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These sugar free breakfast muffins are naturally sweetened with ripe banana and dried fruit, made with wholesome ingredients, and are genuinely delicious! Soft, moist and perfect for busy mornings.
These muffins were born out of necessity – trying to negotiate a half-awake child out of the door for early Saturday morning swimming lessons, with exactly 30 seconds to get breakfast ready. Warm these muffins in the microwave and voila, we’re out of the door, muffins in hand!
My daughter still eyes me suspiciously when I say she can have a muffin for breakfast… before she promptly polishes it off. Even my husband (who is very much anti ‘no sugar’) happily eats these, which is how I know this recipe is a keeper. We’ve been making them weekly – I hope you enjoy them too!
Happy cooking, Tara x
QUICK LINKS
- Jump to Recipe
- Ingredients
- Step-by-Step Instructions (with Photos)
- Success Tips
- Serving Suggestions & Storage
- FAQs
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WHY YOU’LL LOVE THESE SUGAR FREE BREAKFAST MUFFINS
No added sugar AT ALL. These are naturally sweetened with banana and dried fruit – that’s it! No maple syrup, no white or brown sugar, and no sweetener or sugar substitutes.
Saving lives on busy mornings. Well maybe not quite life saving, but certainly saving my sanity (same thing if you’re a Mum, right?). Make a batch ahead, warm and serve in seconds.
Family-friendly and kid approved. Aka, no breakfast battles! A healthy breakfast that the whole family can enjoy.
Wholesome but satisfying. Soft, moist and surprisingly filling. We’ve even made them wholemeal with some added nutritional goodies – but you wouldn’t know it!
HOW TO MAKE THESE SUGAR FREE BREAKFAST MUFFINS
Here’s a summary of the ingredients needed and steps involved in making this sugar free breakfast muffin recipe.
Make sure to head to the recipe card below for the full recipe, ingredient quantities and detailed instructions for how to make these banana muffins.
INGREDIENTS FOR: SUGAR FREE BREAKFAST MUFFINS
- Ripe bananas: bananas act as a natural sweetener in these muffins, so pick yellow bananas with a brown speckled skin (they’re the sweetest).
- Dairy free milk: ideally soya milk, but oat milk also works well (and you can use other non-dairy milks).
- Coconut oil: an important ingredient for adding moisture and preventing a dry muffin, especially in the absence of butter and sugar. You can substitute for refined olive oil (one with a mild taste), vegetable oil or another neutral oil if you prefer.
- Vanilla extract: enhances perceived sweetness without sugar.
- Wholemeal spelt flour: adds fibre and nutrients whilst staying light. You can use wholemeal plain flour (or whole wheat plain flour / whole wheat all purpose flour) if you prefer. Don’t substitute for almond flour, coconut flour or oat flour in this recipe. We have not tested this recipe with gluten free flour.
- Baking powder: to rise the muffins without eggs (not to be confused with bicarbonate of soda)
- Ground cinnamon: adds natural sweetness and flavour
- Sultanas: adds natural sweetness. Can be substituted with chopped dates or raisins.
- Walnuts: for healthy fats and texture. Omit the nuts for young children or those not yet confidently eating nuts. You can swap the nuts for dark chocolate chips if you prefer.
- Hemp seeds (optional): a nutrition boost that you won’t taste
- Optional toppings: chopped nuts, seeds, fresh blueberries, rolled oats and desiccated coconut are all lovely extras!
HOW TO MAKE THESE SUGAR FREE BREAKFAST MUFFINS
STEP 1. Mash the bananas well in a large bowl, until smooth.
STEP 2. Stir in the liquid ingredients – milk, vanilla and oil.
STEP 3. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl – flour, baking powder and cinnamon.
STEP 4. Stir in the dry ingredients gently, until just combined.
STEP 5. Stir in the add ins. Sultanas, walnuts and hemp seeds.
STEP 6. Divide the muffin batter between paper muffin cases / muffin liners set out in a muffin tin, and add toppings if using.
STEP 7. Bake in a preheated oven until golden brown and cooked through, approx 18-24 minutes depending on the size of your muffin cases (more info on this in the recipe card below).
Enjoy warm.
TIPS FOR MAKING SUGAR FREE BREAKFAST MUFFINS
Use very ripe bananas
If the bananas have got a spotty brown skin, they’ll give you a sweeter muffin.
Don’t over mix
Once the flour has been added to the bowl, stir just enough to combine the dry flour into the wet ingredients, but no more (i.e. don’t beat the mixture).
Watch the bake time
Smaller muffins cook faster and you don’t want to over bake them, otherwise they could go dry. Test your muffins at 18 minutes bake time by inserting a knife or skewer into the centre of a few of the muffins – if you don’t see any wet batter on the knife/skewer, they should be done, if not, give them another couple of minutes before testing again.
Omit nuts for young children
Until they’re old enough to safely and confidently eat them. No need to replace the walnuts with anything, you can just leave them out of this recipe
HOW WE TESTED THIS SUGAR FREE BREAKFAST MUFFIN RECIPE
We tried lots of variations of this sugar free breakfast muffin recipe, so you don’t have to!
