Best Banana Sourdough Muffins [with 20 flavor variation ideas]

Sourdough discard banana muffins are such a delicious and easy way to use sourdough starter discard or even active sourdough starter. With a delightful fluffy texture and crunchy outside, these sourdough banana muffins are a must bake this week!

These banana sourdough muffins will not only use up 200g of your sourdough discard, they also give you a way to use up those overripe bananas on your kitchen counter. And reducing food waste is a always a win!

This is possibly the most versatile sourdough muffin recipe ever - with 20 incredibly easy flavor variations to try! From sourdough banana nut muffins to zucchini and even white chocolate banana. There's a sourdough discard banana muffin for every taste!

This easy sourdough banana bread recipe is also a great way to use up overripe bananas and sourdough discard, as are these sourdough banana waffles and sourdough banana fritters. You might also like this collection of sourdough muffin recipes.

Why You'll Love This Recipe!

Sourdough discard banana muffins are a recipe you'll want to bake again and again! Here's why:

• Use Up 200g of Discard - if you're looking for a sourdough discard recipe that uses a big amount of discard, this is it! 200g in just one recipe.
  
• No Wait - there's not waiting for these muffins to rise, you just mix and bake and you'll have delicious sourdough muffins in under an hour! Perfect for a quick breakfast or snacks for the kids - just like this collection of 25+ no wait sourdough recipes.
  
• Reduce food waste - this recipe is great for reducing your food waste by using brown bananas and sourdough discard that may have otherwise gone in the bin. So good! You might also like these ideas for using leftover sourdough.

How to Make Sourdough Banana Muffins

Like most sourdough muffin recipes, these are really easy to put together. A great quick snack that you can have ready in under an hour! Perfect for those hungry tummies after school - or just to have on hand in the freezer!

Make sure you check out all the variations for these easy sourdough muffins with banana.

This recipe will make 6 large muffins or 12 smaller muffins depending on the muffin pan you use. You can ferment this mixture overnight if you prefer. I've added instructions for this further down.

1. Preheat your oven to 180C (356F). Prepare a large 6 hole muffin tin by greasing each hole with some butter (you could also use a 12 hole muffin tin for smaller muffins). Make sure you use a kitchen scale to accurately weight the ingredients for best results.
   
2. Mash the bananas with a fork until they form a puree (a few lumps is find).
   
3. Mix the sourdough starter, eggs, oil, banana puree and vanilla extract together in a bowl or jug. Make sure you mix them together really well and that the eggs are well beaten.
   
4. In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients - all purpose flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make sure the dry ingredients are well distributed.
   
5. Now pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
   
6. Use a spatula and mix them until they are just combined – do not over mix or you'll end up with tough muffins.
   
7. Spoon the muffin batter into your prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle a little raw sugar on top of each muffin (this is optional).
   
8. Bake in a preheated oven at 180C (356F)  until golden (around 20-25 minutes). Allow baked muffins to cool on a cooling rack.

Mixing the liquid ingredients separate to the dry ingredients and then combining them is the secret to good good muffins. You should only just combine the liquid and dry ingredients - it's ok to have small clumps of flour in the mixture.

How To Use Sourdough Discard In Baking

Sourdough discard is the portion of sourdough starter that you remove before you feed your starter. The discard process is essential to creating a thriving sourdough starter.

Discard can be used in baking where it replaces a portion of the flour and water (or other liquids) that would normally be used.

Depending on the discard recipe you are baking, you don't want to use discard that is too old - as it will more than likely impart a very sour flavor to your baking. You really just want a tangy flavor - you know, the one you love in sourdough bread.

Sourdough discard is great to use in making crackers, cakes and of course muffins. You can even use it to make bread! Sourdough discard can be used in so many creative ways in your kitchen!

Ingredient Notes & Substitutions 

The ingredients for these sourdough discard banana muffins are pretty straight forward, but there are a few substitutions you can make, based on your dietary requirements and what you have on hand.

• All Purpose Flour - you can substitute whole wheat flour if you prefer. This will give the muffins a nuttier, more wholesome taste. I recommend adding a splash of water to the mixture if using whole wheat flour as it will absorb more liquid.
  
• Vegetable Oil - I have used sunflower oil in this recipe but you can use any light flavored vegetable oil you like. Oil gives baked goods a moist final texture.
  
  Cakes and muffins made with oil are generally taller, loftier and have a moister crumb than baked goods without oil. A light flavored oil is best - like a light vegetable oil, rice bran oil or even canola oil. You can substitute melted butter, however it will change the texture of the muffins slightly. The oil makes them much more moist, so if you do want to use butter, it's better to use a combination of butter and oil.
  
• Sugars - I have used 150g of sugar in total for these muffins. You can reduce this to 100g if you'd prefer or even use some coconut sugar or rapadura in place of the brown sugar. 
  
• Banana - I have weighed the bananas with their skins off. I have used 4 medium bananas in this recipe weighing approximately 350g.

How To Long Ferment Sourdough Discard Banana Muffins 

If you would prefer to ferment these sourdough banana muffins, you can ferment the mixture in the fridge. Mix all the ingredients together as directed, then place the bowl of muffin mixture, covered, into the fridge for up to 12 hours. Then proceed with instructions when you are ready to bake.

