Sweet Potato Banana Muffins

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These gluten-free Sweet Potato Banana Muffins have just four main ingredients and make a great snack for both kids and adults! 

sweet potato muffins for baby

*Originally published 2/2013. Updated 2025*

Hi Friends!

These are the very best Sweet Potato Banana Muffins and I developed this recipe way back in 2013. I previously called them Sweet Potato Banana Bites. They’re one of the first homemade snacks I made for all three of my kids when they first started eating solids and they’ve been a favorite each time. Now my kids are 6, 4 and 2 and I still make them several times a month! Watch my younger two make some to see how easy it is. 

Sweet Potato Muffins for Babies

All you need are four simple ingredients that you probably already have on hand – sweet potato, banana, peanut butter (or your favorite nut butter) and eggs. Then you can add your favorite mix-ins if you’d like – cinnamon and vanilla, chocolate chips, frozen blueberries etc. The thing I love most is that you don’t really even need to measure. I never do.

I grab a medium-large sweet potato, stab it a few times with a knife and throw it in the microwave for 5 minutes. Once it’s cooked, I slice it open, scoop the insides out into a bowl, add a medium banana and a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter and mash it all up. Mix in two eggs, a few shakes of cinnamon and a handful of chocolate chips and you’re done!

If you leave out the chocolate chips, there’s no added sugar so these moist mini muffins are perfect for baby-led weaning. I served them to my kids starting around 6 months. They’re a great way to introduce peanut butter and/or eggs- two common allergens. 

Sweet Potato Recipes For Toddlers – Kid-Friendly Muffins

I always make these as mini muffins which makes them perfect for toddlers. If you don’t have a mini muffin tin, use a regular one but don’t fill more than half full. There’s no baking soda like in most muffins. If you’re making for babyled weaning, I actually prefer a regular muffin tin filled just slightly because it makes them a little wider and flatter, easier for young hands to grab. Baking time should remain about the same.

I find my silicone muffin tin works best. If you use a metal pan, be sure each mini-muffin hole is well greased! I store these in the fridge because they are pretty moist and my kids and I eat them cold at snack time. (If you need them to be nut-free you can try sunflower seed butter.)

What Easy Recipe Mix-ins Can I Add?

Don’t want to use chocolate chips? Try adding raisins or chopped dates. Or mix in some ground flaxseed or hemp hearts.

Want more sweet potato recipes? Here are 20+ Baked Sweet Potato Recipes.

Why You’ll Love These Sweet Potato Banana Muffins

Gluten-free Sweet Potato Banana Muffin Bites

They’re even easy enough for toddlers to make themselves and perfect for getting kids in the kitchen since the recipe is so forgiving. Here’s a video of my oldest making them as a toddler!

 

Nutritional Benefits of Sweet Potatoes

These muffins are made with sweet potato which means they’re packed with nutrients. Sweet potatoes are a great source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and manganese. They also provide fiber and antioxidants.

Using sweet potatoes as the base of this recipe keeps them moist and adds natural sweetness along with the mashed banana.

Sweet Potato Bites (Muffins Alternative)

A few notes:

  • They’re not super sweet. There’s no added sugar except from the chocolate chips so make sure you use really ripe bananas
  • They’re gluten-free and dairy-free (as long as you use dairy-free chocolate chips if needed!
  • You can eat them for dessert, for an afternoon snack or before a workout
  • The recipe is very forgiving so your measurements don’t have to be exact. I never measure. I just eyeball it.

Sweet Potato Banana Recipes

This is my favorite way to combine sweet potato and banana, but you could also sub banana for maple syrup in my Sweet Potato White Bean Bars or Healthy Sweet Potato Cookies. If you have more bananas to use up, try these Banana Lentil Muffins.

How To Make Sweet Potato Banana Muffins

Here’s how you make them:

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Sweet Potato Banana Muffins

gluten-free sweet potato banana bites
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These gluten-free Sweet Potato Banana Bites have just four main ingredients and make a great snack for both kids and adults! 

  • Author: Lindsay L
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 14–16 mini muffins 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/2 c cooked, mashed sweet potato (approx 1 medium)
  • 1/2 cup mashed banana (approx 1 medium)
  • 1/4 c nut butter
  • 2 eggs
  • cinnamon, to taste
  • Optional mix-ins: dark chocolate chips, fruit, chia seeds, etc

Instructions

  1. Smash the sweet potato and banana together in a small bowl.
  2. Add the peanut butter, eggs and cinnamon & mix well.
  3. Stir in any additional mix-ins and spoon into greased mini muffin tins.
  4. Bake at 375 degrees for 18 minutes.