Sugar adds moisture in baking, so removing it completely isn’t as simple as it sounds. We tested multiple versions of these muffins to make sure they stayed soft, not dry or dense. Here’s what we tried:
- Different muffin sizes and bake times
- Various flavours to balance nutrition and texture
- Adjusting banana, cinnamon, vanilla and dried fruit levels for natural sweetness
- Multiple milk-to-oil ratios to prevent dryness without adding greasiness. The final version hits the sweet spot: muffins that are still moist on day two but not oily.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
- Warm with nut butter or dairy free yoghurt (I’ve served these this way for dessert many times!)
- Gently warmed and then taken on the go for a running-out-the-door-breakfast
- Served as an after school snack with fruit and the obligatory rice cake (why are kids obsessed with these?!)
Love the look of these sugar free banana muffins? I think you’ll enjoy these healthy make-in-advance breakfasts too! Fresh and fruity Mango Coconut Overnight Oats, creamy Peanut Butter Chocolate Bircher and nicely spiced Apple Pie Bircher are great for busy mornings, or if you fancy something warm, try our Blueberry Baked Oatmeal (another hit in our household!).
HOW TO STORE
Once fully cooked, store these muffins in an airtight container or freezer bag as follows:
Room temperature. For up to 2 days.
Fridge. For up to 3 days.
Freezer. For up to 2 months.
Reheating. Microwave for 15-20 seconds until just warm (or if warming from frozen, use the defrost option on your microwave until defrosted and warmed through).
FAQs
Can you make muffins without sugar?
Yes. These muffins contain no added sugar at all, relying upon ripe bananas, dried fruit and natural flavours (cinnamon and vanilla) for sweetness.
Are these suitable for diabetics?
We cannot advise on that so it’s important to consult your healthcare professional if you are managing blood sugar.
These muffins contain no added sugar, but bananas and dried fruit still provide natural sugars.
What replaces sugar in these muffins?
Ripe bananas, sultanas, vanilla and cinnamon work together to create muffins that are naturally sweetened.
Can I make these without nuts?
Yes! Just leave the walnuts out – no need to replace them with anything.
Are these breakfast muffins refined sugar free?
Yes, in fact there is no added sugar at all in this recipe – no refined sugar and no unrefined sugar!
Sugar Free Breakfast Muffins (Naturally Sweetened)
Ingredients
- 300 g very ripe bananas (approx 3 bananas)
- 120 ml soya milk (at room temperature (note 1) (substitute: oat milk))
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 80 g coconut oil (melted)
- 160 g wholemeal spelt flour (substitute: wholemeal plain flour / wholegrain all purpose flour)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 100 g sultanas (substitute: raisins or chopped dates)
- 45 g walnuts (crumbled (omit if making for young children))
- 1 tbsp hemp seeds (optional)
To top:
- Optional toppings such as crumbled nuts, seeds, oats, fresh blueberries and coconut.
Instructions
- PREHEAT the oven to 180°C fan (200°C conventional / 400°F / gas mark 6) and line a metal muffin tin with paper muffin cases.
- MASH THE BANANAS. Peel the bananas and then, in a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas really well using a potato masher (or the back of a fork).300 g very ripe bananas
- MIX WET INGREDIENTS. Stir the room temperature dairy free milk (see note 1) and vanilla into the mashed banana. Add the melted coconut oil to the bowl and stir together.120 ml soya milk, 2 tsp vanilla extract, 80 g coconut oil
- STIR IN DRY INGREDIENTS. Add the flour, baking powder and cinnamon to the mixing bowl and stir gently to combine. Combine the ingredients gently just until no dry flour remains, but don’t over mix.160 g wholemeal spelt flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- STIR IN THE SULTANAS, crumbled walnuts and hemp seeds (if using).100 g sultanas, 45 g walnuts, 1 tbsp hemp seeds
- FILL THE MUFFIN CASES. Transfer the batter to the paper muffin cases that you set out in the muffin tray. Fill each muffin case almost to the top with batter (or at least 3/4 full).Note: You should get between 7-10 muffins, depending on the size of your muffin cases. If you’re using smaller (3cm tall) cupcake cases you’ll get around 10 muffins, if you’re using larger (4cm tall) muffin cases, you’ll get around 7 muffins.
- ADD TOPPINGS. Sprinkle the top of each muffin with your toppings of choice.Optional toppings such as crumbled nuts, seeds, oats, fresh blueberries and coconut.
- BAKE for 18-24 minutes, until a knife inserted into the centre of the muffins comes out clean without any wet batter on it (a few dry crumbs are fine).Note: Be careful not to over bake - test your muffins at 18 minutes, and then again at 2 minute intervals until cooked through. If you’ve divided your muffin batter into 10 muffins, they’ll take closer to 18 minutes to cook. If you’ve divided your muffin batter into 7 muffins, they’ll take closer to 24 minutes to cook.
- ENJOY! Set aside to cool for 10-15 minutes before enjoying warm. Store any leftovers, once fully cooled, in an airtight container and microwave for 15-20 seconds to warm through before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
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Tara
Hi, I’m Tara! I’m taking you on a trip around the world in vegan cuisine and bringing the world’s most delicious dishes to your kitchen.
