for sharing your wonderful recipe, which makes keto so much fun.
Claire xo
Katrin Nürnberger
I'm so happy you like the recipe Claire! Thank you so much for your comment.
Meg
Is the net carb per muffin 2.3? Ie total - fibre?
Katrin Nürnberger
yes, that's correct
Meg
Thank you, they're delicious!
Cynthia
They are so yummy to eat. Thanks so much for the recipe.
Katrin Nürnberger
You are welcome Cynthia!
Doris
Thanks Katrin.
I did not use flax egg. The only change I made was using a flax almond baking flour instead of pure almond flour as said in your banana bread recipe.
Katrin Nürnberger
Still a bit confused over what exactly you did. However, if your bake turned out sticky, it means there's too much moisture in it. Flax actually goes super crispy, I use it in my keto granola to help bind things together. The solution is to either follow the recipe 100% and also test the inside with a skewer to see if it's done. If the top of your bake is browned enough and the inside is still too wet, cover it with aluminium paper. Hope this helps!
doris
Hi Katrin,
Does flaxseed flour/almond flour give a slimy texture? I made an banana bread with your recipe using flax/almond baking flour and came out with that slimy texture which my daughter didn't like it.
I ended up finishing the whole loaf by myself! But I liked it 🙂
Thanks!
Katrin Nürnberger
Did you use this recipe and made a bread instead of muffins? Then it may be that you just did not bake it long enough. My muffins were not wet. I have a very popular banana bread recipe that does not use flaxseed You should give that a try - I'm sure your daughter will love it.
Doris
I made the banana bread using your banana bread recipe.
Katrin Nürnberger
I see. So you replaced the eggs in the banana bread recipe with flax eggs? You'll always have a different texture if you don't use eggs. Flax just cannot give that rise.
Anne
Can I use "flax eggs" to replace eggs. I am vegan and don't eat eggs.
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, that should work as there's only 2 eggs in the recipe.
Yael Ben-Efraim
Just made a batch this morning, came out so moist and flavorful, had it with greek yogurt for breakfast. I would add walnuts next time. Perfect way to use up those ripe bananas.
Kate
I omitted the cacao nibs and added walnuts they were lush.
Irina
Made them yesterday. Very good! Definitely a keeper.
Claire McDonnell
Have made these twice now. They are delicious and great for a Keto sweet treat.
Patricia
Do you used Superfine Almond Flour? The link to Amazon shows a superfine almond flour so I want to make sure I have the right ingredient.
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi I used ground almonds, which are the same as regular almond flour. As long as you don't use defatted almond flour any should work 🙂
Jayne Misra
I used fine almond flour in the us and my muffins were amazing . My bananas were super ripe so I only added one tablespoon of swerve. And I bumped up the banana pulp to 1 cup plus 1/4 at the end so not all would be super blended. Using the blender really makes them soft!
Yolanda
I would love to make this recipe but don't have the flaxseed, what can I use instead?
Katrin Nürnberger
You can try with more almond flour, or maybe 1 1/2 tbsp coconut flour.
Petra Jorgensen
Hi there, can I substitute regular cow's milk for the almond milk? I'm not on any kind of diet, just love your recipes and trying to stay as low carb & sugar as possible with my sweets. Thanx much.
Katrin Nürnberger
Of course! Any milk would work in this recipe 🙂
Billie P
Is the 30g of flaxseed measured before or after grinding? I'm not clear, but I can imagine it would make a significant difference in the recipe.
Many thanks
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Billie, sorry this was not clear. I always buy my flax milled, so it's measured ground up.
Rashida
Can this recipe Be made with a standing mixer?
Katrin Nürnberger
Of course!
Rashida
I have another question. Does the coconut oil have to be in liquid form?
Katrin Nürnberger
It can be at room temperature, too. Just make sure your blender is powerful enough that you can fully incorporate it into your dough.
Diana
Do u know if this muffins freeze well?
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, they do!
Leah
Is the nutrition for all 8 muffins or per muffin?
Katrin Nürnberger
It's per muffin 🙂
Erika
Hi 🙂 I’m trying your recipe today but I want to add 3 bananas total. Would I need to adjust anything else in the recipe to account for 2 extra bananas?
