Applesauce and honey-sweetened, these blueberry muffins are not only moist but are whole grain and delicious. An excellent source of dietary fiber that reduces your risk of type II diabetes and reduces inflammation.
Today’s recipe is dedicated to my friend Debbie who was asked for a healthy and delicious bran muffin recipe. If you’re looking for those jumbo-sized sugar-laden “mini-cakes” they sell at your local donut shop, this might not be the recipe for you. The thing is, I don’t have a major sweet tooth. Fortunately, this comes in handy when creating healthy baked good recipes because I actually prefer the subtle, natural sweetness that comes from ingredients like honey or natural applesauce. Is this going to be the sweetest muffin of your life? Probably not. But I promise it is moist and full of flavor.
Do you have wheat bran in your house? You should! It stores well and is loaded in health benefits. This unprocessed whole grain is an excellent source of dietary fiber that reduces your risk of type II diabetes and reduces inflammation. Incorporating wheat bran into your diet will reduce your risk of cancer and heart disease as well.
Whenever I bake with blueberries, I like to add in a little citrus zest such as the lemon I zested into my Lemon Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins. The natural oils from the citrus fruit is the perfect background flavor to accentuate all of the other ingredients. It won’t overpower your muffin, just provide a little something to make your friends go “Mmm….these are good!”
Your friends are waiting.
Moist Blueberry Bran Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ c wheat bran
- 1 c skim milk
- ⅓ c honey
- ½ c plain yogurt (low fat)
- ⅓ c natural applesauce
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ c whole wheat flour
- ½ c all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp orange zest (grated with microplane)
- ¾ c blueberries
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees and line muffin pan with muffin tins or spray with non-stick spray.
- Mix wheat bran with milk in a small bowl and set aside for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk together honey, yogurt, apple sauce, egg and vanilla.
- Stir in wheat bran/milk mixture.
- Add sifted flour (whole wheat and white), baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
- Gently stir in the orange zest and blueberries.
- Fill muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
- Serve warm or store in air-tight container for up to 7 days. These also freeze well.
I made these muffins this morning and they were fantastic! My picky two year old even gobbled them up. Bran muffins tend to be dry and flavorless. Not the case with these!
I’m so happy to hear it Barbara!
I would like to incorporate flax meal into this recipe – can you tell me how much I could use, and what it would replace in the recipe as written? Thank you!
Just swap it out with the bran :)