You’ll love these tremendous delicate and subtly spiced banana cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. To make sure the very best outcomes, use bitter cream, buttermilk, and extra-ripe bananas—these energy elements make all of the distinction on this cupcake recipe.

I initially printed this recipe in 2017 and have since added new pictures and extra success ideas, and now embrace a contact of baking powder for a lighter, much less dense cupcake.

This banana cupcake recipe is a scaled-down model of my (absolute very favourite!) banana cake. It boasts a super-moist texture, a delicate but dense crumb, and splendidly wealthy banana taste with a touch of cinnamon.

And, utilizing the proportions and ratio of elements under, produces actually excellent banana cupcakes.

One reader, Britt, commented: “That is my go-to recipe when I’ve overripe bananas. The cupcakes are critically so good and the cinnamon cream cheese frosting takes them to the following degree. I wish to sweet some pecans for an added crunch on prime. Everybody who has tried them has raved about them. ★★★★★“

One reader, Lisa, commented: “Introduced these gems to work for my coworkers they usually have been successful! A number of of us approached me to inform me they have been the very best banana cupcakes that they had EVER had. Fairly superb recipe. Large hit all the way in which round. Thanks Sally! ★★★★★”

Inform Me About These Banana Cupcakes

• Texture: These banana cupcakes aren’t as dense as banana muffins, however aren’t actually as gentle as vanilla cupcakes. As an alternative, they land someplace within the center. You’ll love how moist the crumb is just too—we’ve the butter, buttermilk, bitter cream, and all of the banana to thank for that!
• Taste: Every chew consists of banana, brown sugar, cinnamon, butter, and vanilla. (Among the finest flavors in baking!) All of it pairs so properly with the tangy cinnamon cream cheese frosting on prime.
• Ease: Apart from mashing the bananas (which is even simpler in the event you use your mixer), your complete course of is straightforward and simple. For those who make your individual buttermilk substitute, there may be one further step. See recipe Word under.
• Time: Put aside about 2 hours to finish this recipe, which incorporates prepping, baking, cooling, and adorning.

Don’t Skip These Key Components

Right here’s an outline of the elements you want and why every is vital.

• Flour: All-purpose flour serves as the bottom of those banana cupcakes. Don’t use cake flour as a result of it’s too gentle to assist the banana.
• Baking Soda + Baking Powder: These leaveners helps the cupcakes rise. For those who’re occupied with studying concerning the science behind these magic elements, see Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda.
• Bananas: You want 1 and 1/2 cups (345g) of mashed banana, which is about 4 medium or 3 massive bananas. Be sure the bananas are very ripe as a result of extra brown spots = sweeter banana taste.
• Butter: For that unparalleled buttery taste! Once you cream butter with sugar, you’re creating construction and incorporating air for a lighter, springier crumb.
• Brown Sugar: We love the combo of each brown sugar and granulated sugar in these cupcakes. Plus, the brown sugar provides extra moisture.
• Bitter Cream: Bitter cream creates a moist and tender crumb.
• Buttermilk: For finest style and to make sure correct rising, use buttermilk. For those who don’t have buttermilk available, see the recipe notes for a DIY buttermilk substitute.

You’ll additionally want eggs and some flavoring elements.

Can I Use Frozen Bananas?

Sure, frozen and thawed bananas work on this recipe and you’ll learn extra about the best way to freeze & thaw bananas for baking in the event you’d like. Two vital issues to recollect:

Pressure off extra liquid. As bananas thaw, they set free a whole lot of liquid, which might throw off the moist elements in any baking recipe. I at all times suggest draining off most or all of that extra liquid earlier than mashing and measuring them on your recipe.

The riper the banana, the higher. Once you bake with bananas, you wish to use brown, spotty super-ripe ones.

Success Ideas for Banana Cupcakes

1. Simple Mash: My staff and I make a whole lot of banana treats together with banana bread, chocolate banana bread, and complete wheat banana pancakes, and right here’s our greatest tip: mash the bananas utilizing your mixer. Peel and break aside the bananas, then place inside your mixing bowl and switch the mixer on to medium-high velocity. If utilizing a stand mixer, both the paddle or whisk attachment work for this. A blender or meals processor works as properly. Mashing bananas by hand with a fork works too, however takes a bit of arm muscle and further time. Switch the mashed bananas to a separate bowl—don’t even wash the mixer bowl. Simply place the butter/sugars inside and start creaming because the recipe instructs. Tremendous easy.
2. Don’t overfill: Fill your cupcake liners solely 2/3 full to keep away from the batter spilling over the edges and baking into unhappy mushroom tops. This recipe makes sufficient batter for 18 cupcakes, so line a second muffin pan with 6 liners, or you possibly can bake in batches.
3. Room temperature: All refrigerated objects ought to be delivered to room temperature so the batter mixes collectively simply and evenly. For those who’re , be at liberty to learn extra about why room-temperature elements are vital in baking.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

We’ll pair these banana cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Cinnamon and banana are a pure pairing and 1/2 teaspoon of the spice is the proper quantity on this frosting recipe. (Not an excessive amount of, not too little!) It’s loopy how such a tiny addition to common cream cheese frosting could make such a flavorful distinction. This frosting would even be implausible on prime of snickerdoodle cupcakes!

Bonus: this frosting pipes superbly. For the pictured cupcakes, I used piping tip Ateco #826, the identical one I used on these fairly pink strawberry cupcakes.

Different frostings we love: If cream cheese frosting isn’t your factor, conventional vanilla buttercream, chocolate buttercream, Nutella frosting, peanut butter frosting, salted caramel frosting, and even chai spice buttercream frosting all pair superbly with banana cupcakes.

For an non-obligatory garnish, I like topping these cupcakes with a sprinkle of crushed vanilla wafers (a nod to banana pudding!) and a banana slice:

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