Honey Orange Bran Muffins

A bran muffin that doesn’t taste like cardboard? Yes, it’s possible. And delicious. And healthy.

A few things I love about these muffins:

1. They’re delicious! Seriously, I want to eat them all the time.

2. My little boy loves to help me make them. He stirs up all the dry ingredients, and usually doesn’t even spill much because we use a giant bowl!

3. They’re actually pretty good for you! They have a fair amount of protein from the Greek yogurt and the eggs, plus the whole grains which have some protein. And they’re made with whole grains! Lots of fiber and other goodness! There’s very little processed sugar because the honey and orange zest give them flavor and sweetness. Oh, and honey is also super good for you!

4. They’re pretty quick to make, and then you have breakfast/snacks for several days. They also freeze pretty well, so you could make a big batch and freeze them, and then just pop them a few in the toaster oven as needed.

Okay, done with my rant about why these muffins are great. On to how to make them:

The first thing you’ll want to do is zest an orange. You can use a box grater, a citrus zester, or this awesome grater I got from Ikea. (sorry for the random product shout out, but seriously, it’s grate. I mean great.)

A little tip for zesting: Try not to push too hard. You don’t want to get too much of the lighter pulpy part under the peel because it tends to be more bitter.

Next you’ll mix all the dry ingredients – oat bran, whole wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt – in a large bowl. Mix the wet ingredients – yogurt, eggs, vanilla, oil, honey, and orange zest – in a smaller bowl.

Pour the wet ingredients into the larger bowl with the dry ingredients, and mix together with a wooden spoon. Just mix until all the dry ingredients are wet – don’t over mix or mix too vigorously. (I don’t let my two-year-old do this part.)

(Not quite mixed enough yet)

If you’re adding any fruit, gently fold it in. Then spoon the batter into a muffin pan lined with paper liners. Fill each one about 2/3 full.

Bake in the oven at 375 for 12-15 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes in the muffin pan, then move to a cooling rack.

Honey Orange Bran Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup oat bran
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 cup honey
zest of 1 orange (1-2 Tbsp)

1. Preheat oven to 375. Mix bran, flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl.

2. Mix yogurt, oil, vanilla, eggs, honey, and orange zest in a smaller bowl.

3. Gently fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Mix with a wooden spoon until just combined, and all dry ingredients are wet. (If you’re adding any fruit, add it now.)

4. Spoon batter into a muffin pan with paper liners, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. Remove from oven, and let cool a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Yield: About 1 dozen muffins.

Mix in 1 cup of blackberries or blueberries, 1/2 cup craisins, or 1 tsp cloves for variety! (If you add 1 cup of fruit, you will get about 18 muffins instead of 12.)