WHOLE BRAN MUFFINS
The frozen tundra continues in the Midwest, with Chicago barely clawing its way to zero degrees and seemingly delighting in a windchill of -15. Lovely. Truly. As someone still recovering from recent Winter PTSD (and past Midwest travel disasters that left me trying every which way to get home – hello only seat left on a flight, I declared another cozy home day mandatory.
And when in doubt, bake.
It’s been so long since I baked anything. Like many people, I went full pandemic bake-mania in 2020, which eventually led me back to Weight Watchers with my tail between my legs. Ahem. It was a good run.
Servings
12
Ready In:
Bake time: 25 minutes. Total time: 12 hours 45 minutes (mostly waiting and wondering)
Good For:
Breakfast
Inroduction
About this Recipe
This time, I landed on Bran Muffins—somewhat healthy, pleasantly not-too-sweet (a personal requirement), and with the added side benefit of regularity. You know what I mean. Let’s all be adults here.
One small warning I somehow missed: the batter needs to be refrigerated overnight. So this turned into a two-day baking project. But honestly? Worth it. Anticipation builds character. Or at least muffins.
Adapted from a King Arthur Baking Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 1/2 cup whole bran cereal
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup raisins
- 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
Step by Step Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, pour the boiling water over 1/2 cup of the bran cereal. Let it cool, then mix in the canola oil and egg.
- While that cools, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the raisins—because bran muffins without raisins feel a little sad.
- In a large measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and brown sugar. Stir this into the dry ingredients.
- Add the remaining cereal, then fold in the softened bran mixture.
- Cover the batter and refrigerate overnight. Go to bed feeling virtuous and slightly smug.
- The next day, preheat the oven to 375°F and line a muffin tin with papers.
- Stir the batter once or twice, then scoop a heaping 1/4 cup into each muffin cup.
- Bake for 20–25 minutes, until a tester comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing. Try not to eat one immediately. (You will fail.)
Enjoy with your morning coffee and the quiet satisfaction of having made a responsible baked good.
I gave half of these muffins to a friend, and she absolutely loved them—so it’s not just me trying to justify bran. These will definitely be made again.
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