Sneak some goodness into your sweet treats with these delicious green smoothie muffins with spinach and banana. These low sugar muffins are simple to make and packed full of healthy ingredients. Kids and adults of all ages love these muffins!
Table of Contents
Spinach Banana Muffins No Oats
Looking for a great snack that your kids will love and that you can feel good about giving them? I have you covered with this easy green smoothie muffins recipe! They taste like a lightly-sweetened green smoothie in muffin form. Plus, they’re so simple to make!
These spinach banana muffins are a great way to pack some goodness into those meals and snacks. Full of healthy ingredients and made with no refined sugar, these fluffy muffins are not only good for you, but they are super delicious and totally kid-friendly too, ESPECIALLY when you give them a fun name!
For more healthy veggie-packed low sugar muffins, be sure to try my Healthy Carrot Pineapple Muffins, Carrot Zucchini Mini Muffins and Mini Sweet Potato Muffins.
Why We Love These Green Muffins
- Nutrient-rich: Filled with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, these spinach muffins are a great addition to a well balanced diet. With only 6 grams of sugar per muffin, they are much lower in sugar than your typical muffins so they make a great healthier option for meals and snacks!
- Easy: These muffins are super simple to make. Just combine the dry ingredients, blitz the wet ingredients in the blender, combine and bake!
- Fun: This muffin recipe is a great one to make with your kids to get them involved in the kitchen. The vibrant green color makes them fun to eat too!
- Kid-friendly: If you have picky eaters in your home, be sure to give these a go, as it’s the perfect way to pack in those greens. They are lightly sweetened and contain lots of goodness.
- Freezer-friendly: Be sure to make a double batch, as these muffins freeze really well. So handy for quick and easy snacks or to pack in those lunch boxes!
Ingredient Notes
- Flour: I like to use whole wheat flour for these muffins. It adds a slightly nutty flavor and also contains more fiber, vitamins, and minerals than refined flour.
- Baking powder and soda: For soft and fluffy muffins.
- Salt: Just a little helps to bring out the sweetness.
- Coconut oil: The coconut oil contributes moisture to these muffins. Both refined and unrefined coconut oils have similar nutritional benefits. If you love a coconut flavor and scent, go with the unrefined coconut oil. If you prefer your oil to be unflavored and unscented, then refined is your best bet.You can also sub in almond butter or peanut butter if preferred.
- Applesauce: For this recipe, use unsweetened applesauce. If you don’t have applesauce on hand, you could also try substituting extra mashed over ripe bananas.
- Maple syrup: To provide a hint of sweetness to the muffins. Use pure maple syrup or you can also sub in honey if preferred. Do not serve to babies under 12 months if honey is used.
- Milk: You can use dairy or any plant-based milk alternative.
- Banana: Use overripe bananas. They are naturally sweeter and also contain more antioxidants.
- Spinach: Spinach not only contains fiber and lots of vitamins and minerals, it also offers that vibrant green hue so no food dye is required. Use fresh baby spinach for best results.
- Egg: To bind the ingredients together and add some additional protein.
- Vanilla extract: For flavor and a dash of extra sweetness.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a muffin pan with silicone muffin cups or use paper liners.
- Add all dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix until combined.
- In a blender or food processor, blend the almond butter, apple sauce, maple syrup, milk, banana, spinach, egg, and vanilla extract until completely pureed.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and fold together gently until just combined. Do not over mix.
- Evenly divide the batter into the 20 muffins cups, filling about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake for 21-25 minutes, or until inserted tooth pick comes out clean. The muffins should be firm to the touch on top, but not quite browning. Allow to cool for several minutes before removing from muffin liners.
Scroll to the recipe card below for the full printable recipe!
Expert Tips
- If possible, use overripe bananas (the brown spotty ones) as they will contribute more sweetness and flavour to these muffins.
- These muffins contain quite a bit of spinach, which we don’t mind because we love spinach! If you would like them to be less spinach-y, start with four (or less) ounces of spinach (measured by weight). Keep in mind, they might not be as green if you use less spinach.
- If you don’t have a high powered blender, you may need to add the spinach to the blender in batches so that it’s easier to break down. We don’t want chunks of spinach in these muffins. Not a very good way to disguise it!
- These spinach banana muffins are only mildly sweet to keep the added sugar content lower. If you prefer a sweeter muffin, you may wish to increase the amount of maple syrup used. The first time I made these muffins with only a quarter cup maple syrup and our toddler gobbled these up within seconds! Adapt sweetness according to personal taste.
