Bran Muffins

Well, I was hoping to post something here while it was still May so I would at least have 2 posts in May, but that didn't happen. I have been focusing on finishing our school year well, and also on trying to exercise more regularly, so trying new recipes has taken a back seat for a time. I have wanted to post this recipe for a while though, because these are incredibly moist and delicious bran muffins! I used to think bran muffins were pretty much like cardboard until I tried these. This recipe is from Sue Gregg's Soups and Muffins cookbook, and we have enjoyed them for years.

Bran Muffins

Cover 1/2 cup of raisins with water and set aside to soften. This is an optional step and one which I usually skip.

1/2 cup very hot water
1 1/2 cups wheat bran

Blend together (I stir) and let stand for 5 minutes to soften bran

In large bowl, combine:

1 egg
1/3 cup honey
1 cup buttermilk (I use regular milk. For those with dairy allergies, use soy milk.)

When these ingredients are well blended, add:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (or whatever flour you have)
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Stir well and then add the bran/water mixture. It will look something like this:


Add raisins if using them, and blend just until raisins are mixed throughout. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. This recipe only yields 12 medium sized muffins, so I frequently double it.


If the batter does not look quite moist, add a bit more buttermilk or milk or soy (whatever liquid you're using) and /or a bit more honey.

Verdict: My husband, me, and 2 of our children love these muffins. The other 3 could take them or leave them. But since they are loved by more than half the family, I do and will make them! :-)

White Chocolate Cranberry Muffins

This is a recipe I found on Amy's the finer things in life blog. They looked so yummy and different than what I normally make, I just had to try them.

In a large bowl, mix:

1/3 cup oil
1 egg
1 cup orange juice

Stir thoroughly, then add:

1/3 cup sugar
2 cups flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Stir til moistened. Then add:

1 cup cranberries, chopped (I used dried)
1 cup white chocolate chips, chopped

Bake at 400 for 18-20 minutes. When I made this recipe it yielded 16 muffins.

Verdict: LOVED by me, hubby and 3 of the children. Liked by the other two. A keeper!

Rocky Mountain Muffins

Oh my goodness, these are so good!! They are from so many bunnies' blog, and are really leftover oatmeal muffins, but they decided to call them rocky mountain muffins because of the way they puff up in the oven. I didn't experience a huge puffing up in the oven, but they are lumpy looking on the surface because of the oatmeal, so I think the name fits! I'll give you her original recipe first and then tell you of the changes I made.

Rocky Mountain Muffins

2 1/4 cups white flour
2 1/4 cups wheat flour
3/4 cup leftover oatmeal
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 T baking powder (yes! 2 Tablespoons!)
1 cup milk
3/4 cup oil
3 eggs
cinnamon sugar for sprinkling on before baking

Mix all ingredients except cinnamon sugar in large bowl. Spoon into greased muffin tins. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Either freeze or bake. If frozen, bake at 350 for 20 minutes. If fresh, bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Here's what I did differently. I had well over a cup of leftover oatmeal from breakfast the other morning, but it wasn't oatmeal from the pan, it was the bits of oatmeal leftover in the bottom of everyone's bowls. If you think that's gross, I'm pretty sure the intense heat of the oven killed every possible germ that might have been in the there from my children's mouths. And if it still grosses you out, just don't eat rocky mountain muffins at my house! Because it was from the bowls and not the pan, it already had some milk in it. And because it was well over the called for 3/4 cup, I added things slowly and went more by the consistency than a strict following of the recipe. I can't do this with everything, but I've made enough muffins in my lifetime to know what a good muffin consistency looks like.

Instead of 2 1/4 cups of white flour and 2 1/4 cups of wheat flour, I added 3 cups of flour (it was white, though next time I'm going to try some whole wheat pastry flour) and 1 cup of dry oats. I love to substitute oats for flour whenever I can.

I used 2 eggs instead of 3, and I added the milk slowly and just stirred until it looked right, and ended up using less than 1 cup.

I also had to bake these for 20 minutes rather than the called for 15. My oven must run cooler than Mrs. Bunny's (Kathryn's) oven, because every recipe of hers that I've tried so far, I've had to increase cooking time.

