Banana Blackberry Oatmeal Muffins

A comforting muffin bursting with flavor, these banana blackberry oatmeal muffins harness simple ingredients that are naturally vegan, dairy free, and oil free! Enjoy a blend of slightly-tart blackberries, sweetly ripe bananas, nutty oatmeal, warm cinnamon, and a hint of caramel from coconut sugar. These hearty muffins are delicious and sure to be your new breakfast favorite!

vegan • oil free • dairy free

Disclosure: Some links below are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize a purchase. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Jump to:

• ❤️ what you'll love about these banana blackberry oatmeal muffins
• 🥣 ingredient list
• 🔪 equipment
• 👩🏽‍🍳 step-by-step instructions
• Recipe
• 🧊 storage instructions
• 💡 pro tip
• ✅ acceptable substitutions and variations
• 🥰 tips for the best banana blackberry oatmeal muffins
• ♻️ sustainability profile
• ❓frequently asked questions
• 🍌 favorite fruit-forward recipes

I LOVE a good muffin recipe...and a good banana bread recipe...and anything involving fruit, so I'm very excited to share these delicious banana blackberry oatmeal muffins.

These muffins are packed with banana and blackberry goodness which perfectly balance the nutty undertones of old-fashioned rolled oats, warm ground cinnamon spice, and the caramel notes provided by the coconut sugar.

❤️ what you'll love about these banana blackberry oatmeal muffins

Vegan and dairy free. Naturally vegan and dairy free, this recipe uses plant-based milk and no eggs. The banana provides the fat and binding properties needed to create a lovely texture and depth of flavor.

Oil free. Many muffin recipes call for a neutral oil of some type, but not this one! Again, the mashed ripe bananas play multiple roles, including replacing the oil.

Texture. A hearty exterior gives way to a tender crumb that bursts with banana and blackberry flavor with every bite.

Sustainable ingredients. I'll include some additional details about this below, but plant-based ingredients are a big help to the environment (less resource intensive) and using coconut sugar in place of light brown sugar captures a more eco-friendly sweetener option.

🥣 ingredient list

dry ingredients

All-purpose flour. I use an unbleached all-purpose flour as the foundation for these muffins.

Old-fashioned rolled oats. Be sure not to use quick-cooking oats. The rolled oats will be "soaked" in the plant-based buttermilk to support a tender texture for the muffins. These will be used with the wet ingredients first, so this is kind of a crossover between the wet and dry ingredients.

Baking powder. Serves as the primary leavening agent to give the muffins a good rise when baking. We use a few teaspoons to help counteract some of the "heavier" ingredients (aka, the mashed banana).

Ground cinnamon. Using cinnamon as a spice complements the banana and oatmeal, offering more depth of flavor.

Baking soda. Baking soda interacts with the acid in the plant-based buttermilk for a more tender texture and additional leavening.

Kosher salt. Salt is helpful to balance flavors.

wet ingredients

Plant-based milk. The recipe was created using soy milk, but any plant-based option will work! Use at room temperature, if possible.

Lemon juice. I use the juice of half a lemon, which should range from 1-2 tablespoons of lemon juice (if you're using a bottled version). Combining this with the plant-based milk is what creates a vegan "buttermilk."

Coconut sugar. Adds a subtle caramel-like depth of flavor.

Pure vanilla extract. This provides additional depth of flavor and a hint of sweetness.

mix-ins

Ripe bananas. Banana muffins work best when the bananas are ripe and not "green;" when not ripe enough, the bananas won't mash as well and have a more bitter flavor. Use at room temperature, if possible.

Fresh or frozen blackberries. We usually have frozen blackberries on hand from our neighbor's garden every year, so I love incorporating frozen berries into baked goods. Either fresh or frozen will work, but if using frozen, don't thaw them first.

🔪 equipment

Muffin tin. I love my muffin pan from Sur La Table.

Muffin liners (optional). As noted in the recipe, liners are optional. If you typically spray your tin or add coconut oil, just remember that IS an oil, so best to avoid if you're trying to stay oil free. With our muffin pan, I either add a little coconut oil to each cup or none at all and it works great either way.

Cutting board and knife. If using a wood cutting board to cut the berries, wash it soon after to prevent staining.

Mixing bowls. I suggest using a variety of sizes.

Whisk and spoons for stirring. Best to use a balloon whisk for the dry ingredients and a large spoon for wet ingredients. I usually use a smaller spoon to make the vegan buttermilk.

Measuring cups and spoons. Variety of sizes.

Cooling rack.

👩🏽‍🍳 step-by-step instructions

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Make your plant-based buttermilk. Add the lemon juice to the milk and stir to combine.

Soak the oats. That would make a great band name... 😂 Pour the "buttermilk" over the oats and stir to combine so all oats are submerged. This is called the "soaking method" and will hydrate the grains so they adopt a more tender texture.

Whisk dry ingredients. Incorporate the dry ingredients until combined.

Mash bananas. I use the back of a large fork to mash. We want a relatively uniform texture, but it's "ok" if small chunks remain.

Incorporate all wet ingredients into the bowl with oats and milk. This includes the mashed bananas, vanilla extract, and coconut sugar.

Slowly add the dry ingredients and stir. The batter will be thick and look like it's on the "dry side." A thick batter is what we want. To prevent overmixing, stop stirring once there are no pockets of flour still visible. A few small pockets are "ok."