Feel free to customize by using your favorite nut butter. I’ve made them with peanut butter, almond butter and sunflower seed butter- all delicious.

Sweet Potato Banana Muffins FAQs

Can I use canned sweet potato instead of fresh in muffins?

Yes! Canned sweet potato can easily be used in this recipe. Feel free to substitute if needed.

How do I make gluten-free sweet potato banana muffins?

These muffins are naturally gluten-free since none of the 4 main ingredients contain gluten.

What can I use instead of eggs to make vegan sweet potato banana muffins?

I have made this recipe using applesauce to replace the two eggs but it makes the muffins almost overly moist and dense. My suggestion would be to replace with 1/4 cup applesauce and one flax egg.

How should I store sweet potato banana muffins to keep them fresh?

You can store these muffins in a container on the counter for a day or two. After that I would move them to the fridge to keep them from spoiling since they are so moist.

Can I bake this sweet potato banana muffin recipe as a loaf?

I wouldn’t recommend it. There’s no flour in this recipe and no baking soda to provide lift and this would result in a very dense flat loaf that might have trouble cooking all the way through.

Can I freeze sweet potato banana muffins and how do I thaw them?

Yes. Cool muffins completely and then transfer to a Ziploc or freezer-safe bag and freeze. To thaw simply transfer to the counter!

What’s a good substitute for bananas in sweet potato muffins?

Try subbing 1/4 cup applesauce for the banana if needed.

Sweet Potato Banana Muffins – No Added Sugar

These gluten-free Sweet Potato Banana Muffins or Sweet Potato Banana Bites have just four main ingredients and make a great snack for both kids and adults! 

You can also mix-in things like chia seeds or fruit instead of chocolate chips- I love mixing in frozen blueberries or fresh cranberries!

These Healthy Brownie Bites require just six ingredients, are healthy enough for a snack and also make a great dessert recipe!

Healthy Muffins

And If you’re looking for something like this that’s a little bit sweeter, you should definitely try my Healthy Brownie Bites! With just two extra ingredients, I transformed my sweet potato bites into a healthy, bite-sized chocolate dessert!

In the mood for more muffins? Try:

These Healthy Sweet Potato Cookies are packed with protein! They're gluten-free, made with real food ingredients and packed with protein and fiber. Enjoy them for breakfast or an afternoon snack!

Looking for more healthy snack ideas? Check out some of my favorites:

See all my snack recipes here.

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Just about all my favorite food items combined into one thing! Peanut butter, sweet potato, and bananas. Um, these need to be made asap! I can’t believe how awesome these bites look, I thought for sure there was going to be flour added to these!

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  2. These look awesome! I love that you didn’t add any sugar to the recipe. Sometimes things are too sweet to me, or have more sugar than the recipe actually needs and utilizing the bananas sweetness usually makes it so much yummier (to me). 🙂

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  15. I don’t have sweet potatoes on hand but I’m assuming I could sub pumpkin? That I am hoarding like there’s some apocalypse on the horizon. I might add a little chia to the mix too and at 62 calories for 12 servings (using pumpkin), I can totally get on board with those babies!

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  18. I’m so glad you posted this recipe. I’ve been thinking about things to make for Vishnu when’s he’s studying and wants a little snack or even a little something to satisfy my post-dinner sweet tooth. These will be perfect!

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  19. Clearly I made it known that I was one of those people super excited for this recipe 😉 And I am! I can’t wait to try them! I don’t have a mini muffin pan, just a regular one, so I’ll have to do a little experimenting too…

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  28. Yum! I love, love, love sweet potatoes. I would have never thought to combine them with peanut butter and chocolate chips to make muffins, though! I can’t wait to try them. I’m on a muffin kick lately, and recently made flourless peanut butter banana muffins that are pretty amazing. Thanks for sharing! 🙂

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  37. These look really tasty, but I do have one question. You say “half a sweet potato,” I have a 5 lb sweet potato sitting at my house. Do you think you could estimate the amount you used?

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  39. Hi Lindsay, an awesome recipe! I can’t wait to try it. But one question: did you mean 1/2 CUP of sweet potato or a half of a sweet potato for the batch of 12 mini muffins? It just looks like very little ingredients for even just 12 mini muffins. 🙂 Thanks!