Fermented muffins tend to rise a little less than muffin mixture baked straight away, however you'll get more of the benefits of sourdough if you ferment the mixture in this way.

Why are my sourdough banana muffins chewy? 

A chewy or tough texture comes from over mixing the batter. This is why you must mix the liquid ingredients separately from the dry ingredients before adding them together.

You need to gently fold them together until they are just combined. There is no need to vigorously stir or mix as this will give your sourdough banana muffins a tough and chewy texture.

In fact it's perfectly ok to have some clumps of flour in the muffin mixture as this will generally get mixed in when you're putting the batter into the muffin cups.

Flavor Variation Ideas for Banana Sourdough Muffins

While these easy banana sourdough muffins are perfect in their simplicity, sometimes it's nice to mix things up a bit!

Here are 20 ideas for flavors to add to these sourdough muffins with banana.

Remember that the dry ingredients need to be mixed together first, before pouring in the liquid ingredients.

And you can always mix and match some of these ideas too! Creativity is the key!

• Banana Coconut Muffins - Add 100g of shredded coconut or dessicated coconut to the dry ingredients. You can also sprinkle some coconut on top of the muffins before baking for a toasted coconut treat!
  
• Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins - Add 100g of milk chocolate chips to the dry ingredients for a chocolatey treat. You could serve these sourdough muffins with a dollop of chocolate spread on top for an indulgent treat!
  
• Banana Pecan Muffins - Try adding 100g of pecans to the dry ingredients. It's up to you whether you chop the pecans or add them whole.
  
• Honey & Cinnamon - These are great for breakfast. Add 40g of honey to the liquid ingredients and a teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the dry ingredients before combining them together. Adding some nuts to this combination is always delicious.
  
• White Chocolate - add 100g of white chocolate chips to the mixture. For an even sweeter treat, drizzle cooled muffins with melted white chocolate. If you love adding white chocolate to recipes - you might also like to add white chocolate to these lemon sourdough muffins.
  
• Blueberry Banana Sourdough Muffins - Add 100g of frozen blueberries to the dry ingredients. If you prefer, you could also use dried blueberries (they are much like adding raisins).
  
• Caramel Drizzle Muffins - While the sourdough banana muffins are cooling, drizzle caramel sauce over the top. I love using the Bonne Maman Caramel in a jar - it's soooooo thick and delicious!
  
• Almond Crunch - top your muffins with some slivered almonds before popping them in the oven. You could also add a powdered sugar glaze once they've cooled down. The glaze will stick to the almonds and add some extra sweetness. For these ones I added 50g of powdered sugar together with 20g of lemon juice (you could also just use water).
  
• Cranberry - add 100g of dried cranberries to your dry ingredients.
  
• Peanut Butter - add 100g of peanut butter chips to the batter. While the muffins are cooking, warm 50g of smooth peanut butter and add it to 50g of powdered sugar and a little water to loosen the mixture. Drizzle the peanut butter glaze over the warm banana sourdough muffins.
  
• Brown Sugar & Walnut Muffins - Before putting the muffins in the oven, sprinkle a few handfuls of chopped walnuts and some brown sugar onto each of the muffins - yum!
  
• Banana Crunch - top with crushed banana chips and then drizzle with a powdered sugar glaze for some extra sweetness.
  
• Pineapple Banana Muffins - Add 100g of drained canned pineapple pieces for a delicious tropical twist on your sourdough banana muffins. Add the drained pieces to the dry ingredients and make sure they're coated in the flour before you add the liquid.
  
• Cocoa Powder - 20g of cocoa powder added to the dry ingredients will turn these into chocolate banana muffins. You could even add some chocolate chips as an extra treat.
  
• Walnut & Honey - add 100g of crushed walnut and 30g of honey to the mixture before spooning into a muffin tray. For even more flavor sprinkle walnuts over the top before baking.
  
• Banana Butterscotch - try adding 100g of butterscotch chips to the dry ingredients. You could also drizzle the cool muffins with butterscotch sauce for an extra sweet hit.
  
• Zucchini Sourdough Muffins - if you have some zucchini you need to use up, add 100g of grated zucchini with the liquid squeezed out. The zucchini won't necessarily add any flavor, but it will add some hidden vege and make the muffins super moist.
  
• Banana Nutella Muffins - before you pop the muffins in the oven, add a dollop of Nutella to the top of the muffins and swirl it in with a toothpick.
  
• Date & Banana Nut Sourdough Muffins - chop 50g of dried, pitted dates and 50g of walnuts and add these to your dry ingredient mix. 
  
• Banana, Carrot & Raisin - try adding 100g of grated carrot with 50g of raisins to the dry ingredients mix. Serve these with sweetened cream cheese.

Freezing & Storing Sourdough Banana Muffins

Muffins are fantastic to freeze. They can be frozen in ziploc bags or an airtight container and defrosted at room temperature or even in the microwave.

They will last for around 3 days if stored in a container. After a few days, I would suggest warming slightly in the microwave to freshen them up a little.

I often make large batches of these sourdough banana muffins (and these sourdough lemon muffins) and then pop 2 or 3 into a ziploc bag and freeze. It's then easy to grab a baggie out whenever I need to send my husband with a snack ... or I need a quick easy snack on the run for myself.

They defrost really quickly!