These double chocolate banana muffins are naturally sweetened using ripe bananas and dates, making them kid-friendly and suitable for babies. It will only take you less than 45 minutes to make them, perfect for a quick treat and busy days.
Who doesn't like chocolate muffins?! These easy double chocolate banana muffins are great for little ones and adults as they don't have any processed sugar in them. You can skip the chocolate chips or substitute them with cacao nibs for more texture and goodness.
We like having these healthy chocolate muffins as a treat now and then, as cacao has some caffeine in it. If you make a big batch, you could pop some in the freezer for another day when you need a quick treat for yourself or your little ones.
If you are looking into more sugar-free muffin ideas, then make sure you check the rest of my muffin recipes.
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👩🏻🍳 Why you should try my recipe
- Easy to prepare, in just 10 minutes.
- No processed sugar! Naturally sweetened with bananas and dates.
- Soft and rich in flavor! Both children and adults are going to love them.
- Great as a morning snack or a treat.
- Easy to pack for days out or lunch boxes.
- Freezable for busy days.
🥘 Ingredients
To make these double chocolate banana muffins, we need bananas, dates, cacao powder, oil, all-purpose flour, baking powder, egg, vanilla and optionally some chocolate chips or cacao nibs.
For full quantities and to print the recipe, see the recipe card below.
🔪 Step-by-step Instructions
Get your ingredients ready and let's get started!
01. First, I remove the stones from the dates and add them to a bowl with hot water. I leave them in the water for 10 minutes to soak and get soft.
02. I add the soaked dates to a food processor, with the egg, bananas, vanilla and oil and blend everything well for a minute. I like to use ripe bananas for more sweetness and to get a stronger banana flavor in my chocolate muffins.
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Buy On Amazon03. I transfer the batter to a bowl. The consistency will be a bit thick from the bananas and dates. If there are any small bits left from the dates, there is no need to worry as it won't affect the texture of the muffins after baked.
04. Now it's time to add all the dry ingredients. I add the flour, baking powder and cacao powder and gently mix with a spatula. I prefer to mix the dry ingredients by hand rather than add them to the food processor, as if you overmix them it can affect the density of the muffins.
05. After gently mixing the dry ingredients with the wet, I like to add about a third cup of chocolate chips. This step is totally optional, and you could leave them out. I use unsweetened chocolate chips or sometimes cacao nibs that give more texture and don't melt that easy.
06. The recipe yields about 8 muffins. I fill up the cases to the top and bake at 350F for 25 minutes. You could use a toothpick or wooden stick to test if they are done. If the stick comes out clean, they are good to come out.
It's difficult to resist but try to let them cool down for 5–10 minutes before diving in!
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Buy On Amazon📖 Substitutions & Variations
- You could use cacao or cocoa powder. Cacao powder is less processed and contains more nutrients.
- If you want more texture and goodness, you could add some chopped nuts.
- Instead of oil, you could use the same amount of melted butter.
🍽 Serving suggestions
We love having these sugar-free double chocolate banana muffins as a snack or for breakfast. They are easy to hold for babies under 12 months and quite soft to munch on.
I like to serve them as a snack with some fruits on the side, like raspberries or strawberries that pair well with chocolate. You could pack a couple in a lunchbox for days out or for school as a healthy treat option.
🧰 Storage
I will be honest with you, we rarely have any muffins left after day 2! However, if you do have leftovers, you could store them on the countertop, in a little container so they don't dry out, for up to 2–3 days.
These sugar-free double chocolate banana muffins are also freezable. Just wrap them individually in some kitchen foil or put 2-3 in a freezer bag and store them in the freezer for 3–4 months.
❓ FAQ
These sugar-free chocolate muffins are suitable for babies from 6 months old, but they should be given as a treat now and then. Cacao powder contains caffeine, which is best minimized in an infant's diet.
📋 Recipe
Double Chocolate Banana Muffins (kid-friendly)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 bananas medium-sized
- 4 dates
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup oil
- ¼ cup cacao powder
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ⅓ cup chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Remove the stones from the dates if pitted and put them in a bowl with one cup of hot water. Leave them to rest for 10 minutes.
- Remove the dates and add them to a food processor with the bananas, oil, egg and vanilla. Blend for a minute until you get a thick batter.
- Transfer the batter to a bowl. Add the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder and cacao powder. Mix gently with a spatula.
- Add the chocolate chips if using any and incorporate them into the batter with the spatula.
- Transfer the batter to the muffin cases using a spoon, filling them up to the top.
- Bake for 25 minutes in a preheated oven to 350℉ / 180℃.
Video
Notes
- You could use vegetable oil or light olive oil or coconut oil.
- Make sure the bananas are ripe for more flavor and sweetness.
- Leave the muffins to rest for 10-15 minutes on a rack before trying any.
🥣 Related
If you liked my double chocolate banana muffins, you should try some of these recipes too:
Hannah M
Can you make this with oatmeal that’s been made into a powder form?
Julia Droulia
Hi Hannah! I tried them today with oatmeal instead of all-purpose flour, and they still turned out soft with a good flavor. The texture was a bit different—more grainy—but that's to be expected when using oatmeal instead of flour.
Julia Droulia
I really loved creating these sugar-free muffins and post for you; I hope you make them and enjoy them as much as we do. Please leave me a comment here and share your feedback with a star rating as well
Jennifer
The batter itself was not sweet enough. If that isn't what you're going for then the recipe is fine. I decided to double the dates, added several tablespoons of peanut butter, but the batter still seemed a bit bitter. So I finally added 1/4 cup baking splenda. Normally I'd add raisins or freeze dried apples for more sweetness but I didn't think that would go well with the flavor concepts. Great concept but needs tweaking.
Julia Droulia
Hi Jennifer, I'm sorry the muffins were not so much to your liking. They are definitely not as sweet as regular muffins made with caster sugar. However, with 2 bananas and 4 dates in them, I believe they are sweet enough for sugar-free muffins and to be still kid-friendly. Make sure you use ripe bananas and you could also use semi-sweet chocolate chips for more sweetness.