    Reply

  51. Look so yummy, wish I could have some right now. LOVE sweet potatoes, have one w/ almond butter every morning, think I’d sub that instead of pb. (goes great w/ bananas too) Might try chia gel as substitute for eggs, and no chocolate chips (can’t eat chocolate). Maybe the chunky almond butter would make up for the texture.

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  54. I have been eating sweet potatoes with peanut butter every morning (is that weird?) so now i can’t wait to mix it up and try sweet potatoes this way! thanks for the recipe.

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  56. If you wanted to make these sweeter but still keep them relatively healthy, you could try adding 1/4 cup of high quality maple syrup or honey to the recipe…just a thought!

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  62. I love these! I substitute 3 flax eggs when I double the batch to make them vegan and they make the perfect, delicious snack!

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  63. I have one of the pickiest 2 year olds ever… He helped me make these this afternoon and proceeded to eat 2 of his “cupcakes” tonight. And I can see how I can vary this some and keep him interested. Thanks!

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  64. So, I’ve made these twice already and love them. I decided to make them tonight, but I forgot that I didn’t have a banana. I made them with avocado instead and I have to say, I love them, too. It really is good. They have a similar taste, but at the same time, it’s just a tad different.

    Reply

  66. I have been making endless huge batches of these as mini muffins for my toddler (and me…) for a full year — she and I both love them! Thank you for the awesome recipe! Oh, and I take them to my baby play dates, where they are gobbled up like candy 😉

    Reply

  67. Love the sweet potato banana bites. I just made them…I like them hot and am sure I’ll like them cool too. Thank you so much for your blog, FB page, you’re an inspiration!!

    Reply

  68. Just made these and I’m obsessed already! Definitely going to be trying the bar version next to top with fresh fruit and nut butters (aka the perfect breakfast). Thanks so much for the great recipe!

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  70. I’m in nursing school and doing the weekly food prep thing! Made these this week, Love stuff to bring to clinicals for my 15 min breaks between patients that keep me going! These are GOOD! I added the dark chocolate chips 😉

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  71. I have been wanting to make these for months! Finally got around to it tonight. I doubled the batch and added 1/4 cup of flax meal. Soooo delicious Lindsey!!! Thanks!

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  72. I have been wanting to make these for months! Finally got around to it tonight. I doubled the batch and added 1/4 cup of flax meal. Soooo delicious Lindsay!!! Thanks!

    Reply

  73. Holy moly these are in the oven baking now. I cannot wait to try them!! I replaced the peanut butter (since I only have the Jif on hand) with Peanut Butter & Co’s Dark Chocolate Dreams .. also so I didn’t have to add in chocolate chips. I sampled a little of the batter and SOOO good. Glad I found this recipe… I have been searching all morning for something with sweet potatos, bananas, and eggs in it. Thanks!

    Reply

  74. Thank you for this recipe! I have been making these for awhile for my toddler- we waited until after he turned a year to introduce grains/dairy and these are perfect. Of course I leave out the chocolate chips and sub chia seeds instead. Butternut squash puree works too in place of sweet potato. My older son likes them too!

    Reply

  77. Just reviewed this recipe for my blog today! I LOVED it – I have a hard time finding easy, pre-workout snacks that provide a good energy boost without being overly filling, but these little muffins worked perfectly.

    Love your blog, and I can’t wait to try more recipes! I also have a 5 month old, so I love seeing your adventures with Squish as well 🙂

    Reply

  78. So I think this recipe is amazing!!! my son has a nut allergy though and I would love to try these with him… what do you think would be a good substitute for the nut butter??

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  80. I want to try these but don’t have a mini muffin pan. How long should I bake them in a regular muffin pan? Thanks!

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  83. I made these tonight, and they are so yummy! I think I put too many dark chocolate chips (I know, I didn’t think it was possible!) I doubled the recipe and only had one mini muffin tin, so I made the rest in a small pan and cut into squares! So easy and yummy!

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  85. I love how these use banana as the natural sweetener. My 20 month old loves them with raisins and my very picky 4 year old loves them plain. I make for myself with dark chocolate chips and this has become our family fall favorite snack!

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      • Made last night – These are good, with a few disclaimers: they are not sweet, however I used a very fresh banana, so when I make them again I will use a browned banana and if you ever make them you should too. I think a slightly over-ripened banana will give it just the right amount of sweetness. I also used chopped pecans instead of chocolate chips and I used 1 tsp of vanilla instead of adding cinnamon. They are very healthy and ultra clean – just sweet potato, banana, peanut butter, 2 eggs, nuts and vanilla. They definitely have more of a muffin vibe than a “bite” vibe. They are great with coffee for a quick breakfast. I didn’t like them straight out of the oven, but love them room temp!

