Buttermilk, Bran and Blueberry Muffins

Variety is the spice of life—and definitely a philosophy I follow daily.  I rarely eat the same dish every day, and quickly tire of monotony.  Injecting new ideas, flavours and foods into my repertoire is a necessity for me, along with learning about different cultures and cuisines.  Variety feeds my imagination.  Choosing unfamiliar ingredients from farmers’ markets and gourmet stores is one way I push myself to experiment and diversify.  But sometimes a vintage recipe makes a repeat appearance in my kitchen; like the Buttermilk, Bran and Blueberry Muffins below.  It’s perfect just the way it is (or rather, after some very minor adjustments).

I have mixed feelings about muffins.  The majority of muffins are more similar to cake than the healthy breakfast snack they have commonly been marketed as.  I’m talking about the fluffy gigantic ones you find on display at coffee shops and bakeries.  Yes, they are cleverly disguised by tempting ingredients like bananas, chocolate chips and blueberries, but are more commonly packed with tons of calories, fat and sugar than fiber and nutrients.  I dislike being duped by mass-marketing.  Terms like “contains real fruit”, “low fat” and “low carbs”, are loosely used on packaged foods these days—tempting us to buy them with their false claims.  I recommend substituting honey, stevia or coconut sugar for white sugar in most recipes.  Healthier substitutes for white processed sugar are widely available today and often don’t alter final results.  Note: half the amount of honey should be substituted for sugar because of its sweetness level (coconut / palm sugar works equally well as a substitute here). 

Buttermilk, Bran and Blueberry Muffins

Adapted from The New Light-hearted Cookbook, Anne Lindsay. 

Ingredients:

3 C Wheat Bran
2 C Whole Wheat
1/2 C Granulated Sugar—try substituting 1/4 cup honey or 1/2 cup coconut / palm sugar

1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
2 Eggs, beaten
2 C Buttermilk
1/3 C Safflower oil
1/2 C Blackstrap Molasses
1 C Fresh or frozen blueberries or other berry. If using frozen, do not thaw berries before adding to mixture.

Procedure:

In large bowl, mix together bran, flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. In another bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, oil, and molasses: pour into bran mixture and stir just enough to moisten, being careful not to over mix. Fold in berries.

Spoon into paper-lined large muffin cups (I use an ice-cream scoop for uniformly sized muffins), filling almost to top. Bake in 375F oven for about 25 minutes or until firm to the touch. Remove from oven and let stand for two minutes before removing muffins from tin.

Makes about 20 muffins

159 Calories per muffin and only 5 grams of fat!