The other day, I spotted a solitary ripe banana languishing on the counter. In my household, ripe bananas mean it’s time to do some baking! Rummaging through the fridge and pantry, I found some leftover homemade caramel sauce and an unopened bag of pecans, and the idea hit me: caramel banana pecan muffins! But of course, it’s hard to bake much with a single banana, so I bought a few more at the store. I ate a couple, they ripened to their prime baking state, I baked these muffins, and I found myself left with…a solitary ripe banana. D’oh! Right back where I started.
These caramel banana pecan muffins are like a cross between banana bread and sticky buns. I’ll give you a moment to imagine that and to start salivating…
The bananas give the muffins a deliciously moist crumb, the pecans provide a nice crunch, and the caramel infuses the tops with a lovely golden color and juuuust enough decadence to get your morning off to a delicious start. I tucked a bit of caramel sauce inside the muffins as well, but the batter absorbed it while baking: you can’t see the caramel, but the flavor is there, subtly dispersed throughout the muffins. If you want to see little pockets of caramel, I recommend cutting up caramel candies and sprinkling the pieces throughout the batter.
I adapted this recipe from Erin’s “healthy banana nut muffins” over at Well Plated by Erin. I daresay I un-healthified them a tad with the caramel sauce, but I slightly reduced the calories from sweeteners elsewhere, so maybe it almost balances out? Anyway, I also subbed light mayo for Greek yogurt, since I don’t typically buy Greek yogurt, but you can use whichever is more convenient for you. I know that baking with mayo may sound iffy—I was a bit wary the first time I tried it, but it resulted in one of my favorite coffee cakes of all time! You can’t taste the mayo at all in the finished product, I promise.
These caramel banana pecan muffins would make a great addition to a brunch spread…and as it happens, Mother’s Day is right around the corner! They also freeze well, so you can easily keep some around for those days when you need a little treat in the morning. Enjoy!
Omg these look so moist and gooey delicious!
Not going to lie – I’m a bit mesmerized by the golden, gooey caramel on top. I’m glad these caught your eye!
Definitely will make these – looks sooo delicious:))
Thanks! Let me know how they turn out
These look delicious! Wish I still had a few extra bananas around to try this
Thanks! If you don’t have fresh ones, I bet frozen bananas would work fine in this, by the way.
Life can totally be a vicious banana cycle sometimes lol. Guess you’ll have to make more of these muffins!! At least they’re all kinds of fabulous.
Haha yes, I love that, “a vicious banana cycle”!
I love muffins! And this looks so delicious!
Thank you, and thanks for stopping by
Oh my gosh I’m dying over these! They look so incredibly moist and gooey! That caramel on top is totally calling to me
The caramel is calling to me too…it’s irresistible!
OH WOW!!! I want these for breakfast!! YUM!!
Thanks! I hope you get a chance to make them
These look spectacular! I always make banana bread with my over-ripe bananas, not sure why I don’t think of muffins.
I like to peel over-ripe bananas, place individually in zip lock sandwich bags and hold in the freezer. Defrost 60 minutes prior to use.
Banana bread is my go-to recipe when I need to use up bananas as well, but the leftover caramel sauce in the fridge encouraged me to branch out this time! Freezing bananas is a great idea…my problem is remembering to use them eventually! Thanks for stopping by
Banana bread meets sticky buns? I am IN.
I’m glad to hear it! And thanks for creating such a lovely banana muffin recipe
Oh, CakePants, you have officially made me wish I had gobs of caramel oozing from the albeit delicious slice of banana bread I am enjoying for breakfast right now. What a great recipe! Perfect timing since I am very definitely in a banana phase right now.
Haha oh no, a classic “the grass is always greener…” situation, huh? I hope you get a chance to try these!
Holy Moly! These look out of this world amazing! Banana anything is my fav.
Thanks! I love baking with bananas.
Wow! These look just wonderful. That caramel looks too delish
Thank you! The caramel sauce is AMAZING. These muffins were my saviors – if it hadn’t been for them, I would have been eating the caramel sauce with a spoon.
Hello, thank you for stopping by my blog. This looks amazing and I have some left over Pecans, thank you for sharing, will try.
Thanks! I hope you like them as much as we do
Three of my favorite flavors, all in one muffin! These look great.
Thank you! This was the first time I’ve used those three ingredients/flavors together, but it certainly won’t be the last!
Mmmmm…you had me at caramel! You can never go wrong with a muffin and these look fabulous!
Thank you! Beware…this caramel sauce is downright addictive!
Oh my, those muffins look so delicious! Caramel + Bananas = Amazing! Love it!
Thank you! You really can’t go wrong with caramel and bananas, you know? Thanks for stopping by