hungry poodle

The influx of cookbooks that I recently wrote about has yielded its first bona fide gem–a delicious, healthy, bran muffin. Indeed, this is the very best bran muffin I’ve ever made.

Despite their claims for healthfulness, bran muffins generally have a tendency to be unpalatably dry and heavy, unless, of course, they’re laden with butter, in which case it doesn’t matter how much bran is in them. They’re calorie bombs!

“Good to the Grain,” (winner of this year’s James Beard award for best baking book) is comprised of all whole grain recipes. The author, Kim Boyce, is a master at whole grain baking.

I am a convert after making these muffins twice, first as full-sized muffins and then as mini-muffins.

The original recipe calls for mostly whole wheat flour plus 1/2 cup of amaranth flour,  which Kim says may put some people off with its grassy taste.

I am one of those people. I gave it the old college try on the first batch, only to discover that there is a reason why amaranth flour isn’t more universally known. It tastes like livestock fodder.

But I remained undaunted. After all, this was a major award winning cookbook.  I tried again using all whole wheat flour, and bingo. Bran muffin nirvana.

For this recipe, which is adapted from “Good to the Grain,” you make a prune puree by steeping prunes in orange juice. Yes, it’s an extra step, but it takes only a few moments to do and it’s what gives the muffins their very moist texture despite the fact that there’s only 3 tablespoons of butter in the entire batch.

This yields exactly 48 perfectly plump, moist mini-muffins, which you can freeze and grab as needed. Or you can make 12 regular muffins and have your baking done in one fell swoop.

Best Bran Muffins…Ever

1 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cups pitted prunes

1 1/2 cups unprocessed wheat bran
2 cups buttermilk

Dry ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 T. dark brown sugar
1 1/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. cinnamon

Wet ingredients:
1/2 cup molasses
3 T. unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 egg
1 T. orange zest
1/2 cup raisins, optional but good

Bring the orange juice and the prunes to a boil in a small pan. Turn off heat, cover and allow to steep until prunes are plump, about 30 minutes. Puree the mixture with either an immersion blender or a food processor until smooth. Mixture will be very thick.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Measure wheat bran into a medium bowl and stir in the buttermilk; set aside to allow the bran to soften.

Stir the dry ingredients together in a large bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl whisk together the wet ingredients and add 1/2 cup of the prune puree. Add this to the softened bran and stir well. Then add this wet mixture to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Gently fold in raisins, if using.

Spray 12 regular muffin tins or mini-muffin tins with nonstick spray and scoop batter in. For the regular muffins, fill all the way to the top with a slight mounding in the center. For the mini-muffins, I used a 2 T. ice cream scoop.

Bake regular muffins 30 to 34 minutes, or until golden brown. Bake mini-muffins about 12 minutes.

Allow muffins to cool in their tins for a few minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack.

NOTE: The prune puree yields enough for 3 batches of muffins. I measured out the two extra 1/2 cup portions and froze them for later.

for mini-muffin (7 for regular-sized)

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When I was a kid my mother’s frequent ploy to awaken me on school mornings was to fling open my bedroom door and call out in her cheeriest, wide-awake voice, “Good morning, Glory!”

Minerva was an early riser and by the time she came down the hall to awaken me, she’d had at least two cups of coffee. Looking back, I’m sure that’s why she was so full-of-life and I, so not.

Fast-forward 50 years and here I am looking for a muffin recipe that could serve as a grab-and-go breakfast, like the breakfast cookies, that you can toss into your purse (or manly receptacle) on your way out the door on busy mornings.

The following recipe hails from Cooking Light Magazine. It’s relatively healthy, considering it’s a muffin. (Alas, muffins are really just the older, more mature, siblings of cupcakes, minus the frivolous frosting.)

This version contains no added oil or butter yet is moist due to the mashed banana and yogurt. Since it’s low in fat, I suggest freezing your leftovers in a ziplock bag to keep them fresh.

NOTE: I wasn’t going to post this recipe, as its very low fat nature rendered the muffins just a tad bit rubbery in texture, at least by my estimation. But when I brought them to a Weight Watchers meeting, they were met with universal raves and requests for the recipe. Apparently I have far too discerning a palate.

For another muffin recipe that rocks beyond belief, see the Good, Better, Best Bran muffins. They require more work than these and are slightly higher in calories, but I consider them to be the quintessential breakfast muffin.

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup regular oats
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 T. wheat bran
2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1 cup plain fat-free yogurt
1 cup mashed ripe banana (about 2)
1 large egg
1 cup chopped pitted dates (or raisins)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts (Pecans, perhaps?)
1/2 cup chopped dried pineapple (I substituted fresh blueberries)
3 T. ground flaxseed (about 2 T. whole)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 18 muffin cups with nonstick spray.

Stir together flours, oats, brown sugar, wheat bran, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Combine yogurt, banana and egg; add to flour mixture and stir just until moist. Fold in dates, walnuts and pineapple.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups and sprinkle with flaxseed. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until muffins spring back when lightly touched.

Remove from pans immediately and allow to cool on a wire rack.

Note: I adapted this recipe in the following ways: I’m not a huge fan of dried pineapple, so I substituted 1/2 cup fresh blueberries instead. Worked great. I also didn’t have any flaxseed for sprinkling on top of the muffins. You can substitute raisins for the dates, or mixed dried fruit, as you see fit. You don’t have to use walnuts either. Remember, muffins are highly adaptable. They’re mature, remember?