        Reply

  88. These are awesome! My sweet potatoes were sitting around for while so I’m sure with fresh potatoes they could be even BETTER. I used chunky PB too bc its all I had and I loved the nutty bites. Thanks LGB!

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  89. I’ve made these twice and love them!! Thanks for sharing this recipe. I use almond butter and through in some chia seeds and dark chocolate chips. Yummy!!

    Reply

  90. I have been looking high and low for sugar/dairy/gluten free chocolate chip cookie that tastes good-this is as close as it gets sooo goid! Thanks

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  92. I just made these and they turned out great! I left out the chocolate chips but added vanilla and dried cranberries. They’re nice and moist, almost custard-like. Thanks for the recipe!

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  95. HOLY WOW, these are AMAZING. Having toyed with paleo baking for a while, I was skeptical on these, but this recipe is truly perfection! Thank you so much for such a great little treat!

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  97. I’ll try these. Do they have to go to the fridge as soon as they cool down? How long can they be kept in the fridge for? Can they be frozen?

    Reply

  99. Just recently became gluten free/dairy free and have been attempting baking. This is by far my favorite recipe so far! What ate the two ingredients and amounts added to make your healthy brownie bites? Pretty sure that’s next on my to do list.

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  103. Looks delish!
    Do uou think these will taste ok with flax eggs instead of regular eggs?
    Can I make them in regular size muffin pan?

    Reply

    • I’m not sure about the flax eggs. I think the eggs are a crucial part of the texture…but it would definitely be worth a try. I’ve made them regular size and don’t like them as much but it can be done. I prefer mini because you get more of the firm/crispier edges all around.

      Reply

  106. I’ve been making these for a year now. I add shredded carrot and raisins for a ‘Morning Glory’ version. I eat them with most meals and for breakfast. Sometimes I’ll toast them in my cast iron skillet when making eggs and salad for dinner.

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  107. I am sure this is a question that has already been answered, but do I use natural peanut butter or does it need to be the thicker kind to make sure it sets right? Thanks!!

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  108. Hi Lindsay – so happy to have discovered your blog. I was looking for healthy recipes for my toddler who is happily exploring the exciting world of taste! I love that the recipes I’ve found here are easy, taste great, use healthy ingredients and no salt. This is perfect for our little guy. Today I tried these sweet potato banana bites as well as your spinach balls – both turned out amazing. He is devouring one of the bites as we speak 😀 Thanks for posting these!

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  110. These were delicious! I was in a snack rut with my three and five year olds. They gobbled them up! Thanks!

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  111. I really enjoy these! My husband says they are “super healthy” tasting, but I think they are just perfect for a snack or quick breakfast. I have used peanut butter and cashew butter with great results. Love eating them straight from the fridge! Thanks!

    Reply

  113. I made these last year and was not a fan, but decided to give them a second chance today and loved them this time! I agree with a prior comment that recommends using a ripe banana. I think the first time I made them the banana I used wasn’t ripe enough and I didn’t mash the sweet potatoes enough so they weren’t sweet enough and had an off texture. I’m hooked now though – thanks for another great recipe!!!

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  115. Turned out GREAT!! thank you soo much. I put a little more bananas so they turned out a little watery but i added a little flour and was great. Will make it again!

    Reply

  116. This is an awesome recipe. I have changed it up to include carrot and coconut threads to improve the texture. I omit the eggs so they are vegan and gluten-free.

    Reply

  117. Made these for the first time about a month ago. I have made 4 batches so far and these do not last more than 2 days in the house between the kids and my Husband! New staple for healthy grab snacks! Also very moist!

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  118. Made these for the first time about a month ago. I have made 4 batches so far and these do not last more than 2 days in the house between the kids and my Husband! New staple for healthy grab snacks! Also very moist!

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    • my kids eat them within a day or two so i leave them out. They are very moist so if it’s warm out, it’s a good idea to refrigerate to keep them from molding.

      Reply

  121. Wow didn’t have the highest of hopes for these to be honest, but had leftover sweet potato and just wanted minimal ingredients. AMAZING! Choc chips are a must – I used no sugar Noshu mini choc chips and they were perfect! Been struggling to get veggies into my toddler so this’ll be on rotation for me (he demolished them)! Thank you (:

    Reply

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