These vegan Banana Coffee Cake Muffins are the best of both worlds, combining the moist, tender texture of banana bread and the sweet decadence of cinnamon coffee cake! They're also gluten-free, oil-free, and secretly healthy-ish thanks to oat flour. Enjoy these coffee cake muffins for breakfast, snacks, and dessert!
If you’re a fan of banana bread and coffee cake, these muffins are about to become your new favorite treat. The moist, naturally sweet flavor of ripe bananas pairs perfectly with the swirl of cinnamon sugar, crisp streusel topping, and creamy icing.
For those unfamiliar with the term "coffee cake," I'd like to point out that this recipe doesn’t actually contain coffee. In the U.S., coffee cake may refer to a cake made with coffee, but it is also a sweet snack cake that's topped with cinnamon streusel and and meant to be enjoyed with a hot cup of coffee.
If you've got ripe bananas lying around, these mouthwatering muffins are a great way to use them up!
In fact, you can never have enough ways to use ripe bananas, right? So here are some more tasty options: Vegan Banana Brownies, Oat Flour Banana Bread, and Vegan Banana Blondies.
And if you're craving coffee cake right this second but your bananas aren't quite ready, make my Vegan Pumpkin Coffee Cake instead!
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Why You'll Love This Vegan Muffin Recipe
- Great for meal prep: Make a batch of muffins for a quick and easy grab-and-go breakfast for busy mornings.
- Accommodates various dietary needs: With no dairy, eggs, oil, or gluten, these scrumptious muffins can accommodate a number of dietary restrictions.
- Perfect anytime: Enjoy a muffin with coffee for a sweet start to your day, pack one to-go for an afternoon snack, or enjoy one for dessert tonight!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Bananas: Provide natural sweetness, moisture, and flavor to the batter. They also help with binding and eliminate the need for an egg replacer or oil. Just like when making banana bread, you want to use very ripe bananas here, with plenty of dark spots.
- Non-Dairy Milk: Adds moisture to the muffins, creating a moist and tender texture. You can use any plain, unsweetened variety like soy, oat, or almond.
- Dairy-Free Yogurt: Gives the muffin batter a touch of flavor and provides more moisture. Feel free to substitute the yogurt with applesauce, more mashed banana, or a smooth nut butter.
- Light Brown Sugar: In keeping with the classic coffee cake vibes, I used regular light brown sugar, but you can substitute it with cane sugar, coconut sugar, or date sugar if preferred.
- Flavor Boosters: A bit of vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and sea salt add and enhance the flavors in the muffin batter.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: Adds acidity, which reacts with the baking soda to help the muffins rise, creating a light and fluffy texture.
- Oat Flour: Provides the structure for the muffins and keeps them gluten-free. Be sure to use finely ground oat flour to avoid a gritty texture. If needed, use certified gluten-free oat flour or oats.
- Leavening Agents: Both baking powder and baking soda help the muffins rise.
- Cinnamon Swirl: A bit of sugar and ground cinnamon is all you need. Feel free to use cane sugar, date sugar, or coconut sugar.
- Streusel: A simple mixture of almond flour, light brown sugar, cinnamon, and water creates the crumbly, gluten-free streusel topping. Almond flour's naturally rich and buttery flavor and moist texture is what allows this streusel to be made without using vegan butter. For a nut-free option, feel free to use a classic streusel (see my recommendation in the Variations section below).
- Nuts: A sprinkle of chopped walnuts or pecans on top of the muffins adds a bit of crunch, but feel free to skip them if you like.
- Icing: Just two ingredients, powdered sugar and non-dairy milk, create a sweet and creamy glaze that really takes the muffins over the top!
See the recipe card below for amounts and step-by-step instructions.
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How to Make Banana Coffee Cake Muffins
First, preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C), and place 12 muffin liners in a muffin pan. You'll also need to whip up the cinnamon swirl and streusel mixtures, and set aside.
Step 1: Combine the ingredients. Mix the dry ingredients together in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another.
Step 2: Make the batter. Pour the wet ingredient mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until the batter is thick and fluffy.
Step 3: Scoop batter and add cinnamon swirl. Divide half of the batter between the 12 muffin cups, and then sprinkle on the cinnamon sugar.
