Double Chocolate Banana Muffins

Oh mama, these Double Chocolate Banana Muffins are pure magic straight from the oven! They’re soft and fluffy with the perfect balance of rich cocoa and sweet, ripe bananas—and don’t even get me started on those melty chocolate chips in every bite!

It’s one of those one bowl recipes the whole family can help with, and honestly, it’s hard to wait for them to cool before sneaking one. I love to make these for an after school snack, and they’re freezer-friendly too which means they are a great grab-and-go breakfast too!

It’s so hard to help the readers understand just how much we loved a certain recipe, and even more difficult to try through words and photos to convince you to make it for yourselves. So, here goes my attempt, or 5 reasons that you need to make these gosh darn totally delicious, melt in your mouth, awesome (are you catching my drift here?) double chocolate banana muffins.

Ingredients for Banana Chocolate Muffins

• Cocoa Powder: Adds rich chocolate flavor and color to the muffins.
• Flour: Just good ol’ all purpose flour is all you need. 
• Baking Soda, Baking Powder, Cream of Tartar, Salt: Added for rise, texture and flavor.
• Shortening: You can use butter instead, but I’ve found shortening results in a more moist muffin.
• Eggs: Give structure to the muffins.
• Vanilla Extract: Adds flavor.
• Sugar: Adds sweetness.
• Bananas: Make sure they are ripe to give the best sweetness and flavor to the muffins.
• Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips: What makes these muffins double chocolate! They can be omitted if you want, but I don’t know why anyone would do that!

How to Make Double Chocolate Banana Muffins

1. Prep: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a jumbo muffin tin with jumbo paper liners (or use regular muffin tin).
2. Dry Ingredients: Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a medium size mixing bowl.
3. Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, stir all the wet ingredients together until smooth.
4. Combine: Add a little of the flour mixture and mix, then a little of the mashed banana and mix and keep repeating until everything is combined.
5. Fold: Fold in the chocolate chips and then fill each muffin cup about 2/3 full.
6. Bake: Place the muffin pan in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool before eating.

Can You Bake Muffin Batter In a Loaf Pan?

Muffins can be turned into quick bread by following a few simple steps.

Set the oven rack in the middle position.

Decrease the oven temperature by 50 degrees, and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out either “with few moist crumbs attached” or “clean”.

This will take about 60 to 70 minutes.

We actually have a double chocolate banana bread, so head there for the complete recipe!

How to Know When a Banana is Ripe

Bananas are picked green, then as the fruit ripens, the peel changes from green to yellow, and then to yellow with a few brown speckles. My preferred ripeness for this recipe is bright yellow bananas with brown spots all over them.

Bananas gradually turn dark brown and become softer and sweeter and will eventually go bad. If the peels are dark brown, the inside of the bananas are fresh and flavorful for several days.

If the bananas are too ripe for your liking, use them in smoothies or banana bread.

Why Did My Muffins Sink in the Middle?

I’ve been there many times…the muffins are rising in the oven beautifully with that bakery style dome on top, I pull them out and they collapse. It’s so frustrating! The most common culprit for sunken muffins is underbaking. Before removing muffins from the oven, test them by poking a toothpick in the middle. It should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs. 

The other common causes are temperature problems or bad leavening agents. If an oven is too hot, the muffins will rise too fast and then collapse because the structure hasn’t had time to develop. Opening the oven too often can often cause temperature fluctuations that will affect the rise. Lastly, make sure your baking soda and baking powder are both fresh and active.

Storing Muffins

Store at room temperature in an airtight container. They will keep for up to 5 days.

These muffins freeze great. Make sure these are cooled completely then wrap in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag. They will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let them come to room temperature and they taste just as fresh as the day I baked them! I like to zap them in the microwave and eat them warm!

Watch How This Recipe is Made…

More Delicious Muffin Recipes!

• Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
• Blueberry Muffins
• Crumb Banana Muffins
• Apple Coffee Cake Muffins
• Costco Copycat Pumpkin Crumb Muffins