The children could not WAIT to try these!! Everyone had one before bed and they were declared "delicious"!

Blueberry Corn Muffins

I got this recipe from the Sue Gregg Soups and Muffins cookbook. I own two of her cookbooks and they are excellent because not only are they full of good recipes, they also have several pages of tips for how to cook/bake gluten free, how and what to substitute, how to make your own broth cheaply, etc. She has a whole set of Eating Better Cookbooks. Someday I'd like to own all 8 of them!

Blueberries were on sale for $1 box a couple weeks ago so I bought several, and I thought this recipe might be a good way to use up the last box. Personally, I loved the taste of the corn and blueberries together. It was different. And they were moist! I hate it when baked goods turn out dry and crumbly, which has often been my experience with cornbread. The rest of my family gave them mixed reviews, however. They liked them, but not as well as "regular muffins".

Blend together:

2 eggs
1/2 orange juice
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp lemon extract (I didn't have any so left this out)

Blend dry ingredients together in separate bowl:

1 1/2 cups flour (she calls for whole wheat but you can use whatever you have)
3/4 cups cornmeal
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/8 tsp salt (I thought this was a weird measurement! who has a 3/8 tsp??)

Blend dry ingredients into liquid ingredients just until mixed. Gently fold in 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (I used fresh). Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes.

When I mixed the dry and liquid ingredients together, it didn't look like very much batter in the bowl. So I baked them in a tiny muffin cup pan so they would look like more than they were. Does anyone else do things like that?

Verdict: Because most of my family did not love these I probably won't follow the recipe exactly if I make them again. Four of the children said they liked the muffins, but not the blueberries. The presence of the blueberries made them think they were going to taste like regular blueberry muffins, and then they were disappointed when they didn't. One of the children loved the blueberries, but not the muffins. So in the future I think I will make these as just plain corn muffins and leave the blueberries out.

Banana Muffins and Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

For years I have used a delicious banana muffin recipe that I got from my sister Gayle to use up over-ripe bananas. The muffins always turn out incredibly moist and delicious, and are eaten up literally faster than I can make them. A few weeks ago I found another banana muffin recipe online which called for small chocolate chips. I decided to try it, because, who doesn't love chocolate chips??? :-)

I'll share the recipes with you and then tell you the verdict for which one my family members preferred.

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins (from somanybunnies blog)

1 cup sugar (I used sucanat instead, same amount)
1 egg
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
2 ripe bananas
3 T milk
1 cup whole wheat flour (can use 2 cups of whole wheat, or 2 cups of white, whatever you have)
1 cup white flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup small chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 375. Grease muffins tins. Cream butter and sugar for 3-5 minutes (I just stirred with a whisk instead). Add egg. Add bananas, mashed. Alternate adding dry ingredients and milk. Finally add chocolate chips. Scoop into muffins cups and bake for 10 minutes or until done (I found this was not nearly enough time and baked for closer to 20 minutes). OR, put muffin pans in freezer until batter is frozen, then put in ziploc bags and store in freezer until you are ready to bake them.



Banana Muffins (from my sister Gayle - sorry no blog! I wish she had a blog, she is amazing)


2 large bananas, mashed (I often use 3 instead)
Add 1.5 cups sugar (I add just under 1, and this time I used sucanat instead of white sugar)
Add in 1/2 cup butter, softened
Beat these together
Add 2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream (I have skipped this whenever I was out and they still turned out great)
Beat
Spoon in:
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 cups flour

Stir til well mixed. Spoon into muffin tins and bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

Since I used sucanat for both recipes this time, they turned out darker in color than they do when I use white sugar. With white sugar they are more golden in color.




I made each of these recipes a few days apart and then asked each member of the family which they preferred. Here are the results:

Husband: "I like them both, but I think I prefer the original recipe because it's so moist."

Daughter G: "I like them both but I think I like the first one a little bit more."

Son G: "I like them both the same."

Son L: "I like the chocolate chip one a little better."

Son C: "I like them both!"

Little Man: "I like them both too!"


So there you have it. Two winning recipes! You know what they say.....variety is the spice of life!