🍌 Healthy Banana Bran Muffins (Lower Sugar)

 

Yield: 24 muffins
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 16–18 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons (28 g) butter, softened

• ½ medium ripe banana, mashed (≈ ⅓ cup) → replacement for applesauce

• ⅓ cup (65 g) granulated sugar (instead of ½ cup)

• 2 large eggs

• 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

• ½ cup buttermilk

• 1 ½ cups (213 g) all-purpose flour

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 4 cups bran flakes

• ¾ cup (128 g) miniature semisweet chocolate chips (instead of 1 cup)

  • OR swap for dark chocolate chips, raisins, or chopped dates for more natural sweetness

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, mashed banana (the applesauce replacement), and sugar.

3. Add eggs, bananas, and buttermilk. Mix well.

4. Stir in flour, baking soda, salt, bran flakes, and chocolate chips. Mix gently until just combined (batter will be lumpy).

5. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups ⅔ full.

6. Bake 16–18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

7. Cool on a wire rack.

Storage

• Store in an airtight container for 2–3 days.

• Freeze in resealable freezer bags for up to 1 month.

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✨ Sugar Savings

• Original sugar + chocolate chips: ~155 g sugar in the whole batch

• Reduced version: ~115 g sugar in the whole batch (~25% less)

They’ll still be sweet, but the bananas add natural sugar so you won’t miss much!