Hidden Spinach Wholewheat Banana Muffins

A “green” muffin packed with spinach - but you’d never know.

These bake up tender and moist thanks to ripe banana, with a wholesome feel from wholemeal flour that adds gentle fiber without making them heavy. Perfect for breakfast, snacks, or freezing for busy toddler days.

Hidden Spinach Wholemeal Muffins

Ingredients:
(makes 10–12 standard muffins or 18–24 mini)

• 2 ripe bananas (about 200g)

• 1 packed cup baby spinach

• 1 egg

• ⅓ cup milk (oat or whole milk both work well)

• ⅓ cup unsalted butter, or neutral oil

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 tbsp maple syrup or honey (optional for little ones)

• 1¼ cups wholemeal flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

• ½ tsp baking soda

• ½ tsp cinnamon

• Pinch of salt

📌 Other optional add-ins:

• A handful of blueberries or raspberries

• 1 tbsp hemp seeds or chia seeds

• A few mini chocolate chips (for older kids)

Instructions:

1. Preheat
   Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Line or grease a mini or standard muffin tin.

2. Blend wet ingredients
   In a blender (I use my Beaba Babycook Neo), add bananas, spinach, egg, milk, oil, vanilla, and maple syrup.
   Blend until completely smooth and green.

3. Mix dry ingredients
   In a bowl, whisk together wholemeal flour (I use Bob’s Organic Wholewheat Flour), baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

4. Combine
   Pour the blended green mixture into the dry ingredients.
   Stir gently until just combined. Avoid overmixing.

5. Fill tray
   Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling each about ¾ full.

6. Bake
   Bake 13–15 minutes for mini muffins or 16-18 minutes for standard muffins, until a toothpick comes out clean.

7. Cool
   Let cool in the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Nutrition Note: Does Baking Affect the Spinach Benefits?

Spinach lightly loses some vitamin C when baked, but the iron, fiber, and folate remain - and blending ensures even tiny eaters get greens in every bite. Pairing these muffins with fruit or yogurt adds a little vitamin C boost to help with iron absorption.

Ingredients:

Use bananas with plenty of brown spots for natural sweetness. Wholemeal flour keeps them hearty yet soft; if you prefer a lighter crumb, swap ¼ cup with oat flour. Leftovers freeze well. Simply reheat gently or steam to soften for toddlers.