Yield: 18 muffins

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This morning I arose at 4:30 am to watch the royal wedding live on TV. In honor of merry old England, I also made mini-scones and took them to my Friday morning Weight Watchers meeting.

I was concerned that they might not be very tender, as there is very little butter in them. And although no one in a blind taste test would mistake them for Starbucks scones, they had a unique texture that was almost universally enjoyed. People asked for the recipe.

I am honored to say that the recipe hails from wunderkind cook, Rachel Ciordas, “Dean of Deliciousness” at the Culinary Center of Kansas City. Rachel said that she developed the scones from Irish soda bread, and indeed, they reminded me of soda bread: not too sweet, wheaty, substantial.

Low-Fat Orange Cherry Mini-Scones

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
2 T. cold butter
2 cups whole wheat flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour)
1/4 cup regular rolled oats
1 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk
1 t. vanilla extract
1 T. grated orange zest
1/2 cup chopped dried cherries
1 egg white
2 T. Turbinado sugar (sugar in the raw)

Combine all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or fork until mixture forms fine crumbs. Stir in whole-wheat flour, oats and cherries.

Combine buttermilk, zest and vanilla and add to dry mixture, stirring gently and just enough to form a dough. If mixture seems too dry, add a touch of buttermilk just until dough holds together. The dough shouldn’t be too sticky. Mix with hands briefly if necessary.

Turn dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and pat into an 8-inch square. Cut dough into 30 small triangles or wedges and separate wedges just slightly on the sheet. Brush egg white over dough and sprinkle evenly with turbinado sugar. Bake at 400° for 13 to 15 minutes or until golden. Remove from pan; cool 2 minutes on wire racks. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Rachel says that you can use raisins instead of cherries, in which case you might want to eliminate the orange zest and add 1 t. cinnamon.

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The boys working on the house have been eating a lot of mini-muffins the last few days. It’s gotten to where I’m almost apologetic when I foist another version on them. So far they’ve been troopers, willingly sampling each one and volunteering their comments.

Here’s the one that met with the most favor. It hails from a new cookbook by New York Times food writer, Mark Bittman, “The Food Matters Cookbook.”  Bittman’s book features recipes that are good both for you and the planet. Most of them are based on vegetables, fruits and whole grains.

I first made these muffins exactly as written, with the exception that I made mini-muffins instead of the standard size. We all found them to be not quite sweet enough. So much for Bittman’s honorable attempt to get us to eat  less sugar.

I bumped up the sugar and they were still not sweet enough. Wow. This signals a serious collective sweet tooth. Finally I used packed brown sugar instead of white, and that did it. Sweet enough, light, delicious.

You hard-core health enthusiasts can go with the original amount of sugar, but I’m sticking with this recipe. I’ve provided Bittman’s amounts in parenthesis. Use your own judgment, but bear in mind that five hard working guys signed off on my version. Need I say more?

I like to make mini-muffins and freeze them. Then I can stick two in a zip-lock bag as I head out the door and have a great snack for later on with coffee or tea.

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, preferably pastry flour (which is what I used)
1 cup packed brown sugar (Bittman: 3/4 cup white sugar)
2 t. baking powder
1 t. ground ginger (use cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice if you prefer)
1/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup pureed or mashed sweet potato (I used canned and drained)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease two mini-muffin pans. In a large bowl, mix together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, ginger, soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the butter, oil, sweet potato, egg and buttermilk. Fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix just until combined.

Fill muffin cups at least 3/4 full. I used a #40 ice-cream scoop, which holds a generous tablespoon of dough. Bake mini-muffins about 11 to 12 minutes, until lightly browned. Serve warm.

Makes 36 mini-muffins.

2 poodles

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At each weekly Weight Watchers meeting members receive a handout with information regarding that week’s topic, plus recipes and coupons. Last week’s recipe was for raisin bran muffins, and although I have dozens of bran muffin recipes, I decided to give these a try. I’m always curious as to how recipes developed by Weight Watchers stand up to those from less health-minded sources.

What a pleasant surprise! These were actually better tasting than the ones I recently made from Cooks Illustrated Healthy Family Cookbook. Evidently, the recipe developers at Weight Watchers are up to the task of offering healthy as well as delicious fare.

The original recipe called for chopped raisins. I used dried cranberries, which I first soaked in hot water to soften and dried on paper towels. I didn’t bother to chop them, although I think that might make the muffins even more moist. Give it a try if you don’t mind the extra step. WW suggests spraying your knife with cooking spray to keep the raisins from sticking.

I also made 30 mini-muffins instead of 12 large ones, as I like to freeze them for later, on-the-go snacks. I highly recommend keeping some of these on hand. They’re so much better tasting than store-bought, and they’re really good for you!

All you need to go with these two mini-muffins is a Starbucks nonfat latte!

1 cup whole wheat flour
2/3 cup unprocessed wheat bran
1/4 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup raisins, chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 12-muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, bran, salt, baking soda and cinnamon and set aside.

Using a hand-held electric mixer, cream butter and brown sugar in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved. Add egg and beat thoroughly. Add 1/3 bran mixture and 1/3 cup buttermilk and mix until just combined. Repeat, alternating with remaining bran mixture and buttermilk. Fold in raisins.

Fill each muffin cup about 2/3 full with batter and bake until browned, about 15 to 20 minutes. If using mini-muffin cups, this recipe yields about 30 mini-muffins, which bake for about 10 minutes.

Makes 12 muffins or approximately 30 mini-muffins

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