Banana Bran Muffins

These are our favorite muffins at our house. And they are healthy. The kids don't know that and don't care, they just devour them. I have to tell my husband they are ONLY for breakfast and not to have for treats, otherwise they are gone by the end of the day. One of the nice things about this recipe is that it actually makes the amount it states. Many muffin recipes only make 8-9 muffins but this one makes 12 nice full moist delicious muffins. I try to double the recipe. I get 12 regular sized muffins and 24 mini muffins. I freeze half of them and put the rest in a tupperware container in the fridge.

Here is the recipe I got from EatingWell.com:

Banana-Bran Muffins

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/banana_bran_muffins.html

From EatingWell: Winter 2004, EatingWell for a Healthy Heart Cookbook (2008), The Essential EatingWell Cookbook (2004)

By the end of the week, any bananas left in the fruit bowl are past their prime—just right for these moist bran muffins. Add a handful of dark chocolate chips to entice children to enjoy a fiber-rich treat.

1 dozen muffins | Active Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas, (2 medium)
• 1 cup buttermilk, (see Ingredient notes)
• 1 cup unprocessed wheat bran, (see Ingredient notes)
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips, (optional)
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts, (optional)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat 12 muffin cups with cooking spray.
2. Whisk eggs and brown sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Whisk in bananas, buttermilk, wheat bran, oil and vanilla.
3. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the dry ingredients; add the wet ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips, if using. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups (they’ll be quite full). Sprinkle with walnuts, if using.
4. Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and spring back when touched lightly, 15 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen edges and turn muffins out onto a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

Nutrition

Per serving : 196 Calories; 6 g Fat; 1 g Sat; 3 g Mono; 36 mg Cholesterol; 32 g Carbohydrates; 5 g Protein; 4 g Fiber; 182 mg Sodium; 167 mg Potassium

2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 fat

Tips & Notes

• Ingredient Notes: You can use buttermilk powder in place of fresh buttermilk. Or make “sour milk”: mix 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar to 1 cup milk.
• Unprocessed wheat bran is the outer layer of the wheat kernel, removed during milling. Also known as miller's bran, it can be found in the baking section. Do not substitute bran cereal in this recipe.