Classic Bran Muffins

When we were staying at Primary Children's with the Bean in her first few weeks on earth, we were kind of in survival mode. We ate whatever was around, if we even had time and remembered to, and usually what we ate was not remotely nutritious. But the wonderful people at Primary Children's seemed to know that this was pretty typical, and every morning, a breakfast cart came to the NICU, offering quick, easy breakfast options, including bran muffins. I had never been a fan of bran-anything, but my nutrient-starved body began craving these bran muffins every day. They were moist and hearty, kept me full for hours, and tasted pretty good but still had a healthy, lower fat and low sugar taste that I realized I was really missing. Since then, I've been trying to replicate their recipe, and in the process, have stumbled across terrible bran muffin recipes and mediocre ones. These, while not the same as the hospital ones, are delicious, and are so easy to make. And Iris and Shaun both love them! 

• 1 1/2 cups wheat bran
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1 egg
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
2. Mix together wheat bran and buttermilk; let stand for 10 minutes.
3. Beat together oil, egg, sugar and vanilla and add to buttermilk/bran mixture. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into buttermilk mixture, until just blended. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins.
4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

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