These Banana Cupcakes are moist, packed with banana flavor, and topped with a delicious brown butter cream cheese frosting.

There is something so hearty and comforting about banana cake, and these fluffy banana cupcakes are no different. They are so soft and moist with the perfect banana flavor from real bananas.
Anything with delicious banana flavor always goes well with tangy cream cheese frosting, but this takes it to the next level with brown butter cream cheese frosting which is just out of this world. I also use this combo in my Brown Butter Banana Bread recipe, but these perfect banana cupcakes are also cute and portable.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Super moist banana cupcakes
- A great way to use overripe bananas
- The brown butter frosting gives an indulgent, sophisticated flavor.
Ingredients and Substitutions
These easy banana cupcakes require some pretty basic ingredients.
- Bananas - For best results, you want super brown bananas. An extra ripe banana gives the best banana flavor!
- Butter - Use unsalted butter so you can control the amount of salt. Or if you use salted butter then just leave out the excess salt.
- Sugar - Regular white sugar for sweetness and structure.
- Light Brown Sugar - The light brown sugar will add a caramel note and some moisture to the cupcakes.
- Eggs - Use large eggs, free range if possible.
- Vanilla - Vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste will add a tasty base for the banana cupcakes.
- Flour - Use all-purpose flour to give enough structure to the cupcakes. Cake flour would make them too soft and fragile.
- Cinnamon - You won't really taste the spice, this will just add a hint of cinnamon and a very slight warmth.
- Milk - Use whole milk for nice, fluffy cupcakes with a tender crumb.
- Oil - Use vegetable oil or any flavorless oil for extra moisture.
- Cream Cheese - For the brown butter frosting, use full-fat cream cheese.
- Powdered Sugar - Also for the frosting, you can adjust the quantity according to preference.
Make sure the butter, eggs, milk, and cream cheese are all at room temperature before beginning.
See the recipe card for quantities and full instructions.
How to Make Banana Cupcakes
This is seriously the best banana cupcake recipe you'll ever try. It's super easy to make and makes the most delicious cupcakes.
Mash Bananas
Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
Peel and mash the bananas until they are as smooth as possible.
You can do this in a small bowl with a fork, or in a stand mixer. If you use the mixer, transfer the bananas to a separate bowl before proceeding to the next step (no need to wash the bowl).
Cream Butter and Sugars
Cream the butter, white sugar, and light brown sugar together at medium speed until fluffy.
Add Eggs
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating in between each addition.
Add Bananas
Add the mashed banana and the vanilla into the bowl and mix until combined.
Dry Ingredients
Sift the dry ingredients, including flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, into a large bowl and mix to combine.
Pour half of the flour mixture into the cupcake batter and mix on low speed.
Wet Ingredients
Add the milk and oil to the mixture and mix until incorporated.
Remaining Dry Ingredients
Add the rest of the flour mixture into the batter and mix on low speed until smooth.
Fill paper Liners
Pour or scoop the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them ¾ full.
I like to use a large cookie scoop so they are all the exact same size.
Bake
Bake the banana cupcakes for 18-20 minutes, or until they are slightly springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Let them cool in the muffin tins for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool.
Measuring Ingredients: I always recommend weighing your ingredients with a kitchen scale, rather than using measuring cups. It's very difficult to measure accurately with cups and this can mess up your bakes.
Make the Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Brown butter cream cheese frosting is my favorite frosting for fall desserts and warm flavors. It goes so beautifully with these homemade banana cupcakes and it comes together really easily.
Follow these links to get the steps to easily make your own brown butter and the full recipe for brown butter cream cheese frosting.
How to Decorate Banana Cupcakes
Once you have nice, cooled cupcakes, and your brown butter frosting is ready, it's time to decorate!
There are so many ways you can do this, but I feel like the amazing flavor makes these cupcakes really speak for themselves, so you don't need to do anything fancy with the decoration. The little brown specks of the brown butter in the frosting are also so pretty and I don't like to distract from that too much.
I like to keep it simple with just an elegant dollop of frosting on top of each cupcake.
The cream cheese frosting is quite soft, so it's not great for piping intricate designs or swirls. If you do want to pipe a swirl, you can add more powdered sugar to the frosting to make it stiffer, but this will make it quite a bit sweeter.
To achieve the look I have in the photos, simply put your brown butter cream cheese frosting in a piping bag and cut a hole in the end about an inch thick. Gently squeeze and release the frosting on top of the cupcakes as you pull up to get the tiered look.
To finish off you can add a banana chip or banana slice to each cupcake. Just be aware the fresh banana slices will go brown fairly quickly, so this only really works if you are serving them immediately.
Variations
Chocolate Chip Banana Cupcakes - Try adding some dark chocolate chips to your cupcake batter for an extra touch of decadence.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting - If you don't like the sound of brown butter frosting, try cinnamon cream cheese frosting instead.
Chocolate Banana Cupcakes - Banana and chocolate is a great match, try adding my Easy Chocolate Buttercream frosting on top.
Equipment
- Muffin Pan
- Stand Mixer - With a paddle attachment fitted. You could also use an electric mixer and large mixing bowl.
- Saucepan - If you plan to make the brown butter cream cheese frosting, you'll need a saucepan to brown the butter.
Storage
Store your banana cupcakes in an airtight container.
Once the cupcakes are frosted, they will need to be kept in the refrigerator. They will be good for 3-4 days.
Unfrosted cupcakes can be kept at room temperature for up to 5 days.
More Banana Recipes
If you love the flavor of bananas, try some of these other banana desserts:
Recipe
Banana Cupcakes
Equipment
- Cupcake pan
Ingredients
For the Banana Cupcakes
- 3 Medium Bananas about 300 - 350g (very ripe)
- 2 sticks Butter 227g
- 1 cup White Sugar 200g
- 1 cup Light Brown Sugar 220g
- 4 Large Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 ¾ cups All-purpose Flour 330g
- 3 teaspoon Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ cup Vegetable Oil 55g
- ½ cup Milk 120g
For the Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 sticks Butter 227g
- 12 oz Cream Cheese 340g
- 5 cups Powdered Sugar 600g*
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Make the Banana Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
- Mash the bananas up either with a fork or in a stand mixer.If using a mixer, there's no need to clean the bowl before the next step, just put them in a separate bowl and set aside.3 Medium Bananas
- Beat the butter together with the white sugar and light brown sugar until fluffy.2 sticks Butter, 1 cup White Sugar, 1 cup Light Brown Sugar
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time.4 Large Eggs
- Add the mashed bananas and vanilla extract, mix until combined.1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- In a large bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients and stir together. Then add half of the flour mixture to the cupcake batter and mix on low speed until combined.2 ¾ cups All-purpose Flour, 3 teaspoon Baking Powder, ½ teaspoon Baking Soda, ½ teaspoon Salt, 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- Add the oil and milk, then mix slowly until totally incorporated.¼ cup Vegetable Oil, ½ cup Milk
- Add the remainder of the flour mixture and mix until combined.
- Divide the cupcake batter between the cupcake liners, filling them ¾ full.
- Bake for 18 - 22 minutes, or until they are slightly springy and a skewer inserted comes out clean.
- Remove the cupcakes from the oven and let them sit in the pan for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool.
- Decorate with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting.
Notes
It really helps and I love hearing all your feedback!
Lewis Dickson
These muffins always go down a hit!
Carla Callan
Great recipe - thanks! Going to try the chocolate banana variation! ❤️