Fold in the berries. If using frozen berries that are large, you may want to chop them just before adding to the batter. It's best to wait to chop them until just before stirring so they don't thaw. Toss them in a tablespoon of flour to prevent them from sinking.

Again, to prevent overmixing, stop when the blackberries are distributed throughout the batter.

Add batter to muffin pan and sprinkle with additional oats, if desired. You should have enough batter to completely fill each cup to the top, or just under.

Bake for 400 degrees Fahrenheit for the first 5 minutes. Baking at a higher temperature will help give the muffins some rise. Then, reduce to 350 degrees for another 25 - 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool and enjoy. Allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes in the tin and then place them on the cooling rack. Enjoy!

Recipe

🧊 storage instructions

For immediate use, enjoy the muffins warm.

If you plan to eat them within 3-4 days, you can keep them at room temperature.

To store for up to 3 months, wrap and store in a freezer safe bag. Be sure to thaw before enjoying.

💡 pro tip

If possible, allow your ingredients to come to room temperature before stirring together. This will help ensure everything mixes properly. No time? That's ok. Just be gentle when stirring so as not to overmix. Putting too much muscle into the batter will create a tough texture.

✅ acceptable substitutions and variations

Organic light brown sugar. We recommend using coconut sugar (it's more sustainable), but this can be subbed for light brown sugar if that's what you have.

Milk. Any plant-based variety will work.

Mix-ins. Of course, this doesn't have to just include blackberries. Feel free to try a version with your favorite fruit, like blueberries, strawberries, raspberries - even some chopped nuts or vegan chocolate chips!

🥰 tips for the best banana blackberry oatmeal muffins

Room temperature ingredients. If you have time allow cold ingredients to come to room temperature for more even mixing. BUT, don't thaw frozen fruit before adding to the batter.

Soak oats. This is an important step to achieving a tender muffin texture.

Bake at a higher temperature to start. Give the leaveners some help with a higher temperature for the first five minutes of baking. This helps get the domed top we love.

Chop blackberries if they're large. If you're working with small berries, you may choose to skip this. Chopping them, however, helps deliver more delicious blackberry goodness in every bite.

♻️ sustainability profile

Use your older fruit! Don't let those bananas sitting on the counter go to waste. Or, did you buy that carton of blackberries with the best of intentions, but now they're starting to get soft? This is a wonderful opportunity to use up fruit (baked goods are very forgiving) without tossing them.

Incorporating your ripening fruit also helps reduce food waste. Don't forget to toss those banana peels into the compost, or use for another recipe.

Harness the sustainability of coconut sugar. Oh, sugarcane. That light brown (or white) sugar you have sitting in your pantry comes with more of a price than what you paid at the store. Sugarcane production has proven to be detrimental to the environment:

Sugar has arguably had as great an impact on the environment as any other agricultural commodity. Wholesale conversion of habitat on tropical islands and in coastal areas led to significant environmental damage - particularly a loss of biodiversity. - World Wildlife (link to full article)

Sugarcane production causes issues with water supplies, generation of industrial waste that contaminates freshwater bodies, and soil erosion. In fact, did you know it takes 9 gallons of water to make a teaspoon of refined cane sugar?

Efforts are being made to create certified sugarcane that leaves less of an imprint on the environment. We also like diversifying our sweeteners. Coconut sugar, for example, has a number of benefits:

• Sap from coconut palm trees can be harvested without killing the trees, which can live over 20 years (continuous harvesting)
• Less water use than sugarcane
• The trees can be incorporated into diverse ecosystems, contributing to biodiversity

Let's show some love to coconut sugar, and incorporate it into recipes as a 1:1 replacement for light brown sugar when possible. While we still have granulated and light brown sugar in our kitchen, we do purchase organic and use as sparingly as possible.

❓frequently asked questions

What spices go well with blackberries?

Blackberries are a versatile berry, but can be a little more bitter than some of their berry counterparts. Opt for warm spices like ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and star anise...or the spicier undertones of ginger. In their own way, these spices contribute greater depth of flavor and subtle sweetness or zest to the more tart blackberries.

Can I bake muffins without eggs?

Absolutely! There a number of eggless options for delicious muffins. You won't even notice they're missing. Here are some common egg replacements for muffins:

• Bananas: Use ¼ cup mashed banana per egg
• Flax meal eggs: Mix one tablespoon of flaxseed meal with three tablespoons of water per egg. Allow the mix to sit for several minutes (at room temperature or in the refrigerator) so it thickens.
• Whipped aquafaba: Use the brine from a can of chickpeas to replace egg whites or whole eggs in a muffin recipe. I prefer to use these when I want a lighter, more airy muffin. Use three tablespoons of aquafaba to replace a whole egg, or two tablespoons to replace an egg white.

Why are my vegan muffins dense?

Dense muffins can occur for a variety of reasons: too much liquid, dense ingredients (like bananas), too few leavening agents intended to create air pockets in the muffins when baking, and under or overmixing the batter before baking.

🍌 favorite fruit-forward recipes

Still have some fruit on hand? The fun doesn't need to stop here! Below are some of our favorite recipes that allow fruit to take center stage:

• Blackberry Strawberry Banana Smoothie
• Air Fryer Applesauce Fritters
• Blackberry Lemon Bread
• Air Fryer Bananas

I hope you love these muffins as much as we do!