How to Store
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
How to Freeze
These muffins freeze really well! Allow the muffins to fully cool. Freeze in a single layer or separated by parchment paper if stacking so that they don’t stick together in a large airtight container or freezer-safe bag. The muffins can be frozen for up to 3 months.
How to Thaw
Leave at room temperature for several hours or pop in the microwave for 1-2 minutes until warmed through.
Recipe FAQs
Are these spinach muffins good for kids?
Yes! These muffins can be a great way to incorporate some extra nutrients into your kids’ diet, especially those dark green leafy vegetables which aren’t always the easiest to serve to little ones. Although some kids might question why the muffins are green, I find it’s especially helpful to give them a fun name. It’s all about how you present them!
Our toddler loves it when we call them green monster muffins, but feel free to switch it up and call them any of the following:
- Hulk muffins
- Green monster muffins
- Baby dinosaur muffins
- Oscar the grouch muffins
- Grinch muffins
Just have fun with it!
How do you get kids to eat more leafy greens?
One easy way is to incorporate the greens in other recipes, like these green monster muffins or spinach banana waffles. I like to keep these muffins green and give them a fun name to account for the color. Kids don’t always understand where that green color comes from, so they often think it’s just food coloring. If they specifically ask, tell them the green color comes from spinach! That’s a great way to build up trust, while showing your kids that “green things” can taste good too!
Can you use other greens?
Yes and no. You can replace the spinach with baby arugula or baby kale, but keep in mind that all of those greens have a different flavor profile. Spinach has a milder flavor that really blends in easily. The closest swap is baby kale. Avoid arugula, which has a peppery flavor.
Serving Suggestions
These simple blender muffins can easily be served with breakfast, tucked into lunch boxes, or offered as a healthy after school snack after a busy day of learning.
Serve as is, or top with almond butter or peanut butter slathered on top.
To up the fun factor, you could even add banana slices, a sprinkle of chocolate chips, shredded coconut, or fruit to make a happy face!
Recipe Variations
These spinach banana muffins are delicious as they are, but there are a few easy swaps and additions you can make to suit your tastes.
- To make vegan: Try subbing in a chia or flax egg.
- To make them more nutty: Sub in natural peanut butter or almond butter for the melted coconut oil.
- To add more sweetness: Increase maple syrup to 1/2 cup.
- For less added sugar: Reduce maple syrup to 1/4 cup.
- To make less spinachy: Start with less spinach.
- To add a pop of chocolatey flavor: Add dark chocolate chips.
- Make mini muffins: Scoop the batter into a mini muffin tray and bake for 10-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
More Healthy Muffin Recipes
- Banana Protein Muffins
- Honey Bran Muffins
- Banana Muffins with Applesauce
- Blueberry Kodiak Cakes Muffins
- Cinnamon Sweet Potato Muffins
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a star rating and review!
Green Smoothie Muffins {with Spinach and Banana}
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 2 cups whole-wheat flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil (or sub in almond butter or peanut butter)
- 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 3/4 cup milk (or sub in milk alternative)
- 2 large ripe bananas
- 6 ounces spinach (measure by weight)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a muffin pan with silicone muffin cups (or use paper liners).
- Add all dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix until combine.
- In a blender or food processor, blend the coconut oil, apple sauce, maple syrup, milk, banana, spinach, egg, and vanilla extract until completely pureed.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and fold together gently until just combined. (Do not over mix.)
- Evenly divide the batter into the 20 muffins cups, filling about 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 21-25 minutes, or until inserted tooth pick comes out clean. The muffins should be firm to the touch on top, but not quite browning. Allow to cool for several minutes before serving.
Notes
- If possible, use an overripe banana (the brown spotty ones) as it will contribute more sweetness and flavour to these muffins.
- These muffins contain quite a bit of spinach, which we don’t mind because we love spinach! If you would like them to be less spinach-y, start with four ounces of spinach (measured by weight). Keep in mind, they might not be as green if you use less spinach.
- If you don’t have a super powerful blender, you may need to add the spinach to the blender in batches so that it’s easier to break down. We don’t want chunks of spinach in these muffins. Not a very good way to disguise it!
- These muffins are only mildly sweet to keep the added sugar content lower. If you prefer a sweeter muffin, you may wish to increase the amount of maple syrup used. The first time I made these muffins with only a quarter cup maple syrup and our toddler gobbled these up within seconds! Adapt according to personal taste.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in April 2021 and was updated in August 2024 to include more helpful tips.
Delicious and kid approved!
Yay!! So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by to comment :)