Katrin
Hi Erika,
I think the recipe will still work - banana muffin/bread recipes tend to be quite forgiving... maybe it will be a bit fudgier. You could increase the baking powder to 1 1/2- 2 tsp to give it an extra bit of rise and use a little less milk.
Erika
Ok thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly!! 🙂
Shirley FLOWER
In your recipe the baking powder is 1 tablespoon . Is this correct ? According to your above comment it sounds as if the baking powder should be 1 teaspoon! Which measurement is right please?
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Shirley, thank you for bringing my attention to this. This is one of my older recipes, but you are right - 1 tablespoon is probably a typo. If I were to make this recipe now, I would use 2 tsp baking powder for a really good rise, although 1 1/2 should definitely be enough.
Sally manton
I really enjoyed your muffins but can always taste the coconut oil which I dont like. Could I swap this for butter? If so how much would you try? Thankyou
Katrin
Of course you can, just use the same amount of butter.
Elizabeth
I used honey
Ruth K
I made them with Lily dark chocolate chips and the recipe yielded 24 mini muffins. Baked them in well-greased silicone trays and they popped out easily. Delicious!
Marci
Hi I am just starting this recipe and adjusting to make 24 muffins. However, the conversion of ingredients is not correct. Be aware of this. 4ounces tripled should be 12 ounces. The metric conversion is correct but NOT the imperial version.Also, imperial and metric conversions are used throughout. Would be helpful if it was consistent throughout the recipe, rather than going back and forth.
Will comment after the taste test!
MArci
Was able to adjust ingredient measurements and the muffins turned out delicious! Yum! Added some very tiny bits of dark chocolate crumb on top of baked muffins while still hot. Melted beautifully! Best low-carb muffin recipe I've tried!
Katrin
Hi Marci, the recipe plugin I'm using can only convert the first set of numbers, not the second... sorry about this. Glad you like the recipe!
Mandy
Really delicious and fluffy muffins. Thank you!! I supplemented the flaxseed with spelt flour and also added chopped up apple.
Katrin
Sounds yummy! Perfect for autumn 🙂
John
Trying this one for the first time, there is vanilla listed in the ingredients, bit not mentioned anywhere in the method, also it says 1 tbsp of baking powder, that seems like a LOT, should this be 1tsp?
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi John, I've added the vanilla to the method, thanks. I think you're probably fine using between 1 1/2 to 2 tsp of baking powder if you don't want to use the entire amount. In my last muffins - these keto blueberry muffins - I used 1 1/2 tsp, but the flour amount was smaller.
Helen Morris
These are great !!! Made them exactly as per recipe and they were delicious, moist and healthy !!
Katrin
That's great to hear, I'm glad you enjoyed them 🙂
Ems
How do you store the muffins that aren't inhaled? Kitchen counter or refrigerator? Thanks!
Katrin
Fridge is always the better option - though 1 day on the counter in a tin should be no problem 🙂
Ursula Metselaar
Hi Katrin.
Your recipes look inspirational. Do you have any which might have a low fat content (for those under doctor's orders!), please?
Katrin
Hi Ursula, I don't really watch my fat intake as it's the stuff that keeps me full because I've reduced my carbs. However, in terms of baking you should look out for coconut flour recipes and avoid the almond flour ones - almond flour has a much higher fat content. I think you'd like my 3 ingredient crepes (we all love them!), which you can fill with anything you like, sweet or savoury. Also try my blueberry jam (with the crepes perhaps??), not an ounce of fat in sight and so easy and yummy. Or my Moroccan cauliflower rice, it's a super-delicious light lunch or dinner.
April
Thanks for the conversions for those of us in USA. My husband is a Londoner, trying to switch to LCHF, and your recipes are GLORIOUS! Thanks!!
Katrin
This is 180 Celsius - 356 Fahrenheit
Stacy W
It would be great if you could amend your recipe to include this information. The original states nothing of being a U.K. conversion and had I not read the comments right after putting the pan in the oven I would have had a much different outcome for mine with such a different temperature.