This post contains affiliate links.

Easy and moist Banana Bran Muffins made with bran cereal, buttermilk, and ripe bananas.  They make a healthy breakfast or on-the-go snack.
If you've been around the site, you know that I LOVE muffins! Especially healthy, made from scratch muffins that I feel good feeding my family; like these Skinny Banana Bread Muffins and these Skinny Pumpkin Muffins.
Banana Bran Muffins stacked on a white plate with bananas in the background.

Banana Bran Muffins

I have been experimenting with bran muffin recipes for years and I believe this one is a great mix of healthy, moist, kid-friendly, and delicious.  I always keep a batch of banana bran muffins in my freezer for lunches or snacks for my family (see freezing instructions below)!

Muffins like these are my go-to quick snack and my husband loves to grab one on his way to work. This recipe uses all bran or bran flakes cereal.  You could even use raisin bran cereal if you love raisins in your bran muffins!

How to make banana bran muffins:

  • Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl.
  • Add eggs, bananas, buttermilk.
  • Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl.

Side by side photos of a mixing bowl with the wet ingredients, and then dry ingredients added to the batter for banana bran muffins.

  • Stir into banana mixture and fold in all bran cereal.
  • Fill muffin tins
  • Bake at 350 degrees.

A 12 cup muffin tin filled with the batter for bran muffins.

How to make these bran muffins healthier:

  • substitute ¼ cup applesauce for 1 of the eggs in the recipe.
  • Use skim milk (and add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice) instead of buttermilk
  • Substitute half the flour with whole wheat flour
  • Use ¼ cup flour instead of ½ cup

Ways to adapt this recipe:

  • Add nuts (your favorite kind, chopped)
  • Add raisins or craisins
  • Add shredded carrot or zucchini (a small handful, with moisture mostly removed)
  • Add mini chocolate chips
  • Add 1 tablespoon of orange zest

Storing and Freezing Bran Muffins:

Store banana bran muffins covered at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Banana bran muffins also freeze very well!  To freeze, first allow the muffins to cool completely.  Then place them in a freezer ziplock bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

To thaw the frozen muffins, allow them to come to room temperature or place one muffin in the microwave for 20 seconds.

Two halves of a banana bran muffin with butter smeared on one half and more muffins in the background.

Do you love Healthy Muffins? Try these popular muffin recipes:

You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM and PINTEREST for more great recipes!

4.95 from 124 votes

Banana Bran Muffins

Author: Lauren Allen
Banana Bran Muffins are the perfect breakfast or on-the-go snack that is also freezer friendly!
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Total: 35 minutes
Servings: 12 muffins

Ingredients  

Instructions 

  • Prepare a standard muffin tin with liners or spray lightly with non-stick cooking spray.
  • In a large bowl beat the butter and sugar together well. 
  • Add the eggs, bananas and buttermilk and mix to combine.
  • In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda and salt; add to banana mixture along with bran cereal and stir just until moistened. 
  • Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups.
  • Bake at 350° for 16-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Notes

*These are easy to freeze and taste great when you pull one from the freezer and microwave for 20 seconds.

Nutrition

Calories: 240kcal, Carbohydrates: 38g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 57mg, Sodium: 348mg, Potassium: 253mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 17g, Vitamin A: 475IU, Vitamin C: 4.7mg, Calcium: 57mg, Iron: 2.5mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Text me new recipe ideas!

Simple, tasty ideas sent once a week. No spam.

Text Signup

Have you tried this recipe?!

RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.

 

I first shared this recipe March 2013. Updated July 2019.

 

 

Related Posts

Share Recipe

About The Author

Lauren Allen

Welcome! I’m Lauren, a mom of four and lover of good food. Here you’ll find easy recipes and weeknight meal ideas made with real ingredients, with step-by-step photos and videos.

4.95 from 124 votes (92 ratings without comment)
Subscribe
Notify of

64 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Jane
4 years ago

Absolutely marv! I added raisins also they are soooo yum! A keeper!

Jane
4 years ago
Reply to  Jane

5 stars
Replied so fast I forgot that I also used straight dark brown sugar yum yum!

Emma Parker
4 years ago

5 stars
In order to make the muffins as healthy as possible for my toddler, I made the recipe without the sugar, with oil instead of butter, and plain yogurt instead of buttermilk (which isn’t sold where I live anyway). We found that they were plenty sweet enough without sugar (I did put in some raisins).

Alice Northcott
5 years ago

I made these wonderful banana bran muffins in my oven that hasn’t got a decent temperature guage. I got 20 nice sized muffins out of the recipe and my husband and I absolutely LOVE them! Thank you so much for this recipe!

Gigi
5 years ago

5 stars
These are really good. I made a few modifications to fit our family’s preferences, namely to soak the bran flakes in the liquids. I used defrosted bananas, and I used that liquid to soak the flakes also. Very very good.

Jamie
5 years ago

5 stars
This may be the best muffin I’ve made. It was a beautiful marriage of banana bread and bran muffin. I used my silicone mini muffin molds, since my kids eat those easier. Thank you for a great recipe!

GJ
5 years ago

5 stars
Finally found the perfect banana bran muffins! Spend a chunk of my quarantine testing others and this is by far the best, easiest and so moist!
Thank you

Bev
5 years ago

5 stars
Made these an hour ago. Even with my eyeball measuring and only 2 bananas, they turned out good. Baked for 22 mins, and they are moist and delish. I used the raisin bran option, which I pulsed a few seconds in my blender prior to adding (I didn’t want any branny chunks). Making again!

Rebecca
5 years ago

5 stars
I’ve made this recipe about a dozen times and it always turns out well. Sometimes I add a dash of cinnamon and vanilla. Occasionally I’ll sub out the butter milk with regular or use less sugar. It seems to always turn out nicely and my kids devour them.
Thank you for the great recipe!

Beverly
5 years ago

5 stars
ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS…

Colleen
5 years ago

5 stars
just changed a bit, Baked at 375 for approx. 22 minutes, used 1/3 cup of brown sugar, used 1/2 butter and 1/2 imperial, made my own buttermilk w/1%milk and 1 tbsp of real lemon juice — added raisins and 1/2 cp choc chips 🙂

Debbie
5 years ago
Reply to  Colleen

Why bother to review this recipe? You changed everything about it.

Rebecca
5 years ago
Reply to  Colleen

I am going to try your way with brown sugar as well. I’m not wanting white sugar these days and also like that you reduced the amount of sugar!

Roxanne
5 years ago
Reply to  Rebecca

Brown sugar = white sugar + molasses.

It’s not less refined than white sugar.