Step 4: Add more batter and streusel. Scoop the rest of the batter on top of the cinnamon sugar layer, and then sprinkle on the streusel mixture. If including nuts, sprinkle those on top.
Step 5: Bake. Place the muffin pan in the oven and bake for 19-21 minutes. Once completely cool, drizzle the muffins with icing and serve!
Serving Suggestions
- Start your day by enjoying a muffin schmeared with some Oil-Free Vegan Butter Spread and a mug of your favorite coffee with some Oat Milk Creamer.
- Serve the muffins as part of a brunch spread along with this popular Vegan Breakfast Casserole, Just Egg Scramble, or a Tofu Quiche. The muffins also taste great with Vegan Cream Cheese, fresh berries, and Apple Cranberry Compote.
- Enjoy a muffin for dessert with a scoop of Vegan Oat Milk Ice Cream or Vegan Butter Pecan Ice Cream and a dollop of Vegan Whipped Cream.
Variations
- Refined Sugar-Free: Use coconut or date sugar in the muffin batter, cinnamon swirl, and streusel and omit the icing to make this recipe refined sugar-free.
- Nut-Free: Use a nut-free vegan milk in the muffin batter, omit the nut topping, and go with a classic vegan streusel topping like this Vegan Streusel from A Virtual Vegan, made with all-purpose flour and vegan butter.
- Mix-ins: Fold some additional chopped nuts, dairy-free chocolate chips, raisins, or dried cranberries into the batter for texture.
FAQs
Yes! Simply blend rolled oats (certified gluten-free if needed) in a food processor or high-speed blender until they're finely ground and have a flour-like texture. For best results, sift the oat flour after blending to remove any larger bits that may not have been fully processed.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 1 month. To crisp up the streusel, bake the muffins in a 350°F convection oven for 5-6 minutes or air fry for 2-3 minutes.
Helpful Tips
- Use Very Ripe Bananas: The riper the bananas, the sweeter and more flavorful your muffins will be! They should be fragrant and have plenty of dark spots on the peels.
- Measure Flour Accurately: To measure the oat flour, spoon it into your measuring cup and level it off with a knife. Even better, use a kitchen scale to weigh out 210 grams of flour.
- Cool Completely: Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Ensure they are completely cooled before drizzling on the icing so that it doesn't melt.
More Muffin Recipes
I hope you enjoy these sweet and moist coffee cake muffins. If you try the recipe, be sure to comment below and let us know!
Recipe
Banana Coffee Cake Muffins (Vegan & Gluten-Free)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup mashed very ripe banana - about 2 large bananas
- ¾ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk - such as soy, oat or almond
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 3 Tablespoons plain non-dairy yogurt - see Notes
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups fine oat flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
For the cinnamon swirl:
- 5 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
For the gluten-free streusel:
- ⅓ cup blanched almond flour
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon water
Optional nuts and icing:
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons non-dairy milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) and line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
- In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the mashed banana, milk, sugar, yogurt, vanilla, and vinegar, and set aside. In a large mixing bowl combine the oat flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl, and in a separate small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients. Mix with a fork until clumpy. Set both of these aside.
- Returning to the muffin batter, pour the wet ingredients into dry, and stir until you have a thick and fluffy batter with no visible dry flour.
- Divide half of the batter among the prepared pan. Evenly sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the batter. Add the remaining batter to the pan. Sprinkle the streusel mixture on top of each muffin, followed by chopped nuts, if using.
- Bake for 19-21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- To make the icing, stir the powdered sugar and non-dairy milk until smooth. Drizzle over the muffins and serve.
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used.
Gail says
I just tried this recipe. Yum! I substituted 1 cup of the oat flour with 1 cup of whole wheat. Turned out really nice! I should have actually divided the batter in half as you suggested. I tried to eyeball it, so some of the muffins were strudel right onto of the filling. It's all good though. Thanks!
eileen says
I love your ingredients
If I wanted to make in a loaf pan what would I do differently?
thanks
Also what does the vinegar do I never used this before in cake?
Lori Rasmussen says
Thanks, Eileen! For a loaf you'll need to increase the bake time, closer to 50 minutes. The vinegar reacts with the baking soda to help the muffins rise. Lemon juice is a good substitute.
Erin says
These were such a treat. Loved the flavors and level of sweetness. Will make again for sure!